“A roller coaster ride. … This thriller was masterfully written, and I was hooked from the start until the end.” — Readers’ Favorite, ?????
Judge utilizes 30+ years in law to construct detailed, compelling courtroom drama set in the rural South
A two-time winner of Georgia Bar Journal’s annual fiction competition, lauded attorney and judge Lori B. Duff was fed up with novels detailing unrealistic courtrooms scenes with settings that misrepresented the South. So the acclaimed humor author pivoted from essays to fiction to pen “Devil’s Defense” (Nov. 12, She Writes Press), a gripping courtroom drama full of personal discovery and the first in her Fischer at Law series. Duff is a true voice of authority: Her lengthy legal career in a small southern town (not unlike the novel’s setting) gave her the experience to produce thrilling, authentic legal drama and client interactions, which are based on her real-life experiences.
Jessica knew that in the town of Ashton, Georgia, the order of worship was first Jesus, second America, and third the high school football coach, with the second two interchangeable if it were a winning season. It was often a winning season.
Jessica Fischer wants nothing more than to break into the male-dominated legal scene and build her law practice in small-town Georgia. And she’s well on her way when the local town hero and football coach, Frank “Tripp” Wishingham III, hires her to represent him in a paternity suit. The coach is everything Fischer despises: arrogant, sexist, and entitled. But it’s her job to make him look good in public, which is made doubly difficult when her burgeoning relationship with a local reporter gets in the way of telling the truth. Are things as black and white as Jessica thinks? And can she find a way to succeed without compromising her own personal values or her personal life?
Fans of “Miracle Creek” by Angie Kim and “Where the Crawdads Sing” by Delia Owens will be intrigued by “Devil’s Defense.” And the book will appeal greatly to southern readers hungry for authentic stories set in the South, as well as professional women desperate for a relatable protagonist — it’s only the beginning for Jessica Fischer.
Visit Lori B. Duff’s website.
About Lori B. Duff
Lori B. Duff is a two-time winner of the Georgia Bar Journal’s fiction competition and a popular humor blogger. Her humorous essays have earned multiple awards, including the Foreword Indies Gold Medal for Humor, as well as first place in the National Society for Newspaper Columnists annual contest in the humor category. In addition to her writing, Duff is a graduate of Duke University and the Emory University School of Law. She serves as the Managing Partner of Jones & Duff, LLC, and is also a municipal court judge. Duff has been president of the Georgia Council of Municipal Court Judges and the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and has served in various leadership roles in those and other legal and writing organizations. Learn more at her website loriduffwrites.com.
Congratulations, Lori! We’re so proud of you. We look forward to reading your new novel.
