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A Dream in the Dark

A Novel

Audiobook
0 of 1 copy available
Wait time: About 2 weeks
0 of 1 copy available
Wait time: About 2 weeks

With striking prose and inspired by real wrongful conviction cases, this layered takedown of the criminal justice system follows one woman's quest for answers as the fate of two innocent men hangs in the balance.


Denver, 1992. Claudette Cooper, Moses King, and Dexter Diaz have been failed by the justice system. Claudette was sexually assaulted. Blinded by her perpetrator, she's not able to identify him until she has a dream. As a result of that dream, Moses is wrongfully convicted. Dexter gave a false confession to murder after a grueling and unethical interrogation. Now, he faces a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.


Musician turned lawyer Liza Brown has seen firsthand the failings and shortcomings of the justice system. Her father, Langston Brown, also suffered the injustice of a wrongful conviction. As she's working at a nonprofit to free those who have been wrongfully imprisoned and helping Dexter's case, Moses reaches out to her. Liza sees the cracks in the evidence against Moses, and when he confesses that he knew her father, she's determined to help even though his case doesn't qualify for the young innocence project.


Recruiting her old friend Eli Stone to both men's causes, Liza sets out to prove their innocence. But Eli is dealing with demons of his own. Corrupt cops are targeting the black residents of Denver, and when his nephew is beaten by the cops, Eli doubles down on his efforts to expose them.


Frustrated, Liza turns to Moses's accuser, Claudette, for help. But Claudette is hiding a dark secret, and as political tensions in Five Points rise, the city of Denver erupts in protests and riots. In the aftermath of injustice, destruction, and desperation, will hope

persevere?

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  • Reviews

    • Publisher's Weekly

      May 20, 2024
      Justice’s second legal thriller featuring Denver attorney Liza Brown (after They Can’t Take Your Name) is a step down from its predecessor. Liza has worked closely with Project Joseph to help exonerate people who’ve been wrongly convicted of violent crimes ever since her father was executed for a mass murder he didn’t commit. In 1992, Moses King, a prisoner who claims he knew Liza’s father, reaches out to the organization. He’s been convicted of assaulting and blinding a woman named Claudette Cooper, who testified that, while she didn’t see her assailant’s face, she dreamed it was King. Despite the case not meeting Project Joseph’s typical criteria—King is not on death row, nor is he facing a life sentence—Liza believes in his innocence and agrees to represent him. She loops in her friend and former colleague Eli Stone, and together, they inch closer to the truth while Liza’s superiors try to pull her attention toward cases that better suit Project Joseph’s mission. Meanwhile, Denver erupts into protests over racial discrimination by police. Clumsy prose (“Her tears fell with the ease of a spring thunderstorm upon her cheeks”) and thin characterizations keep this from taking flight. It’s a disappointment. Agent: Andrew D. Wolgemuth, Wolgemuth & Assoc.

    • Library Journal

      December 20, 2024

      JD Jackson's smoky baritone hits the right notes in his performance of Justice's second book in the "Wrongful Convictions" series (following They Can't Take Your Name). Through her work with Project Joseph, attorney Liza Brown helps free wrongly convicted men like her father, who was executed before he could prove his innocence. While defending Dexter Diaz, who was pressured at age 14 to confess to a murder he did not commit, Liza is contacted by Moses King, a friend of her father's, who has evidence that could exonerate Dexter. Liza enlists the support of her friend and former colleague Eli Stone, who helps her even as he struggles to come to terms with his wife's death five years earlier. Jackson contrasts Liza's mixed emotions while defending Dexter and her compassion for Moses. He makes Eli's grief for his late wife nearly palpable and sensitively captures Eli's range of emotions--simmering anger, frustration, and finally, a letting down of walls. The audio closes with an author's note that provides additional information about the real people who inspired the characters of Dexter and Moses. VERDICT Fans of courtroom dramas will enjoy this well-performed series that's based on real-life cases.--Stephanie Bange

      Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      JD Jackson captures this well-researched novel, which is based on several real cases of wrongful imprisonment. Jackson shines in shaping the characters' emotions as Liza, an attorney, tries to help exonerate two imprisoned men through an Innocence Project program. She remains calm but frustrated at the resistance she encounters. As Eli, her friend, is quietly tormented by his own demons, Jackson knows how to shape his introspective sadness and anger. Jackson's pacing and control enhance a plot that moves the listener in and out of prisons, courts, and the streets. M.B. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine

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  • English

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