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Missing Justice (Samantha Kincaid Mysteries) Hardcover – June 2, 2004

by Alafair Burke (Author)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 854 ratings
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In the second entry in this "sharp, new crime series," the search for a missing judge leads Samantha Kincaid into Portland politics and a labyrinth of crime, corruption, and cover-ups
 (Publishers Weekly)
Deputy District Attorney Samantha Kincaid is back at work after an attempt on her life and a promotion into the Major Crimes Unit. When the husband of Portland, Oregon, city judge Clarissa Easterbrook reports her missing and Samantha is called out on the case, she assumes her only job is to make the district attorney look good until the judge turns up. When the police discover evidence of foul play, however, Samantha finds herself unearthing secrets that Clarissa had wanted to stay hidden, the lingering personal tolls of a crime that occurred decades ago. And when those secrets lead to the discovery of corruption at the highest levels of the city's power structure, Samantha realizes that her quest for justice could cost her not only her job but her life.
In the skillfully plotted, highly suspenseful follow-up to her acclaimed debut, Judgment Calls, Alafair Burke once again demonstrates that "she's got what it takes" (Michael Connelly). With its irreverent heroine and seamless blend of squad rooms, street scenes, and courtroom drama, Missing Justice confirms Burke's place among the genre's most talented and exciting newcomers.
Previous page
  1. Book 2 of 3
    Samantha Kincaid Mysteries
  2. Print length
    368 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Henry Holt and Co.
  5. Publication date
    June 2, 2004
  6. Dimensions
    6.36 x 1.22 x 9.6 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    0805073922
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0805073928
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Burke's lively second Samantha Kincaid mystery (after 2003's Judgment Calls), the Deputy District Attorney has just joined the Major Crimes Unit in Portland, Ore., when a local judge, Clarissa Easterbrook, goes missing and is then found murdered. As Kincaid sifts through possible suspects, she also adjusts to the personalities in her new office, including her surprisingly friendly supervisor. Evidence of the judge's affair with a politician and an increasingly confusing crush of contracts, judgments and financial papers make it difficult to believe that Kincaid would seriously consider Melvin Jackson, a poor black man, as the likely murderer. A former drug addict, Jackson was in danger of losing custody of his kids in a case Easterbrook was considering just before her death. Eventually, Kincaid turns to a more obvious source of trouble. Kincaid is an appealing if perhaps too familiar a type—a slightly seasoned, feisty woman who runs impressive distances and confides her endearing foibles to the reader. Burke does a good job of integrating the political and personal lives of her characters, with the detectives of the Major Crimes Unit being particularly well drawn. Witty and concise dialogue helps redeem the somewhat stiff plotting.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Clarissa Easterbrook was a judge in Portland, Oregon, and the wife of a prominent surgeon--until her lifeless body was found near a construction site at the city's edge. Samantha Kincaid, new to the district attorney's Major Crimes Unit, is assigned the case. When Samantha learns that Clarissa was having an affair, suspicion centers on the spouse. Could the doctor have been inspired to perform cranial surgery with a hunk of granite? But the forensic evidence forms a circumstantial case against a former drug addict who could lose his home and possibly his kids based on a ruling by the late judge. As Samantha digs, however, it seems less likely that this was a crime of passion or anger. The second Kincaid mystery by the daughter of James Lee Burke is a very clever whodunit long on red herrings, shadowy motives, and sly humor. The author's background as a former deputy DA in Portland lends gritty ambience to this modern parable of greed and ambition. Wes Lukowsky
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Henry Holt and Co.; First Edition (June 2, 2004)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 368 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0805073922
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0805073928
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.5 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.36 x 1.22 x 9.6 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 854 ratings

About the author

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Alafair Burke

Alafair Burke

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Alafair Burke is the New York Times and internationally bestselling author of twenty novels.

