Michael Malone's "First Lady" First Class
I will not pretend to be a trained critic. It is neither vocation nor avocation, but I read a lot. I do not know why Michael Malone is not as famous or as widely read as say Stephen King. His work is literary, his characters are beautifully drawn, memorable and easy to love or despise or feel strongly about. His mysteries are well crafted and he has received accolades & honors for his work. It has been suggested that since he is impossible to "pigeon-hole" (he is not only a creator of tight original mysteries that he does not deal only with the human condition, that he can write a rip roaring good comedy) this has a negative impact on his popularity. This does not speak so well for the reading public.
FIRST LADY is the third & best of the "Justin and Cuddy" series of mysteries. You can read and throughly enjoy this one without having read TIMES WITNESS or UNCIVIL SEASONS, but since after you read it you will definitely buy or borrow & read the others, you may as well read them in order. That means UNCIVIL SEASONS first, then TIME'S WITNESS, then FIRST LADY. Personally I think you should purchase the book new so Mr. Malone can get his royalty and book stores can flourish, but you can save a lot (like maybe $50?) by buying all three right here.
Just as an aside, if you are/were a soap opera fan of One Life To Live, when Michael Malone spent a few years of his life writing the soap, it came to be known as "The thinking man's Soap Opera". It was the best on the air and he received Emmys for making it so. You will enjoy his work.