Maxine Justice: Galactic Attorney by Daniel Schwabauer
Reviewed By: Jeremy Zentner, Reference Assistant
Genre: Science fiction, humor
Suggested Age: Adults, teens
What is This Book About? How does an ambulance-chasing lawyer get ahead in a corrupt legal system where corporate entities have privatized due-process? Well, she just needs to catch a big fish client to brand her name. Set in a not-too-distant future, Maxine Justice is desperate for any paying client (fighting for the little guy is honorable work, but it doesn’t pay the bills). When she finds someone who pays well, and indulgently so, Maxine finds herself in over her head as she represents her new client’s interests on a galactic scale. Maxine will counsel earth’s first extra-terrestrial visitor, specifically an Iperian, who wears an “earthsuit” to appear human. This Iperian wants to gift humanity with the cure for all known diseases. The price? Only thirty percent of earth’s known gold, as it is a key superconductor for faster-than-light engines. Though at the end of the business arrangement, there’s some fine print that needs to be ironed out in order to avoid humanity’s extinction. Interstellar law isn’t easy…
My Review: This was certainly a funny take on legal thrillers! From the very start, the book hooked me in and took me for an amusing journey through the legal world of intergalactic law. It was kind of like a science fiction version of Ally McBeal. The book expertly starts Maxine off as a nonbeliever in this “Iperian” client, but as time goes on, she slowly begins to realize that his miracle cure for earthly ailments is proving true. Which makes her wonder if everything else he’s saying about the cosmos is true. At first, the alien comes off as awkward and maybe a little naïve, but there is eventually evidence of a sinister plot unfolding and humanity’s existence is soon at stake. We also get a snapshot of some of the issues that challenge the not-too-distant future, like, can AI androids have religion? All in all, this was a fun read.
This title is available to place on hold from our RSA services as well as on Hoopla in eBook format and audio.
Three Words that Describe this Book: funny, scifi, thriller
Give This A Try if You Like… Mikey7, All Systems Red: The Murderbot Diaries, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Rating: 4/5
