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    Presumed Innocent: A Novel
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    Presumed Innocent: A Novel
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    Presumed Innocent: A Novel
    Ebook533 pages11 hours

    Presumed Innocent: A Novel

    By Scott Turow

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    Presumed Innocent launched Scott Turow's career as one of the pre-eminent legal thriller writers in America and was later adapted to a major feature film starring Harrison Ford.

    “This one will keep you up at nights, engrossed and charged with adrenaline.” —People

    The novel tells the story of Rusty Sabicch, chief deputy prosecutor in a large Midwestern city. With three weeks to go in his boss' re-election campaign, a member of Rusty's staff is found murdered; he is charged with finding the killer, until his boss loses and, incredibly, Rusty finds himself accused of the murder.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Publishers
    Release dateDec 31, 1986
    ISBN9781429962605
    Unavailable
    Presumed Innocent: A Novel
    Author

    Scott Turow

    Scott Turow is the world-famous author of several bestselling novels about the law, from Presumed Innocent to Reversible Errors , as well as the wartime thriller Ordinary Heroes. He has also written an examination of the death penalty, Ultimate Punishment. He lives with his family outside Chicago, where he is a partner in the international law firm of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal.

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    Reviews for Presumed Innocent

    4/5

    1,118 ratings44 reviews

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    • 3/5
      At times I was drowning in detail, but the overall story line was good...plus the surprise ending? WOW! Definitely recommend for older teens and adult readers due to language and content.
    • 4/5
      I read it so long ago I can't remember what decade it was.
    • 5/5
      Rusty Sabich is chief deputy prosecutor for Kindle County, his boss Raymond Horgan is up for re-election, and his associate Carolyn Polhemus has been brutally raped and murdered in her apartment. The upcoming election will determine if Rusty will have a job. And we learn that Rusty had an affair with Carolyn which she ended several months earlier. Rusty is handling the investigation of the murder despite the conflict of interest that only he is aware of. His friend, Dan Lipramzer is investigating the crime. They first focus on convicted sex offenders that Carolyn helped to prosecute. Then Rusty learns that his boss Horgan had a brief relationship with Carolyn. Meanwhile Rusty's marriage is in a shambles as his wife Barbara knows about his affair. As evidence surfaces that implicates Rusty he is arrested for the killing. The prosecution is led by Nico Della "Delay" Guardia, who has now defeated Horgan for the position of Prosecuting Attorney, and Tommy Molto. The evidence against Rusty is serious; calls made from his home to hers on the night of the murder, a bar glass with his fingerprints on it, carpet fibers matching those at his house are found at her home, etc. The courtroom drama that ensues takes many turns for and against him. By the end of the book we do discover who the killer. This is a good read.
    • 4/5
      This is the first time that I have read Scott Turow, and I thoroughly enjoyed the immersion into the police investigation, preparation for the trial, and the actual trial. I do not plan to present a detailed summary of the story, because the reader needs to discover what happens. The story begins with the murder of a female lawyer who works in the prosecuting attorney's office. This is a campaign year and the prosecuting attorney struggles to remain in office and hopes to locate and arrest the murderer. The opposing candidate for the PA position makes an arrest, and the preparation for the trial begins. Turow skillfully presents the case. The outcome is unexpected.
    • 2/5
      It has been a while since I read this book. But the lasting impression it left me with was that the author had a problem with women. It seemed that every woman in the story was deeply flawed if not crazy/evil. Even the one disabled prosecutor who seemed to be overly venerated was in a wheel chair due to her driving drunk and killing her husband in a car accident. As I said it has been a long time and I may not be remembering fairly, but did anyone else come away with this feeling?
    • 5/5
      Just re-read this again. Still couldn't put it down, even after I remembered who did what!
    • 4/5
      Many people had recommended me to read Scott Turow's books because I love legal thrillers. I was able to finally read this book and now I just wish I had read it earlier than I did. I wish I had read this years ago because after reading recent legal thrillers I feel like this book for me didn't live up to all the hype and praise that surrounded it. Don't get me wrong it was written very well and it had some great twists and turns but I felt like it wasn't the best legal thriller I had read. I feel like my opinions on the book would have been different if it was the first legal thriller I had read. I really am looking forward to reading more of Scott Turow's books, and I would definitely recommend this book to fans of legal thrillers. It is a strong book, and a great legal thriller, but just not my favorite legal thriller.
    • 4/5
      enjoyed much more than expected since this isn't my typical type of book choice. had it for free on audiobooks from international book giveaway years ago-- helped that Edward Hermann was reader!
