Synopses & Reviews
The real-life work of sex-crimes prosecutor Linda Fairstein brought "riveting authenticity" andlt;Iandgt;(Vanity Fair)andlt;/Iandgt; to her bestselling debut novel, andlt;Iandgt;Final Jeopardy.andlt;/Iandgt; Now Fairstein's fictional counterpart -- smart and savvy assistant D.A. Alexandra Cooper -- returns in "[a] Grisham-esque page turner" andlt;Iandgt;(Time)andlt;/Iandgt; that puts Alex in the line of fire. andlt;BRandgt; New York City's oldest and largest medical center is the scene of a ghastly attack: top neurosurgeon Gemma Dogen is found in her blood-soaked office, where she has been sexually assaulted, stabbed, and designated by the cops as a "likely to die." By the time Alex has plunged into the case, it's a high-profile, media-infested murder investigation with a growing list of suspects from among those who roam the hospital's labyrinthine halls. As Alex's passion to find the killer intensifies, she discovers this hospital is not a place of healing but of deadly peril -- and that she is the next target for lethal violence. andlt;BRandgt; A high-style thriller that sweeps from Manhattan to London to Martha's Vineyard, andlt;Iandgt;Likely to Dieandlt;/Iandgt; is an exhilarating tale from a justice system insider and provocative novelist.
Review
andlt;Iandgt;The New York Times Book Reviewandlt;/Iandgt; Stylish...engaging...Linda Fairstein's second novel takes its title from police slang for a crime victim whose death is inevitable. As in her previous novel, andlt;Iandgt;Final Jeopardy,andlt;/Iandgt; the author places a smart and driven Manhattan prosecutor named Alexandra Cooper at the center of the action.
Review
Long Island andlt;Iandgt;Newsdayandlt;/Iandgt; (NY) As real as tomorrow's tabloid headlines, as gritty as a police stakeout, as graphic as an autopsy, andlt;Iandgt;Likely to Dieandlt;/Iandgt; is a fearsomely authentic whodunit that manages to raise important issues about the nature, and the horror, of sex crimes.
Review
People A whopping whodunit...With its taut plot and classy setting, Likely to Die is an uptown act.
Review
Long Island Newsday (NY)As real as tomorrow's tabloid headlines, as gritty as a police stakeout, as graphic as an autopsy, Likely to Die is a fearsomely authentic whodunit that manages to raise important issues about the nature, and the horror, of sex crimes.
Review
Susan Issacs This is no I-guess-this-must-be-what-it's-like fantasy of how the criminal justice system operates. andlt;Iandgt;Final Jeopardyandlt;/Iandgt; is a smart and gutsy insider's whodunit. But the novel has more than authenticity going for it. It's got a terrific protagonist. Alexandra Cooper is a tough, dedicated assistant district attorney and a warmhearted, funny, and insightful dame. Linda Fairstein has done one hell of a job.
Review
andlt;Iandgt;Chicago Tribuneandlt;/Iandgt; This gritty, harsh book has a strong sense of authenticity.
Review
Chicago TribuneThis gritty, harsh book has a strong sense of authenticity.
Review
andlt;Iandgt;Peopleandlt;/Iandgt; Step aside, girls. Here comes Manhattan sex creimes prosecutor Alexandra Cooper in a red Escada suit, trailing a cloud of Chanel No. 5....Fairstein gives her sleek -- and single -- D.A. a whopping whodunit....There are plenty of suspects to keep Alex clicking along in her Manolo Blahnik heels...and sizzling sexual tension between Alex and NYPD detective Mike Chapman.
Review
Patricia Cornwell An authoritative and scary view from one who has battled evil and locked it away. Fairstein just gets better. Get to know her if you dare.
Review
Hilma Wolitzer New York Daily News A first-rate mystery novel by someone who writes about what she knows and truly knows about what she writes.
