Retrial (Paperback)

Young Judah levy finds himself exiled from his London home when his family is forced for financial reasons to move to a small North England town. In his new school, Judah is mercilessly bullied by Billy, a bigger and older schoolmate. Judah conceals his shame from his parents, while Billy lands the part of Jesus in the school Easter pageant. Their paths collide when Billy and his friends, inspired by the passion story, decide to ambush and attack Judah to avenge the death of Jesus. Their make-believe game becomes violently real when a rusty nail pierces Judah's wrist. As Judah is taken unconscious to hospital, his father Ben promises that someone will pay. He turns to his lawyer cousin Joe for help. Working pro bono, Joe mounts a scintillating legal attack. He launches a claim directly against the publisher of the Bible edition used by Billy's pastor for the children's pageant. In essence, the courtroom becomes a stage for a twenty-first century re-trial of the most famous trial of all - the first ever examination of the Passion story through the lens of a fictional modern trial. To bring the case, Joe selects the finest counsel he knows, Fergus. Unfortunately, Fergus is also the husband of Maria, a woman who has been Joe's lover for years. Joe's personal life threatens to implode in the middle of the most important case of his career. Ignorant of how he is betrayed by both his wife and friend, Fergus launches a brilliant attack on the defendants. Careful to point out that his client is one small Jewish boy, not a stand-in for the Jewish people, he nonetheless forces everybody to understand the 2,000 years of persecution associated with the Passion story. While the judge weighs out shades of guilt, barrister Joe must confront his own ambivalent intentions and lapses of moral integrity. In a weak moment, he heads out of the courtroom and into the arms of Maria. But with a verdict of the century in the balance, Maria realizes she can no longer cuckold her husband Fergus. As the case winds toward its ending, Joe and Maria find their unrealistic romantic dreams shattered. Before the case can be decided, the courtroom will erupt in violence, and the every-day lives of many will be torn apart. Retrial is a novel that shows how ancient history and current-day events can become intertwined in the most unlikely of places. For the reader of this tale of romantic intrigue, biblical violence, and eventual redemption, Easter will never be the same. To write his debut novel, author Louis Garb drew on his legal background and extensive academic research into the death of Jesus. Born in England and educated in the UK and South Africa, Garb now lives with his family in Israel, where he practices law. The novel's dazzling courtroom scenes where the Passion story and the anti-Semitism which results from it are put directly on trial are influenced by Garb's own legal career, when he worked to prevent music with anti-Semitic connotations from receiving public funding. A controversial page-turner, Retrial is a brilliant retrial of the most famous trial in history.