Here’s the set-up for Rebecca Forster’s Hostile Witness, just $2.99 on Kindle:
When sixteen-year-old Hannah Sheraton is arrested for the murder of her step-grandfather, the chief justice of the California Supreme court, her distraught mother turns to her old college roommate, Josie Baylor-Bates, for help.
Josie, once a hot-shot criminal defense attorney, left the fast track behind for a small practice in Hermosa Beach, California. But Hannah Sheraton intrigues her and, when the girl is charged as an adult, Josie cannot turn her back.
But the deeper she digs the more Josie realizes that politics, the law and family relationships create a combustible and dangerous situation. When the horrible truth is uncovered it can save Hannah Sheraton or destroy them both.
Author’s note:
“This story was inspired by a case my husband handled. As a superior court judge he had to sentence a minor to life in prison. It made me wonder how I felt about minors arrested for violent crimes. Are they most vulnerable among us – capable of horrible violence, perceived as adults and yet emotionally still children?” Rebecca Forster (rebeccaforster.com)
From the reviewers:
“An enthralling read, with colorful, well-developed characters and the unique atmosphere of the California beach communities.” – Nancy Taylor Rosenberg
“Blending complex psychological character portraits with spot-on accurage courtroom drmaa, Forster’s riveting legal thriller keeps the plot twists coming until the last, satisfying page.” – Alafair Burke
Absolutely riveting from start to finish. A wondrously human heart beats inside the chest of this particular lawyer, though, and that – plus a beautifully constructed plot – is what makes Hostile Witness a novel you just can’t put down. – Daniel Jolley
Hostile Witness is an excellent start of an interesting new series. The pace was brisk and readable. The story sucks you in immediately, and the ending is full of thrills and surprises. – Bob A. Reiss
Now, I am a USA Today best selling author with more than 20 books to my name – and if you ask me where all those words came from I’d be hard pressed to tell you. All I know is that I wake up with a story in my head and go to bed the same way.
My specialty is legal thrillers and The Witness Series, featuring my beach-rat, volleyball playing attorney Josie Bates and her teenage ward Hannah, have really captured readers’ imaginations. But I also like to stretch the thriller genre a bit. Before Her Eyes, for instance, has a fantasy overlay on a murder mystery that I really found intriguing. Wilde’s Gamble is a romantic suspense.
I teach at UCLA Writers Program and work with The Young Writers Conference, a program that helps motivate middle school children to explore the power of words. I think I am particularly drawn to kids and writing because both my sons have always had a passion for it. Eric is a playwright and Alex is in film.
When I’m not writing I’m traveling, on a tennis court, working a sewing machine or reading. You can find out more about me, my travels and my work-in-progress at www.rebeccaforster.com
And here, in the comfort of your own browser, is your free sample: