So intrigued was I by the blurb for this book, I knew I had to read it. I didn't realise, however, that it is the eighth book of a series. But do you know what, guys and gals? It doesn't matter, because it can be read as a standalone.
Witness 8 is a gritty, gripping page turner and was, for me, the perfect introduction to Eddie "Fly" Flynn, the con man turned defense attorney. I liked Eddie, and I liked his legal team. This book was so enjoyable I even liked Mr. Christmas.
The story is told from several POV'S, Eddie's being the only one in the first person. It is a complex story, with several strands and sub plots, but it's worth sticking with, particularly for the ending.
Eddie Flynn now has a new fan, and I look forward to reading his back catalogue.
Thanks to Netgalley and Headline for the digital ARC.

What do you get if you combine Chandler’s ‘Marlowe’, Hammett’s ‘Spade’ and Gardener’s ‘Mason’? Someone like Cavanagh’s ‘Eddie Flynn’ the principal protagonist of this book, the eighth in a series set in modern day New York.
Ruby Johnson used to live on Manhattan's West 74th Street, exclusive enclave of high income families ensconced in multimillion homes. Then her wife-beating, alcoholic, gambling addict , philandering father ran off with a floozie of some description, leaving debts which wiped out all their assets. Now in her mid-twenties, Ruby and her terminally ill mother live in near poverty in a grotty apartment in Hell’s Kitchen. But Ruby still frequents West 74th Street, as she works as a peripatetic baby-sitter/cleaner/housekeeper/maid for many of her former neighbours. They trust her because she used to be ‘one of us’, but treat her like any other of ‘the help’. This is a mistake, because Ruby wants money, lots of money so her mother can be cared for properly, and she can escape her life. When her plans result in a resident being arraigned for murder, Eddie Flynn, former con-man but now unconventional defence lawyer, takes the case. Hampered by being hunted by assorted hit-men, he and his team nevertheless proceed to unravel the set-up and bamboozle the DA.
I posed the question at the beginning of this review because it seemed to me that the style of this story, the cast of players (established and new-minted) and the language used are a modern take on the style of those older stories. Although part of a series, it is perfectly workable as a standalone since it doesn’t really rely on anything from the past (there are few refences to the past but these are not really material). The story is told from a number of different perspectives, some of which overlap in time, which can feel a bit odd. Some of the action is frankly too improbable to make it a believable tale, but it’s an easy read so that isn’t really a problem for the reader. In terms of category, it is a court room drama with not a lot of court room action, a psychological thriller but the reasons for Ruby’s actions are not deeply examined, a hunter-prey story which feel like a distraction not a necessity, a whodunnit for Eddie to solve but not a mystery for the reader. A 3.5 rounded to 4.
I would like to thank NetGalley, the publishers and the author for providing me with a draft proof copy for the purpose of this review.

Absolutely brilliant difficult to even start a review as there was su much in it. The relationship between Eddie and the group he works with is amazing. There were times it made me smile. All the way through I just wanted to know why. What was happening was happening. As I couldn’t work it out. Ruby is just something else. I don’t think there is one character that I didn’t get to know. Clear the afternoon put your feet up and enjoy. Pure brilliance thank you

Thank you to NetGalley and Headline for my copy of Witness 8 by Steve Cavanagh.
How have I missed this series. It’s brilliant!!!!!
Eddie Flynn is a lawyer, before that he was a conman, there’s not much difference.
He has surrounded himself with people who will do their best for him and whichever clients they have.
When they are hired to defend a murderer, who has the cards stacked against him, they know they’ve got their work cut out.
Something else is happening but they don’t know what. Can they put it together in time.
Great story, terrific characterisation, fabulous twists. Now I’m going to read the rest of this series.

A tight detective thriller with a punch of a twist at the end.
The novel centers around an upmarket residential area of West 74th street. A murder has been committed and Ruby Johnson has witnessed it. Rather than call it in, she collects the murder weapon and plants it on the respectable paediatric surgeon John Jackson. His lawyer, an ex con man has a target on himself having threatened to expose corruption in the police force. With a group of killers and borrowed staff Eddie must stay alive long enough to see justice prevail.
Cavanagh has a brilliant writing style which allows each character to become fully developed. I thoroughly enjoyed this page turned and highly recommend.
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this.

