Her, Too by Bonnie Kistler
What’s it About?
Defending an accused rapist, a high-powered lawyer learns firsthand the terrible truth about her client … a discovery that propels her on a quest for justice and revenge in this addictively readable thriller.
Her, Too (Harper) is the story of one woman’s relentless and dangerous quest for revenge. Success may get her disbarred or killed but Kelly McCann won’t falter. Former Philadelphia trial attorney and author Bonnie Kistler has written a wrenchingly realistic novel that may be emotionally jarring for some readers.
This work of fiction eerily echoes recent headlines, with only slight exaggerations, of actual cases involving celebrity abusers, serial rapists and murderers. Many of these real-life miscreants have gotten away with their heinous deeds while others are yet to be charged and brought to trial. This novel is a fast-paced, full of surprises, hard-to-put-down thriller documenting protagonist Kelly McCann’s fight to bring down the powerful man she so recently cleared in court.
Female Attorney Defends Men Accused of Sex Crimes
The obvious question for readers is why would a woman attorney, formerly a dedicated prosecutor, suddenly switch to specialize in the defense of men accused of sex crimes? How does she sleep at night knowing most of the contemptible individuals she represents not only committed the crimes but did so remorselessly?
One answer is for the lucrative fees earned and the other is more personal; the heady rush of achieving success despite an uncertain outcome. Her billable hours are astronomically high. Kelly has earned a reputation with an infallible track record for acquittals when these high-profile cases do make it to trial. Her success rate in avoiding court cases by negotiating hush-money settlements with airtight binding NDAs (nondisclosure agreements) is equally stellar.
Despite her shrewd defense strategies, or perhaps because of them, Kelly McCann is held in contempt if not outright hatred by the maligned victims and several women’s organizations who contend she is betraying her sex. The press and her detractors show up in growing force after a major trial. The protestors are vociferous and ever-present many carrying placards in support of the alleged victims. She either chooses to ignore the venom or when pressured to make a comment to the media falls back on the principles of the Napoleonic Code of “presumed innocence” until proven guilty and the American legal standard that guilt must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
The story begins on a high note with another hard-fought victory after a 10-month-long court case. Dr. George Carlson Benedict, MD, Ph.D., accused of raping his closest colleague, lab assistant Dr. Reeza Patel, was acquitted on all counts by a unanimous verdict by the jury. Dr. B as he is familiarly known is hailed by his many admirers as heroic and even labeled by some “a savior” as the man who has discovered the potential cure for Alzheimer’s disease.
He is lauded by both the domestic and international press including prestigious medical journals, has already been honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom and is considered to be a likely recipient of the Nobel Prize for Medicine. As controlling shareholder of UniViro Pharmaceuticals, he stands to become a billionaire when his miracle drug is publically released. This bespectacled, stooped-shouldered 50-year-old man with graying hair is an unlikely celebrity quite unlike the star athletes and musicians Ms. McCann has typically defended.
Edge-of-Your-Seat Thriller Turns Deadly
Kelly has a flight booked home but is persuaded by the doctor to attend a celebratory dinner at his home claiming that his bride, as he refers to his second wife Jane, wishes to thank her in person. He has even arranged for his helicopter pilot to transport her afterwards. Jane looks like someone’s favorite kindly aunt or sweet church lady who arranges flowers with the altar guild; an RN who retired upon their marriage whom he met when she cared for his mother during her final illness. Reluctantly Kelly agrees. She never makes it to the dining room.
Dr. B invites her to have a drink with him in his office and to accept her bonus check of $200,000. After a sip of two of her light gin and tonic, she feels limbless, unable to walk or move her arms. The monster emerges as he informs her she has been immobilized by an extract of curare, a paralyzing agent he has obtained from an Amazonian tribe. He calmly explained he preferred this drug as he wants her (and previous victims) to know and experience exactly what is occurring to them instead of using the more commonly known colorless and odorless “date rape” drug Rohypnol which can render a target amnesiac or unconscious. After this unanticipated assault, his minion Anton carries the still-limp Kelly to the helipad and flies her home. How much his wife Ruth knows or suspects is anyone’s guess.
Hurt, mortified and stunned by the violence of the sexual assault, Kelly knows she cannot report the crime to the authorities. Her firm had already negotiated three NDA settlements with his previous victims, clearly indicated she had prior knowledge of his criminal nature before the trial which exonerated him. She staggers home, destroys any physical evidence with a thorough shower and rids herself of the clothing and shoes she was wearing.
Determined to Expose the Truth
Kelly McCann needs her big paychecks. Her beloved husband Adam, formerly a top trial attorney, had suffered a cerebral hemorrhage with a massive brain bleed a decade earlier while she was giving birth to their daughter. He is in a permanent vegetative state and requires round-the-clock care. Their children are 16 and 10 and she has supported her stepdaughter by paying for her education from undergraduate through law school. However, as Adam regularly stated, she is “Kelly McCann and not Kelly McCan’t” and is determined to expose the truth with the help of Dr. B’s previous victims.
The spine-chilling, edge-of-your-seat thriller begins in earnest and turns deadly. The discredited Dr. Patel is found dead with an open verdict at the inquest. Was it an accidental overdose of a medication, suicide or murder? Other incidents begin to pile up.
Author and former Philadelphia trial lawyer Bonnie Kistler has written a masterful, gripping story with Her, Too. Her concluding notes include helpful information for victims of sexual assaults. The sad truth is the majority of these assaults are never reported to the police and many perpetrators are repeat offenders. Statistically, the conviction rate for rapists is abysmally low. The victims suffer long-lasting harm, some developing PTSD and are often further traumatized if and when a case does come to trial. Her, Too may be a challenging book for some readers but it is absorbing and may serve a greater purpose than mere entertainment.
About Bonnie Kistler:
Bonnie Kistler is a former Philadelphia attorney and the author of House on Fire and The Cage. She graduated from Bryn Mawr College, magna cum laude, with Honors in English literature, and she received her law degree from the University of the Pennsylvania Law School, where she was a moot court champion and legal writing instructor.
She spent her law career in private practice with major law firms. Peer-rated as Distinguished for both legal ability and ethical standards, she successfully tried cases in federal and state courts across the country.
She and her husband now live in Florida and the mountains of western North Carolina.
Publish Date: 7/4/2023
Genre: Crime, Fiction, Suspense, Thrillers
Author: Bonnie Kistler
Page Count: 317 pages
Publisher: Harper
ISBN: 9780063089204
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