Her most recent novel, FIND ME, has been called a "skillfully constructed, delightfully twisty thriller" (Booklist) and "a twisting, surprising, and satisfying new thrill ride" (Ms. Magazine). THE BETTER SISTER has been praised as “twisty” (BookBub), “mesmerizing” (Publishers Weekly), “fast-moving” (Library Journal), and “a non-stop thriller fest” (Suspense Magazine). THE WIFE was selected as a best-of-the-month pick by Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Entertainment Weekly, O (Oprah Magazine), and others. It is being adapted as a feature film, with Alafair writing the screenplay.

Her 2016 novel, THE EX, was nominated for an Edgar Award for Best Novel.

In addition to the standalone novels that have earned her a reputation as “a genius for plot” (Oprah Magazine) and “a virtuoso” of domestic suspense (Minneapolis Star Tribune), she authors “two power house series” (Sun-Sentinel) featuring NYPD Detective Ellie Hatcher and Portland Deputy District Attorney Samantha Kincaid. Alafair is also the co-author of the “Under Suspicion” series with Queen of Suspense Mary Higgins Clark.

Alafair's novels grow out of her experience as a prosecutor in America's police precincts and criminal courtrooms, and have been featured by The Today Show, People Magazine, The New York Times, O Magazine, MSNBC, The Washington Post, USA Today, and The Chicago Sun-Times. Harlan Coben has said she is "a major talent," and Dennis Lehane called her "one of the finest young crime writers working today" back when she was young.

A graduate of Stanford Law School and a former prosecutor, Alafair is now a professor at Hofstra Law School, where she teaches criminal law and procedure. She lives in New York City and East Hampton with her husband and two beloved dogs.

Learn more about Alafair at www.alafairburke.com. Follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and/or Instagram if you're prepared for a healthy dose of dog photos along with your book news.

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
854 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Suncoast
5.0 out of 5 stars Samantha Kincaid - Deputy District Attorney, Major Crimes Unit
Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2015
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In the first book in this series "Judgement Calls" Deputy District Attorney Samantha Kincaid was working in Portland's Drug and Vice Division. After a much needed vacation following an attempt on her life she is back at work with a promotion to the Major Crimes Unit. In the early morning of the day she starts work again she gets a call about the disappearance of city administrative judge Clarissa Easterbrook. Clarissa is the wife of a top surgeon and has close friends with powerful political connections.

The case rapidly goes downhill and Samantha finds herself right in the middle of a possible homicide prosecution which her bosses may not want her to handle. Kincaid soon gets involved with police investigations, and has doubts that the suspect that they have arrested may be guilty.

Kincaid is a great female lead who does what she feels is needed to make sure that justice is served. This means that she frequently goes it alone and frequently upsets the police and her supervisors. In this case going alone means taking on powerful local business and political interests who may be involved in high level corruption that is difficult to prove.

Samantha also has to learn to live with conflicting interests in her personal life - her current love interest who is one of the top detectives in the MCU, and her father who was once a policeman himself and understands the impact of political and business power.

This is a very skillfully plotted, well written and legally complex thriller that clearly shows Alafair Burke's experience as a prosecutor in Portland's Attorney General's office and currently as a law professor. I have already read several of Alafair Burke's Ellie Hatcher series and have made a resolution to read the other books in the Samantha Kincaid series. 4.5 stars.
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Lina
4.0 out of 5 stars A clever and crafty murder mystery
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2015
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I have enjoyed this author's writing a lot, as her characters seem so real. I love Samantha the main character as she is a woman who is intelligent and still has a social life which helps readers to identify with her. The story is about a kidnapping and murder that seems to have no clues to the reason behind it. The story unfolds and more and more comes to light about the bigger picture, how other people have been involved in a cover up because of boundary rights relating to urban development.I could not guess who was behind the murder, so I was glued to this book for days, often reading at intervals when I should have been doing something else.I highly recommend this book.
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Laura , Colorado
5.0 out of 5 stars Just like dad
Reviewed in the United States on August 4, 2021
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I read the first book because I love her father’s books. James Lee Burke make you feel like you’re in the story and Alafair does the same thing. She added more humor which I really enjoyed. I liked the first book of the series and after reading it I read the second. I will continue to read her books.
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MED
3.0 out of 5 stars A solid installment in the series, but a little plodding - 3.5 stars.
Reviewed in the United States on March 10, 2012
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Alafair Burke writes the second installment in the Samanatha Kinkaid series. Kinkaid is a Deputy DA in Portland, OR. On the heels of the debut novel, JUDGMENT CALLS, she is now in major crimes and is called out on her first case. An administrative law judge has gone missing and her high profile job and high profile surgeon husband mean immediate attention from the police and the DA's office.

