The Guilty One by Lisa BallantyneAn eight-year old boy is found dead; a victim of a brutal murder on a local playground. An eleven-year old boy, Sebastian, a neighbor, is accused of the crime. Daniel Hunter, a man with a difficult childhood, is the solicitor for Sebastian. Daniel’s past, and how he identifies with the situations his young clients find themselves in, weaves a thread throughout the arrest and trial of Sebastian.
There are two separate, yet related, storylines here. First is the straightforward trial of Sebastian for the murder of his neighbor. Second, is the story of Daniel’s childhood with Minnie, a foster parent who legally adopts him as a teenager. The estrangement between Daniel and Minnie, wanting to know what went wrong in a relationship that saved Daniel from being one of the troubled kids he defends, is the real mystery at the center of this novel.
If you enjoyed Defending Jacob
you will find this a gripping read. The
courtroom drama is well written and the backstories really come to life.
