by Jo Murray
First published 2026
Leila Reynolds stares at the case file that will change everything. Her first murder assignment involves a dead judge whose killing rocked the legal world. The defendant demands Leila represent him despite her inexperience, then refuses to speak. The prosecution assigns the case to her husband, a merciless attorney who taught her the law. Leila prepares to battle the man she married while defending a client who won't help himself. A figure from her past surfaces, threatening to expose secrets she buried long ago. Now Leila fights three wars at once: saving her client from conviction, protecting her marriage from destruction, and keeping her own dark history hidden. The courtroom becomes a battlefield where personal and professional loyalties collide. Leila discovers that winning might require breaking every rule she once believed in.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, legal-thriller
Vibes: dark, emotional, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
416 pages · Paperback · Pan MacMillan
Content warnings: murder