CITY OF ANGELS BY TRACIE PETERSON and JAMES SCOTT BELL

CITY OF ANGELS BY TRACIE PETERSON and JAMES SCOTT BELL is the first book in the KIT SHANNON series. It is a legal drama which takes place in the early 1900's in Los Angeles.

Kit arrives in Los Angeles determined to become a lawyer. She causes quite a stir as women lawyers are practically unheard of at the beginning of the twentieth century.

Kit has had a sad and difficult childhood, but through it all she has never forsaken her faith in God which was instilled in her largely through her beloved preacher father. Orphaned at a young age and harshly treated at St Catherine's orphanage, she holds on to The Lord and to His word found in her most precious possession - the Bible her father left for her.

She comes to live with her Aunt Freddy, a wealthy widow to whom social standing means everything, and who tries to dissuade Kit from practising law, wanting her instead to pursue more socially acceptable pastimes whilst waiting for a husband and children!

Kit meets the legendary Earl Rogers who takes her under his wing and helps her become a member of the bar. Kit shows her brilliance in the courtroom in spite of opposition.

In her search for truth Kit becomes the object of persecution, but she is undaunted in pursuing justice for her clients. She comes up against snobbery, police corruption, the lies of those who are covering up the truth, for example the lawyer Heath Sloate, Dr Lazarus the false preacher, racism and the teachings of Darwin.

Her life is one of prayer and determination and she sees her law career as God's calling on her life. We see how she defends her friend Ted Fox when he is falsely accused of murder, and also her friend Corazon's brother who has been set up on an assault charge, and how she longs for her Aunt Freddy to come to a relationship with The Lord.

I have just re-read the whole series, but City of Angels can be read as a stand alone book. There is a strong Christian message throughout, the characters and life in that era are well portrayed and it is an exciting read. In fact I can highly recommend reading the whole series in sequence.

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