Shadow of A Doubt
by William Jeremiah Coughlin
Charley Sloan thought it was all behind him — his career, his wives, his drink problem.
The colourful life he had once lived seemed a vague memory; he was now a regular at local AA meetings and was scraping by with work, using an office in a quiet and uneventful probate firm.
There were no glamorous women, no exotic holidays and no flash cars.
There was just Charley, sobriety, a rented studio and an old Ford Escort.
Life was lonely without booze, but it was stable. That is, until the arrival of an expensive looking client in his shabby lawyer’s office…
Robin Harwell — a sweetheart from High School with a favour to ask, and $20,000 to pay for it.
Defend her step-daughter? No easy task when the charge is murder, the victim her husband and the defendant has already confessed …
Angel — the rich little girl with celestial looks and a dead father’s blood on her hands. Innocent child, cool headed killer or completely psychotic? She probably needs a magician more than a lawyer …
Apart from the scandalous case they are facing, Robin and Angel seem to be coping remarkably well without Harrison Harwell. Their primary focus is on selling the shipping empire he left behind and making sure Angel doesn’t wind up in jail.
Why have they chosen Charley and what are they hiding?
Family feuds, secret sexualities and missing records add to the pressure Charley is under — this is the one chance he has to restore his name but he knows he has to take a risk and fight dirty if he wants to win.
With the publicity machine revving, the District Attorney prosecuting and the temptation to reach for the bottle growing, Charley must prove there’s a Shadow of A Doubt or else he’s sunk forever.
William J. Coughlin has combined a career as a United States administrative judge in Detroit with that of a best-selling novelist. His four previous highly acclaimed and successful novels are The Twelve Apostles, His Father’s Daughter, Her Honor and In the Presence of Enemies.
The colourful life he had once lived seemed a vague memory; he was now a regular at local AA meetings and was scraping by with work, using an office in a quiet and uneventful probate firm.
There were no glamorous women, no exotic holidays and no flash cars.
There was just Charley, sobriety, a rented studio and an old Ford Escort.
Life was lonely without booze, but it was stable. That is, until the arrival of an expensive looking client in his shabby lawyer’s office…
Robin Harwell — a sweetheart from High School with a favour to ask, and $20,000 to pay for it.
Defend her step-daughter? No easy task when the charge is murder, the victim her husband and the defendant has already confessed …
Angel — the rich little girl with celestial looks and a dead father’s blood on her hands. Innocent child, cool headed killer or completely psychotic? She probably needs a magician more than a lawyer …
Apart from the scandalous case they are facing, Robin and Angel seem to be coping remarkably well without Harrison Harwell. Their primary focus is on selling the shipping empire he left behind and making sure Angel doesn’t wind up in jail.
Why have they chosen Charley and what are they hiding?
Family feuds, secret sexualities and missing records add to the pressure Charley is under — this is the one chance he has to restore his name but he knows he has to take a risk and fight dirty if he wants to win.
With the publicity machine revving, the District Attorney prosecuting and the temptation to reach for the bottle growing, Charley must prove there’s a Shadow of A Doubt or else he’s sunk forever.
William J. Coughlin has combined a career as a United States administrative judge in Detroit with that of a best-selling novelist. His four previous highly acclaimed and successful novels are The Twelve Apostles, His Father’s Daughter, Her Honor and In the Presence of Enemies.
