Steve Winslow doesn’t take clients. He makes more than enough acting as trustee for a substantial fortune. Occasionally, a case will come along that intrigues him, and then you have magnificent courtroom drama. So when a woman appears at his door, let in by his secretary, Tracy, who insists he talk with her, he’s boxed in a corner.

"Steve's grin became broader. ‘So,’ he said. ‘The young woman is charged with petty theft. She's been arrested, arraigned, given a court date and the trial starts tomorrow. She has a court appointed attorney representing her, and she has no money with which to hire any other. And you would like me to hear her case?’ “

He does, of course, and after getting her found innocent quickly on the theft charge, the client is charged with the murder of the man who charged her with the theft. Clearly, Hall is emulating the famous Perry Mason books; Winslow has the close but platonic relationship with his secretary, he has the Paul Drake twin, and he pulls the solution out in open court during the trial after pulling a series of shenanigans.

Hall does it all very well and if you enjoy courtroom surprise drama and/or a modern Perry Mason, you’ll enjoy the Winslow series. I like them a lot. ( )