Subjects:

General Interest

Henry Earle lies dead on the pavement outside his house. A single gunshot in his brain. His wife, Isabel, stands dumbstruck in their hallway. It's 1961 in London and if convicted of his murder, she must face the hangman's noose. But Isabel is speechless and unable to enter a plea. Does she have a genuine medical condition or is this an attempt at deception? The story is told from the perspectives of the young barrister brought in to plead her innocence, the psychiatric doctor, the judge trying the case and the policeman. You are led through the maze of the English legal system, but does everyone come to the same conclusion? A wonderful tale with twists and turns but is there another murder on the cards and whose cards are they?

About the Author

The author was a young barrister when he got the case of the real Isabel Earl who was tried at the Old Bailey charged with Capital Murder. He remained a practising barrister doing first criminal and later commercial cases, subsequently becoming a Recorder of the Crown Court and Deputy Coroner to the Royal Household. He then accepted an offer from Lloyds Bank to become its Chief Legal Advisor. As an expert on Banking Law, Derek Wheatley has written many articles for newspapers and the legal journals; this however is his first novel.