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    The Rule of Nine: A Paul Madriani Novel
    The Rule of Nine: A Paul Madriani Novel
    The Rule of Nine: A Paul Madriani Novel
    Audiobook11 hours

    The Rule of Nine: A Paul Madriani Novel

    Written by Steve Martini

    Narrated by Dan Woren

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    “Steve Martini is an expert at good old-fashioned, gimmick-free storytelling.”
    —Steve Berry, author of The Paris Vendetta

    “Take it from a prosecutor—Steve Martini has created one of the most charismatic defense attorneys in thriller fiction.”
    —Linda Fairstein, author of Lethal Legacy

    In The Rule of Nine, New York Times bestseller Steve Martini sets his popular protagonist, defense attorney Paul Madriani, on the trail of a dangerous extremist who’s hellbent on destroying the entire Supreme Court with one deadly stroke. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette loves Martini’s “richly interesting characters, masterful plots, and beautiful writing,” and his latest blockbuster is a sure bet to enthrall Brad Thor and Vince Flynn readers as well as the ever-growing army of Paul Madriani fans.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateJun 1, 2010
    ISBN9780061988783
    The Rule of Nine: A Paul Madriani Novel
    Author

    Steve Martini

    Steve Martini is the author of numerous New York Times bestsellers, including The Enemy Inside, Trader of Secrets, The Rule of Nine, Guardian of Lies, Shadow of Power, Double Tap, and others featuring defense attorney Paul Madriani. Martini has practiced law in California in both state and federal courts and has served as an administrative law judge and supervising hearing officer. He lives in the Pacific Northwest.

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    Reviews for The Rule of Nine

