Lethal Beauty

January 26, 2015
In Wiehl and Henry’s page-turning third Mia Quinn mystery (after 2014’s A Deadly Business), the Seattle prosecutor loses a case in which Dandan Yee, a Chinese immigrant girl forced into prostitution, was killed by a client. After a hung jury, Mia wants to refile the case, although her boss doesn’t agree. For a number of reasons, the case doesn’t die. Meanwhile, Yee’s mother takes matters into her own hands by seducing the sole jury holdout. On the personal front, Mia is still dealing with the fallout from her cheating husband’s death, and two men—one a cop and the other a lawyer—would like to be more than friends. The book moves effortlessly from one interesting character to another, and their back stories add some depth. Unfortunately, the fairy tale quality of the resolution is too sweet for a story otherwise grounded in contemporary urban life. Agent: Todd Shuster, Zachary Shuster Harmsworth Literary Agency.

January 1, 2015
A prosecutor focused on the murder of a young prostitute uncovers what could be a human trafficking ring.When making her final arguments in the case against David Leacham, King County prosecutor Mia Quinn tries to forge a connection with every one of the jurors. Mia wants each of them to consider what happened when David killed immigrant prostitute Dandan Lee. Though she gets eye contact from 11 of the people in the box, one refuses to meet her gaze. Dandan is one of many people who have been brought into the U.S. through the Americanized Chinese restaurant Jade Garden by owner Kenny Zhong. Zhong's tactics involve charging exorbitant fees to the women he smuggles into the country and then forcing them into slave labor to repay the debt. Mia has no idea that this is what underlies Dandan's case until she gets wind of something gone wrong from restaurant employee Lihong. Now Mia suspects the rogue juror's reticence to convict may be part of a larger conspiracy, especially when the body of an Asian man washes up on the shore of Puget Sound. Mia's not the only one out for justice; Bo, the mother Dandan was never able to reunite with, has her own vision of justice that may be beyond the law. Wiehl's partnership with Henry brings out her humanity without the supernatural side that emerges in her other books written with Pete Nelson.Fans of Mia Quinn (A Deadly Business, 2014, etc.) will find this a well-considered addition to the series.

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Starred review from February 1, 2015

In this third series installment (after A Deadly Business), prosecuting attorney Mia Quinn is trying a murder case in which the defendant, a well-known and respected businessman, claims the victim, a young Chinese immigrant forced into prostitution, assaulted him and then killed herself. When the perpetrator walks as a result of a hung jury, the victim's mother takes matters into her own hands to avenge her daughter's death. Meanwhile, more Chinese immigrants are found dead. Working together with homicide detective Charlie Carlson, Quinn must race against the clock before the murderer strikes again, this time much closer to home. VERDICT Fans of J.D. Robb's Lt. Eve Dallas or The Closer's Brenda Leigh Johnson will appreciate strong female protagonist Quinn. In addressing the tough social issues of sex trafficking and domestic slavery in sometimes graphic detail, the best-selling coauthors combine skillfully multiple story lines with realistic characters and a palpable tension that keep the pages turning. The spiritual message is subtle: evil is everywhere, but where there is faith and people willing to fight for what is right, good will prevail.

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