    • 4/5
      Every now and then I re-read something, having been sure I have NOT read it before. Although there was the movie--- movie and the book are so different---and now, there is the sequel, Innocent, which I am in the middle of! I've also listened to the audio because of the excellent reader and that makes it all different from the book---listening and reading are amazingly different experiences.
    • 4/5
      I couldn't remember if I'd read this book way back when it originally came out or if I'd simply seen the movie. But with the release of the sequel, Innocent, I wanted to go back and read/re-read this one before delving back into the world of Rusty Sabich and Tommy Molto. I had an inkling throughout the story that I remembered who killed Carolyn Polhemus and I was correct in that recollection. (Why I almost never read books more than once or read a book after seeing the movie.) I love the genre of legal thrillers but the way that Turow spins a tale makes it an epic masterpiece. Sometimes the details and the conversations get a little too in depth, but the whole time you have the feeling that you are the witness to something out of the ordinary. I'm truly looking forward to Innocent now, and going back and watching a young Harrison Ford back in action in the original movie.
    • 3/5
      3.5 stars
      From page one I was drawn into this "who done it" and it kept me guessing all the way to the end. The characters were real and exceptionally well-written. Not your stereotypical crime novel.
      The first part of the book contains the set-up and back ground of the crime. The narrator, Rusty Sabich, is deputy prosecutor and chief investigator of the murder of Carolyn Polemus, a presecutor on his staff. Rusty and Carolyn have been in a relationship that was ended by Carolyn. It is this fact that steers us to the crux of the entire second part of the book.
      In part two, Rusty is indicted and tried for Carolyn's murder. It moves through the entire trial and opens up the world of politics in the justice system. It's a pretty thorough indictment of what goes on behind the scenes and not so behind the scenes. It's frustrating to the core.
      I typically have a hard time with crime fiction because I find it too formulaic, or far-fetched, or the coincidences too easy, the characters too stereotypical, or the entire wrap up too neat and tidy. This one didn't play into any of that.
      My favorite character actually ended up being Carolyn, the victim. There was a lot about her not to like but she was a strong female character, living in a man's world, and she was well-written.
    • 5/5
      Presumed Innocent was recommended to me primarily for its clever twist ending. So throughout the reading I knew to expect one and yet it still caught me completely by surprise. This novel succeeds on many fronts and should be a timeless classic in the mystery genre for decades to come.
    • 5/5
      What a great read! Mr. Turow really knows how to keep one on the edge of their seat. Probably the best legal thriller writer there is.
    • 3/5
      I ultimately found this book disappointing given the high expectations I started with. Blurbs trumpeted this book as a "literary" novel of the kind "that transcend their genre" and claimed Turow was comparable to Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett. Certainly the prose was stronger than what I expect from a popular thriller. It's told first person present tense and it often reads lyrically, with touches of an elegiacal tone. Our narrator is Chief Deputy prosecutor Rusty Sabich. As the novel begins he's in the midst of a homicide investigation into the murder of Carolyn Polhemus that happened just three days ago while his boss the District Attorney is eighteen days away from a contentious primary. Sabich is a married man and Carolyn was both a fellow prosecutor and an ex-lover he was still obsessed with at the time of her murder. Besides the strong writing, I was struck by how credibly Turow wrote of what it's like to work at a district attorney's office in a big American City. It's set in the fictional "Kindle County" but seems modeled on Chicago. Turow isn't just a law school graduate or former trial attorney but a former prosecutor. I recently tried a legal thriller by Lescroart where the legal aspects had so little credibility I stopped reading by page 100. Richard North Patterson, a former trial attorney, did much better, but I still found a point or two dubious. Not so Turow, who was completely convincing in this depiction of the workings of a criminal case and the office and citywide politics involved.Given all that, I thought about half way in that unless I found the ending disappointing, this might be a five star book. Not that I'd say this ever compared with To Kill a Mocking Bird--or even The Maltese Falcon--but compared to Grisham or Patterson I was thinking this top-notch for a legal thriller. And, if anything, the pacing picked up after the middle. The trial scenes are so well done.But with this one it's points off for the dismount. I did find the ending disappointing and dissatisfying. Both too contrived and too cynical for my tastes. I also in the end felt a bit of distaste for how the female characters were handled. I wouldn't call it misogynistic exactly--any more than I'd call the book racist as some have. Just because there are negative characters that happen to be minority doesn't make a book racist. Neither does a book with less than admirable female characters mean that it's sexist. To be honest, I'm not sure there are any characters in the book of any ethnicity or gender I'd call all that likable or admirable. Yet something especially in the depiction of Carolyn Polhemus, femme fatale, did leave me with a bad taste in my mouth and disinclined to read more of Turow.
