A THIN DIFFERENCE

Hollon's previous novel, The God File, looked at the justice system from inside, telling the story of a man who spent his life sentence in prison looking for evidence of God's existence. Justice and redemption are again a theme in this third novel, a more familiar but still compelling legal thriller. Jack Skinner is a down-on-his-luck defense attorney on the Alabama gulf coast, months behind in paying salary to his devoted secretary, Rose, and dodging creditors at each street corner. Jack's finances aren't his only mess; his younger daughter, Kelly, is a drug addict, and his older daughter, Becky, blames Jack for Kelly's troubled life. When Brad Caine offers Jack a $5,000 retainer to arrange a liquor license for the sports bar he plans to open, Jack figures he's found an easy way to keep himself in whiskey for a few months. Days after meeting Jack, Brad is arrested for the robbery and murder of an elderly homeowner; Jack welcomes the ensuing high-profile case as a way to rescue his professional life and, along the way, find something to believe in. Jack's type is a staple of courtroom dramas and police noir, but Hollon gives his man a straight-shooting voice and convincing world-weariness: "My first wife took the children. My second wife took the money." Though the murder trial is obviously contrived to force Jack into a confrontation with his demons, even veteran readers of legal dramas will be surprised by how it all plays out. (Mar.)