The body of Clarissa Easterbrook is soon found in a construction site and Kinkaid has her first murder case. The usual suspects are considered and dismissed - the police settling on a man who had a case in front of the judge and had written her threatening letters.

Several aspects of the case trouble Kinkaid and she finds herself helping the defense during a preliminary hearing on the murder charge.

Burke continues to develop the character of Kinkaid as a bright, hardworking DA with a penchant for going her own way -often in the face of authority. Her relationship with her father and an aspect of his past is explored as well as her ex-husband, now a high powered civil litigator.

The story develops slowly, but builds to a satisfying conclusion. Burke's storytelling keeps you reading.
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Mark Molloy
5.0 out of 5 stars Engaging, fiction that seems real
Reviewed in the United States on July 23, 2014
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I can't read a lot of mystery writers, because I just end up rolling my eyes. Not because I'm so quick to solve the puzzle, but because their plot devices and story contexts just aren't realistic. Not so with Ms. Burke. I love that she uses her very real knowledge of the legal system as the framework for engaging characters and intriguing stories. And when she reaches outside the law for either plot or context, she takes the time to reaearch and get it right. If you're a computer scientist, you know how laughable most plots invoving computers or the Internet are. This particular book doesn't touch those subjects, but Burke has others that do, and she gets both principles and details right. Thank you Alafair Burke, for writing great stories that don't grate!
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Cha.
4.0 out of 5 stars Very good writing
Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2014
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Missing Justice was a good book, and just a bit scary. Not much. I find that I like Burke's style of writing much better than I like what she writes about. A person who is more knowledgeable about the law and workings with it would like this even better than I do, because I get lost in the "inside" details. With only that caveat, I would recommend this to any adult.
I like that there are probably no subjects which Alafair will not include, but also that the delicate ones are handled deftly.
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Kirk Michie
5.0 out of 5 stars Crushed it!
Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2022
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Great story, compelling development, and you’ve just gotta love Samantha Kincaid’s combination of vulnerability and moral compass as devices for solving crimes and doing good.
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Mary Bare Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Strange twists
Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2018
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I really liked the suspense and the process of solving the crime. I did not like that the personal relationships between the investigators and the DA’s office were negatively affected.
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Top reviews from other countries

liz
5.0 out of 5 stars Great read
Reviewed in Australia on July 14, 2019
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Wonderful plot , I am now hooked on this author and hope more books come in this series , highly recommended
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Pierre Whalon
5.0 out of 5 stars Very sharp
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 7, 2014
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The second novel in Alafair Burke's Kincaid series is a solid, sharp story with excellent plot twists and character development. Sassy, smart Samantha is fun even when she's in danger of dying. Highly recommended.
One person found this helpful
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miriam downey
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 22, 2017
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it was a fast paced well constructed story which kept me enthralled.
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Ms. Jay Bonnington
4.0 out of 5 stars Good Read
Reviewed in Australia on December 15, 2019
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Good thriller tale
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Judy Dennis
4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Reading Material
Reviewed in Canada on May 23, 2014
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A real page turner and each one filled with action. Hard to put it down. Alafair Burke always has such twists and turns that keeps one guessing right to the end.

Nothing I didn't like about the book.
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