Introduction

From Michael Harvey, Chicago’s best-known crime writer and author of the popular Michael Kelly series, comes something different: a leap forward into a dark world where the lines between innocence and guilt disappear altogether.

They’re young, brilliant, beautiful . . . and naïve enough to believe they can make a difference. For three graduate students, the exclusive innocence seminar at the nation’s most esteemed journalism school is supposed to teach them how to free the falsely accused from prison. Little do they know the most important lesson they’ll learn is how to stay alive.

The first day of class for Ian Joyce and Sarah Gold starts like any other, until a fellow student, Jake Havens, pulls a wrinkled envelope from his backpack. Inside is a bloodstained scrap of shirt from a boy murdered fourteen years ago and an anonymous note taking credit for the killing. The only problem is the alleged murderer is already dead.

Suddenly, the class has a new assignment: find the real killer. As the case unfolds, the bodies and questions begin to pile up. 

Why are innocent men being framed?

Who’s been getting away with murder?

Drawn into a web of deceit and corruption, the students realize they, too, are being hunted. Ian, Sarah, and Jake are smart . . . but are they smart enough to stay alive?

From Northwestern’s idyllic campus, to the grittiest corners of Chicago, to the frigid depths of Lake Michigan, The Innocence Game is irresistible, harrowing suspense from a writer at the top of his form. 

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Excerpt

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The seminar met in Fisk Hall, one of the oldest buildings on Northwestern’s campus and the crusted, beating heart of the university’s Medill School of Journalism. I took a seat at a table in the back. The pile ... view entire excerpt...

Discussion Questions

Should the death penalty be allowed in the United States? If so, should DNA evidence of guilt be required for the death penalty to be available?

Is it a good idea for journalism students (or law students) to be working on actual death penalty cases as part of their class work?

Does society need better oversight over local prosecutors and police in order to prevent overreaching? Should all prosecutors enjoy absolute immunity, even in the case of malfeasance?

Should crime labs operate independently from police and prosecutors (as they do in Canada)? Why did Ian's mom leave him the letter? Why tell him anything at all?

Was Ian justified in what he did in order to unearth his own past? Was the price paid too high?

Suggested by Members

by Teamvargo (see profile) 10/07/13

Weblinks

»	Michael Harvey's web site
»	Publisher's Book Info

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Recommended to book clubs by 1 of 2 members.

by Teamvargo (see profile) 10/07/13

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