Linda Fairstein Books In Order

Publication Order of Alexandra Cooper Books

Publication Order of Alexandra Cooper Short Stories/Novellas

Publication Order of Devlin Quick Books

Publication Order of Non-Fiction Books

Publication Order of From the Files of Linda Fairstein Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

Linda Fairstein Biography:

Linda Fairstein was born in New York State on the 5th of May 1947. Since she was a child, she has loved narrative literature and writing has always resided among her dreams. Her father, however, opposed her passion inadvertently sparkling her interest for intrigues and plots, which later will play a central part in shaping her life and style. After graduating at the Vassar College, in 1969, she earned a law degree at the University of Virginia in 1972. She then became a prosecuting attorney of the State of New York, working on cases related to violent crimes, particularly those who affected women, for 25 years. This incredible experience made her one of the most authoritative national experts in serial violent crimes, including sex crimes.

The Life of an Attorney

National and local media closely followed many of the cases Linda worked on, crimes that shocked the public opinion and that were often difficult to process by an overloaded, and far from infallible, justice system. One of these was the famous Central Park Jogger, in 1990, a case in which 5 adolescents were found guilty of assault and rape. Fairstein, after 30 hours of questioning, obtained from them a perjured confession. All the youngsters involved in the case will later admit they were forced to confess a crime they never committed, through coercion and intimidation. In 2002 a rapist, named Matias Reyes, confessed and the DNA test confirmed he was the only perpetrator of the hideous crime. In spite of the issues related to this sort of cases, in which the conduct of the attorney was heavily criticized, a strong passion for writing transformed Linda into a critically acclaimed author, starting from her first book – Final Jeopardy – in 1996.

A Renowned Author

The secret behind the success of this prolific writer resides in the perfect combination between the work she did for a quarter of a century and the plots of her stories. For instance, in some of her books, like Final Jeopardy, the protagonist is Alexandra Cooper – who is a prosecuting attorney of the State of New York, like Linda was – who faces a series of cases involving sex crimes. The title of the first book is a cleaver adaptation of the name of the famous quiz show, Jeopardy, which is the favorite TV show of both the protagonist and the author. Alexandra is also the main character of Likely to Die, published in 2000. Sexual violence, a theme the author undoubtedly cares about, is the focal point of the story. The name of the victim, killed after the rape, is Gemma Dogen, a surgeon who works in a famous hospital in New York. Alexandra Cooper begins her investigation, but the suspects are many, all living within the boundaries of the medical world, which seems extremely intricate and competitive. Soon, the shadows of chauvinism enter the scene when, while misleading the investigation, the murderer decides to challenge the attorney, because she is getting closer to solving the case and because she is a woman. Alexandra will face terrible risks in order to finally corner the person behind the terrible crime.

The Skills behind the Success

The continuous interweaving of fictional and biographical elements allows the author to inject her stories with doses of credibility, authoritativeness and realism while also allowing her to meticulously describe details and backgrounds. Critics, who have often disliked writers with a past spent in the criminal justice system, found themselves disarmed in front of the Linda’s skills. Maybe they were expecting another Vincent Bugliosi, the attorney of the Manson case who became a mediocre writer. Bugliosi used Charles Manson as a path towards a new career, exacerbating the bitterness of the critics. Linda Fairstein, however, chose a different kind of journey demonstrating to be an exceptional writer, someone able to shape intrigues while also creating and keeping a rhythm that doesn’t allow the reader to take the eyes off the book for a second.

Reading her books means also exploring the city of New York, streets and landscapes, bars and restaurants, parks and cultural mixes. Often her stories are soul stirring, sometimes they combine excruciating emotions and love stories, her plot twists never fail to shock and the investigative techniques are described in exceptional details. Everything is packed and wrapped with an elegant style and a deep sense of culture that, far from weighting down the flow, reveals itself in a simple and direct fashion.

Crimes, Secrets and Horrors

The protagonist of Entombed, one of her major international successes, is a secret society, The Raven Society, built around the worship of the famous author Edgar Allan Poe. The name of the society was inspired by one of Poe’s poems, The Raven.

The focal point of the book is a macabre discovery: the body a woman, who was walled alive, is found in one of the houses where Poe lived. The scene mirrors one of Poe’s stories. A doctor claims he knows who committed the crime. He also says he will reveal the name of the murder on a TV show, but he is killed. Once again, the killing is directly related to a poem written by Edgar Allan Poe. Alexandra Cooper, who once again finds herself playing the role of the protagonist, is buried alive during the investigation. However, she manages to escape her death, without any external help, thanks to her strength and determination. She will be, once again, the person able to solve the case and catch the murderer. As the story unravels, a strange character comes into play, a mysterious figure from the shadowy Raven Society. Secret societies are once again behind a major success, highlighting through this book the level of curiosity people cultivate for this subject. What about the people who join these societies then? Are they simply curious characters or criminals hiding behind mysteries and cults?

The rhythm of the story leaves the reader breathless, there are surprises ready to jump off the pages at every corner of the plot. The author carefully pushes the audience to claims and beliefs that will then be contradicted by the story itself. This is another great book composed by an extremely skillful writer.

2 Responses to “Linda Fairstein”

1. Deborah Thompson: 4 weeks ago

   I love to listen to all of her books. Great storytelling. Love all the characters.

   Reply
2. Karen Menzel: 1 year ago

   Love the Alexcooper series when will a new one come out?

   Reply