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Paul Levine

Biography

Paul Levine

The author of 23 novels, Paul Levine won the John D. MacDonald Fiction Award and has been nominated for the Edgar, Macavity, International Thriller, Shamus and James Thurber prizes. A former trial lawyer, he also wrote 20 episodes of the CBS military drama "JAG" and co-created the Supreme Court drama "First Monday" starring James Garner and Joe Mantegna.

The international bestseller TO SPEAK FOR THE DEAD was his first novel and introduced readers to linebacker-turned-lawyer Jake Lassiter. BUM RAP was an Amazon Number One Bestseller. He is also the author of the critically acclaimed Solomon vs. Lord series of legal capers.

Levine is a member of Penn State's Society of Distinguished Alumni and graduated, with honors, from the University of Miami School of Law. He divides his time between Santa Barbara and Miami.

Books by Paul Levine

by Paul Levine - Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

When his godson suffers a catastrophic injury in a high school football game, lawyer Jake Lassiter sues to abolish the sport and becomes Public Enemy Number One. The former NFL linebacker also battles CTE, the fatal brain disease. With his personal life in tatters, he's in couple's therapy with fiancée Dr. Melissa Gold and vows to live long enough to fix his relationship and achieve justice for his godson. EARLY GRAVE is the final novel of the series that began with the international bestseller TO SPEAK FOR THE DEAD in 1990.

by Paul Levine - Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

Kip Lassiter has been working with millionaire Max Ringle in a shady scheme to help rich, spoiled kids gain admission to elite universities. Ringle, the mastermind of the fraud, cops a plea and shifts the blame to Kip. Dr. Melissa Gold, Jake Lassiter's fiancée, tries to keep the ailing lawyer strong enough for a grueling trial, even as his symptoms of brain damage grow worse. As a fiery showdown with Ringle brings the courtroom to a fever pitch, Lassiter risks everything --- including his own life --- to fight for his nephew's freedom.

by Paul Levine - Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

Second-string linebacker turned disillusioned defense attorney Jake Lassiter finally switches teams. Appointed special prosecutor in a high-profile murder case, Lassiter vows to take down a prominent surgeon accused of killing his wife. But there is no evidence, no witness and no body. And standing in Lassiter’s way are the defense lawyers: slick-talking Steve Solomon and blueblood Victoria Lord, who have their own complicated history with the defendant. Not to mention the specter of CTE, the lethal brain disease Lassiter may have contracted banging heads in the NFL. Drained of his mental edge just when he needs it most, Lassiter must do whatever it takes to win this case --- even if it costs him his life.

by Paul Levine - Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

Jake Lassiter’s client, Miami Dolphins’ running back Thunder Thurston, has been cleared of murdering his wife. Jake didn’t expect to win (or want to win) since he is sure his client is guilty. When Thurston walks free, Lassiter vows to seek his own kind of justice. Street justice. Vigilante justice. Law partners Steve Solomon and Victoria Lord can’t believe their friend has become so obsessed with killing Thurston. Convinced Jake’s unhinged behavior is due to concussive brain injuries suffered during his football career, they beg him to seek treatment. But as Lassiter’s raging fixation on vengeance grows, Solomon and Lord wonder if they’re too late to help.

by Paul Levine - Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

NFL linebacker-turned-lawyer Jake Lassiter has had it with shifty clients, dirty prosecutors and a legal system out of whack. It’s enough to make a man want to leave Miami and never look back --- until he gets a call from Victoria Lord, the better half of hot local legal team Solomon & Lord. Her partner in life and law has been arrested for murder. What’s worse: the only person who can clear him has fled the city. Now it’s up to Jake and Victoria to track down the witness before she’s roped in by the feds…or eliminated by the Russian mob.

by Paul Levine - Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

Life is great for Jake. His law practice is booming. He's crazy about the new woman in his life. His one-time delinquent nephew, Kip, is finally getting A's in school. But when money goes missing from Jake's client trust accounts, he confronts his banker, Pamela, who also happens to be his lover. She accuses Jake of skimming client funds; he accuses her of dipping into the till. Hours after threatening to report him to the State Attorney, she is killed, and all fingers point to Jake as the murderer. Is this the end of the linebacker-turned-lawyer?

by Paul Levine - Fiction, Suspense, Thriller

Jake Lassiter, the linebacker-turned-lawyer, faces overwhelming odds. He represents Cadillac Johnson, an aging rhythm and blues musician who claims his greatest song was stolen by a top-of-the-charts hip-hop artist. Only a few years out of law school, Lassiter is already developing his iconoclastic rules. "I will live by no code but my own." This time, that code could leave him disbarred or bankrupt...or worse.

by Paul Levine - Fiction, Mystery, Thriller

Eighteen years ago, Jake Lassiter crossed paths with a teenage runaway who disappeared into South Florida’s sex trade. Now he retraces her steps and runs head-on into a conspiracy of Miami’s rich and powerful who would do anything to keep the past as dark as night and silent as the grave.