Mistaken Identity, by Lisa Scottoline

This was an excellent read from one of the best crime drama/mystery writers out there. Scottoline draws on a bit of personal experience to build the characters in this court-room thriller... In the "Acknowledgements" at the end of the novel, she mentions that she met her own half-sister late in life (similar, but in different context than how the main character met her "twin"). I was lucky enough to hear Lisa tell the story in person when I attended a book signing she held in my community in support of the release of Dirty Blonde. Turns out her father apparently had an affair at some point in the past, and his daughter from that relationship had become a fan of Lisa's writing. She knocked on her door out of the blue one day, just to introduce herself. The emotions connected to such a discovery were great fuel for much of the writing involved in Bennie's character in Mistaken Identity.

But lets focus on the story now:

Bennie answers a call from a women's prison death row to find the inmate, Alice Connely (who looks shockingly similar to herself) claim she's her lost twin sister. Attempting to look at the case subjectively, Bennie eventually takes the case. Her investigation into the circumstances that left Alice on death row lead to more questions, many of which Alice is reluctant or unwilling to answer.

The authenticity of Alice's claim of both her relation to Bennie, and the circumstances of her case seem more and more in doubt as the story progresses. With her mother suffering a mental condition that leaves her unable to verbally communicate, Bennie has no choice but to try to track down her elusive father to get some answers about Alice.

The mysteries of family secrets grow in intensity right along with the tension of the life-or-death trial up to the story's conclusion. I hope you check this book out and enjoy it as much as I did!

Happy reading.