    • 5/5
      Put simply, every time you think you know something, you quickly discern that you know absolutely nothing. Masterful.
    • 5/5
      Kindle County's chief deputy prosecutor, Rusty Sabich, has recently been asked to investigate the murder of one of his colleagues, Carolyn Polhemus. The only thing that his boss, the chief prosecuting attorney, Raymond Horgan, doesn't know is that Carolyn and Rusty were having an affair at the time of her death. Since Prosecutor Horgan is in the midst of a vicious re-election campaign, his opponent - Nico Della Guardia would like nothing more than to find proof that Raymond Horgan is somehow unfit to be Kindle County's chief prosecutor.As he nears forty, both Rusty's marriage and his career seem stalled; almost stagnant. His wife Barbara seems so uncaring and cold - actively avoiding Rusty as much as she can. Subsequently, he focuses all his attention and energies on his son Nathaniel, and his desperate, unhappy love for Carolyn. Rusty's investigation fuels his fantasies of what might have been between Carolyn and himself, although he makes very little progress in finding the killer.Citing the slowness of the murder investigation, and using the fact that the Prosecutor apparently can't find the murderer of someone who worked in his office, Nico gains more popularity in the polls. Claiming that Kindle County deserves a change in its office, he handily wins the election. He then sets his sights on prosecuting Carolyn Polhemus' murderer - in the case of the People versus Rozat K. Sabich - who is known as the chief deputy prosecutor, Rusty Sabich.Now, Rusty is put on trial, facing possible conviction for the most terrible of all crimes. This is a stunning portrayal of one man's all-too-human, all-consuming fatal attraction for a passionate woman who is not his wife, and the story of how his obsession ultimately endangers everything he loves and values - eventually putting everything on trial - including his own life.Presumed Innocent by Scott Turow reveals a shocking world of betrayal and murder, as well as the hidden depths of the human heart. It's a story that will alternately hold you spellbound and will haunt you...long after you have turned the final page and reached its shattering conclusion.I must say that this is actually the first book by Scott Turow that I've ever read, although I do have several more on my bookshelf. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, and I was absolutely dying to know how the story turned out. Although this was somewhat heavy reading for me in parts - with such a strong focus on politics and a very detailed look at the intricacies of the prosecutor's office - I still enjoyed the story immensely and give the book a definite A+!I look forward to reading more by this author in the future. Mareena reminded me that I had actually received the book fairly recently, after we noticed that the 1990 movie adaptation starring Harrison Ford and Brian Dennehy was on television several days ago.
    • 5/5
      A true classic in its genre! The forerunner of the deluge that has come since then. It has everything, courtroom drama, suspense, thrills...
    • 5/5
      Starts slow and it develops. The ending is great. #5 of the Top 100 Mystery Novels of All Time by Mystery Writers of America
    • 4/5
      Scott Turow is the writer John Grisham wishes to be. While I was a little disappointed in the solution to the murder mystery at the center of Presumed Innocent, I was more engaged with the story telling.Rusty Sabich, a prosecuting attorney for Kindle County, finds himself at the head of the investigation of the murder of his former co-worker and lover. Shortly after, Sabich finds himself off the case and at the center of the investigation.Hiring a savvy lawyer and facing off against political enemies in the courtroom, Sabich faces the emotional turmoil of being prosecuted for something he knows he did not do, while watching dirty laundry and sordid secrets get their time in the spotlight. As with all legal thrillers, everything turns on evidence and lawyerly machinations both in front of the judge and behind the scenes.What made Presumed Innocent work as a good story for me was the care with which Turow drew his characters, Especially the protagonist, Rusty Sabich, who narrates this tale. There is true depth, poignant search and revelations, told in a way that made me understand, and forgive, some of the trespasses flawed human beings commit.Grisham can't hold a candle to Turow.
    • 4/5
      This was really a very good novel, once I started into it. It has a narrative structure that I am often impatient with, since the narrator is the person who is the one suffering outrageous fortune, but the descriptions of the trial and the denoument were very gripping, enough to keep me up until 1130 PM on a work night to finish it. The protagonist, Rusty Sabich, is a deputy prosecuting attorney during a reelection campaign of the prosecuting attorney. He has had an affair with another prosecutor, and she ends up dead. He is eventually accused and brought to trial for her murder, and is acquitted because his lawyer manages to convince the judge that he was set up by the newly elected prosecuting attorney. Excellent characters, very vivid and believable details of the trials and Chicagostyle politics.
    • 2/5
