Fifty Fifty. Wow. Irish writer Steve Cavanagh hit the name on the head with this one; it is already a Sunday Times Bestseller, Number 10. This book has only just come onto the shelves on the 3rd September 2020; which is why I am going to leave this review, spoiler-free.
It is a superb legal thriller, which takes place in New York City, mainly switching between the perspective of three main characters; Eddie, Kate and She (obscure, I know). At first, I thought it might be a bit difficult to follow due to the fact I have never read a legal thriller before. But then I thought about how much I loved Suits (even though I still to this day have no clue what a Motion to Decertify Class means). But I was wrong; I was able to follow every line. Cavanagh's history in practising law was well used in this book. The complexity of the legal jargon did not hinder the telling of the story; in fact, it improved it. I read as the two defence teams, and the prosecutor played a relentless game of tennis back and forth with the evidence and the witnesses. Each time one of the defence teams would question a witness with the intent of setting them up for a fall later, it would remind me of being in a club. The beat is pulsing. Eddie was interrogating the witness. The atmosphere is electric. The courts eyes trained on every bead of sweat running down the witnesses face. Everyone is waiting for the base to drop. The juries eyes narrow cautiously anticipating Eddies next strike. They know the beats about to drop but not quite when. But when it eventually does, the whole court goes wild.
Fifty Fifty was the first book of Cavanagh's I have read, and I was not disappointed. It wasn't aware it was the fifth of a series of Eddie Flynn books until I was partway through. However, I think this speaks to the fantastic ability of world-building, which Cavanagh was able to achieve. At any point in the novel, I did not feel like I was out of the loop or confused. Fifty Fifty definitely works as a stand-alone as well as one part of a greater whole. Orion did a great job publishing this book; it is gripping, chilling and fascinating. It suits their ambition to take "brand authors to even greater heights". Cavanagh's brand is definitely legal thrillers, and since he is on his fifth book of the series, I would say that Orion is helping him reach those heights and more. Orion is a very relational based publisher which takes authors from their debut and helps them achieve their dreams by assisting them to make an "impact beyond that first book".
But I haven't answered the real question yet. Did I figure it out which sister killed their father?
Well...Yes.
Then, no
And then, yes again.
Cavanagh planted certain pieces of information for the reader to find and make up their mind. Only for him to pour doubt into that decision moments later. It was mental gymnastics. It was like a sinister Easter egg hunt which led to finding the killer of a vicious murder instead of a giant Cadbury's Chocolate egg (sidenote: that's my favourite if anyone wanted to know...Easter 2021 gift? No? Okay).
I found this to be an exciting concept; two sisters calling 911 within minutes of each other to report the murder of their father but pleading their innocence. One of them is telling the truth. One of them is a cold, callous, manipulating killer. I found myself trying to guess if Cavanagh is bluffing or double bluffing or triple bluffing whilst I was trying to guess who was the killer was. I was going around in circles. But as the saying goes; the closer you look, the less you see.
But what I enjoyed most about this book was how Cavanagh wrote it so you would be solving the crime alongside Eddie and Kate. He would leave clues for the reader to come to their own conclusions, instead of explaining everything as an afterthought. It's like the difference between BBC's tv show Sherlock and the Sherlock Holmes film version starring Robert Downey Jr. as the infamous detective. Whilst the former helps you understand what is going on in Sherlock's head as it happens, the latter tells you everything at the end as if forgetting you were there the entire time. Can you tell that I prefer the tv show?
"Running in New York was almost as much fun as running in the country. It was a series of steel, glass and concrete valleys. All of them her playground."
In all honesty, I figuratively take my hat off to Cavanagh for his ability to describe scenes. There was one in particular which struck me as such a beautiful simile and such an unexpected comparison to make.
"Block didn't say much, but when she did, it was worth listening. And Block's words fell around her now like snow, each one a cold and yet gentle reminder that she was still alive and real and feeling every moment of this life."
The association between Block's words and snow is so inventive and creates an elegant image in my mind. The double connection Cavanagh made between the words and the snow being "cold and yet gentle" was smooth. It suggests that Block's words were slightly harsh, yet the intention and love behind them were like a soft flurry of snow falling all around her. With a description like that, I am definitely a Cavanagh fan!
