Ruby Johnson is a nanny and maid to wealthy families in Manhattan’s West 74th Street. They trust her, because her family used to be one of them. Now, no longer having any family wealth, Ruby instead works for those with the wealth, in her eyes, being taken for granted, being overlooked, and not seen or appreciated. She is privy to all of their routines, their secrets, all their arguments, finances, everything they do. They don’t realise she is always watching.

On her way home from working one of their fancy events one night, she witnesses one of the neighbour’s being murdered. She knows the victim. She recognises the killer. She sees where the killer hides the murder weapon. Ruby makes an anonymous call to the police and names the murderer, who just happens to be her employer. But she lies about who it is. Why? She has her own twisted reasons.

Eddie Flynn is a trial lawyer, ironically a former conman. He is called in to defend who he believes is an innocent man accused of this murder. Eddie only defends innocent men, and he is convinced that this man, a top neurosurgeon, and by all accounts, a wonderful man, is innocent. He just needs to find a way to prove that. When the murder weapon is suddenly found in the neurosurgeon's closet, the case suddenly becomes harder to win.

This was a very interesting read. Ruby is a complex character, who evolves continuously as the story progresses. She becomes more and more unlikable when you see how twisted she is, yet she is also vulnerable and emotional in her rationale for her madness. It is hard to completely hate her. Eddie is a force to be reckoned with, along with the team he has built around him. He takes everything in his stride, and when the story is on him and his team I found myself really engaged. With Ruby at times, I was wanting the story to move along, but I think that was because her single mindedness became a bit repetitive.

Overall, it is a brilliant read, which took some very unexpected turns. It kept me on my toes, and kept me turning those pages and refusing to put the book down until very late in the morning!

*I received this book from NetGalley for review, but all opinions are my own.

Sometimes it’s really great to read a different genre and Steve Cavanagh’s Witness 8 helped ring the changes.

This is a real romp of a novel with murder, intrigue, cons, and courtroom drama. If you’re familiar with Eddie Flynn novels then you’ll know what to expect, with all of the familiar faces present. If like me, you’ve only read one in the series previously - or even none - I don’t think that it affects your enjoyment too much.

An eventful quick and easy read with lots of action and a likeable protagonist. The speed of the action helps to distract you from some of the less likely plot elements.

With thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an arc of this novel.

Another great book from Steven Cavanagh! This is a brilliantly twisty thriller. Someone is murdered in a wealthy neighbourhood and there is one witness. One of the neighbours is arrested but is he the killer?
This was intriguing from the first to last page. This book has great characters believable and an exciting plot that makes this a definite page turner.

I really tried to get into this book, I just could not gel with the writing which is such a shame.
It just was not for me so I did DNF.

A terrific, twisting and highly enjoyable tale from start to finish.
The plot keeps you guessing, the surprises never stop and it a brilliant page turner.
Highly recommended

A clever, twisted thriller. A murder in an affluent neighbourhood. One witness. One of the neighbours is arrested and is to stand trial but is he the killer? A cleaner who attends to most of the houses and integrates within the families becoming someone that is hard to cope without.
This was intriguing from the first to last page. The characters are believable and the plot exciting, an absolute page-turner.
Steve Cavanagh never fails to thrill and I really hope there is more to follow.

Witness 8 is another fabulous crime thriller with the wonderful Eddie Flynn.
When a woman is murdered in an upper class are of New York it is witnessed by Ruby a maid that works in a couple of these houses. Instead of informing the police of what she saw she makes an anonymous phone call to the police saying she saw the culprit but giving the name of a completely innocent man, a top neurosurgeon whose child she looks after.
Eddie takes on the case and believes this man is completely innocent and that he has been framed, but proving it is going to prove almost impossible. With a number of corrupt police officers, a power hungry DA that will stop at nothing to obtain a conviction and a few assassins that have been paid to murder Eddie there are many strands to unravel.
Action filled, brilliant plotting, superb court scenes and characters good and bad with great depth this is a book that flows beautifully often with humour but not without some dark heart pumping moments
Another winner from this author who certainly knows how to spin a story and keep you throughly invested in every page.

I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this book , I loved the beginning and then i started to loose a bit of interest. I persevered and wow am I glad a did . The second half of the book was brilliant, the story really took off. By the time I got to the ending I thought what a great book that was . I would definitely recommend this book . I will be looking for more books from this author. 5 stars from me

For most of this book I was more reading to see if it got better - there was enough of a pull there to not make you quit but not enough so that I wanted to keep on reading. Thankfully it then does start to fully unravel and turns into quite an enjoyable book in the end.

