Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Reviews of The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5)

The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5)
The Mercy Rule - Dismas Hardy, Bk 5
Author: John Lescroart
ISBN-13: 9780385316583
ISBN-10: 0385316585
Publication Date: 9/8/1998
Pages: 480
Rating:
  • Currently 4.3/5 Stars.
 21

4.3 stars, based on 21 ratings
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Book Type: Hardcover
Reviews: Amazon | Write a Review

20 Book Reviews submitted by our Members...sorted by voted most helpful

reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 5 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
You can't get much better than a John Lescroart book.
jjares avatar reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 3411 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Another great book it seems to have been ripped from the front page of a newspaper. In the 1990s, there was lots of talk about mercy killing (or assisted suicide or euthanasia) and Dr. Kevorkian (aka Dr. Death). It was a hotly debated topic for several years.

Dr. Kevorkians interview on 60 Minutes and his self-made video of him assisting a man to die created a firestorm. In 1999, Kevorkian was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to a 10-to-25 year prison sentence. He was released in 2007 and died of natural causes in 2011.

This book was released in the midst of all the uproar and I think John Lescroart handled the issue well. This story is about an elderly man, Sal, who is experiencing Alzheimers. However, Sal has started to worry about his headaches which turn out to be inoperable brain cancer. He is in incredible pain.

After disappearing from his childrens lives for 15 years -- Sal and Graham (the eldest of the 3 kids) reconnect. Because of the nearly constant pain, Graham has given morphine injections to his father. When Sal dies, Graham is arrested for his fathers death.

Be sure you pay attention to the Twinkie defense I fell out of my chair laughing while reading about that! Lescroart has a wonderful sense of humor and the dialog between Dismas Hardy and Abe Glitsky is often priceless. 4.5 stars

Dismas Hardy
1. Dead Irish (1989)
2. The Vig (1990)
3. Hard Evidence (1993)
4. The 13th Juror (1994)
5. The Mercy Rule (1998)
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 88 more book reviews
A great legal thriller in the spirit of John Grisham.
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on
I have not read this book. Given to me.
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 12 more book reviews
Another adventure of Dismas Hardy, former cop. amd now lawyer. A former baseball star is charged with murdering his dying father. As he gains information, dismas realizes his life is on the line.
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 2 more book reviews
I LOVE this author....holds you attention
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 144 more book reviews
Book #7 - Can he get any better?
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 2 more book reviews
Great read, could not put it down.
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 102 more book reviews
It didn't catch my interest, I don't like cop books.
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 47 more book reviews
I thought this was a terrific read...
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 167 more book reviews
Another great read by Lescroart!!
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 29 more book reviews
For lovers of police procedural/courtroom mysteries, this is an excellent book and will keep your interest right up to the end.
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 588 more book reviews
excellent
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 65 more book reviews
Dismas Hardy takes a former baseball star as a client indicted for murdering his father.
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 2 more book reviews
very good
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 3 more book reviews
Loved this book,one of Lescroart's best books. Highly recommend it.
scrapbooklady avatar reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 472 more book reviews
The good thing about a Lescroart mystery is not so much the mystery as the characters who intersect the mystery. Murder's the name but the players are the game. Here Lescroart touches on an emotionally charged issue, euthanasia or mercy killing. There's a nice analogy with the game of baseball, perhaps unintentional, which is that in the early levels of the game the adolescent players learn 'the slaughter rule,' allowing a team which has no chance of winning having fallen behind an insurmountable lead, to exit with some self respect intact.
taskmaster avatar reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 17 more book reviews
Increadiable story if you follow Dismas Hardy you'll love this book!
debs avatar reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 649 more book reviews
Enjoyed this a lot. Engrossing book, lots of interesting detail and twists to keep you guessing.
reviewed The Mercy Rule (Dismas Hardy, Bk 5) on + 24 more book reviews
dismas hardy, a lawyer, is trying a case about murder. this case changes all aspects of his life. i have found all lescroart's books worth reading