Thewanderingjew

Although this is the sequel to Presumed Innocent, it is not necessary to have read that one first in order to enjoy Innocent. The characters are reintroduced and fully explored.
A major issue with the book is that it took me about 185 pages to get drawn into it completely, but after that, it grabbed me tight and did not let go. There were still more than 200 pages to go, so don't give up if that happens to you.
Morality, knowing right from wrong, the ability to resist temptation and common sense judgment are qualities often absent from the personalities of the main characters. They apparently have a different definition depending on which side of the argument or question they are standing.
The courtroom trial will truly hold your interest and illustrate how easy it would be, or perhaps is, to convict someone of anything, even murder, using only circumstantial evidence even when they are really not guilty as charged. Rather than being presumed innocent, in our system, the presumption really seems to overwhelmingly indicate that the defendant is guilty once the arrest has been made. The attorneys seem more interested in winning their case, using any means, sleight of hand, pretense, innuendo, accidentally exposing a piece of unallowable evidence, even evidence tampering, rather than seeing justice served. You will not guess the ending until it is revealed in the final pages of the novel.
If the book had held my interest from the start, I would have given it 4, not 3 stars, because overall, if one can read patiently until drawn into the plot, I highly recommend this book. The twists and turns make it hard to put down once you pass that point of no return.