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Liz Allen's Last to Know is a book that deserves to rise above the throng: this is a powerful and intelligently written piece that demonstrates beyond doubt that Allen possesses the all-too-rare talent of genuine storytelling skill. Her heroine Deborah Parker is a fresh recruit at the prestigious firm of solicitors Jennings and Associates, trying to make her mark in a challenging legal world. A plum job drops in her lap: she is to defend the scion of one of Ireland's leading crime figures. The issue is rape - a particularly savage one - which makes her uneasy, but Deborah is soon to find that her big break is actually a recipe for disaster - her whole life is turned upside down, and she finds herself part of a world very different from that she is used to.

It's a classic thriller ploy to drop your hero or heroine into maelstrom of danger and suspicion, watching in horror as their life implodes around the, But Allen has brought off the device with more panache than most, and the Irish criminal underworld is created with salty, threatening authenticity. A key element here, of course, is the beleaguered heroine, and Deborah Parker is sympathetically characterised - we share her fears, get annoyed at her (frequent) missteps and identify with her successes. Similarly, the various Irish heavies Deborah comes up against are vividly created, from the brutal to the more dangerous intelligent kingpins.