Audiobook9 hours
Sandrine's Case
Written by Thomas H. Cook
Narrated by Brian Holsopple
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
4/5
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About this audiobook
Samuel Madison always wondered what Sandrine saw in him, he a meek, stuffy doctorate student and she a brilliant, beautiful bohemian with limitless talent and imagination. Yet on the surface their marriage seemed perfectly tranquil: jobs at a small liberal arts college, a precocious young daughter, a home filled with art and literature, and trips to some of the world's most beautiful places. Then one night Sandrine is found dead in their bed from a deadly overdose of pain medication and alcohol, and Samuel is accused of poisoning her.As the truth of their turbulent marriage comes to light, Samuel must face a town convinced of his guilt, a daughter whose faith in her father has been shaken to it#8217;s core, and the truth about his brilliant wife whose shattering secrets could set him free-or condemn him to death.
Author
Thomas H. Cook
THOMAS H. COOK was born in Fort Payne, Alabama. He has been nominated for Edgar Awards seven times in five different categories. He received the Best Novel Edgar, the Barry for Best Novel, and has been nominated for numerous other awards.
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Reviews for Sandrine's Case
Rating: 3.855769175 out of 5 stars
4/5
52 ratings7 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5An intriguing premise to have the book narrated by the defendant in a murder case. Is he an unreliable narrator? What is true and what isn’t? Quite an enjoyable reading experience.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This is an excellent courtroom procedural, told via the internal monologue of the defendant. Did he kill his wife or did she commit suicide? Two highly intelligent spouses who don't really fit in a mold, who have drifted as do many spouses in a long marriage. Wait a minute! There is a marvelous twist which turns the story into a poignant tale of deep and desperate love. Really good read!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5First, forget the descriptions you may have read about "falling in love all over again" (while being on trial for her murder). This isn't a starry eyed romance. It is an excellent story on two other levels - first as a courtroom drama, and second as an examination of two lives that don't work out quite as the couple had dreamed. He and she are professors at a small southern college, an institution they settled for so they could be together. Years later, the wife is dead; was it suicide or murder? The husband is on trial, and the courtroom scenes are interwoven with flashbacks of the police investigation and of the husband's reflections. Neither the attractive Sandrine nor skinny Sam are particularly likeable people - he's cold and she uttered a lot of bookish aphorisms throughout like "disillusionment is a shabby gift". But the story is intriguing and the pace is brisk with a lot of tension. The supporting cast of prosecutor, defense consel, and daughter are very strong and also well written. And there is a large cast of others, many of whom are witnesses, and they add significantly to the enjoyment of "Sandrine's Case". Then there's the last witness, and dialog between defendant and counsel, both part of an ending that just didn't feel right to me. Or more accurately it wasn't one of the half dozen conclusions I had scripted in my own head. Recommended? Yes, but it's a generous 4 stars, not 5 as I expected coming into the concluding pages. Will I read more Thomas H Cook? Perhaps.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Professor Sam Madison finds his wife, Sandrine, dead on her bed. She had been diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease and Sam believes she committed suicide.Police officers investigate and find unanswered questions. They are also uneasy with Sam's nonchalant attitude toward his wife's death. Eventually, they arrest him for murder disguised as suicide. Even with his arrest, Sam shows little emotion. He seems guilty but is it guilt at killing his wife or not being there when she needed him? We don't know.Sam narrates the story and the events follow the days of his trial. We don't hear the character's testimony, only the way Sam views it. Sam's mind wandered to events in his and Sandrine's life. Often, his attorney, Morty, had to remind him to pay attention.As a mystery, this book didn't keep my attention. Sam isn't a likable character. He is boring and we only have a mild interest in learning if he killed his wife or was it really suicide. Many of the points brought out in the trial were trivial and the pace crawled.Sam's attorney, Morty, was the one refreshing character. Morty told Sam that he was the smartest Jew lawyer in the vicinity. He was upbeat and had a good way in dealing with adverse testimony.Thomas Cook is a fine writer and his literary style is seen here. There was a lesson in a person feeling guilt over not wanting to be the care giver of a person with a terrible disease like Lou Gehrig's.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Interesting twist on the classic murder novel--where the victim appears to also be the antagonist. Book follows the structure of a court case.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Sam Madison arrives home after teaching his night class at Coburn College, outside of Atlanta, to find his wife, Sandrine, dead in her bed, the result of an overdose of Demerol, antihistamines and alcohol (although he doesn’t necessarily know this at the time). As the police delve into the case, questions arise as to whether this apparent suicide, was indeed, suicide.This scenario in hands other than Thomas H. Cook, could have resulted in a police procedural ready made for TV Columbo style. However, Mr. Cook, in his unique fashion, has crafted a mystery that pokes into Sam’s and Sandrine’s psyche, fleshes out their lives, and gives you glimpses into their inner turmoil.Sandrine’s Case starts on Day 1 of Sam’s murder trial. As prosecution witnesses take the stand, you don’t hear their testimony. You relive Sam’s encounters with each one, the police officer, the detective, etc. as he recalls these encounters. You ponder what he ponders, as his mind wanders through possibilities, reminiscences, theories, projections. Just as in Visitation Street by Ivy Pochoda (which I just finished and blogged about), there is a mystery. But that is not the reason for these books. Visitation Street probes the neighborhood of Red Hook and the lives of the few major characters who intersect the mystery. In Sandrine’s Case, readers explore the minds of the characters who intersect the mystery of Sandrine’s death. That is the reason to be for these books and that is one reason why you must read them.Another reason is the writing. Mr. Cook is a master story teller. His descriptions are superb, such as “I’d noticed that his teeth were badly crooked, like rows of tilted tombstones in a desecrated cemetery.” How much more visual can you get?There are writers that churn out book after book. You can count on them for one every six months or a year, like clockwork. Then there are those who seemingly take whatever time is required to put the right word in the right order on the page and you wait with anticipation both for the next words and the next book, not knowing when it will arrive. Thomas H. Cook is one of the latter authors. Fatherhood and Other Stories, FatherhoodAndOtherStorieswhich I recently finished, was a surprise. I didn’t even know it was coming out. Sandrine’s Case has been on my ‘must read’ list for months, since I knew beforehand when it was going to be published. Now, I have to wait for an unknown, but way too long a time for Mr. Cook’s next book. Maybe, as I’ve wanted to do for quite some time, I’ll reread TheChathamSchoolAffairThe Chatham School Affair which launched my love of his writing.To conclude, I’ve just mentioned four books you must read: Sandrine’s Case, Fatherhood and Other Stories and The Chatham School Affair by Thomas H. Cook and Visitation Street by Ivy Pochoda. What are you waiting for? Get started. You’ve got a lot a reading to do!!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Thomas Cook is an author that I think never quite garners the attention he deserves for his writing. I have read all or most of all his novels and while there are some I liked more than others, they were all well written in his own particular style. This book is amazing, brilliantly structured about a man on trial, for the murder of his wife. What we learn about their marriage, their relationships with others, their work and family life, their hopes and dreams, we learn throughout the trial. It is the story about a marriage in crisis, a man in crisis and a horrible medical diagnosis. But what is the truth, in the trial, in life, in a marriage? There is a slow unraveling and than a time of enlightenment, and the final question, can love survive death? My only wish was that the end wasn't quite so tidy. This is,however, an amazing psychological study, one that kept me reading. Well done.ARC from publisher.