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Robert K. Tanenbaum
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No Lesser Plea (The Butch Karp and Marlene Ciampi Series Book 1) Kindle Edition

by Robert K. Tanenbaum (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 400 ratings
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In Book One of the bestselling Butch Karp legal thriller series, Karp must stop a murderer who is manipulating the law to escape punishment 

Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Roger “Butch” Karp has been around New York long enough to realize that the judicial system can be dirty and cynical. But he still believes in justice. So when a vicious sociopath tries to dodge a brutal murder charge by convincing the court he is incompetent to stand trial, Karp teams up with firecracker Assistant DA Marlene Ciampi to unleash the full force of their relentless energy, hardboiled wit, and passion for the truth to put the killer away for good. They will accept no lesser plea.

 

This ebook features an illustrated biography of Robert K. Tanenbaum including rare photos from the author’s personal collection.


 

Previous page
  1. Book 1 of 29
    Butch Karp and Marlene Ciampi
  2. Print length
    380 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publisher
    Open Road Media Mystery & Thriller
  6. Publication date
    December 28, 2010
  7. File size
    5609 KB
  8. Page Flip
    Enabled
  9. Word Wise
    Enabled
  10. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  11. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Tanenbaum has written an exceptionally good contemporary novel about the criminal justice system. Set in New York during the early '70s, the book focuses on young, idealistic assistant D.A. Butch Karp and his conflicts with both a single criminal and the politicized bureaucracy that seemingly makes a travesty of justice. In his first murder case, Karp is prosecuting Mandeville Louis, a brilliant killer who has feigned insanity, hoping to protect himself from trial until the court system eventually forgets about him. But the determined Karp refuses to let Louis's ruse succeed. While Karp is trying to put Louis behind bars, he is also caught up in the politics of the D.A.'s office as petty bureaucrats struggle for control of their turf and power. An attorney himself, Tanenbaum has infused this book with a strong collection of characters, a raunchy energy that crackles in the out-of-office lawyer talk and a basic sense of outrage at a system that is failing miserably. 50,000 first printing; $50,000 ad/promo.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Mandeville Louis is the self-proclaimed most successful armed robber in New York City, as well as a vicious killer. Roger Karp is a dedicated assistant district attorney. Louis, arrested for a dual murder, tries to avoid prosecution by feigning insanity. Karp does his best to block this abuse of the criminal justice system. As it explores Karp's private life and colorful co-workers, this fascinating, realistic novel addresses several current legal issues: plea bargaining, overcrowded dockets, and the insanity defense. Tanenbaum, co-author of Badge of the Assassin, has worked in the New York County District Attorney's Office. Recommended for large fiction collections. A. J. Wright, Anesthesiology Dept., Univ. of Alabama at Birmingham
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B004GTM518
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Open Road Media Mystery & Thriller (December 28, 2010)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ December 28, 2010
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 5609 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 380 pages
  • Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 1504091426
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 400 ratings

About the author

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Robert K. Tanenbaum

Robert K. Tanenbaum

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Butch Phelps is a forward thinking massage therapist who has studied the muscles of the human body from a whole body presepective in regardsto movement.

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
4.2 out of 5
400 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

C. Priem
5.0 out of 5 stars I'm happy
Reviewed in the United States on November 28, 2023
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Good reading
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peter b ibbotson
4.0 out of 5 stars good read
Reviewed in the United States on March 21, 2015
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A good read. lots of introspection, lots of humor, lots of edgy characters, and lots of companionable humor.
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lynn
5.0 out of 5 stars Tannenbaum has created a great cast of characters!
Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2022
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I recently read a Karp-Ciampi legal mystery and came back to the first. There are more than 20. Tannenbaum writes a great legal thriller and creates characters that are human. The dialogue is smart and snappy.
One person found this helpful
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teddystouch
3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting story line
Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2014
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I thought I would not be too interested because it's dated. When you think about it being written back in the 70's and how things were then, (before cell phones and computers) it's hard to imaging how backward things were compare to now. But this book rolled along nicely except for too much description of a few parties. The crime was interesting, but I thought there would be more of it. Not just one crime the whole book was about. Still it had some impact toward the end.
One person found this helpful
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MED
5.0 out of 5 stars A classic series....
Reviewed in the United States on August 20, 2012
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Tanenbaum writes a now long running series about Butch Karp and Marlene Ciampi - two prosecutors in the fabled NY DA's office. The first installment introduces Butch and Marlene and their fellow ADAs. Butch is married, though his wife has left him, Marlene is a ball buster trying to make a name in the man's world of prosecuting felons.

Butch is toiling away in relative anonymity when he is selected for the Homicide Bureau currently run by the legendary Garrahy, a NY institution in the DA's office. His first case is a double homicide committed by a career criminal and two accomplices. Once Mandible Louis is caught he attempts to scam the overloaded, 'seen everything' system. But Karp is a bulldog on the slowly moving case and won't let Louis cop to 'a lesser plea'. His attempts to keep the case front and center are hampered by his own bumbling office politics.

This series starts in the 1970's and you have to look past the dated nature of the story - everybody smokes, in buildings, on airplanes - this alone dates the series, but when he says twenty thousand dollars is a lot of money you have to laugh. The characters are great - real, flawed and always interesting. Tanenbaum brings the DA's office to life - warts and all.

Before I had finished the book I had downloaded the next book in the series. Only 24 to go ...

Highly recommend.
5 people found this helpful
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Stephen Kalman
5.0 out of 5 stars Great start to a series.
Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2011
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I just finished this book and am off to buy the next one right now. I enjoyed the characters, their interpersonal relations, their style and, for the leads, their values.

There are plenty of reviews that talk about the plot (excellent) the dialog (realistic) the snappy, sometimes quite funny lines and the pervasive malaise that is the criminal court system.

From time to time, those of us who love good mysteries find an author with a long backlist that we were previously unaware of. That happened about a year ago for me (Archer Mayor) and just now for Tanenbaum. I'll be devouring his books over the next few weeks.

Enough writing. Go get this book. I'm heading for the next one's one-click right now.
7 people found this helpful
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Nancie
4.0 out of 5 stars An interesting read
Reviewed in the United States on June 18, 2013
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This was a very interesting read on the American Justice system and the men and women who work in it along with the criminals who think they can fool the system. It had intrigue and twists and turns and at times went off the path and pulled the reader into another direction. Yet it always pulled you back into the story line and went forward in the pursuit of Justice, Love and Life in a big city DA's office. I'm looking forward to reading more of his books and hope it measures up to this one. One can only hope.
2 people found this helpful
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Leonard Wechsler
5.0 out of 5 stars Great first book in an excellent series
Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2012
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I'm a fan of the Karp-Ciampi series so it was a treat to actually read the first book. Watching a couple I've generally read about as long married enter as singles and find each other was fun. A lot of questions were answered and I actually learned a lot about the two series stars.

The plot was clever; lots of twists and turns and the author's wisecracks worked well. A must for fans of the series and a great introduction for those who've never read any of the books.
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Michael Puttick
4.0 out of 5 stars The book is in reasonable condition
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 12, 2022
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It was a good read
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William J Green
4.0 out of 5 stars The Series Begins!
Reviewed in Canada on November 9, 2015
Verified Purchase
Well actually 3-1/2 stars, but who's really counting. I enjoyed the characters and I know this is the setup. The first book in a series of many to follow, and I'm hooked!
This book is all about the introduction of the key characters in the District Attorney's office, and it does that job well. We're introduced to the politics of the DA's office; and how our characters survive the numbers game that law enforcement has become.
I found the key character endearing; so much so, that I'm already reading the second in the series.
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