Plea of Insanity

Written by Jilliane Hoffman

Narrated by Karen White

Julia Valenciano is a young, ambitious Miami prosecutor. Assigned to a hectic trial division with an ornery judge, just getting through the day can be a challenge. When Julia is asked to second chair a case that could very well make or break her career, she doesn't hesitate to jump on board. The defendant: a successful Miami surgeon. The victims: his own wife and small children. The plea: Not Guilty By Reason of Insanity.

The perfect father. The perfect husband. Dr. David Marquette seemingly just snapped one night. Or did he? His defense team claims paranoid delusions caused by schizophrenia drove him to slaughter his entire family.

But the state suspects that Marquette's insanity defense is being fabricated to disguise murders that were cold-blooded and calculated. And the evidence appears to be mounting that Marquette may be responsible for other unsolved murders around the state as well-murders that bear the frightening signature of a serial killer.

It's Julia's first murder trial and her first insanity defense, and the stakes are incredibly high. If convicted, Marquette faces the ultimate penalty-death. If found insane, he could walk free. To bring a killer to justice, Julia will have to journey into the mind of madness herself. For her, the trial of Dr. David Marquette will mean more than just disarming a legal defense; it will take her on a personal journey back into her own past-a past she has struggled for fifteen years to forget. And it will bring her face to face with a future that is so frightening, she's not sure she ever wants to see it.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Apr 28, 2009
• ISBN: 9781400181377

Jilliane Hoffman

Jilliane Hoffman began her professional career as an Assistant State Attorney prosecuting felonies in Florida, with special assignments to the Domestic Violence Unit and the Legal Extradition Unit. She has advised more than one hundred special agents on criminal and civil matters in complex investigations involving narcotics, homicide, and organized crime. Her previous novels include the bestselling Retribution, Pretty Little Things and The Cutting Room.

Reviews for Plea of Insanity

[Anthony Myrick · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great storyline and great commentator that kept you listening to the end

[stuartaston · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

No other reason to read this apart from the need every now and again for a good murder to get into.This one is based around David Marquette a surgeon who murders his whole family but when it comes to trail pleads not guilty due to insanity.The major crimes dept headed by Ricardo Bellido do not believe his plea and push for the death penalty. All of which is only added to by the fact that they find out that he may have been involved in more murders - can this be the way an insane person works??Assistant Proescutor Julia Valenciano starts to doubt if he isn't insane though and during the book this is not helped by memories of her families murder coming back to her mind. All of which leads her to draw comparisons between the case she is taking to trial and her past.A definate page turner and a great book to curl up with on the weekend. Also great beach reading......but wait for the paperback in this case. A hefty hard back on 597 pages long will fill the bag up!

[cornelia16-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Der angesehene Chirurg Dr. David Marquette hat seine Frau und die drei gemeinsamen Kinder brutal ermordet. Ganz Miamiist geschockt. Der Angeklagte ist angeblich nicht straffähig, da er unter Schizophrenie leidet - Wahrheit oder geschicktes Verteidigungsmanöver? Der Fall beherrscht die Medien. Genau richtig für den erfolgssüchtigen Staatsanwalt Rick Bellido. Als Assistentin wählt er Julia Valenciano aus, eine junge, noch unerfahrene, aber engagierte Staatsanwältin und seine Geliebte. Doch für Julia bedeutet dieser Fall nicht nur eine berufliche Herausforderung, sondern sie muss sich auch ihrer Familiengeschichte stellen, die sie 15 Jahre zu verdrängen versucht hat. - Thriller.

