Unlawful Justice

Author: Vish Dhamija

Publication: Harper Black

Genre: Legal Thriller, Fiction

Blurb (as on Goodreads):

Baby, the sixteen-year-old daughter of the Diwan family’s household help, has been raped and brutalized. Vansh Diwan, a criminal lawyer, finds himself torn between a shot at justice for the girl and a very powerful client. He cannot bring himself to proceed at the risk of all that he has secured for his family. His wife Priti, distraught and devastated at her husband’s decision, turns to an old friend for help.

Akash Hingorani, top criminal lawyer and best friend to Priti and Vansh, must step up. He is Baby’s last chance. But things quickly unravel as Akash’s probe into the rape suddenly turns into a murder investigation. A powerful legal thriller that moves breathlessly from crime scene to courtroom to homes to lay bare the difference between law and justice.

My Take

Vansh Divan is a hot-shot criminal advocate. He has his own law firm which is doing quite well. He also has a wife- Priti Divan, a corporate lawyer, and Vamini- their 18-year-old daughter. All is well in paradise until the maidservant’s daughter Baby is raped at the Divan’s. The police get’s involved and all evidence point towards Maheep- Vamini’s classmate and the son of the Vansh’s important client.

Maheep is a rich spoilt brat. At the age of eighteen, he has been through all the ‘fun’ – Smoking, Alcohol, Drugs and Sex. And as usual, he has his dad protecting him from all evil. Maninder is into all kinds of illegal business, which gives him a certain power over the lives of the ordinary people, thereby making him influential and dangerous.

But the rape case takes a toll and turns into a murder investigation when Maheep is found dead at his farmhouse.

A courtroom drama that has described with precision-from courtrooms to defense strategies everything has been explained in detail. This makes it easy for anyone who has never read a legal thriller to understand the plot and get answers to a lot of questions. The plot is great too-keeps you on the edge of the seat throughout. Fact-paces and intriguing, the book is also about power, influence and most importantly tactics (both in court and outside).

I particularly liked Akash’s character- he is an amazing lawyer and an amazing human. His out of the box thinking helps the plot a lot. However, I was a little disappointed with the courtroom scenes. A little more twist could have been easily brought to the plot (I wanted Akash to be thrown off his game at least, it would’ve been interesting to see him get right back at the opposing counsel).

There also a long wait before we actually get to see the face of a courtroom. There should have been more courtroom arguments (my thoughts purely!).

Overall, Unlawful Justice is a refreshing read because we actually get a glimpse of something very few authors can ace – Legal Thriller. The plot keeps you hooked and trust me when I say it- “you don’t know what’s coming”.

Intriguing and entertaining, Unlawful justice is a marvelous combination of plot, characters, and logic.