In Defense of Guilt

by Benjamin H. Berkley

" In Defense of Guilt is a fast-paced legal thriller with a spiritual twist. Well written and highly recommended." --Melanie Bragg, Author of Crosstown Park Representing a man accused of throwing his wife overboard, chic attorney Lauren Hill begins to artfully present her case. But when Judge Howell seems to morph into God, Lauren's life of infidelity, poor parenthood, and self-absorption is questioned by the Almighty, who charges Lauren with committing the seven deadly sins. But is this real or fantasy? Is Lauren on the edge of a nervous breakdown, or is God presiding and ultimately deciding Lauren's fate? In Defense of Guilt is a gripping story of self-discovery, justice, and ultimately about love.

222 pages, Paperback

First published October 24, 2018

About the author

From as far back as he can remember, Benjamin Berkley was fascinated by the law. Growing up in Long Beach, New York his daily schedule revolved around grainy black-and-white reruns of Perry Mason who, with the help of Della Street, solved the most complicated of crimes imaginable. It was therefore no surprise to his family and friends that Berkley chose law as his career path, now practicing for over 40 years.

“In Defense of Guilt” is Benjamin Berkley’s second novel. He is also the author of four self-help books and is a contributing writer for the Huffington Post. Berkley lives in southern California with his wife Phyllis and their cat Riley. He has two grown children and is always bragging about his five amazing grandchildren. www.benberkley.com.

Reviews

[Linda Strong · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lauren is a defense attorney. Her client is a man accused of killing his wife by throwing her overboard.

Lauren is a superb attorney, unbeaten by the prosecutor in a series of trials. But this is going to be a trial like no other.

She has an epiphany .. or a hallucination ... or a nervous breakdown .. because all of a sudden God is there. Only she and her client can see or hear him. Is God presiding and ultimately deciding Lauren’s fate?

It's a unique and compelling story that offers an inspirational message.

Many thanks to the author / Koehler Books / Netgalley for the advanced digital copy. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

[Teddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

First, let me start by saying that I am not a religious person. So when I see a book published as Christian Fiction, it is a turn off for me. I have to be convinced that there is literary merit without shoving religious beliefs down my throat. That said, I decided to give ‘In Defense of Guilt’ a chance.

We all know of people with very questionable values. Many of us judge lawyers to be in that category. After all, many defend guilty people. ‘In Defense of Guilt’ examines defense attorney, Lauren Hill. She prides herself on getting her clients off even if they are guilty. After all, it is her job to do so.

This is a very unique book that turns the tables from the client to the lawyer. While Lauren defends her client, she herself is put on trial by God. She is charges with committing the seven deadly sins. Is Lauren going crazy? Lauren is a well examined character and all of her flaws are laid out for the reader to witness. The reader becomes jury.

‘In Defense of Guilt’ is a well written legal thriller that really has two trials, the one of the defendant accused of murdering his wife and that of Lauren Hill. It’s like getting two books in one and it works quite well. Benjamin H. Berkley is a genius for not only thinking it up but for also pulling it off so well! I highly recommend ‘In Defense of Guilt’ to those who enjoy crime thrillers.

[Jeanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting idea - would have been better with much less profanity when one things God is present in the courtroom!

[OpenBookSociety.com · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://openbooksociety.com/article/in...

In Defense of Guilt
By Benjamin H. Berkley
ISBN 9781633936522
Author Website: Benberkley(.)com
Brought to you by OBS Reviewer Jeanie


Synopsis:

Representing a man accused of throwing his wife overboard, chic attorney Lauren Hill begins to artfully present her case. But when Judge Howell seems to morph into God, Lauren’s life of infidelity, poor parenthood, and self-absorption is questioned by the Almighty, who charges Lauren with committing the seven deadly sins. But is this real or fantasy? Is Lauren on the edge of a nervous breakdown, or is God presiding and ultimately deciding Lauren’s fate? In Defense of Guilt is a gripping story of self-discovery, justice, and ultimately about love. (Goodreads)

Review:

This fast-paced novel has a fascinating premise: what happens when a high-power defense attorney who feels she deserves the self-awarded “perks” of hard work is confronted by God and the seven deadly sins of Proverbs 6:16-19. This confrontation is not in private. Oh, no. Lauren Hill is in top form, having lost not one case in her career, and is in now court defending yet another alleged murderer when the judge suddenly changes in appearance and form into what looks like…God Himself. He calls her “my child” and talks about the book of Proverbs, the teachings of the fool versus wise, and the deadly sins, stopping at “lust”. And at the most unfortunate time, God reverts to being Judge Howell.

Lauren is frightened of going insane, and wonders if she is having a hallucination. Even having a recess does little to calm her. Returning to the trial and her very neurotic client, she tries to focus on the matter at hand. Her client, Martin Maze, is accused of murder, pushing his wife off the cruise ship they were on. Her body has never been found, but that doesn’t seem to bother the prosecutor who pulls out all the stops to try to convict the high-strung, needy, and unpredictable defendant. Maze wants to be called to the witness stand, but he is too volatile for Lauren to trust on the stand. When God returns to the bench, Lauren grabs the swearing-in Bible and runs out of the courtroom.

As the trial progresses and the judge keeps a close eye on her, Lauren struggles to regain control of her life. Having been in an affair with the DA, Dillon Bradley, she tries to meet him – and the moment is lost when she wants to look up the verses from Proverbs in the Gideon Bible in the hotel room and tells Dillon of the secrets of her growing-up years. When her husband calls and asks her to pick up their daughter from school, she is confronted by a belligerent 14-year-old who just wants her mother to be like other moms, have time for her, and care about her. The worst part? Constance accuses her of going on her father, the househusband who has been writing books for years but is yet unpublished.

