Shortly after he arrives in the Northwest, a serial rapist and murderer known as the Trashman begins terrorizing Seattle. Walter Leroy Himes, a homeless man, is captured after an alleged rape and failed murder attempt. Although the victim refuses DNA testing, her testimony, coupled with Himes’ nasty record of sex crimes, his odious personality and hideous appearance, so antagonizes the jury that he is quickly convicted.

In characteristic fashion, Corso outrages the public by protesting in print the shoddy prosecution and the rush to judgment.

Years later, the state’s witness shows up at The Sun demanding to talk with Corso. She now swears she was pressured to lie at the trial and that she fabricated the rape. She is concerned that she is the sole cause for Himes’ scheduled execution, which is now only six days away.

Now Frank has a chance to do what he likes to do best…shock the public, antagonize the police, and again place his reputation on the line. He teams up with newspaper photographer Meg Dougherty. Meg is a victim of a sadistic tattoo artist, and one quickly gets the idea that she is fearless because she doesn’t have much left to lose. .

Proving a repugnant man not guilty of heinous crimes after the fact against fierce opposition from the bureaucracy and law enforcement agencies is only part of the challenge that Frank and Meg will face. They are also putting their lives in danger.

Fury proceeds rapidly and non-stop to a crescendo and conclusion. Occasionally, scenes shifts are jerky. The dialogue is mostly terse, yet injected with attempts of humor that often seem just a little out of sync. Adjectives are G. M. Ford’s passion:

With the bug-eyed lawyer still squirming behind his half-acre palm, the client curled his rubbery lips and scooted his chair closer to the alphabet-soup collection of microphones.

There is good chemistry between Frank and Meg; and this, coupled with sometimes over-the-top dialog and description, occasionally softens an otherwise gritty story that contains significant violence.

--Thea Davis