Nate Shepherd's next case sends him north to defend a teenager accused of arson and murder. If the kid started the fire, then it's murder—even if he didn't mean to hurt anyone.

Nate Shepherd's client didn't intend to kill anyone. That doesn't matter. He started the fire.

After an old friend recruits him, Nate Shepherd heads north to defend a teenager charged with igniting a blaze that killed a toddler and a firefighter. When he arrives, Nate finds a neglected case and a looming trial date for double murder.

As he scrambles to discover what happened, Nate is resisted by a stonewalling prosecutor and a grieving town, each bent on punishing his client. Worse, every fact Nate uncovers confirms that his client started the tragic Mission Road fire.

As trial approaches, Nate finds nothing but hatred for his client and growing anger toward him. Facing naked hostility and escalating violence, Nate must go to trial in a town that's become a tinderbox. And without a defense, Nate's teenage client faces life in prison for a crime he didn't mean to commit.

Cruel Sentence is the eighth book in the gripping Nate Shepherd Legal Thriller series. If you like razor-sharp dialogue, captivating characters, and riveting trials, you'll love this fierce courtroom drama by Michael Stagg.