      Chicago defense attorney Rusty Sabich is accused of murdering a colleague with whom he had an affair. As Rusty navigates the treacherous political landscape (his boss is up for re-election), he also helps prepare his own defense. I read this book because Turow just published another book with the same character. The courtroom drama was probably more engaging when it was published, before the explosion of legal thrillers. Through Rusty's experienced perspective, the reader gets a gritty and realistic view of the legal system. I didn't particularly like Rusty - he recounts his extramarital affair in graphic detail and clearly isn't over his fascination with the murder victim. I skimmed the last half of the book and the resolution of the plot didn't improve the story.
    • 4/5
      I was very excited to receive this book as part of the Early Reviewers program. I enjoy all of Scott Turow's work. When I received the book I went to find the first book in the series (Presumed Innocent) in my collection so I could reread it first, but it must be one that is still packed in boxes. LOL[return]I went ahead and started on the new one in the hopes I would remember details from the first. I didn't remember too many of the details of the first book, but this one was great on it's own as well.[return]This book has great characters and a great plot with a lot of twists and turns and a surprising ending. Well worth the read!
    • 3/5
      I saw the book and watched the movie. I didn't see the ending coming. It starts slowly, but mades up for it in the end. Keep with it and you'll be rewarded for your patience
    • 5/5
      Raymond Hogan is running for reelection to the Kindle County Prosecutor's office. He is challanged by Nico Della Guarida, who is winning the race.Rusty Sabich is Hogan's deputy and the narrator of the story.Carolyn Polhemus, a prosecutor in Hogan's office is found murdered and possibly raped. With Hogan busy in his campaign, he asks Rusty to handle the investigation.Rusty continues his narration and tells us how cold and uncaring his wife, Barbara, has become. When she finds that Rusty is in charge of the investigation, she admits that she knew Rusty had been seeing Carolyn and asks Rusty to move out of the house.Through flashbacks, we learn of Rusty's involvement with Carolyn. She became the dominant person in their affair and abruptly ended it. She wouldn't return his calls and then he sees her with Hogan.In a contemporary manner, Rusty seems like a battlefield general who has been let down by his commander.This section of the novel ends with a dramatic and cinimatic scene in Hogan's office. Hogan has lost the election and tells Rusty that he, Hogan, is vacating his office immediately. Then Nico's man, Tommy Moto, arragantly tells Rusty that he has evidence that Rusty was in Carolyn's room the night she was murdered and the Moto would be charging Rusty with the crime.The second half of the novel revolves around the trial. Rusty's defense is handled by Sandy Stern and Stern and an investigator, Dan Lipranzer become Rusty's only friends, the other's are avoiding him.After the court case comes to a conclusion, there is an additional segment of the book that details what happens to the characters after the trial. This portion of the book is overly long and deminishes the drama of the earlier segments. This was a most enjoyable novel with court scenes that will linger in the reader's memory.
    • 4/5
      Scott Turow has such a great writing style. He tells you only what you need to know now, keeping you second-guessing your own instincts and conclusions, and forcing you to read on. The many characters involved in this investigation are all very different from each other. They are very realistic and everyone has some kind of reputation exposed, good and bad. This isn't a "lawyer story" just for the pros. It's written for anyone to easily enjoy - and I certainly did.
    • 5/5
      I picked this book up at Goodwill because it looked interesting. I wasn't disappointed. I found myself through out the whole book trying to figure out who would frame the Deputy PA Rusty Sabich. That is one thing I love about reading mysteries, trying to figure out who did it before I reach the end. I will say I kept speculating and that the final answer wasn't a total surprise. I was surprised but not like I would never have guessed. I thought it but just didn't want to believe it.I loved all the characters in the book and yet I hated them at times. You have lawyers; both defense and prosecuting attorneys, cops, and judges. The personalities were interesting and fun to read. You have Carolyn Polhemus who has been murdered and worked in the PA's office. You have Rusty Sabich that has been charged with her murder. Just reading the beginning and all the evidence that keeps piling up makes you think did he do it, is he ever going to figure out that everything points to him. I sometimes felt that Rusty was surprised by all the evidence and just thinking it was coincidence for his prints to be in her apartment and other things.I will definitely remember this book for awhile.
    • 5/5
      Masterful collection of complex characters makes this a great story to get inside. Rusty's inner dialogue throughout is revealing and thought provoking.

      The long and winding journey of the story is monument to "can't put this down" and engaging the reader to the very last page. Scott Turow is truely gifted!



      End of an era language: "herd of station wagons in the parking lot" by the late 1980's this was quickly transitioning to mini-vans and on to SUV's in the 90's.
    • 5/5
      The ending was great! A little convoluted but then it all fit!
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed it. A surprise ending. Wait for it...
    • 5/5
      Good whodunit, indeed! Even when the suspense remains about the intentions of the killer.