Review
andlt;Iandgt;Peopleandlt;/Iandgt; A whopping whodunit...With its taut plot and classy setting, andlt;Iandgt;Likely to Dieandlt;/Iandgt; is an uptown act.
About the Author
andlt;bandgt;LINDA FAIRSTEINandlt;/bandgt;, America's foremost legal expert on crimes of sexual assault and domestic violence, led the Sex Crimes Unit of the District Attorney's Office in Manhattan for twenty-five years. A Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, she is a graduate of Vassar College and the University of Virginia School of Law. Her first novel, andlt;Iandgt;Final Jeopardyandlt;/iandgt;, introduced the critically acclaimed character of Alexandra Cooper and was made into an ABC Movie of the Week starring Dana Delaney. The celebrated series has gone on to include the andlt;Iandgt;New York Timesandlt;/iandgt; bestsellers andlt;Iandgt;Likely to Dieandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;Iandgt;Cold Hitandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;Iandgt;The Deadhouseandlt;/iandgt; (winner of the Nero Wolfe Award for Best Crime Novel of 2001, and chosen as a "Best Book of 2001" by both andlt;Iandgt;The Washington Postandlt;/iandgt; and the andlt;Iandgt;Los Angeles Timesandlt;/iandgt;), andlt;Iandgt;The Bone Vaultandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;Iandgt;The Kills, Entombedandlt;/iandgt;, andlt;Iandgt;Death Danceandlt;/iandgt;, and andlt;Iandgt;Bad Bloodandlt;/iandgt;. Her novels have been translated into more than a dozen languages. Her nonfiction book, andlt;Iandgt;Sexual Violenceandlt;/iandgt;, was a andlt;Iandgt;New York Times andlt;/iandgt;Notable Book of the Year. She lives with her husband in Manhattan and on Martha's Vineyard
Reading Group Guide
Reading Group Guide LIKELY TO DIE
1. In what ways are Alex and the murdered doctor, Gemma Dogen, alike or dislike? Given their outward similarities, do you think that Gemma's death has any special resonance for Alex?
2. Although this story is fictional, it reveals some pretty unsettling things about the security of big-city hospitals. Did the novel change how you think about this world?
3. What connections does Alex have to the world of medicine? Do these connections influence the way that she pursues this case?
4. How would you describe Alex and Mike Chapman's relationship? What makes them such a great duo? This story places them in especially close proximity while they are in England. Why do you think their relationship remains platonic? Do you find yourself rooting for them to get together?
5. There's a lot we learn in this novel -- from the changes in rape laws over the last twenty-five years to the kinds of women that make the best jurors in date rape trials. How does learning about the law and the way that crimes are prosecuted affect your reading of the story?
6. On the surface, Alex seems like the kind of person who would enjoy letting off steam with a sport like kick boxing, but instead she is drawn to the world of ballet. What makes ballet so appealing to her? Is it a good fit for her character?
7. At one point in the story, Chapman comments on the murders and remarks, "We're all likely to die" (p. 282). What point is he trying to make? Where else does this phrase appear and how is it important to the story?
8. While inviting Alex to a dinner, her friend Joan chides her, "don't be a sex crimes prosecutor tonight...be a girl" (p. 200). Do you agree with Joan that sometimes Alex forgets to be a girl?
9. The media is an important presence in Alex's world, despite the fact that she is often at odds with it. How do the reporters that constantly dog her heels add to the flavor of the book -- and help move the story along?
10. On their flight to England, Alex and Chapman talk about famous people whom they admire and whose shoes they'd like to stand in. What people did each of them choose, and what do their picks say about them?
11. In the acknowledgments, Linda Fairstein tells us that "every crime in this book is based on an actual event." Does learning this change your perception of the novel?
12. At a pretty crucial point in the investigation, Alex and Chapman are sent off to England for a conference. How does this interlude serve the novel? Did it break up the story or enhance it?
13. Why does Alex come so uncharacteristically unglued when she learns about the connection between Drew Renaud and Gemma Dogen?