The Holdout by Graham Moore

"When the villains are so clear, we can tuck ourselves into bed at night knowing that we're nothing like them. But what if it's not so clear?"~from The Holdout by Graham Moore

The jury from a notorious murder trial is brought together by a reality television show. The trial of a black teacher accused of murdering his white teenage student looked like a sure verdict until Maya channeled 12 Angry Men to turn the guilty votes to not guilty. The experience motivated Maya to become a lawyer.

Jury member Rick, one of the few black jurists, spent the last ten years trying to prove Maya was wrong and that they had let the murderer of a teenage girl go free. He claims to have proof. During the sequester of the jury, he and Maya conducted a secret love affair before their differing verdicts drove them apart.

At the reunion, Maya and Rick talk for the first time since the trial. Then, Rick is found dead and Maya is accused of his murder. Maya now must prove her innocence.

Readers learn the backstories of the jurors while Maya uncovers startling evidence that leads the jurors to reconvene, consider the facts, and cast their votes once again.

Graham Moore's courtroom drama The Holdout is entertaining with a convoluted resolution.

Moore's previous novel was The Last Days of Night and he authored the award-winning script The Imitation Game.

I was given access to a free ebook by the publisher through NetGalley. My review is fair and unbiased.

The Holdout
by Graham Moore
Random House Publishing Group - Random House
Pub Date 18 Feb 2020
ISBN 9780399591778
PRICE $28.00 (USD)

The Last Days of Night by Graham Moore

If you think a book about the "War of  Currents" over A/C vs D/C between Westinghouse and Edison and the disputed patent for the light bulb would be boring you would be dead wrong. Throw in the eccentric genius Nikola Tesla, powerful banker J. P. Morgan, a young up and coming lawyer named Paul Cravath, and a love interest in the form of a beautiful Metropolitan Opera singer with a shady past--does it still sound boring?

Graham Moore's historical fiction novel The Last Days of Night is a rollicking good read. I enjoyed every page, and the pages flew by very fast.

In 1888 the 20th c was being invented: electric lights, the telephone, moving pictures, x-rays. Invention as pure research was Tesla's love, but for Westinghouse and Edison the legal battle over the patent for the light bulb would determine the future of their business.

Paul Cravath obsessively works to defeat Edison's law suites against Westinghouse. He stops at nothing, not even for love. Convoluted twists, intrigue, and shady dealings enliven the story.

And you will learn solid history and even (gasp) how direct and alternate electric power differs. It becomes evident when A/C current fails to kill in the 1890 first use of an electric chair.

The people and events are all based on history, with a little tweaking. Moore nicely includes his sources for the novel's events.

Graham Moore wrote the award winning adaptation screenplay for The Imitation Game.

The movie rights have been sold. The book is so graphically drawn I can just picture it playing out as a movie. I for one can't wait!

I received a free ebook from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

Read more about Edison vs Westinghouse at Smithsonian.com

It's part legal thriller, part tour of a magical time—the age of wonder—and once you've finished it, you'll find it hard to return to the world of now.”—Erik Larson, author of The Devil in the White City

 Mesmerizing, clever, and absolutely crackling, The Last Days of Night is a triumph of imagination. Graham Moore has chosen Gilded Age New York as his playground, with outsized characters—Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse—as his players. The result is a beautifully researched, endlessly entertaining novel that will leave you buzzing.—Gillian Flynn, author of Gone Girl

The Last Days of Night
Graham Moore
Random House
Publication Date: September 20, 2016
$28 hard cover
ISBN:9780812988901