    4/5

    36 ratings26 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Excellent! Mr. Martin has crafted a challenging story with many twists and three bad guys. The ultimate target is a little over the top but then what do I know. The story really hangs together. This is my first Martin book but I can see how he strings them together, and neatly done at that.
    • 4/5
      My first review in limerick form:Paul and the gang hunt for terroristsin order to run from a sadist. In the end it all seems a bomb falls toward the Supremesand a sequel is on the shopping list.
    • 3/5
      The Rule of Nine, continues to follow the tales of defense attorney Paul Madriani. This particular story had an interesting premise revolving around a homeland terrorist plot. The characters were engaging and the plot moved quickly. I struggled with believing that our protagonist, a defense attorney, uncovered the plot while the FBI and CIA appeared somewhat clueless. Other than having to suspend my belief a bit, this was a solid read.
    • 2/5
      San Diego attorney Paul Madriani apparently tangled with international terrorists in Steve Martini’s previous book (I didn’t read it). The hit man he encountered then is back to seek his revenge. Coincidentally and simultaneously, another terrorist has set his sights on destroying the Supreme Court and Madriani and his cohorts must outsmart both the hit man and the terrorists to save the day. I have read other Steve Martini books and enjoyed them, and I am a fan of legal suspense in general. This book was disappointing in large part because it was not what I was expecting. The Rule of Nine isn’t legal suspense – it’s political/conspiracy/terrorism suspense. If you are interested in books about potential mass destruction or political conspiracy, you might pick this up and give it a read. However, even then, I think it’s a stretch. There are some really weak plot lines here that were frustrating and the twist near the end borders on ridiculous. I think I’ll add Martini to the list of authors I don’t need pick up anymore (also on the list: James Patterson, Patricia Cornwell; hanging by a thread: Jody Picoult, David Baldacci, Linda Fairstein). Now that I think about it, I have the exact same issue with Baldacci – I liked his legal thrillers, but when he introduced the Camel Club he went downhill fast.Bottom line – if you liked Martini’s legal books, give this one a pass. If you are new to Martini and were attracted by the plot summary, you'll probably like it a lot more than I did.
    • 3/5
      I think this is my first Steve Martini book. It could very well be my last. This book is veeeery slooooow. Where's the action? And I didn't care squat about the characters. I just checked out three other books that I expect to love, so I'm not going to finish this one even though I'm more than half way through.
    • 3/5
      Requested this book through Early Reviewers on Librarything since it was one of my husband's favorite authors. Ended up reading it in short segments, a bit too graphic for my overly active imagination. While the author committed some of my biggest pet peeves the book is well written and a good read. Definitely helps if you've read all the books though.
    • 4/5
      The Rule of Nine is a Paul Madriani Mystery. Paul is a lawyer who seems to get himself into trouble just by walking down the street. Paul is being stalked by a killer for hire who he seems to have crossed. The FBI have no solid leads on the man and have put it on the back burner. After a couple questionable incidents, Paul and his friends decide to take matters into their own hands to try and track down the killer. They get lucky and find a lead on the current man employing Liquita (the assassin) and focus on running him to ground as a first step. As Paul and friends advance their hunt, they find they have discovered a terrorist plot and have more than a simple killer to stop.Overall not a bad book, it was more an episode in an ongoing serial than a stand alone book. One doesn't need to read any of the previous books to enjoy it nor understand what is going on though. It was enjoyable and kept me interested from beginning to end. It was fairly predicable but that didn't take much away. It's a decent thriller and I would compare it to an Alex Cross novel but a little better written.
    • 3/5
      I enjoyed listening to this Martini’s book “The Rule of Nine”, on CD, but it is not one of my favorites. I just finished reading Reece Hirsch’s first novel “The Insider” and felt it was much more of a legal thriller. Martini’s book was not a courtroom drama, but rather a chase across the country with the bad guys close behind. The Insider was a much better match with the international suspense novel genre. Lawyer Paul Madriani is the main character in this novel with several other primaries, including his daughter and a Supreme Court judge named Root whoplays an important part of the underlying evil in this story. The book begins its story line when a young and inexperienced congressional aide/worker breaks the rules and allows a nice visiting tourist to view and, unknown to him, take pictures of an unauthorized area in the governmental offices.What follows includes flight and fight and the bribes and perks given to high officials. The story also revolves around the Supreme Court and the durations of their seated positions. I didn’t like the introduction of “The Mexicutioner” as a character, but understood the need for the assassin concept to be introduced to the story.Several questions are advanced in this novel that made me ask myself about issues such as should there be term limits for Supreme Court Judges and what do we really know or need to know about national security. All in all, it was an enjoyable book and those who follow Martini’s novel will find the on-going stories about Madriani as involving as always.