Really enjoyed the crime book with Eddie on the case!
So many different outlooks and an aggrieved culprit! I thought something was up but did not guess it which is unusual!
Need to read some of the others in the series and maybe a series from Eddie when he was a con artist!

A fabulous book with a very intriguing plot. The characters are very believable and I found I was totally drawn in by them. I hope there are more books about Flynn. Thoroughly recommend

All the stars! Honestly I love all Eddie Fly books but this really hit the mark. I devoured it. The ending was epic so I’m hoping for another in the series leading on from that… Witness 8 has surpassed Devil’s Advocate as my new favourite Eddie book.

Big thank you to Headline and NetGalley for my ARC copy of this book.

I've not read a Steve Cavanagh book before however, I do have Th1rt3en on my TBR so I'm excited to get into that too.

This book was actually really fun and interesting. I liked the set up of this book and rather than being from the POVs of criminal and police, we get the main parts of the story from the defence lawyer team and the witness to the murder.

There was a lot going on however with the focus of the book not necessarily being on who committed the crime, it was definitely different to follow along and read the investigation from another angle.

While you do get the answer to who did it, the overall ending of the case is guessable and not hard to work out but I think you can forgive the book for this based on how it gets there. There are still a few twists and turns throughout the book to keep you thinking and teamed with the cast of characters, it adds a complexity to the story with the different faucets all linking together in to one.

Overall I found this to be a really good book and the way it's written does make for an interesting read. Definitely would recommend and I'm super excited to read more from this author

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for the advance copy to read.

I am a huge Steve Cavanagh fan and adore the Eddie Flynn series.

This book did not disappoint. The characters are so well developed over the series and you really get to know and love them. As with the other books in the series there is a great mix of detective style work, relationships and court room drama. The books always keep me guessing on how Eddie and the team will solve the different crimes and get out of sticky situations.

The writing is brilliant, as always. The procedures are very true to life. The spin of the conman now lawyer makes for a very clever and interesting read.

I will forever be recommending this series to anyone. I also think it would make an incredible tv drama or film.

Slight spoiler... I nearly through the book out the window at one point because I was so invested in what happened.

My first ever Cavanagh read was Twisted, and I feel like every other book of his I read, I always compare it to that. Because For me, this fell a little short in comparison to Twisted, so I gave it 4 stars.
That being said, this book was a very well-written police procedural crime novel, and Eddie Flynn has always been a well-built character that I can get behind and route for. It was twisty, but not in the shocking, omg what unearth did I just read sense, but more in a slow and steady sense, which I think is also why it fell short of a 5-star read for me. There were so many different characters and storylines that it was hard to follow who was who at times, which is possibly why the twists fell short for me.
Ruby was a great character, and I loved the chapters from her point of view.
All in all, I read it quickly and it was a well-paced, intricate novel with a great storyline and well-built characters, and I would recommend it. It's just those few things that fell short of 5 stars for me. I look forward to reading more from Cavanagh, as always, in the future.

Witness 8 by Steve Cavanagh
Out in the UK 1 August

This was my first encounter with conman turned lawman Eddie Flynn, despite it being book 8 in the series. It didn’t matter though - it works as a standalone. It reminded me a little of The Lincoln Lawyer, but was a bit lighter with some humour & hints of Breaking Bad in the characters.

Ruby, nanny & maid to the wealthy elite of Manhattan, witnesses a murder. But what will she do with that information? Eddie has to defend the accused man and survive a price on his head while navigating the city’s politics.

A pacy novel with plenty of great characters - and it’s fun working out what Eddie’s up to next!

