I know Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen, is eager for people to show up to support another debut novelist, David R. Dow. (Everyone did such a wonderful job showing up for John McMahon when he toured for The Good Detective.) Confessions of an Innocent Man is Dow’s debut mystery. It’s the April selection for the First Mystery Book of the Month. Remember, in future years, you’ll be able to say you were at the bookstore on Monday, April 15, 2019 at 7 PM when he appeared with this book.
Dow is not unfamiliar with writing, though. He is professor of law at the University of Houston Law Center and an internationally recognized figure in the fight against the death penalty. He is the founder and director of the Texas Innocence Project. His nonfiction includes The Autobiography of an Execution and Things I’ve Learned From Dying. Those books, along with Confessions of an Innocent Man, can be ordered through the Web Store. https://bit.ly/2VyMYet
Here’s the summary of Confessions of an Innocent Man.
“Every person wrongfully convicted of a crime at some point dreams of getting revenge against the system. In Confessions of an Innocent Man, the dream comes true and in a spectacular way.”—John Grisham, New York Times bestselling author of The Reckoning
A thrillingly suspenseful debut novel, and a fierce howl of rage that questions the true meaning of justice.
Rafael Zhettah relishes the simplicity and freedom of his life. He is the owner and head chef of a promising Houston restaurant. A pilot with open access to the boundless Texas horizon. A bachelor, content with having few personal or material attachments that ground him. Then, lightning strikes. When he finds Tieresse—billionaire, philanthropist, sophisticate, bombshell—sitting at one of his tables, he also finds his soul mate and his life starts again. And just as fast, when she is brutally murdered in their home, when he is convicted of the crime, when he is sentenced to die, it is all ripped away. But for Rafael Zhettah, death row is not the end. It is only the beginning. Now, with his recaptured freedom, he will stop at nothing to deliver justice to those who stole everything from him.
This is a heart-stoppingly suspenseful, devastating, page-turning debut novel. A thriller with a relentless grip that wants you to read it in one sitting. David R. Dow has dedicated his life to the fight against capital punishment—to righting the horrific injustices of the death penalty regime in Texas. He delivers the perfect modern parable for exploring our complex, uneasy relationships with punishment and reparation in a terribly unjust world.
*****
If you check out CrimeReads.com, you can find an exclusive excerpt from Confessions of an Innocent Man. https://crimereads.com/confessions-of-an-innocent-man/
If you can’t make it Monday, April 15 at 7 PM to meet David R. Dow, you can still order a signed copy of Confessions of an Innocent Man. But, it’s always a treat to meet a debut novelist.