A solid thriller, a page turner that kept on the edge and turning pages.
Solid plot, good storytelling, a story which is both entertaining and disturbing at times
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

A cracking court room drama/thriller - in a New York street populated only by the rich a woman is shot dead in her home. An anonymous caller points the finger at respected doctor John Jackson - who seemingly has no motive to kill the dead woman. The Jackson's nanny, Ruby, however has an urgent need for money, and secrets she does not want to find out. In the mix is Eddie Flynn, conman turned lawyer. I have to admit that at the outset I wasn't sure that I'd like this book - my first introduction to Flynn comes with him talking about greenbacks and kickbacks and his perspective as a conman. The book soon won me over, however, a well-told story where the good guys win the day. With thanks to NetGalley for giving me the chance to read this ARC

‘There’s something wrong with Ruby, she’s not like other people’. This sentence alone is intriguing, and then you add in adultery, death, planting evidence, manipulating a murder case, and a picture of red priest with a murderous streak.

This is the 8th Eddie Flynn book, and Steve Cavanagh still knows how to keep the reader hooked. I was nervous, tense, sad, amused, and satisfied while reading this book. Cavanagh’s expert storytelling, mixed with his strong character development, makes for an engaging and thrilling read. My love for Eddie and his team is still going strong after reading this book.

Note to Cavanagh, stop pulling on our heartstrings so much! I was not ready for the emotional rollercoaster that was perfectly entwined throughout this murder case.

This is the eighth book in the Eddie Flynn series & whilst it can be read as a standalone, I would highly recommend starting at the beginning. Wish I could read them for the first time again.

Eddie is defending a brain surgeon who has been accused of murder. He only represents those that he feels are genuinely innocent, but he has his work cut out this time. The murder weapon is found in the surgeon’s home but how & why? Alongside this case, Eddie discovers that there is a contract out on him involving a number of would be assassins. He needs eyes in the back of his head.

This was one of my rare read-in-a-day books, a gripping premise & I couldn’t help but warm to Ruby. I’m not sure what that says about me?! Ready for book 9 now.

Once again Steve Cavanagh writes a cracker of a thriller. Great to see Flynn back in the court room and literally dodging bullets. This is a fast paced court thriller with fantastic characters. Mr Christmas was very engaging to read. Cant wait for the next one

I can not believe I’ve been reading about Eddie for almost 10 years, where does the time go? It seems like a lifetime ago that Steve Cavanagh sent me a signed copy of The Defence. For the first time EVER my husband saw the cover and decided he wanted to read it. Obviously, I wouldn’t let him touch my signed copy. I downloaded a kindle copy instead. We both read it, and that’s when my love affair with Eddie began.

You might ask if these 8 books can be read in any order. I probably would say “yes.. but…”. Starting with the first book lets you grow with Eddie and Steve as an author. You truly understand Eddie’s background and relationships. Plus, each book gets better than the last.

I am going to assume you have read the first 7 books in this brilliantly crafted series. Therefore, I don’t need to remind you that Eddie Flynn is an ex-con artist. He is now a successful defence lawyer with his own practice in New York. Over the past 7 books, Eddie has faced the Russian Mafia, kidnapped daughters, and jury tampering. He has dealt with killer sisters, murderous District Attorneys, and serial killers. However, no-one comes close to the twisted and disturbed mind of Ruby Johnson, the “star” of Witness 8.

Mr Cavanagh certainly knows how to hook a reader from the start and doesn’t let go until the final page. This book is a roller coaster of action, twists, mayhem and thrills. With the added bonus of having a female psychopath I think that Witness 8 is now my favourite book in the series… although I think I said that about the last book and the book before! Do yourself a HUGE favour and download this book now.

Just finished this book which is the first Eddie Flynn title I have ever read and I found it excellent. It is very fast moving which I found confusing as I had never read any previous titles although I have bought them already. Cavanagh the author doesn't write like Michael Connelly or Larry Block explaining all the time the significance of every character in his plots and what has occurred which I believe is an omission. Readers can't keep focussed all the time on the plot they need reminders of what has occurred before and who Mr Christmas is for example and what his importance to the plot is. Still I'll pick up one of his previous books up and see if that improves my judgement.

This is a very well written book. It grabbed me from the first paragraph and I just had to keep reading. Great characters and plenty of twists and turns,

Great thriller kept me hooked the whole way through. Great writing and plot. Love this authors work and unpredictable till the ending

Love Steve cavanagh and this did not disappoint. Kept guessing all the way through and rooting for Eddie to solve the case.
I would definitely recommend this book.
Thanks to netgalley for the arc of this book in exchange for my honest review

I am a great fan of Steve Cavanagh and his series of books. This one does not disappoint. If you have not read one of his books in this series before it really does not matter as they can be read as stand alones.
Had me guessing as the why and reason behind what happens and in this respect it is a different kind of who dunnit