Ethical dilemmas and hot social-political topics are common fodder for plots in Randy Singer's legal fiction. His second novel, Irreparable Harm, explores the ethics of surrogate parenting, abortion, and stem-cell research, along with a touch of immigration policy and disability rights.
In a way, the circumstances and plot are a bit to convoluted for their own good. An immigrant with questionable status is surrogate mother for a first-time mother who is now a widow. The baby is diagnosed with Down syndrome. The mother has a few more frozen embryos which may be available for research due to the timing of laws regarding human stem cell research. The mother wants the baby aborted; the surrogate mother wants to keep the child with Down syndrome. The young lawyer is falling in love with the immigrant/surrogate mother. Yes, it's convoluted, but still enjoyable.
Singer treats the issues behind the story thoughtfully, but doesn't beat the reader of the head with a particular perspective, nor does he let controversial topics get in the way of the story. Also, fans will be amused by the cameo appearances of characters from Singer's earlier novel, Directed Verdict. (Maybe some more careful reader with a better memory than me can catalog the characters that show up in multiple novels.) Singer's fans, as well as any fans of legal fiction with a dose of ethical questions, will enjoy Irreparable Harm.
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