BOTB Semifinalist - Ready for the Defense, by Mike Langan

Ready for the Defense, by Mike Langan

First-year associate Hank Fisher is not your typical criminal defense lawyer. Acting more like Sherlock Holmes than Oliver Wendell Holmes in the courtroom, he exonerates clients by catching the real bad guys. His unconventional victories come at the chagrin of his larger-than-life boss, John "Mac" MacPherson, who prefers to pull the twelfth juror from the brink of conviction the old-fashioned way, through an artful cross-examination and an impassioned closing argument.

But before the dysfunctional duo can rescue their new client, U.S. Senator Victoria Serling, from the jaws of an apparent IRS investigation, a hit-and-run accident rips their law firm apart, killing Mac and putting Senator Serling in the hospital. To find the killer, Hank must defend the senator by himself in a criminal investigation that soon spirals out of control.

Hank learns the senator is being blackmailed because of her activities on the Senate's Select Committee on Terrorism. It seems she has asked one too many questions about an unconfirmed report that an a Saudi businessman has transferred to al-Qaida a genetically engineered biowarfare virus that makes the Swine Flu look like a head cold. As the mystery virus hits Los Angeles and a federal grand jury prepares to indict the senator for a campaign violation she did not commit, Hank is fired for incompetence.

With the help of the senator's charming niece, Dr. Amelia Fuentes, and an ethically challenged ex-cop named Roger Lynch, Hank tries once more to find the culprit. But to crack this case, he must risk losing his law license . . . and his life.


Mike Langan writes novels that draw on his experience as a former litigator in Washington, D.C., and Syracuse, N.Y. He received his J.D. from George Mason University School of Law, where he was an editor of the George Mason Law Review. Before becoming a lawyer, Mike received his M.F.A. in creative writing from George Mason University, where he was a graduate fellow, and his B.A. in philosophy from Colgate University, from which he graduated cum laude. He has taught college courses in both law and English, and has published several legal articles and short stories. His first novel, Dark Horse, was published in February of 2008. His second novel, Ready for the Defense, was published in May of 2008. He lives with his wife and two daughters in the Syracuse area, where he works as a career law clerk to a federal court judge.

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