What Carl Hiaasen and a host of South Florida's finest authors did for Sunshine State crime capers in the <i>New York Times</i> bestseller <i>Naked Came the Manatee</i>, William Bernhardt now does for legal thrillers–with the help of a "Dream Team" of today's hottest suspense writers. Like a literary game of telephone, <i>Natural Suspect</i> begins with a chapter from Bernhardt. Then each writer contributes a chapter and passes it along to the next. The result is a completely inventive, brilliantly plotted novel of suspense with more twists than a schizophrenic's train of thought. Can you guess who wrote which chapter?<br><br><b>NATURAL SUSPECT<br></b><br>Arthur Hightower made a name for himself and a vast fortune in the oil business. But when the volatile tycoon decides to disinherit his spoiled children and cheating wife, he makes the biggest mistake of his life-- <i>and the</i> <i>last</i>. After declaring his intentions, Hightower turns up on Thanksgiving Day . . . clubbed to death and stuffed in a meat locker, clutching a frozen asset–his wife's precious pearl necklace. Now Julia Hightower stands charged with the cold-as-ice crime of murdering for millions. While the sensational trial has New York in a frenzy, a curious cast of characters face off in and out of the courtroom. <br><br>Devin McGee, a small-time lawyer about to hit the big-time defending Julia Hightower-- if her intimate encounter with the prosecutor doesn't catch up with her . . . Trent Ballard, the quirky assistant D.A., who owns a huge pet rabbit and thinks his tryst with Devin will help him get a conviction . . . Patrick Roswell, a wannabe reporter sitting on a scoop that could turn the trial upside-down, unless a scalpel-wielding clown decides to kill the story-- <i>and Patrick</i> . . . Sissy Hightower, Julia's sex-crazed, air-headed daughter-in-law, who has a suitcase full of secrets . . . Robert S. Rutledge, a powerful Wall Street warrior with a lot riding on the Hightower verdict-- and a lot to learn about messing with the wrong people . . . and Cordelia, the mystery woman that everyone seems to know. <br><br>All are in for the trial of their lives–but who among them is the true<i> natural suspect</i>?<br><br><i>All author royalties will be donated to The Nature Conservancy.</i><br><br><br><i>From the Hardcover edition.</i>