From Publishers Weekly
Law professor Wesson's disturbing third Lucinda Hayes mystery (after 2000's A Suggestion of Death) questions the limits of First Amendment protection. Leonard Fitzgerald, who murdered a young girl after continuously watching a child-porn snuff film, has been found criminally insane. The victim's mother wants to sue the film's producers, forcing them to take responsibility for creating a product that led to murder. After consulting with Tory Meadows, her partner, and Brianna Bainbridge, a feminist law professor at the University of Colorado (Boulder), liberal attorney Hayes agrees to take the case. Instead of challenging the ban on censorship, Hayes files a civil suit seeking "compensation for a loss." She must prove that viewing the movie caused the murder and that the producers should have foreseen it. The novel's intriguing first half follows Hayes and her staff into the subterranean world of the pornographic film industry. Wesson skillfully explains the legal arguments, though she could have condensed the verbatim interviews and reports. After a careful build-up to the trial, the fireworks explode with predictable results and the denouement gets short shrift. Readers who like their legal thrillers with a heavy polemical slant will be the most satisfied. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Stephen White, author of Blinded
"Chilling Effect" is not only her most courageous book yet, it is also a wonderfully accomplished legal thriller."

Gene R. Nichol, Dean and Burton Craige Professor of Law, University of North Carolina
"I love the Lucinda Hayes stories--each tougher to put down than the last."

Book Description
Boulder attorney Lucinda Hayes pulls the gruesome page from the fax machine, not suspecting it will draw her into the repugnant realm of pornographic film and pit her against the giants of the mainstream film industry. Her reluctant agreement to represent Peggy Grayling, mother of a slain child, requires her to reach out to her law partner Tory Meadows and private investigator Linc Tolkien, but troubles her long-distance love affair with New York lawyer Sam Holt. As the case unfolds Cinda must call upon all her legal talent and argue for a new understanding of the law of free speech; it also forces her to revisit her past and face its ghosts. Equal parts courtroom drama, intellectual journey, and character study, Chilling Effect is Marianne Wesson’s most provocative Lucinda Hayes mystery to date.

About the Author
Marianne Wesson is professor of law, Wolf-Nichol Fellow, President’s Teaching Scholar, and senior scholar of the Women’s Studies Program at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Her previous two novels featuring Lucinda Hayes—Render Up the Body and A Suggestion of Death—received international acclaim and were translated into numerous languages.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Boulder attorney Lucinda Hayes pulls the gruesome page from the fax machine, not suspecting it will draw her into the repugnant realm of pornographic film and pit her against the giants of the mainstream film industry. Her reluctant agreement to represent Peggy Grayling, mother of a slain child, requires her to reach out to her law partner Tory Meadows and private investigator Linc Tolkien, but troubles her long-distance love affair with New York lawyer Sam Holt. As the case unfolds Cinda must call upon all her legal talent and argue for a new understanding of the law of free speech; it also forces her to revisit her past and face its ghosts. Equal parts courtroom drama, intellectual journey, and character study, Chilling Effect is Marianne Wesson's most provocative Lucinda Hayes mystery to date.

Marianne Wesson is professor of law, Wolf-Nichol Fellow, President's Teaching Scholar, and senior scholar of the Women's Studies Program at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Wesson's previous two novels featuring Lucinda Hayes Render Up the Body and A Suggestion of Death received international acclaim and were translated into numerous languages.

SYNOPSIS

Boulder attorney Lucinda Hayes pulls the gruesome page from the fax machine, not suspecting it will draw her into the repugnant realm of pornographic film and pit her against the giants of the mainstream film industry. Her reluctant agreement to represent Peggy Grayling, mother of a slain child, requires her to reach out to her law partner Tory Meadows and private investigator Linc Tolkien, but troubles her long-distance love affair with New York lawyer Sam Holt. As the case unfolds Cinda must call upon all her legal talent and argue for a new understanding of the law of free speech; it also forces her to revisit her past and face its ghosts. Equal parts courtroom drama, intellectual journey, and character study, Chilling Effect is Marianne Wesson's most provocative Lucinda Hayes mystery to date.

Marianne Wesson is professor of law, Wolf-Nichol Fellow, President's Teaching Scholar, and senior scholar of the Women's Studies Program at the University of Colorado, Boulder. Wesson's previous two novels featuring Lucinda Hayes Rer Up the Body and A Suggestion of Death received international acclaim and were translated into numerous languages.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Law professor Wesson's disturbing third Lucinda Hayes mystery (after 2000's A Suggestion of Death) questions the limits of First Amendment protection. Leonard Fitzgerald, who murdered a young girl after continuously watching a child-porn snuff film, has been found criminally insane. The victim's mother wants to sue the film's producers, forcing them to take responsibility for creating a product that led to murder. After consulting with Tory Meadows, her partner, and Brianna Bainbridge, a feminist law professor at the University of Colorado (Boulder), liberal attorney Hayes agrees to take the case. Instead of challenging the ban on censorship, Hayes files a civil suit seeking "compensation for a loss." She must prove that viewing the movie caused the murder and that the producers should have foreseen it. The novel's intriguing first half follows Hayes and her staff into the subterranean world of the pornographic film industry. Wesson skillfully explains the legal arguments, though she could have condensed the verbatim interviews and reports. After a careful build-up to the trial, the fireworks explode with predictable results and the denouement gets short shrift. Readers who like their legal thrillers with a heavy polemical slant will be the most satisfied. (Sept. 17) Forecast: Because of the First Amendment issues, especially in today's charged political climate, this novel could generate controversy and extra sales with savvy marketing. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

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