[gpangel_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Plea of Insanity by Jilliane Hoffman is a 2014 Thomas & Mercer publication. This book was originally published back in 2008, and although that isn’t all that long ago, this book had a dated feel to it, for some reason. I have enjoyed several of the thought provoking legal thrillers Ms. Hoffman has written, but this one falls way short of her usual standards. When a man kills his entire family, he pleads insanity, which stirs up some truly horrific memories for second chair attorney, Julia Vacanti. Nearly everyone believes the defendant is faking mental illness, but because of her own personal demons, Julia begins to wonder if maybe, just maybe, the killer is telling the truth, which of course provides her with a moral dilemma. While this set up could have been very suspenseful, full of courtroom banter, and shed light on mental illness at the same time, it becomes a disorganized mess, instead. The case is a mixture of notorious cases like Jeffrey MacDonald and Scott Peterson, with a Primal Fear element tossed it for good measure. But, the actual case takes a backseat to Julia’s personal issues. Julia is tense, makes lots of professional blunders, and allows her personal feelings to intrude on her career, which of course could have dire consequences. I have to say, I tried to like her, tried to relate, tried to understand her obsession, but ultimately I failed. I ended up being underwhelmed with the whole story, the characters, and the author’s long winded diatribes about mental illness, that cropped up at every turn. The courtroom drama lacked suspense, the dialogue was boring, and the little twist at the end was very anti-climatic. This author is a capable writer, so maybe this is just a one off, which happens to nearly every author if they write often enough, so I’ll just put this one off to the side and forget it ever happened. I’m sure any future releases will measure up the level of quality I have come to expect from this author.

[marlaamadison · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This book should have been described as psychological drama rather than mystery/suspense. This more-than-four-hundred-page book would have been less than 300 pages if all the extra wordage was removed. Much of the story takes place in the mind of the prosecutor, Julia. Sometimes entire chapters consist of her backstory and her thoughts. And the real main point of the book is a study of schizophrenia. The main plot, while engaging, has to be discovered through all the extraneous matter. Curiosity about the end is the only thing that kept me reading. And the end too, was disappointing. Recommended only for people who don't mind reading endless mindthought and backstory written in italics. Too bad. This could have been a terrific suspense read.

[ecw0647 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

There is a trend in genre fiction of the flawed hero, a protagonist with a drinking problem, two dead children, three ex-wives, four drug convictions, five ex-girlfriends, etc., the idea being, I guess, that the personal struggles of the detective/main character add something to the book besides bulk.

Personally, I often find these flaws distracting and unnecessary, adding nothing to the plot, but I suffer along because the vividness of the setting or intricacy of the story are appealing. But I always question the relevance of the backstory and often long for the elegance of Simenon, Leon, Christie, etc.

Julia Vacanti is a young ADA in Miami who is assigned the case of David Marquette, a physician who went nuts (term used advisedly) one night and stabbed his family to death. The case then revolves around Vacanti’s own troubled past (she should never, ever, in a million years, been permitted to work this case given what happen with her brother and family) and her concern with the possible inheritability of schizophrenia.

Vacanti’s romance with a lead detective was a bit forced, but the trial scenes were good.

[la_spalmatrice · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"Plea of Insanity" is a legal thriller but also a story about schizophrenia. Be aware: the book actually begins at pag. 300 (out of 600) after a long "introduction". If you can get through it then you will enjoy the book. Despite of the lenght, many points remain unsolved and are not developed, and if it's done voluntarily, well, it isn't well explained in my opinion. If you want to learn more about schizoprenia you should read first hand memoires, here there is only a medical introduction. This book is not a masterpiece but I enjoyed it and I want to read more from Hoffman, I like the way she writes, and, since I am italian, I have learned more about the American legal system.

[suballa · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In a quiet section of Coral gables, Florida, in a neighborhood of stately homes, a terrible crime has been committed. Someone has brutally murdered a young mother and her three small children. The prime suspect is also at the scene, with the murder weapon still imbedded in his stomach. He is still alive, though barely. He is Dr. David Marquette, the husband and father of the slaughtered family. Julia Vacanti is a young Assistant State Attorney in Miami. She is a “B” prosecutor, usually assigned to second degree felonies. It is no wonder that everyone, including Julia, is surprised when she is asked to second seat the murder prosecution of Dr. Marquette. The Assistant Division Chief of Major Crimes, Rick Bellido, has asked for her personally. Julia can only hope that the request came because of her prosecution record, not because she and Rick are sleeping together. This is the type of case that can make or break a career, and Julia’s has really just started. Her aunt Nora begs her not to take the case. She feels the crime is too similar to the events that destroyed Julia’s own family when she was a child. When Dr. Marquette’s lawyer enters a plea of insanity on his client’s behalf, Julia is forced to re-examine the events that led to her own family tragedy. This is a great legal thriller that will keep you hooked from beginning to end. Jilliane Hoffman is a major talent and I am looking forward to her next book, “Pretty Little Things”, due out in September 2010.

