Overview

Attorney and LGBTQ+ activist Robyn Gigl breaks the mold with her “thrillingly complex [and] groundbreaking” (The New York Times) legal thrillers featuring ripped-from-the-headlines plots and a singular protagonist who, like the author herself, is a transgender lawyer. Fans of J.A. Jance, Scott Turow, Lisa Unger, and Renee James will devour this edgy page-turner, as a Jersey Shore murder puts Erin McCabe’s own freedom in the crosshairs… - Finalist for the Joseph Hansen Award for LGBTQ Crimewriting - Erin McCabe’s years as a criminal defense attorney have prepared her for almost anything, except being on the opposite side of the interrogation table. A new client—a successful financial adviser—was found stabbed to death on the beach near his palatial Jersey Shore home. The time of death is estimated to be during Erin’s one and only consultation with him, during which he revealed that he was secretly transgender. As the last person to see him alive, Erin’s now the prime suspect. If the evidence were simply circumstantial, Erin is sure she and her law partner, Duane Swisher, could prevail. But there are entanglements that can’t be easily explained, and connections to powerful unscrupulous politicians who hold a lot of grudges. While the investigation unfolds, Erin and Duane are called on to represent a mother charged with abducting her child—a hot-button case that has both private and public implications for Erin. As she battles one prosecutor who wants to see her charged with murder, and another determined to send her to jail for refusing to divulge her client’s location, Erin also faces a devastating family tragedy. With her career and her relationship on the line, and her life being targeted by a desperate nemesis, there has never been more at stake—or fewer places to turn . . .

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9781496741776

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Reviews

"Praise for Robyn Gigl's Erin McCabe Thrillers: ""Among this year's standouts...hair-raising...thrillingly complex...a groundbreaking series poised to become a definitive one."" --The New York Times Book Review (Sarah Weinman) on Survivor's Guilt ""Stunning...Gigl delightfully flips the usual terms of the genre with a murder victim readers are quickly drawn to hate and a murderer whom they will be rooting for. Her takes on big questions of justice, revenge, and the nature of victimhood will resonate with many."" --Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW for Survivor's Guilt ""A compulsively riveting page-turner with a complex heroine, a captivating plot, and no easy answers. It's one of the best thrillers of the year."" --Mystery Scene on By Way of Sorrow ""Topically relevant, edgy, and riveting, this series is one to watch. Rooting for a trans protagonist in a position of power is thoroughly refreshing and inspiring. Here's to more Erin McCabes."" - Library Journal on Survivor's Guilt ""Emotionally resonant...Gigl is too astute and compassionate a writer to create cartoon villainy out of anti-trans attitudes...quietly groundbreaking."" --The New York Times (Sarah Weinman) on By Way of Sorrow ""An intelligent and resourceful protagonist with an unusual backstory...Erin's ability to navigate the intricacies of the law is just as fascinating as the subsequent perils she encounters. Gigl, an attorney, offers some enlightening insights into the workings of the legal world."" --Publishers Weekly on By Way of Sorrow ""Gigl, a transgender lawyer herself, provides provocative insights into the legal system and the challenges of gender identity."" --Booklist on By Way of Sorrow ""Gigl's accomplishment here is to parse the serious flaws with the legal system and expose the vulnerability of homeless members of the trans community by way of subtle characterization and seamless plotting. In less skillful hands, we might get melodrama or a polemic; here, we get engrossing originality--and a brilliant point in a larger argument for the benefits of greater representation in our beloved genre."" --Lambda Literary Review on By Way of Sorrow ""For those of us hungry for characters that look more like us and the we know, most of whom we love, the author provides a moveable feast of very human souls...a page turner extraordinaire."" --Out in Jersey on By Way of Sorrow ""With tight, realistic plotting interweaving a murder mystery with insights into transgender issues, By Way Of Sorrow is a promising series debut... I'm looking forward to seeing where Robyn Gigl will go with this series next, and am really glad she's writing so honestly and entertainingly about trans issues in a field with precious few trans leads."" --Criminal Element on By Way of Sorrow ""Robyn Gigl has delivered a compelling, provocative legal thriller like no other. Topical and fast-paced, By Way of Sorrow grabs you on the very first page with a brutal murder, and then sends you on a twist-filled thrill-ride that doesn't let up until the startling finale."" --Kevin O'Brien, New York Times bestselling author of The Bad Sister on By Way of Sorrow"

Author Information

Robyn Gigl is an award-winning author, attorney, and activist. The recipient of the Publishing Triangle’s prestigious Joseph Hansen Award, her Erin McCabe legal thrillers have landed on Best of the Year lists at The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, CrimeReads, LAMBDA Literary, and more. Survivor’s Guilt was named a TIME Magazine Best Thrillers and Mysteries of All Time. An attorney whose legal career spans more than 40 years, she was appointed by the New Jersey Supreme Court to the Court's Committee on Diversity Inclusion and Community Engagement and has been named one of the Top 50 Women Lawyers in New Jersey. She has been honored by the ACLU-NJ and the NJ Pride Network for her work on behalf of the LGBTQ+ community and is a member of the Board of Directors of Garden State Equality, New Jersey’s largest LGBTQ+ Civil Rights Organization. She is a partner at the law firm of Dilworth Paxson, LLP in Freehold, NJ, and can be found at online robyngigl.com, on X @robyngigl, and Instagram @robyngigl.

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