In Bello’s (Betrayal of Faith, 2016) latest thriller featuring Michigan attorney Zack Blake, a Muslim woman seeking justice for hate crimes becomes the prime suspect for the murder of a white supremacist.

Ronald John won the U.S. presidency on the platform of ridding the country of a “Muslim scourge.” White supremacist Keith Blackwell fully supports the president and, believing it’s time for action, initiates a series of anti-Muslim crimes in Dearborn, including firebombing a mosque. Twenty-five-year-old Arya Khan has serious doubts about authorities’ devotion to finding the criminal, though a task force led by chief of detectives Jack Dylan locks onto a suspect. When Arya learns it’s Keith, she plans to bring him to justice only to inadvertently witness someone stab him to death. She calls 911 and hurries to Keith’s aid, but to police at the scene, the bloody woman looks like a prime suspect. Zack takes Arya’s case, and with evidence stacked against her, he’s convinced the only way out is to identify the actual killer. That turns out to be the most crucial issue, since the killer, presuming Arya saw him, wants to make certain she stays quiet—permanently. Bello’s novel is unmistakably topical. President John’s plan involves securing America’s borders from illegal immigrants. This further adds another layer to the already sympathetic Arya; her parents are just two of the numerous Muslims in danger of deportation. Notwithstanding a spotlight on the recurring protagonist, there’s apt coverage of the task force. Jack, who mocks Arya’s profession of innocence, may soon believe her, much like detective (and fellow Muslim) Shaheed Ali. Accordingly, there’s only a modicum of courtroom scenes, but Zack’s legal mindset evokes refreshingly blunt dialogue: he predicts that prosecutors and cops “will not want to admit that the terrorist in this case is the white guy.” The story’s baddies are blatantly villainous, Bello making it abundantly clear that bigotry is deplorable.

Commendable sophomore effort, even when the protagonist takes a back seat.

A Jewish lawyer organizes a hunt for a neo-Nazi terrorist—and then defends him in court—in Bello’s twisty political suspenser.

Detroit lawyer Zachary Blake is attending the bar mitzvah of his pal Rich Cooper’s son, Josh, at Temple Kol Yisrael when a bomb explodes; in the aftermath, Josh and the Coopers’ next-door neighbor, Chip Ellis, are missing and are feared kidnapped. Zach, dubbed the “King of Justice” for his crusading lawsuits and for prosecuting the impeachment trial that ousted the Trump-like President Ron John from office, gathers his usual posse of crime fighters. A ransom demand arrives from Winger Wright, the shadowy head of the Patriotic Storm Troopers, who denounces Jews as “an all-present, parasitic evil” and demands $3 million to release Josh and Chip. Despite the interference of FBI Special Agent in Charge Dan Harrelson, who wants to kick them off the case, Zack and company put their considerable forensic skills to work. They are shocked when the white-nationalist ringleader is identified as someone at the very center of the incident. Spurred by a sense of personal obligation, Zach reluctantly agrees to defend the accused, even though he thinks the man is guilty—and capable of more antisemitic terrorism. Bello, a Michigan attorney, paints a rich portrait of Detroit’s Jewish community that wears its liberal politics on its sleeve. There are subtle psychological currents in the narrative, as when Josh, menaced and starved by his captors, gradually forges a bond with a bullied young guard. Bello also steeps readers in nifty procedural beats, from intricate cyber-sleuthing to canny legal strategizing, all conveyed in lean, vigorous prose (“The eye-witness testimony of a confessed, convicted domestic terrorist and the untrained ears of a traumatized kid are hardly enough evidence to convict someone of kidnapping and murder”). The result is an engrossing tug-of-war between Zach’s moral promptings and the law’s demands.

An entertaining thriller with a nervy plot and a timely warning about extremism hiding in plain sight.

Some Michigan lawyers help two desperate families fight terrorists and American immigration policy in this seventh installment of a thriller series.

Miguel and Mary Carmen Gonzalez have feared that Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents would come for them someday. The Venezuelan immigrants built a life in Lincoln Park, Michigan, on visas that have since expired. After detaining the couple, ICE unexpectedly picks up their American-born children as well. The Gonzalez family’s community hires attorney Zack Blake, but his firm has trouble even finding the kids, locked away in a detention center somewhere, notwithstanding their United States citizenship. In a concurrent plot, naturalized American citizen Canan Izady travels to Syria so her daughter can finally meet her grandmother. The Islamic State group apparently remains in the country, despite stories to the contrary, and armed men abduct the women to hold them for ransom. Zack steps in once again but this time in another capacity—he funds a private security company to launch a rescue mission. Both cases wind up in a U.S. courtroom, with hopes of reuniting Miguel and Mary Carmen’s family as well as lending a hand to a Syrian ally. Series regular Zack, as in previous outings, proves a smart, able lawyer. But he has dependable colleagues: Marshall Mann, who heads the firm’s immigration division, and, to a lesser extent, top associate Amy Fletcher. They’re always ready to argue, even with no judge in sight, but the copious dialogue is more delightfully down-to-earth than legalese. Zack, for example, tries to alleviate a heated exchange: “Let’s lower the temperature a bit.” Bello aptly parallels the dual plots; being taken hostage in war-torn Syria differs little from ICE cramming immigrants into cages with scant food and no air conditioning. He also weaves suspense and some action into the story without derailing the judicial process that the series highlights.

A lively legal tale boasting an indelible cast and topical social issues.

In Bello’s debut legal thriller, a case against a pedophile priest in Michigan leads a lawyer to confront a secret organization that’s willing to go to great lengths to protect the church.

Jennifer Tracey’s sons have had trouble adjusting in the three years since their father died. But after a church-sponsored, overnight camping trip, 14-year-old Kenny and preteen Jake become especially distant and anti-social. Jennifer believes that something happened at the overnighter, and she zeros in on Our Lady of the Lakes Church’s assistant pastor, the Rev. Gerry Bartholomew. Psychiatrist Harold Rothenberg later confirms her fears that the pastor molested her boys. She opts to take her fight to court, believing that the publicity will force the church to take action and ultimately prevent Bartholomew from hurting another child. She goes to the only attorney she knows, Zack Blake, who’d handled her late husband’s industrial accident. After Zack was booted out of his law firm by his partners, he lost almost everything in his divorce, and he hopes for an easy paycheck by settling Jennifer’s case. But she’s more interested in justice than money. Meanwhile, it turns out that a clandestine group called the Coalition is fully aware of the pastor’s disturbing penchant, and due to their machinations, Zack’s investigator, Micah Love, has difficulty finding other families that the priest has harmed—although he does find a dead body. In this dramatic thriller, Bello handles the delicate subject of sexual abuse of children with tact, making clear what Bartholomew did without explicit details. In a wise move, the author sporadically returns the focus from the main characters to the story’s victims: Kenny and Jake. Although the eventual trial covers plot points that readers already know, the characters remain dynamic. Jennifer has unwavering determination (she says no to plea offers in the millions); Zack is initially unlikable as he treats the serious case as a money grab; and the Coalition’s leader, the Voice, is eerie in his anonymity. But although a few characters sing the praises of modern technology, the language on that subject doesn’t seem quite as up-to-date; cellphones, for example, are referred to as “mobile phones,” and the word “DVD” is used for both the disc and the player.

Engaging characters elevate this courtroom drama beyond the conventional.