    • 4/5
      Steve Martini’s latest Paul Madriani thriller, ‘The Rule of Nine,’ picks up where ‘Guardian of Lies’ left off. Madriani and friends are still recovering from the stress of the near nuclear explosion that they were able to narrowly prevent. They are exhausted from dealing with the press, the government, and the curious. And whether or not they are aware at the onset of the novel, they must also deal with the revenge crazed villain, Liquida, whose plans were wrecked by Madriani. To add a further twist to the plot, there is yet another conspiracy afoot, this one led by a former Weatherman activist whose goal is to remake the composition of the Supreme Court. And the only thing standing between nine Supremes and a big bang seems to be the ever resourceful Paul Madriani.‘The Rule of Nine’ will be a sure bet for readers who enjoy Martini’s action driven plotting and use of contemporary events. It’s a bit less ‘legal’ and more ‘action oriented’ than earlier books in the series, but nevertheless it should please those who enjoyed the earlier books.
    • 1/5
      I hate to admit it, but I just couldn't work my way through this one. I did make it about halfway through, but it was just killing me. I found the action very slow. Although I was initially interested in the plot, and it seemed there were interesting places for it to go, it just stalled. I would try another Martini to see if I liked another title better.
    • 3/5
      An extremist decides to change the direction of the United States by wiping out the Supreme Court.The government has budget deficits and wants to tax overseas bank accounts to generate revenue.Senator Josh Root is concerned with how he and a number of his political friends will explain the wealth accumulated in foreign banks. He certainly can't admit that it came from bribes and kick backs. In addition, his health has begun to decline and he is being blackmailed for actions he took when he was a member of an underground movement during Vietnam. His actions in the group were under an assumed name and, unfortunately, resulted in the death of a security guard.The story follows the action in Martini's "Garden of Lies." Some of the events follow so closely with what happened in the previous novel that the author must have assumed that the reader read that work prior to this.In this story, the antagonist goes by the name of Thorn while the FBI agent running the investigation is named Thorpe. The similarity in the names was confusing and a few times I had to pause to make sure of the characters.Madriani is an interesting character. He's brave, intelligent and determined. However the story doesn't ring true. It seems improbable that a defense attorney would feel compelled to suspend his practice in order to chase terrorists. The action was suspenseful and rose to a high level as the novel reached the conclusion. However, the final pages made me feel like I was reading an episode of TV's "24".The novel was a fun read and I would recommend it for someone wanting an easy summer read.
    • 4/5
      If you wanted to completely change the face of American politics, what would you do? If you had nothing left to lose, what risks would you take? In Steve Martini’s The Rule of Nine, one character decides on a dramatic plan to change the political scene for decades to come. The Old Weatherman is dying — he has nothing left to lose, a fortune at his disposal, and an idea so crazy that it’s not on anybody’s radar. The Rule of Nine is a great twisty, exciting, political thriller.I was only a little surprised to read that Steve Martini introduced Paul Madriani, his likable criminal defense attorney, nearly 20 years ago. It seems like I’ve been reading these novels forever. He’s a great character with a great supporting cast — always important in any fiction series. The thing that makes a great political thriller, for me, is that it has to be a bold idea, but not so out there that it seems impossible. The Old Weatherman’s plan is bold and it’s crazy, but not so crazy that I can’t imagine someone trying to pull it off. I was actually disappointed in myself — it took me way too long to see where this novel was headed. Of course, I was distracted by a couple of murders, a mad dash across the country, a flirtatious weapons control expert, and the reappearance of The Mexicutioner. So even if I didn’t see where we were going, I really enjoyed the ride.Read my full review at Alive on the Shelves
    • 4/5
      As with most political thrillers, this one is chock full of characters and a complex plot of twists and turns. This isn’t the first in the Paul Madriani series so I was a bit lost when it brought back characters from a previous book and repeatedly referenced a previous case and villain who is out for revenge. Once you have the characters and locales in place, the plot moves along swiftly as terrorists, foreign and domestic, attempt to execute a plan of huge consequences. Madriani has closed his office and sent his partner and daughter into hiding while playing cat and mouse with a ruthless killer. The author bravely takes on the radical wing of our current administration which was a welcome relief to this reader having seen bookshelves overloaded with plots where the right wing and gun-toting conservatives have been the bad guys. It’s the Supreme Court that is in the crosshairs of the villains having tired of the continual 5-4 decisions, hoping that the current president can then put in an entire liberal court where judges will sit for life. My only beef is that the ending leaves it wide open for one escaped villain to appear in the next book. It’s okay to leave a cliffhanger in a television show. I only have to wait a week or three months until the new season. But with books it will probably be another year to see if the villain reaches Madriani’s daughter.
