A: Yes. It's called FINAL JUROR. It's a dual story looking at a seventeen-year-old murder of a man who served on a jury in a federal racketeering case, and a contemporary murder trial in Brad Frame's home county.
Q: Are the two cases related?
A: No. Readers won't find a connection between the two other than the fact that both involve jury service.
Q. Where did you come up with the idea?
A. I've always been fascinated by courtroom drama in fiction. Perry Mason stories were among my early favorites. A long time ago, I attended a Saturday session of a major trial in the community where I lived. I wanted Brad and Sharon to have a chance to operate in that environment.
Q. It's been an easy process for you then?
A. The opposite actually. This may be the hardest book for me to write (so far).
Q. Why's that?
A. The courtroom scenes in particular; trials can be quite tedious. The challenge becomes where to put the focus. When do I actually "show" witnesses testifying, and at what moments is it better to just have Brad bring readers up to speed with a quick summary. (e.g. "After listening to him drone on for the past three hours, the only new fact they'd learned was that DNA at the crime scene only matched the victim.") If I did otherwise, I fear readers would be throwing their Kindles across the room.
Q. Sounds like you had to do a fair amount of research?
A. Yes. Nearly two years ago I visited the Montgomery County Courthouse in Norristown, PA. Brad Frame lives in Montgomery County, and that's where the trial takes place. I met with the Jury Commissioners, who provided a tour of the courthouse, discussed how jurors are called to serve, the dos and don'ts of the process, and shared a few stories of how people try to get out of serving on a jury. Their help was invaluable.
Q. The murder trial in the book, is it based on an actual murder case?
A. No. But the challenge for any fiction writer is to convey the sense that these are real events and real people.
Q. You usually like to have an unexpected twist at the end of your mysteries. Will that be the case with FINAL JUROR?
A. That's the plan... times two.
Q. Times two? Explain.
A. I mentioned that this book involves two cases, the seventeen-year-old unsolved murder, and the contemporary murder trial. I'm hoping readers will be surprised by the outcome in both cases.
Q. Do you have an exact publication date?
A. What's that phrase? "No wine before its time." The book is finished, and currently being read by a few of my trusted "beta" readers. It should be available soon. Readers can visit this link to read the opening chapter, until the full book is ready. FINAL JUROR opening
Having only read the beginning chapters of Final Juror, I'm eager to read the rest!
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