The Long-Shot Trial

In 2023, Canadian lawyer Arthur Beauchamp looks back on one of his first cases, his 1966 defense of murder suspect Angelina Santos, a housemaid who confessed to shooting her employer after he raped her. The problem is that Angelina can’t remember what happened and only assumes that she was the shooter. The trial takes place in a quaint backwater that hasn’t kept pace with the modern world. As Arthur prepares for this career-making case, he is charmed by his client, who seems pious and naive. The victim, on the other hand, was not well liked. He owned most of the town and was known to be a heavy drinker and a hothead. With the odds against him, Arthur has to create reasonable doubt in the minds of the jury. But an irascible judge, a flirtatious prosecutor, and a list of unreliable witnesses make his job even harder. With this ninth installment in his Arthur Beauchamp series (after Stung), Deverell creates a cast of eccentric characters who bring humor and chaos to the narrative. Narrator Tim Machin offers an engaging performance as he takes listeners through the twists and turns of this unpredictable story.