John Adams Under Fire

The Founding Father's Fight for Justice in the Boston Massacre Murder Trial

By: Dan Abrams, David Fisher

Narrated by: Dan Abrams, Roger Wayne

Now a New York Times best seller!

“An expert, extremely detailed account of John Adams’ finest hour.” (Kirkus Reviews)

Honoring the 250th Anniversary of the Boston Massacre

The New York Times best-selling author of Lincoln’s Last Trial and host of LivePD Dan Abrams and David Fisher tell the story of a trial that would change history.

History remembers John Adams as a Founding Father and our country’s second president. But in the tense years before the American Revolution, he was still just a lawyer, fighting for justice in one of the most explosive murder trials of the era.

On the night of March 5, 1770, shots were fired by British soldiers on the streets of Boston, killing five civilians. The Boston Massacre has often been called the first shots of the American Revolution. As John Adams would later remember, “On that night the formation of American independence was born.” Yet when the British soldiers faced trial, the young lawyer Adams was determined that they receive a fair one. He volunteered to represent them, keeping the peace in a powder keg of a colony, and in the process created some of the foundations of what would become United States law.

In this book, New York Times best-selling authors Dan Abrams and David Fisher draw on the trial transcript, using Adams’ own words to transport listeners to colonial Boston, a city roiling with rebellion, where British military forces and American colonists lived side by side, waiting for the spark that would start a war.

©2020 Dan Abrams and David Fisher (P)2020 Harlequin Enterprises, Limited

Well done, Nothing Out of Order

A tight account of the testimony given at trial and has sparked even more curiosity. Now I must read ‘The Boston Massacre’.

Difficult to follow

Interesting part of unkown part of our American history by a well written
author...good. enjoyed

inspired me to learn more about Adams

the book was professionally done and performed. It was a bit didactic and and didn't really color the characters beyond their cerebral descriptions

Excellent Historical Book

On March 5, 1770, five citizens of the town of Boston were killed, apparently murdered by British troops. This book describes two trials in which John Adams defended first the captain and later eight individual soldiers. There were dozens if not hundreds of witnesses to what occurred that night, but their accounts differed widely, to say the least. Most interesting to me was the development of the law. While there was a jury of 12 men, there were also several judges that heard the case and, in charging the jury, gave their views of the evidence. The prohibition against self-incrimination kept the defendants from testifying, but hearsay was generally allowed. Few objections to testimony were raised. The lawyers quoted freely to the jury from legal texts. The developing precept of proof of a crime beyond a reasonable doubt was advanced by these proceedings. The narration was excellent; it kept the listener focused on the story. I would recommend this title to anyone interested in early American history.

perfection

I enjoyed mixing my love of history and my live if true crime! can’t wait to listen to the other books!

This should become a movie

I hope this book inspires a movie. It was a wonderful courtroom drama that had my full attention.

Some reviewers are confused...

First: the book is excellent. It's well-written and delivered. Dan Abrams has an excellent voice.

There are several reviews complaining about the density (thoroughness) of some parts, with reviewers saying it's hard to get through it.

However, this book is part of a series of books that closely examines trials from history. The topic almost demands density.

Great lesson in American Jurisprudence

This book should be read by all in our legal system, if for no other reason, to gain an understanding on how our criminal justice system developed from the beginning of our nation.

A very well written account we should all know

One of the greatest stories in American History and one we should study more.
John Adams understood that if America wanted to be recognized as special, the law needed to be fair and all accused needed confident and capable council. despite what personal damage taking the case would cause him, he knew that these soldiers needed to be represented fairly.
There is a great example in John Adam's
Enjoy!

A masterful historical presentation of the Boston Massacre told by the trial lawyer John Adams and reads like a suspense novel.

Never have I read a historical account that was so much like a Perry Mason novel or a “Who Done It” book that kept me on the edge of my seat. This is a must read that you can’t put down yet you are getting a history lesson at the same time.