Synopses & Reviews
Boulder attorney Lucinda Hayes pulls the gruesome page from the fax machine, not suspecting it will draw her into the repugnant realm of pornographic film and pit her against the giants of the mainstream film industry. Her reluctant agreement to represent Peggy Grayling, mother of a slain child, requires her to reach out to her law partner Tory Meadows and private investigator Linc Tolkien, but troubles her long-distance love affair with New York lawyer Sam Holt. As the case unfolds Cinda must call upon all her legal talent and argue for a new understanding of the law of free speech; it also forces her to revisit her past and face its ghosts. Equal parts courtroom drama, intellectual journey, and character study, Chilling Effect is Marianne Wesson's most provocative Lucinda Hayes mystery to date.
Review
"A searing look at violent pornography, its victims, and the professionals (legal and otherwise) who live well off its profits. It is also a gripping suspense story centered on a murdered child, her grieving mother, and the lawyer who tries to help, as we
Review
"The excellent and thoughtful story and the Colorado setting ought to be enough to send you straight to the bookstore."<br /> - <b><i>Rocky Mountain News</i></b><br>"A startling journey into pornographic film and elsewhere."<br /> - <b><i>Library Journal<
Review
"With superbly drawn characters, a story with grit and purpose, and a final denouement worthy of intense consideration, this latest mystery from Wesson comes highly recommended."
- New Mystery Reader
"A first-rate legal mystery."
Synopsis
Equal parts courtroom drama, intellectual journey, and character study,
Chilling Effect is Marianne Wesson's most provocative Lucinda Hayes mystery to date.
When attorney Lucinda Hayes reluctantly agrees to represent the mother of a brutally slain child, she must convince the court that the makers of a pornographic film are liable for the murder. As the case unfolds, Lucinda calls upon all her personal strength and legal talent, facing down her own ghosts as well as the powerful entertainment industry's star lawyers.
In Chilling Effect, Wesson affirms the power of free speech to inspire the best and the worst human behavior and explores the tension between freedom and accountability
Synopsis
When attorney Lucinda Hayes reluctantly agrees to represent the mother of a brutally slain child, she must convince the court that the makers of a pornographic film are liable for the murder. As the case unfolds, Lucinda calls upon all her personal strength and legal talent, facing down her own ghosts as well as the powerful entertainment industry's star lawyers.
About the Author
Marianne Wesson is professor of law, Wolf-Nichol Fellow, President's Teaching Scholar, and senior scholar of the Women's Studies Program at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Her previous novels, Render Up the Body and A Suggestion of Death, also feature Lucinda Hayes.