    • 3/5
      Here's my review of Guardian of Lies&#8212Martini's previous Madriani novel. Take out the bits about the Cuban Missile Crisis and add some bits about this novel's terrorist target and you have a review of The Rule of Nine:"I'm a big fan of Steve Martini's Paul Madriani novels. The courtroom scenes in the novels are especially entertaining as Paul and Harry Hinds fight up and down battles to out maneuver and out wit the prosecutors, who always misread the evidence and charge innocent defendants.Guardian of Lies is an excellent thriller, but it lacks the courtroom drama of most Madriani novels. The plot is complex with terrorists, assassins, and spies. The Cuban Missile Crisis, a time I vividly remember, is integral to the story and is neatly tied to present day terrorists. The ending is taut and suspenseful. But lacking the expected legal jousting I was expecting, this novel was a bit of a let down. The final paragraphs strongly suggest a sequel, perhaps another thriller with action entirely outside a courtroom. This reader hopes Madriani returns to more familiar environs, doing battle with witnesses and prosecutors rather than terrorists and assassins."The ending of the current book all but assures another installment in the Madriani vs the assassins and terrorists saga. Having invested in the first two, I will have to read the next one. Still, I prefer the legal thrillers that enticed me to begin reading Martini in the first place.
    • 3/5
      I have read a few of the other books in the series about lawyer, Paul Madriana. This one wasn't quite as good as some of the others and I had a tough time getting into this one. Unfortunately, I didn't read the book before this one(Guardian of Lies) and I think you need to read that one first to connect all of the dots. This was not a stand-along thriller. Good, but not a page turner. I think I'll go back and read the previous book and this one might make more sense.
    • 4/5
      My first review in limerick form:Paul and the gang hunt for terroristsin order to run from a sadist. In the end it all seems a bomb falls toward the Supremesand a sequel is on the shopping list.
    • 3/5
      Lots to keep track of here. There is a Mexican drug cartel hitman nicknamed the Mexicutioner who leaves the business card of Paul Madriani, the protagonist of the novel at the scene of one of his hits, a shadowy South African arms dealer with many aliases who is not adverse to selling nuclear weapons to radical Middle Eastern terrorists, and The Old Weatherman an ex-60s radical who has been blackmailng a U.S. Senator with radical roots. The Old Weatherman is upset at the way the Supreme Court has been blocking progressive change that he believes in. There is a young, new progressive president in office. The problem is that none of the Supreme Court justices are ready to retire. The Old Weatherman wants to give this new president a chance to appoint nine justices at once by killing all of them at the opening October session of the court.Paul Madriani and his associates had foiled a terrorist attack on a Navy base in California in the book Guardian of Lies published previous to this one. It was to be a nuclear attack but that fact was not known to the public and Madriani is under pressure from the government to keep the nuclear aspect of the failed attack from becoming public. This previous book sets the scene for this sequel. We can expect another in the series because the Mexicutioner has escaped and is on the trail of Paul Madriani's daughter Sarah.
    • 4/5
      Once again Early Reviewers has provided me with a new author. Luckily I learned my lesson and read Steve Martini’s previous book Guardian of Lies before I received The Rule of Nine. Although not necessary, it made the new book a bit more enjoyable as I was already acquainted with most of the characters. Based on information I had read about Martini I was expecting a legal thriller perhaps along the lines of Grisham. No so. Paul Madriani is certainly an attorney, but the two books I have read don’t really put him anywhere near a court room. In Rule of Nine, he actually has temporarily closed down his law office and is on the trail of a terrorist in an effort to find the murderer from Guardian of Lies who has a personal vendetta against Paul and anyone close to him. The two books I have read are political thrillers, and I find it very interesting how Martini manages to throw a criminal attorney in the middle of international terror and Washington politics. And all Paul is trying to do is save his family and friends from an assassin he got the better of in Guardian of Lies. He stumbles into more trouble and once again has to save the country. All in all I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a good political thriller. I know that I am already waiting for the next one.
    • 3/5
      I can't think of anything more to say than it was an interesting read. Was it the caliber of Lee Child's writing, Harlan Coben or James Lee Burke? Not even close. Sorry, gang, but I wouldn't have been too disappointed if I had to return it to the library without finishing.
    • 3/5
