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Marianne Woolbert-Maxwell
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Victim of the Defense Kindle Edition

by Marianne Woolbert-Maxwell (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 out of 5 stars 192 ratings
Attorney Megan O'Reilly has practiced law for over thirty years. After all her hard work she is on track to be made a partner at the large and powerful D.C. law firm where she works. The firm was founded by Arthur Tarkington, currently a United States Supreme Court justice. When the day comes for her to be made partner, she is given devastating news.

After being blindsided by her law firm, Megan meets a young woman who has been attacked by a powerful, high-profile man in D.C. The victim, Lucy Hatfield, is a nonpracticing attorney and the mother of a gravely ill young child. For her own personal reasons that are unknown to anyone else, Megan agrees to help Lucy pursue litigation against her attacker. The book unfolds at breakneck speed with unforeseen twists and turns. It's a book you will not be able to put down!
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  1. Print length
    269 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Accessibility
    Learn more
  4. Publication date
    June 26, 2021
  5. File size
    2.4 MB
  6. Page Flip
    Enabled
  7. Word Wise
    Enabled
  8. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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From the Publisher

Woman and little girl walking towards a nighttime skyline

Victim of the Defense: Two Women on a Quest for Justice by Marianne Woolbert-Maxwell

Victim of the Defense: Two Women on a Quest for Justice

Attorney Megan O’Reilly has her life’s dreams destroyed when she is wrongfully let go by her law firm. Now on her own, she takes on the cause of a woman, with a gravely ill child, who was attacked by a rich and powerful man in D.C. Together they fight the powers that be to make women’s voices be heard and respected

Marianne Woolbert-Maxwell

Marianne Woolbert-Maxwell is an Indiana lawyer with over 30 years of experience in the practice of law. She is a graduate of Butler University Indianapolis, Indiana, and the University of Dayton School of Law. In her practice, she has learned the ins and outs of the business and how the system can succeed as well as fail. In her career, she has represented many women who have been victims of emotional and physical attacks and has seen the struggle they have had to reclaim their lives and their self-worth. She has studied writing with Natalie Goldberg, Writing down the Bones, Gotham University, American Writers and Artists and is a student of writing coach Mary Allen of Iowa, City, Iowa. Ms. Allen has taught at the Iowa Writer's Festival and is the published author of The Rooms of Heaven.

She is an avid reader and animal lover. She lives on a farm with her husband Tim, four Maltese dogs, a rescued pitbull, two horses, and anything else that shows up needing a home.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0982KZMRK
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 26, 2021
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2.4 MB
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 269 pages
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 out of 5 stars 192 ratings

About the author

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Marianne Woolbert-Maxwell

Marianne Woolbert-Maxwell

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Marianne Woolbert-Maxwell is an Indiana attorney with over 30 years of experience in the practice of law. Throughout her career she has represented many women who have struggled to make their voices heard and rebuild their lives. She is an avid animal lover and lives with her husband Tim on a farm. They have four Maltese, a rescued pit bull, two horses, a barn full of cats and anything else that shows up and needs a home.

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
192 global ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

  • CF
    5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyed
    Reviewed in the United States on July 23, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    Great book, well written & loved plot!
    One person found this helpful
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  • Marilyn K. Kerr
    4.0 out of 5 stars Well written book with constantly changing plot
    Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    The characters were believable. The storyline was current
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  • Jill
    5.0 out of 5 stars Wow!
    Reviewed in the United States on August 29, 2021
    Victim of the Defense, by Marianne Woolbert-Maxwell, does a wonderful job at dealing with important, timely issues in a way that will hold the reader's interest. The lead players are a good mixture of strong female protagonists, good guys and, of course, a few creeps.
    Megan O'Reilly has been a lawyer for 30 plus years. After so many years of dedication, she believes that she is about to be made partner at the well known law firm that she works for. Instead she is forced out. Feeling betrayal by the law firm, she decides to use her background in prosecuting sex crimes to help Lucy, who's been raped by Craig, a high profile lawyer. She's the mom of a desperately sick little girl without the means to get her the best medical help available. Megan decides that she must help Lucy to sue her rapist. She ​and Lucy face ongoing obstacles as they work together to help Lucy's daughter and try to encourage women everywhere, to use their voices against the abusers of the world.
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  • Gillian
    3.0 out of 5 stars OK
    Reviewed in the United States on July 28, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    While I largely enjoyed the story, there were odd phrases thrown in at times, which did not seem to fit well into the story. Also the book contains spelling mistakes and incorrect and inconsistent use of punctuation, which unfortunately is glaringly obvious.
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  • UTbooklady
    4.0 out of 5 stars Quite a page turner!
    Reviewed in the United States on September 4, 2021
    I really enjoyed this book, even with the tough subject of rape being prevalent throughout the entire story. I always find myself drawn to these sorts of books just because I'm also a survivor of sexual abuse. I read fictional accounts like this book from time to time as a therapeutic outlet, and for me, it works. It might be difficult for me to read depending on how the author framed the main event so to speak, but I always come away from one of these stories with a lighter heart. So I keep reading them. The shock value of the beginning pages is what I really look for in a good book. This one did not disappoint! Within the first few pages, I was flipping the pages faster and faster, and even staying up late just to finish it.

