Unveiled

Give it to Randy Singer to show no fear in tackling a controversial and emotionally loaded subject like gun control in his latest suspense thriller, The Justice Game. There is a depth to this book that can only be explained by Singer’s real life experience in 1988 when he was involved in the longest trial in Virginia bar history. In that case he served as the attorney for a family suing a local gun store for selling a gun illegally used in the shooting and death of their son. Though Singer’s children were not present that day, the shooting occurred at their school.

The two driving characters of this story are Jason Noble, representing the defendant (MD Firearms), and Kelly Starling, representing the plaintiff (the widowed husband of a news reporter killed by an illegally purchased hand gun). Casting a huge but virtually unseen shadow over the trials is Justice Inc., an elusive consulting firm run by Roger Sherwood. It isn’t giving away too much to say that both Jason and Kelly have much to owe to Sherwood for their quick rise to national attention. The plot twists come fast and furious driving the story toward its dramatic conclusion. The ending is necessary to resolve the dilemma imposed on the main characters but how that resolution comes about is totally unexpected.

Crime and gun control are not black and white issues and neither are the characters in The Justice Game. Both attorneys are haunted by secrets that may unravel their fast tracked careers. The owner of MD Firearms is not some cigar smoking sleeze-bag but rather a woman who adamantly believes it is her right if not duty to manufacture guns for people’s protection (she herself the victim or rape as a teenager). Even the ultimate antagonist is not the powerful and totally evil villain expected but rather somewhat pathetic and belatedly remorseful.

A number of themes drive this story on a much deeper level than the trial itself. Foremost among them is the effect hidden wrongs can have years later. Supposedly buried sins and unresolved conflicts have a way of resurfacing at the most inopportune moments. Publisher’s Weekly wrote, “Singer is every bit as enjoyable as John Grisham.” I would go a step further and say that Randy Singer is more satisfying. While the legal process is riveting, it is the nature of man’s heart that Singer explores with the spotlight of God’s word in an unobtrusive yet powerful way.