[karen813 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Great legal thriller, I'm hoping for a sequel!

[mikedraper · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A study of schizophrenia.Young assistant attorney Julia Valenciano gets a break and is assigned responsibility for prosecuting a case against Dr. David Marquette, a prosperous surgeon who brutally murdered his family. When the case comes to trial, Marquette pleads not guilty by reason of insanity.Is he really insane? Julia begins to wonder and the reader finds that Julia has a history of murder in her own family.Julia was a mildly interesting character but I never developed a sense of sympathy for her. The doctor was difficult to find any redeeming qualities after such a brutal crime.The author is an attorney and writes a clear picture of the trial process. However, I did not feel the urgency to see the story to the finish.

[cathymoore_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A courtroom thriller set in Miami. The defendant pleads not guilty by reason of insanity when accused of murdering his family. The story covers the case through the eyes of a junior prosecutor, who, it turns out, has first hand experience of schizophrenia. I really enjoyed this, although I can 't say quite what it was that drew me in. The picture of the American courtroom is well painted - helpedby the fact the author used to be a lawyer herself. It has also got me really thinking about the stigma surrounding mental illness and where mad stops and bad begins. I look forward to more from this author.

[dspoon_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Julia Vacanti is a young, ambitious Miami prosecutor who can hold her own in a courtroom full of good old boys. Assigned to a hectic trial division with an ornery, sexist judge, just getting through the day can be a challenge. When Julia's asked by the Assistant Division Chief of Major Crimes to second chair a murder case that could make or break her career, she doesn't hesitate to jump on board. The defendant is a successful surgeon. The victims are his wife and small children. The plea is Not Guilty By Reason of Insanity. The perfect father and husband, David Marquette seemingly just snapped one night. Or did he? His defense team claims schizophrenic delusions drove him to slaughter his whole family. But the state suspects Marquette's insanity defense to be the carefully fabricated work of a deviant psychopath, crafted to disguise murders that were calculated and cold-blooded. If convicted, Marquette faces the ultimate penalty--death. If found insane, he could walk free. To bring a killer to justice, Julia will have to venture into the mind of madness herself, embarking on a journey into her own past - something she has struggled for to forget for fifteen years. And this will lead her to confront a future so chilling, she's not sure she will ever be able to face it...

[fluffyblue_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I wasn't that thrilled with this book. I found it hard to understand in some senses because it jumped ahead quite a lot. The characters did not mean much to me and I didn't find it particularly gripping.

[veganne_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The author meant well, using the courtroom drama formula to educate about schizophrenia. However, it is not a very well realised book, the characters don't really convince, and her understanding of psychosis is entirely based on the medical model. I'm not sure the average reader would understand much more about schizophrenia as a result of reading this book, so it doesn't work on that level. As a courtroom drama, it is pretty pedestrian.

[literarytiger · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is as much a courtroom drama as it is an exploration of schizophrenia - a disease which is feared, misunderstood and tragically prevalent. Julia Valenciano is given her big break as a prosecutor by being asked to act as second seat on the trial of the decade. The defendant, David Marquette, is accused of murdering his whole family in cold blood one night, including his 6 week old daughter. But when his defence attorney enters a plea of insanity, suddenly the case starts to become very personal for Julia, forcing her to face a past which she has spent 15 years pretending never happened.The author very much wanted to explore the reality of schizophrenia which did mean that she left a few ends hanging. But it was still a satisfying read even if some of the characters were a little bit unconvincing at times.