In Harold Macmillan's Britain of the early 1960s the Bar is dominated by
white, privileged, Oxbridge men. Underneath a profession which proudly
flaunts its integrity and traditions lies a world of hypocrisy and
ruthless self-interest. When scandal threatens, self-preservation is the
only goal and no one is indispensable.
Ben Schroeder, a talented young man from an East End Jewish family, has
been accepted as a pupil into the chambers of Bernard Wesley, QC. But
Schroeder is an outsider, not part of this privileged society, where
wealth and an Oxbridge education are essentials. He encounters
prejudice, intrigue, and scandal.
Kenneth Gaskell, a rising star of Wesley's chambers has become involved
in an affair with a high-profile client and the relationship, if known,
could ruin his career, and the careers of all those around him.
But Bernard Wesley has some information--he knows about a student prank
that went terribly wrong. Can he use this knowledge in a desperate
gamble to save his chambers and turn the tables on his old rival, Miles
Overton, QC? Ben Schroeder has proved his ability, but he is no more
than a pawn in this game. Can he survive in this world where nothing,
not even justice, is sacred?
After graduating from Cambridge University, Peter Murphy spent a career
in the law, as an advocate and teacher, both in England and the United
States. His legal work included a number of years in The Hague as
defence counsel at the Yugoslavian War Crimes Tribunal.
