Time's Witness

by Michael Malone

Book Overview

Street-smart and straightforward police chief Cuddy Mangum and his refined homicide detective Justin Savile V are determined to keep their town's cultural, political and racial divisions stable...even peaceful. But when a young black activist is murdered while in the process of fighting for his brother's freedom from death row, the lines keeping Hillston, North Carolina, in balance start to crumble.

Thrust into a dirty political campaign...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1570717540
• ISBN13: 9781570717543
• Release Date: April 2002
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark
• Length: 576 Pages
• Weight: 1.48 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 5.7" x 8.6"

Customer Reviews

Perhaps the best from Michael Malone

Malone is an amazing writer. His command of the language, his ability to interweave multiple plots, and, above all, his characterization of people in "the new South" is flawless. Of the Justin/Cuddy trilogy, Time's Witness is by far my favorite. Perhaps that's because the point of view is that of Cuddy Mangum, far more complex than tortured soul Justin Savile, narrarator of "Uncivil Seasons".An older book that went out of print for awhile and is just now being enjoyed by a new generation of readers, "Time's Witness" covers the controversy of capital punishment, when the criminal is truly not guilty, in a way that Grisham, Turow, and many others are just getting to now. The threads of who actually was responsible for the death of a cop, and later a civil rights activist, are sometimes a little difficult to follow.But Malone keeps the complex story alive by his references to day to day small dramas, while the large plot unfolds. His phrasing is elegant, and bringing in the funny Martha (Cuddy's dog), the personal lives of cops Nancy & Zeke, and the bond between Cuddy and inimitable attorney Isaac Rosethorn (think Robert Duvall) grounds the reality you look for in a novel, into this fine book.In particular, the courtroom scenes, near the end of the novel, come to life in a way that many other "legal thriller" novelists would love to emulate. Rising above all is the way Malone brings Cuddy's (and others') beliefs on issues of the day to bear in the story with crisp and believable dialogue. Morally on par on multiple themes in the way that "To Kill a Mockingbird" read, "Time's Witness" is a classic of our times!Bravo!

If you liked L.A Confidential

When I read Michael Malone's first mystery "Uncivil Seasons," I was most impressed with policeman Cuddy Mangum. His dialogue seemed the most authentic, his character the most fully realized. What a pleasure then to have an entire book told in his voice. And what a book! This is a big, gorgeous, complicated piece of work. Malone weaves so many characters and plotlines and issues together -- and seamlessly, at that -- that it's truly breathtaking. As for the writing itself, there's not one clunky sentence, not one line of false dialogue, not one overblown metaphor. It's all clean, crisp and very, very funny. In short, this is not only one of the finest mysteries I've ever read, it's simply one of the finest NOVELS I've ever read.

Time's Witness

With a different voice, this time Cuddy's, Michael Malone again presents the characters of Police Chief Cuddy Mangum and Justin Savile V. They first appeared in the wonderful book, Uncivil Seasons. This book is even better. It is layered pefectly and is unique in that you end up caring about every character presented. And, most of them are flawed. Malone is a great writer and I look forward to reading First Lady.

The Sequel to Uncivil Seasons

If you liked the narration of Justin Saville in Uncivil Seasons, you will be pleasantly surprised by this sequel. The preceding book had Justin describing his good friend Cuddy as the classic good ol' boy. Well, this book has the same characters, but with Cuddy as the narrator. It gives us a different look at Justin, and some insight into Cuddy. He is not a dumb, semi-redneck, carefree guy. He is smart and serious, but he hides that, surprising a lot of people in a lot of ways. Uncivil Seasons has some great writing by Malone, who is my favorite author. However, this is a better book due to the complex plot and the wonderful drawings of so many characters.

THE book I ALWAYS recommend to EVERYONE

I have yet to find a more perfect blend of wry humor, fully realized characters, supspense and a rousing sense of integrity on every page as in this book. This book is absolutely one that got away. The title should have been on everyone's lips.