Image of the Beast

Western Coastal Insurance ("WCI"), an affluent and prominent California liability insurance company, is enjoying a tide of prestige and profits generated from manipulated public and judicial opinion. Then, on a LA crosswalk adjacent to a hotel building site, a blue sedan crashes into construction worker Tony Alvarez. The driver of the car is a claims agent for WCI. With Tony left a paraplegic from the crash and unable to support his young family, he and his wife, Anna Lisa, find themselves in the fight of their lives for both their marriage and their family's future. When WCI employs its vast legal muscle to escape responsibility, Tony's attorney Matt Macado is pitted against hardened defense attorney Simon LaFollette and LaFollette's co-counsel, rookie defense attorney Karen Killebrew. Matt knew of WCI's "scorched earth" policy in dealing with claims, but is not prepared for the fiery battle that ensues. Facing a culture of corruption and greed willing to protect itself at any cost, Matt and Karen find themselves first adversaries, then allies, as they put their careers and their lives at risk to battle the beast behind the fabricated image of WCI. "John Cotton has written a great legal thriller in the best tradition of John Grisham and Scott Turow. Image of the Beast is well thought-out and researched. The behind-the-scenes machinations of the civil legal system are fascinating and presented in a way that is easy to read and understand. Image of the Beast is a real page turner - I couldn't put it down."