Equivocal Death    by Amy Gutman Order:  USA  Can Warner, 2003 (2001) Hardcover, Paperback, Audio Read an Excerpt     Reviewed by Mary Ann Smyth With the ink barely dry on her Harvard Law School diploma, Kate Paine is hired by the prestigious Manhattan law firm of Samson & Mills. She becomes mired almost immediately in the intrigues that go on away from the courtrooms. When a beautiful partner in the firm is brutally murdered, Kate's neatly planned future starts a downward plunge. Things are not what they should be and Kate feels out of control. When a reasonable explanation is found for the murder, Kate falls back on a sentence from a law book - 'Equivocal death investigations are those inquiries that are open to interpretation.' And she thought she had troubles before! First time author Gutman has woven an engrossing tale with an intriguing background, and has peopled her book with believable characters - some whom you would love to hate. The story escalates with each page turned and the climax will have you on the edge of your chair. Equivocal Death is a lawyer book on a par with one by Grisham or Turow - or possibly Lisa Scottlini without the humor. It 's an engrossing look at behind the scenes in the legal community. A triumph of a first novel. I look forward to Gutman's second. Note: Opinions expressed in reviews and articles on this site are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of BookLoons. Find more Mystery books on our Shelves or in our book Reviews