As Lauren ponders what to do with these “visions” of God, He appears to her more and more. And more, in the faces of a few, then several, then all twelve of the jurors she tries to give closing arguments to. What happens next is beyond what she could have imagined – with her client, God, her family, even the outcome of the trial. In any event, the characters are flawed humans who are faced with the guilt of what each has done, and must answer how to go forward, knowing what they know about themselves now.

Lauren is very well defined, others as well as necessary for their secondary roles. I appreciate the focus being more on a limited number of characters as the primary relationship is that between Lauren, a proclaimed self-made woman, and God, who calls her “my child” and is calling on her to change some of her self-made behaviors. Other characters are shown as if in Lauren’s orbit, such as her husband and daughter, the associate attorney from the office, the man she is in an affair with, and her client.

This novel includes an array of elements that give the reader pause for thought. After all, how many of those defendants with high-dollar attorneys are guilty of the crimes? How many seemingly hardened folks actually are convicted by a higher court, the God they have denied, or start acting out from the torment of their guilt? In many ways the novel is well-written but leads this reader to question the author’s seemingly cavalier use of bad language and sex even as God shows up to remind Lauren of the deadly sins. The story is totally unpredictable, culminating with unforeseen drama. The author leads the reader to examine justice, forgiveness, and love. The ending satisfactory, with all loose ends tied up. While part of the outcome was satisfactory, there is another I didn’t like as well. I recommend this novel to anyone who appreciates tense courtroom scenes and how love might coexist with justice.



*OBS would like to thank the publisher for supplying a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review*

[Bookgirl86 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. That's the main thing I have to go with as a takeaway from this novel. Just the word, 'Wow.' A stunning story about a woman's internal war and her relationship with God.
Lauren Hill is an attorney who is defending a client who is accused of throwing his wife overboard his boat and killing her. Lauren is a good attorney, and she's sure she can win the case but she has a lot of inner struggles that present themselves masterfully and thoughtfully on the page.
One day while she is defending her client in court, Lauren has a vision of the judge for the case turning into God. Except, she has to ask herself, is it a vision? Or is it real? It turns out her client can see God in the courtroom, too. Are they both crazy? It isn't long before Lauren's inner struggles are brought to light, all her worst traits are revealed and she is left spiritually naked in the middle of the courtroom.
I can't say that I'm a particularly religious person, but this book moved me in a way no other book ever has before. There is just something about a high-powered, high-paid, ball-bursting female attorney having to confront her own inner demons that spoke to me as a woman in today's society. There seems to be such a disconnect between the business world and the spiritual world these days and this book really investigates that disconnect and artfully raises questions about it.
I loved Lauren as a character and was fascinated by her life even if some of it made me cringe to imagine. I'm definitely giving this five stars. I would recommend this to absolutely anyone that loves an inspiring novel or is just interested in a pretty powerful look at society and womanhood.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Defense of Guilt has depth… if you want it to. Otherwise, enjoy a fun and fresh literary version reminiscent of Bruce Almighty.

Benjamin H. Berkley’s latest fiction imagines what might happen if a lawyer were to come face to face with her sins while defending her client in a court of law, and herself be judged for them.

Lauren Hill is modern day female career hero — she’s ambitious, driven, sophisticated and successful… In fact, she’s never lost a case. But she’s also having an affair with her rival, remarkably self-absorbed, and haughty.

In the middle of a murder trial, she’s confident that everything is going as planned when the Judge suddenly morphs into God before her. She thinks she might be hallucinating, or going crazy (it runs in the family, apparently), but in the course of the proceedings, she finds that her potential nervous breakdown might actually be a wake-up call from above to justify her own life decisions.

In Defense of Guilt is an engaging read filled with relatable flawed characters. Fans of courtroom dramas especially will appreciate Berkley’s years of experience as an attorney, showing insight into courtroom procedure that both entertains and enlightens. The infusion of religion — and overall morality — doesn’t make the story stuffy. While the message had potential to turn into a heavy handed sermon, Berkley instead permeates the story with levity and wit.

Readers will certainly keep turning the pages in delight to find out what judgement awaits. 5 stars.

[Emmy · Rating 2 out of 5]

•audiobook•

In defense of Defense of Guilt, maybe I’ve watched too many Law & Orders and spin offs.

Listening to this was a crossover of Touched by An Angel and Legally Blonde, but without the endearing characters and humour.

For some reason, the “hottest” attorneys acting like immature brats having a pissing contest on the playground aka courtroom was unkindly torture to the brain.

Emotions were devoid except for the occasional “Am I crazy?” episodes.

Here we have another ex(?) attorney stepping into the writing game. But without class and double heaps of perhaps crash writing course.

The book description was great. The idea was good. But the writing failed to keep it interesting.

Luckily, it was a short book narrator by a talented voice actor, Lawrence Alexander, and swallowing a couple chapters a day was possible. If he narrated more fiction, I would definitely listen to him more!

We all wonder how defense lawyers live with themselves when their job is to provide reasonable doubt. I never bought into her “cleverness” nor her intelligence. None of the characters really popped out to become living, breathing people.

A book to skip, but a narrator to look out for.

"I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review."

[Diogenes · Rating 1 out of 5]

Put off by the absurdly florid prose.