Under Oath

Boston prosecuting attorney Annie Fitzgerald takes center stage in McLean’s rousing courtroom drama, while defense attorney Buddy Clancy, featured in her 2011 debut, Under Fire, provides a wily and unscrupulous foil. On trial for murdering promising Charlestown artist Trevor Shea is the despicable Billy Malone, notorious even in Charlestown, a one-square-mile area with “the highest unsolved murder rate in the country.” For Annie and Boston homicide detective Mike Callahan, convicting Malone would be a coup, since they believe him responsible for many deaths. Clancy is willing to shred reputations and demolish witnesses to win the case for Malone. The Honorable Conrad J. Killam, the judge presiding over the trial, gives both sides wide latitude. Missing witnesses, surprise witnesses, reluctant witnesses, brutal cross examinations, disputed exhibits, and a hodge-podge of jurors keep the outcome in doubt. Occasional rough spots outside the courtroom shouldn’t keep fans of legal thrillers from enjoying Annie and Clancy’s courtroom battles. Agent: Susan Gleason, Susan Gleason Literary Agency. (Apr.)