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this awesome book

man oh man this book i was on the edge of my seat right till the end...

ruby johnson sees all and knows all... she is invisible to the people she surrounds ... so when she witnesses a murder, the murderer doesnt even see her

now ruby has a plan....

eddie flynn a former con man now a brilliant lawyer has a slight problem theres a hit out on him but his new client needs him to stay alive so that he can get him off a murder charge

its all hands on deck for this highly charged action packed thriller of a ride... well worth the sleepless night of reading it just to see how it all ended...

cant wait for the next time to catch up with eddie and his team

‘Witness 8’ by Steve Cavanagh is the eighth book in the Eddie Flynn series of courtroom thrillers, following conman-turned-lawyer Eddie and his team as they defend only the innocent against the most serious of crimes. In this instalment, their client John is a wealthy and revered paediatric brain surgeon whose life came crashing down around him when an anonymous witness planted a false tip implicating him as a murderer. Like other books in the series, we look through multiple pairs of eyes, including those of Ruby, a babysitter and cleaner for the posh residents of the street where she once lived before her father lost their fortune and disappeared. She was an interesting character whose unpredictable actions drove much of the plot.

I really enjoyed the dynamics between Eddie, Harry, Kate, Bloch and the rest of the team, and it was fascinating to uncover more layers of Lake’s story in this novel. Eddie’s courtroom subterfuge was as entertaining as ever, and multiple threads of plot came together satisfyingly in the end. The book also maintained feelings of tension and dread throughout, and I raced through it, eager to see how it ended!

Steve Cavanagh has set the bar extremely high for this series, and while this novel was excellent, I have to say that it didn’t quite impact me as much as some of the previous instalments… I felt less connection to the client than to Andy in ‘The Devil’s Advocate’, less fascination for the puppet-master than in either ‘Thirteen’ or ‘The Accomplice’ and was less gripped than I was by ‘Fifty Fifty’. I’d say it ranks on par with the first three (still wonderful) books for me, and I will certainly be incredibly eager to read Book 9 when we are treated to that.

All in all, this gets 4.5 stars… for the reasons above I couldn’t quite give it the full five, but honestly I 100% recommend it to fans of the series, and implore those who haven’t met Eddie Flynn yet to get acquainted!

I received an advance Digital Review Copy of this book from the publisher Headline via NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This Eddie Flynn novel captivates with its blend of domestic suspense and noir set against the backdrop of affluent New York City. Eddie Flynn, our protagonist, reveals a more tender aspect of his character amidst the turmoil. The plot centers on Ruby, the nanny and housekeeper, who becomes an eyewitness to a chilling murder. The accused, a prominent surgeon, finds his life spiraling out of control, with Eddie stepping in as his defense attorney.

Among the intriguing cast, you'll encounter Mr. Christmas, a character with an unusual fixation on Marlon Brando, adding depth to the narrative. The story's twists and turns keep the reader in suspense until the very end, making it a thrilling read well into the night.

Even if this is your first encounter with Eddie Flynn, the book stands alone beautifully. Highly recommended!

An explosive novel that had me hooked from the start.
Plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing.
A fast paced thriller that you will find hard to put down. Thank you to NetGalley, Headline and the author for the chance to review.

Lawyer Eddie Flynn and his team only take on cases when they know the accused is innocent or has made a terrible mistake and is full of remorse. John Jackson is innocent, all the team know it, but an anonymous caller, plus DNA and the murder weapon put him well and truly in the frame. It’s up to Eddie and his cohorts to prove that Jackson has been set up.

What a great book! A first for me by this author and I loved it, immediately drawn in, it was compelling reading. Excellently depicted characters, twisty and tense plot, extremely well written.

That this was part of a series had no bearing on the book, absolutely perfect as a standalone, but I will definitely be reading more of Eddie and co.

Thank you NetGalley and Headline.

A Courtroom drama with surprising differences.
I had not come across Steve Cavanagh and his character Eddie Flynn before, and I really enjoyed reading the exploits of Eddie and his team. As a retired con man, Eddie, now now a defence attorney, sometimes uses his old skills to advantage for a case. Here, he does this to defend a driver wrongly stopped by the Police. This sets off a tragic train off events that leave Eddie literally in the gunsights. Another innocent client is charged with murder, and the two cases collide.
This is a tense book with the story rapidly moving forward. Steve Cavanagh provides very well-rounded descriptions of his characters and also of the various locations.
Simply, this is a very good book.

