Publisher Description
Twenty-two years ago, controversial author David Etheridge and ambitious state senator Robert McCrutchen were investigated in the death of a young coed. But a circle of secrecy guaranteed the case was never solved.
When Etheridge returns to Eugene, Oregon, McCrutchen is his grudging host — until the senator is found shot dead. Now Etheridge is back where he was two decades ago — suspected of murder. Only this time, with the cold case reopened, he’s facing a double charge.
Barbara must battle the prosecution and the court of public opinion, which has already tried and convicted Etheridge for both murders. As the pressure mounts, Barbara ties the past and present together, risking her own life to preserve justice.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Wilhelm's sluggish 11th Barbara Holloway legal thriller (after A Wrongful Death), controversial academic David Etheridge returns to his hometown of Eugene, Ore., to lecture on his latest anti-everything book. But when his college nemesis, Sen. Robert McCrutchen, is shot dead, David is fingered for the hit and for the 22-year-old unsolved murder of co-ed Jill Storey, David's assumed former lover and the assumed unrequited love interest of McCrutchen. Enter Barbara Holloway, whom David hires as counsel, just before an unknown assailant beats David within inches of his life. The story hinges on a meager twist Jill may have been a lesbian that's learned early in the investigation and, despite its implications, fails to catalyze deeper discoveries. The plot stalls, and Barbara spends most of the book rooting around in the dark for clues. A lengthy block of exposition delivers a tidy ending to one of the weaker entries in this popular series.