    Megan was a very credible lawyer right from page 1. She had built up her career for decades and the hand she was dealt at her law firm was crushing... but it certainly made a tidy path for her to pursue Lucy's case as well as her own. This part of the story was very believable and Woolbert-Maxwell was off to a great start with her story.

    You know a book is REALLY good when you simply cannot put it down no matter what you do. I'd find myself putting it down for a moment, rubbing my eyes, then saying to myself, nope... nothing else is important right now, then pick it back up and keep reading, lol. I found myself literally yelling at my computer as I was reading when pieces of evidence in Megan's case met a brick wall. Lucy was such a wonderful victim in that she was totally credible, even after she lied about one element from her past. It almost derailed her entire case, until a totally unexpected person helped.

    Tarkington is that typical rich trust fund bad guy that you just love to hate. His attitude towards women in general was just disgusting to read, and even more disgusting when Eric was investigating and tracking down witnesses for Megan's case -- reading what Jack had to say about him at the trial was so gross but totally believable. Sad part is, I have no doubt whatsoever that this very thing has happened in real life to many women before. Men like this do exist but unless it happens to you or to someone you know intimately, the concept doesn't enter your thoughts. His grandfather's interest in the case and going to speak with Megan the way he did just cemented my opinion of the entire Tarkington family as being one of superiority; they think they are above the law and throw money at the problems and poof, they disappear. This time though, that didn't happen.

    Where things sort of fell apart for me was with Chief prosecutor Steve Windfield. His entrance into the story was both good and bad. At first, it seemed like he was going to be a great addition to the story, but then he turned out to be extremely unprofessional in his handling of how he talked to Megan about Lucy's case. The thought that entered my mind was "he just raped her again! She said no and still he didn't care, that prick!" Megan was chosen as co-counsel, and then suddenly Windfield disappears from the story entirely... WTH? Megan was CO-counsel, NOT first chair; however, the further into the trial they got, the less and less mentions I saw of Windfield. Megan had taken over the case completely and he was nowhere to be found... no objections, no questions to the witnesses, nothing. It was bizarre. I think that is one area where the author could've improved on things. Windfield was the prosecuting attorney for heavens sake, he can't just NOT be there. ESPECIALLY in a criminal trial case. His being absent so much would've been much more believable if the author had included a motion to have Megan be first chair or have him removed from the case due to conflict... something.

    I loved the sweet little looks and brief but charged and electric moments that seemed to happen every so often between Megan and Eric. I found myself really really REALLY hoping they'd kiss... or something! I can't help it, it's that classic "happily ever after" moment that I tend to look for. I will say the author did a superb job tiding up the story at the end. It was just perfect and I was grinning from ear to ear reading the epilogue.

    Overall, I'm giving this book 4/5 stars. For the most part, this was an excellent read and it flowed well. The author did a great job telling the story and I might be interested in reading other books she publishes.
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  • P. J. Sabatini
    5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Read!
    Reviewed in the United States on May 25, 2022
    This book was very good and held my attention from the first paragraph of the book! The author is new to me and I I will read her other books. Great characters, great descriptions and perfect word choice. Super story and well written! Kudos to the author! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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  • Amazon Customer
    2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed
    Reviewed in the United States on May 29, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    The plot was good and it did hold my attention but there were many typos, inconsistencies and a lack of details in the storyline. The only thing that kept me reading the book was to see how it ended. So, sorry to say that for me the book did not meet my expectations. Definitely not worth the price I paid for it.
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  • Claudete Takahashi
    4.0 out of 5 stars A good legal thriller
    Reviewed in the United States on January 10, 2023
    Victim of the Defense has a theme that never gets old, most unfortunately. Women continue to be relegated to a second plan when competing against men in spite of competence, there is gender, age, and ethnicity bias in the private and public sectors. The other main issue is the sex offenses against women, it's always difficult to report, to be listened and have a case appropriately taken to court. This story, although it has some inconsistencies, grabbed my attention from the beginning.
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Linda
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very good book.
    Reviewed in Canada on August 6, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    A good read. Very easy to get into and didn’t want to quit reading it.
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