Friday, November 21, 2008

"An Innocent Client"

Scott Pratt's debut novel is An Innocent Client.

He applied the Page 69 Test to the book and reported the following:
As a litmus test for a random reader, pg 69 of my debut novel, An Innocent Client, probably sucks. It's the end of a chapter and contains only a few paragraphs. The protagonist, Joe Dillard, is arriving home at night after dinner and sees movement on his front porch. He hears his German shepherd raising hell inside the house. He walks around to see who it is, and when his wife turns the light on from inside, he sees his sister, who has just been released from jail. She's wearing a T-shirt that says, "Do me, I'm Irish," and the book goes on from there.

An Innocent Client is about a criminal defense lawyer who's so sick of the profession he wants out. Before he gets out, however, he'd like to represent just one freaking client who's truly innocent. Like they say, you have to be careful what you wish for. The book is a powerful indictment of the American criminal justice system and a damned good read.

Publishers Weekly gave it a starred review the last week of September, and I have to say I'm proud of it.
Read an excerpt from An Innocent Client, and learn more about the book and author at Scott Pratt's website.

Visit the complete list of books in the Page 69 Test Series.

--Marshal Zeringue