Final Witness

September 30, 2002
A starred or boxed review indicates a book of outstanding quality. A review with a blue-tinted title indicates a book of exceptional importance that hasn't received a starred or boxed review. FINAL WITNESS Simon Tolkien. Random, $24.95 (276p) ISBN 0-375-50882-1 A British teenager accuses his stepmother of conspiracy in his mother's murder in Tolkien's absorbing if uneven debut legal drama. The book pits 16-year-old Thomas Robinson against the beautiful, social-climbing Greta Grahame, who married Thomas's father, Sir Peter Robinson, a prominent politician, soon—very
soon—after Lady Anne Robinson was killed. Thomas, who witnessed his mother's murder by two armed robbers, alleges that Greta was behind the killing. His courtroom testimony alternates with Greta's, and with a third-person narrative that at times contradicts both of the witnesses and keeps the reader in suspense. As Tolkien spins his tale, he explores the tense relationship between Greta, formerly Sir Peter's personal assistant and a working-class Manchester girl, and the well-born Lady Anne. The book is fast paced and crisply plotted, with Tolkien elegantly piecing together the different perspectives and introducing unexpected twists. Yet the characterizations are quite thin and stereotyped, and Tolkien relies on elaborate physical descriptions and heavy-handed, oft-repeated epithets ("green-eyed Greta" or a police officer's "sinister smile") to fill in the gaps. Readers may also be disappointed by the ending; after all those nail-biting twists, characters turn out to be more or less as they initially seemed, and tidy reconciliations strain credibility. Still, this is a promising first effort from Tolkien; one hopes that in the future he will be able to handle his characters as masterfully as he does the plot mechanics. (Jan.)Forecast:As the grandson of the celebrated author of
The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien will attract more attention than most first-time British thriller writers published in the U.S. Three-city author tour; 75,000 first printing.

September 1, 2002
Another Tolkien book? This one is by the Hobbit creator's grandson, a barrister in London whose thriller features a teenaged boy who is convinced that his mother has been murdered by his father's assistant. Imagine his alarm when the assistant becomes his stepmother.

Copyright 2002 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from October 15, 2002
Don't let the author's last name confuse you, for there are no Hobbits in this debut novel by the grandson of J. R. R. Tolkien, only a wonderful story of family, relationships, and suspense. At the center is Thomas Robinson, the 16-year-old son of British defense minister Sir Peter Robinson and his wife, Lady Anne. Mother and son had always been close, having remained at their country home while Sir Peter attended to business matters in London with the aid of his personal assistant, Greta Grahame. Early on, readers learn that Lady Anne was murdered and Thomas was a witness, although he was hiding at the time. Months later, the two malefactors return to find Thomas, for they somehow learn that he was present during their crime, and in the process, they implicate Greta as a coconspirator. Convinced that his father's ever-present personal assistant--who eventually marries the widowed Sir Peter--was behind the death of his beloved mother, Thomas takes it upon himself to prove it. His obsession with Greta causes an even deeper rift with his father, who already sees his son as a sniveling, dreamy-eyed romantic rather than the reasoned, cool man he wishes Thomas to be. Part English cozy, part family saga, part courtroom drama, this genre-bending work of fiction istouching and enchanting.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)

October 15, 2002
With an easily recognizable surname, a formidable Oxford education, and a successful career as a London barrister, the grandson of the author of Lord of the Rings is bound to create a stir with this debut novel. Sir Peter Richardson has it all: a country house, a promising career in government as the British minister for defense, and a young, bright, and very ambitious personal assistant, Greta Grahame. Sir Peter's fatal flaw is that he neglects his wife and young son, Thomas, while focusing on his job and his personal assistant. Greta is from the working class, and Lady Anne resents her as much as Greta envies Lady Anne's finery, social position, and husband. Soon, there is a break-in at House of the Four Winds, and the intruders kill Lady Anne while Thomas watches from a nearby hiding place. Meanwhile, Greta seizes the opportunity to become the next Lady Richardson. Still grieving for his mother and certain of Greta's involvement in her death, Thomas convinces the police to pursue the case and does a bit of sleuthing on his own. Tolkien's skill as a storyteller is worthy of notice in this taut, well-paced legal thriller. The excellent courtroom drama and well-drawn, believable characters make this a good choice for popular fiction collections. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 9/1/02.]-Susan Clifford Braun, Aerospace Corp., El Segundo, CA