      Attorney Paul Madriani seems to have bad luck by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. That puts him on the bad side of a Mexican hit man working for a terrorist determined to assassinate the entire US Supreme Court. Although the Rule Of Nine is ostensibly about the plot against the court, most of the story focuses on Madriani, his family and associates, a mysterious sexy lady who may or may not be working against his best interests, and the terrorist.The Rule of Nine was my first Martini novel. The story kept me interested and turning pages even though I was lost for a while in the many characters and continually disrupted story line. While the book is a legal thriller, not much in the way of legal activities take place except that the main character is a lawyer. I did not read the book that came before this one in the series, but it seems the previous book set up this book as a sequel. And this book clearly sets up the next book in the series.I gave the Rule of Nine three stars. I had fun reading it, but I probably would not buy it as a first choice for my own purchase. Maybe I need to read earlier books in the series.
    • 4/5
      This is my first experience read a Steve Martini book and will not be the last. He is one of those authors that I have always thought I would read if I got the chance and now I know I have missed some interesting reading. The Rule Of Nine is a political thriller with terrorists being hired to bring about change in the American government. It evidently picks up where his last Paul Madriani novel left off so I guess it has some of the same characters introduced in that book and maybe even before. For those of us who came of age in the 1960s Mr. Martini even works in an aging Weatherman into his web of intrigue. From the look at how politics actually works to the interesting little historical facts that Mr. Martini laces his story with makes for an interesting read. If you are interested in political thrillers this will be a quick and interesting read for you. It will make you wonder if the scenarios that Mr. Martini envisions could actually happen some where down the road. A very good read in the genre and I will visit Mr. Martini's earlier works.
    • 4/5
      This is a tremendously entertaining novel, with a complex, but easy to follow, plot that leaves ample room for a sequel. Paul Madriani, our valiant protagonist, saves the supreme court and the nation from a terrorist plot that one hopes may never, ever come to pass and wins the heart of the woman. The novel is ripe with the potential for political posturing, but fortunately Mr.Martini avoids choosing any political bent and allows the story to unfold. One needs to keep in mind S.T.Coleridge's concept of "willing suspension of disbelief" throughout one's reading of this book. That said, it is an enjoyable read, and I shall go back in Martini's corpus in order to see what I have missed.
    • 3/5
      Pretty standard Martini novel except the ending...very weak.
    • 3/5
      I'll be honest and say I had a hard time getting into this one. I typically love this genre of writing ( and have enjoyed previous Martini novels), but the latest disapoints. To begin with it is more dependent upon Martini's last novel (Gaurdian of Lies) than I would have liked. While it is not necessary to have read that one (and for the record I did) much of the motivation of the key players is dependant on events from the earlier novel.Additionally, some sloppy editing (the Supreme Court justice who initially seems important - but is ulitmately irrelevent - is named Merle then Warren, then Merle again) frustrated me so much early on I put the book down for two weeks and had to force myself to pick it up again to finish and review - never a good sign. I must acknowledge however, that I was reading an uncorrected proof - it is possible this was corrected in the final version.The novel also fails to live up to its billing as a "race to save one third of the nation's governing body; the Supreme Court" Given the back cover description I expected a good portion of the novel to be devoted to racing to save the Supreme Court, discovering the motivations of who was behind the plot, working to uncover their identities, and foil the scheme. Silly me. Madriani isn't looking to save the Supreme Court (he had no idea it needs saving) he is looking for Liquida (see charaters from Guardian of Lies) to prevent him from killing his daughter who he intuits, based on scant evidence, is in danger.
    • 4/5
      Steve Martini is a skilled writer and an accomplished storyteller and he draws you in very quickly. The Rule of Nine marks a reappearance of lawyer Paul Madriani, as well as one of Martini's more sinister villains. The tale involves terrorism, nihilist political philosophy, international intrigue, global crime, all those things we know and love in the best of modern thrillers.One of Martini's best qualities is his talent for developing unique, and realistic, characters. Even minor players in the plot have definable personalities and we see enough of their lives and circumstances to understand how they might come to make the choices they do. They are not thrown up as merely convenient plot-movers. Part of how Martini holds your interest is that you can never be sure which new character might end up dead in the next chapter and which one might end up playing a major role in the last few pages. I enjoyed the book very much. The tension holds to the very end. Delicious!
    • 4/5
      By the time I got to page 10, Martini had me hooked. This is a high energy page turner that will keep you thinking. Paul Madriani is in for a chase that will keep him out of the legal business for a while.In order to protect his daughter Sarah, who is in danger stemming from Madriani's involvement in a failed nuclear incident. While terrorist attacks are the "plot du jour" for thrillers now, Martini keeps this one an intelligence notch above many of the others.Definitely a good read, Martini keeps them coming. My only criticism is the title of the book, which gives away part of the plot line before it is time.