Grif Stockley
Expert Testimony
Meet Gideon Page - wry public defender, widower caught between grief and desire and a new hero for mystery fans. Powerful Arkansas state senator Hart Anderson has been gunned down by Perry Sarver, a patient of Anderson's psychiatrist wife, Carolyn. Sarver's defense has been assigned to public defender Page who, representing a surly client accused of murdering the state's most popular politician, finds himself in a classic no-win situation. As Page uncovers various motives, the question of Sarver's mental capacity becomes an issue. Through the lawyer's interviews with doctors and lay witnesses, the reader is treated to a clear, comprehensible education regarding the insanity plea and its utilization. Meanwhile, Page struggles to give focus and structure to his personal life, including the upbringing of his daughter.
Excerpt from Expert TestimonyWhat is it about this woman that makes my blood race? She couldn't be less of a flirt. If, for example, Carolyn Anderson is a ten in the glamour department, it is reaching to say that Rainey is a five, and yet, I am finding I will stand on my head to make her smile. Oddly enough, I think it is her honesty that makes her appealing to me.
Praise for Expert TestimonyThe closest novel I've seen this year to Scott Turow's Presumed Innocent. -- San Francisco Chronicle A beguiling and very different kind of mystery, as well as the introduction to a new and most promising author . . . a delightful and intriguing human story. It is to be hoped that Stockley will use his newly found talent to dig into hisi past experiences as background for more such captivating tales. -- Boston Sunday Herald In Stockley's courtroom drama, events - both legal and emotional - are handled with intelligence, maturity and balance . . . a fluid writing style marked by humor and insight. -- Publishers Weekly |
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