Excellent crime writing, it comes no better than this.

A nanny who appears so innocent and naïve can she be really holding all those secrets just to keep her mother safe?

A lot of characters in this book to get your head around but it works well and keeps you on tenterhooks right to the end.

Thank you Netgalley for letting me read this book.

I do love an Eddie Flynn novel and this latest offering, Witness 8, is about as tricky and twisted as they come. Now, this is a story of a murder, one which takes place very early on in the novel. One crucial difference in this book compared to some other thrillers you may have read is that this murder is witnessed not only by us readers, but by someone who works on the street in question, a rather affluent area of New York where murder really isn't the done thing. That someone is Ruby Johnson, sometime Nanny, sometime cleaner to many of the homes on the street. Not only does Ruby witness the crime - the murder of a resident she is rather fond of - she also sees where the killer dumps the murder weapon. Obviously Ruby calls in the murder, identifies the killer and the book ends somewhere around halfway into chapter two ...

Yeah, right. Wouldn't that be nice and neat? One thing Mr Cavanagh does not do is offer us readers nice neat, quickly resolved, no conflict murders, and Witness 8 is no different. Because dear little Ruby does not do the right thing. She does not identify the killer. She doesn't put an end to the story in chapter two. Ruby very much has other ideas. Needless to say, the person who finds themself accused of the murder finds themselves defended by none other than one time trickster and con man, Eddie Flynn, which tells you all you need to know about their culpability, but less about why they stand accused in the first place. Ruby has not been entirely honest with people about what she saw that fateful night, which is really rather fortunate for readers as it means we are taken on a pacy, high stakes, sometimes surprisingly emotional rollercoaster of a thriller - just the way we like it.

Not only do we have the whys and wherefores of this murder case hanging over Eddie and the team, Eddie finds himself in the crosshairs of a very dangerous foe. Not only Eddie, but all those he works with an cares for, something we have grown accustomed to over the course of this series. It adds a layer of tension to an already intriguing and taught story, and it is this arc that gives the book the emotional intensity that really gripped me and kept me reading long past a time that could be considered decent when I had work the following day. Steve Cavanagh introduces hitman for hire, Mr Christmas, a character who, despite his chosen career, I actually really rather liked. He has a kind of code of conduct, something we can all be thankful for this time around, and a surprising link to someone else in the story. You have to admire his pride in his work, if not the profession itself, and his straight talking, very honest approach to dealing with his potential victims often made me smile.

The entire team is in play once again, including Gabriel Lake, whose untidy and sometimes unorthodox methods contrast starkly with the more confined and buttoned up approach of Eddie's more regular enforcer, Bloch. as a partnership they really shouldn't work, but something about them, their interactions and their polar opposite natures, really does make me smile. It's an irresistible pairing, and a bit like Eddie compared with his partner, Kate, each provides the Yin to the other's Yang. The way in which the author portrays that camaraderie in spite of differences that drive each other to a point of frustration is pitch perfect, and oart of the reason I was able to race through this book.

I loved the mystery in this book, the sense that there was some hidden motivation that we are never quite sure about. There are some significant hints dropped throughout for the eagle eyed who like to pitch themselves against the protagonists and race ahead in forming a conclusion. I admit, I am one of those people, and one of the key revelations in the book didn't take me entirely by surprise, but it didn't affect my enjoyment of the book, it enhanced it as I sat wondering just when the rest of the team would finally catch up. Other than the identify of the killer - something kept as a closely guarded secret until near the end of the book - part of the fun of this novel was knowing in advance of everyone else what was on the horizon, watching the subterfuge and misdirection play out, and wondering if, at long last, Eddie's luck might be about to run out. If you want to know the answer to that question, well you'll just have to read the book, won't you?