The last time Tess de Vere saw William Benson she was a law student on
work experience. He was a twenty-one year old, led from the dock of the
Old Bailey to begin a life sentence for murder. He'd said he was
innocent. She'd believed him.
Sixteen years later Tess overhears a couple of hacks mocking a newcomer
to the London Bar, a no-hoper with a murder conviction, running his own
show from an old fishmonger's in Spitalfields. That night she walks back
into Benson's life. The price of his rehabilitation - and access to the
Bar - is an admission of guilt to the killing of Paul Harbeton, whose
family have vowed revenge. He's an outcast. The government wants to shut
him down and no solicitor will instruct him. But he's subsidised by a
mystery benefactor and a desperate woman has turned to him for help:
Sarah Collingstone, mother of a child with special needs, accused of
slaying her wealthy lover. It's a hopeless case and the murder trial,
Benson's first, starts in four days. The evidence is overwhelming but
like Benson long ago, she swears she's innocent. Tess joins the defence
team, determined to help Benson survive. But as Benson follows the
twists and turns in the courtroom, Tess embarks upon a secret
investigation of her own, determined to uncover the truth behind the
death of Paul Harbeton on a lonely night in Soho.
True to life, fast-paced and absolutely compelling, Summary Justice
introduces a new series of courtroom dramas featuring two maverick
lawyers driven to fight injustice at any cost.
