The A. J. Hawke series of novels feature an aggressive young defense attorney who takes on seemingly hopeless criminal cases that no one else will touch.
Blood in the Water
An A. J. Hawke Legal Thriller
Two teenage children of a ruthless Mexican cartel drug lord have been illegally kidnapped and are being secretly held by the FBI. Has the President of the United States of America ordered the kidnapping as an excuse to expand his executive powers? Can the President use the fentanyl crisis as justification? Will the President, as Commander-in-Chief, refuse to obey a judicial order, even one from the U.S. Supreme Court? The entire nation holds its collective breath.
Meanwhile, a necropsy of a shark unveils the tattooed arm of a human and attorney A.J. Hawkes scuba-diving client is suspected of murder by shark in a drug deal gone bad. To gather evidence, Hawke dives the sunken ship where his client attempted to steal cartel drugs. There he finds the rest of the body and, under the threat of death, is forced to represent the drug lords kidnapped children.
In a tense courtroom battle, A.J. Hawke invokes The Great Writ, an English Common Law doctrine enshrined in the United States Constitution, in his effort to free the kidnapped children and prove his scuba-diving client innocent of murder.
Will Hawke succeed? Or will he too become a victim of the drug lords vengeance? Join attorney Hawke as he challenges the Presidents blatant refusal to follow the law.
Join Hawke and his legal team in this fifth book in the A.J. Hawke Legal Thriller series.
- Available in Paperback on June 1, 2025
- Kindle ebook — Amazon
- Epub & other formats — Smashwords
Also will be available at Barnes & Noble, Apple iBooks, Sony books, Kobo books.
Cops Gone Bad
An A. J. Hawke Legal Thriller
Editor’s Pick: Cops Gone Bad, centering on a young, ambitious lawyer who unmasks a conspiracy within law enforcement, delivers with brisk action and high stakes. – Booklife Review
In Cops Gone Bad by Donald E. McInnis, the young lawyer Andrew Jackson Hawke finds himself deeply embroiled in another aspect of the legal system. This time, he faces something few people talk about: The police brotherhood and its Blue Code of Silence.
When the police abuse their power and use the justice system to cover up a murder committed by one of their own, Drew Hawke steps up to right the wrong. But can he overcome the formidable power of the Blue Code of Silence police officers rely on to survive? His ability to challenge that code will determine whether he lives or dies.
This is the fourth book in the A.J. Hawke Legal Thriller series.
- Paperback, 268 pages — 979-8-9865516-6-1 — Amazon
- Kindle ebook — 979-8-9865516-7-8 — Amazon
- Epub & other formats — 979-8-9865516-8-5 — Smashwords
Also available at Barnes & Noble, Apple iBooks, Sony books, Kobo books.
Blood of the Father
An A. J. Hawke Legal Thriller
Editor’s Pick: Readers who enjoy thrillers that examine legal proceedings such as defense-killing strategies and maneuvers will find the in-court and out-of-court descriptions engrossing and the unexpected developments satisfyingly unpredictable. . . . Highly recommended. – Midwest Book Review
A.J. Hawke, Attorney at Law, no sooner reads about the death of Nevan Pansky, an influential member of the U.S. Senate, than a woman barges into his office, demanding that he represent her.
When he questions her need for a criminal defense attorney, she blurts out: I killed my husband. I need you to arrange for my surrender to the policeand my confession. The woman is the dead mans wife, San Diego County Supervisor and mayoral candidate, Katherine Pansky. She claims she shot her husband after learning he had raped their teenage daughter.
Hawke agrees to represent her, assuring her that under the circumstances, he can probably get a reduced charge and prison sentence, if not an acquittal.
But when the crime-scene evidence suggests she may not have murdered her husband, the case takes a mind-spinning twist. Hawke must not only prove she didnt commit the crime, her confession notwithstanding, he also must track down the actual killer.
This in turn, leads Hawke not only into a legal dilemma but a moral dilemma for which he has no solution. Or does he?
- Paperback, 270 pages — 979-8-9865516-3-0 — Amazon
- Kindle ebook — 979-8-9865516-4-7 — Amazon
- Epub & other formats — 979-8-9865516-5-4 — Smashwords
Also available at Barnes & Noble, Apple iBooks, Sony books, Kobo books.
Return of the Sphynx
An A. J. Hawke Legal Thriller
Editor’s Pick: Publisher’s Weekly Booklife Reviews: Nail-biting legal thriller. . . . Great for fans of Scott Turow and Phillip Margolin.
In the second book of the series, The Return of The Sphynx — An A. J. Hawke Legal Thriller, the San Diego police have arrested a young man for the so-called Sphynx rapes. The D.A. believes he will finally defeat the suspect’s defense attorney, A. J. Hawke. His chief evidence: The suspect’s DNA matches the rapist’s DNA.
.
But is the suspect the real Sphynx rapist? The DNA says yes, given that two people having the same DNA is a scientific impossibility.
The only exceptions are identical twins, who do have the same DNA.
A. J. Hawke aims to test that theory. Yet, how can Hawke prove his client even has a twin brother, let alone such a twin is the true culprit? Hawke plans to introduce the existence of a rare genetic trait to defend his client.
Meanwhile, San Diego’s Presiding Judge tries to manipulate Hawke’s personal and professional life in an effort to prevent the young attorney from uncovering corruption in the city.
- Paperback, 344 pages — 979-8-9865516-0-9 — Amazon
- Kindle ebook — 979-8-9865516-1-6 — Amazon
- Epub & other formats — 979-8-9865516-2-3 — Smashwords
Also available at Barnes & Noble, Apple iBooks, Sony books, Kobo books.
DOWNLOAD/READ the first chapter of Return of the Sphynx
The Sphynx Murder Case
A. J. Hawke, Attorney at Law
In the first novel of the series (February 2022), The Sphynx Murder Case — A. J. Hawke, Attorney at Law, a young man has confessed; case closed. Or is it?
Did David Caine actually confess? Did he truly rape and kill his college sweetheart?
A. J. “Drew” Hawke believes otherwise, insisting the real culprit, dubbed The Sphynx, raped and killed the young woman. Worse yet, The Sphynx is still at large.
Meanwhile, the power brokers at San Diego’s City Hall and within the hospitality industry fear Hawke will needlessly tarnish the image of America’s Finest City.
Can they keep him from dragging the clearly open-and-shut case into a sensational trial the news media will milk for every drop just as the beachfront city’s economically critical tourist season begins?
- Paperback, 306 pages — 978-1-7323222-7-1 — Amazon
- Kindle ebook — 978-1-7323222-8-8 — Amazon
- Epub & other formats — 978-1-7323222-9-5 — Smashwords
Also available at Barnes & Noble, Apple iBooks, Sony books, Kobo books.
DOWNLOAD/READ the first chapter: The Sphynx Murder Case
Overview by Booklife