Thank you for letting me to read this book in advance. I really appreciate it.

I love the concept; however, the narrative feels forced and to me, it feels like we're trying very hard to set the scenes, which makes the story not very believable. I understand that this is a fiction, but if the story is not believable, it's challenging to keep reading. All things considered, I'd give this book 3 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the Arc of this fast moving book. Ruby used to live on West 74th Street now she is a maid and nanny to those that live there. After witnessing a murder, Ruby sees it as an opportunity Eddie Flynn and his employees set out to unveil the truth
The characters were well developed, the story development was fast paced, everything that I love in a book
Eddie Flynn is a character in an ongoing series

Witness 8 was my first Steve Cavanaugh book, and now I'm hooked. I realized halfway through that it is a series, and now I want to go back and devour them all. The twists left me reading long into the night! I just had to know what was going to happen next. The characters were so well written. I felt like I was living in upscale NYC and watching this unfold in front of my very own eyes. It was just that good!

Another full-on fast moving drama involving former conman now criminal lawyer, Eddie Flynn and his usual crew. Central character in this book is Ruby Johnson who works as a nanny for a family on West 74th Street in upscale Manhattan. Ruby is witness to a murder on West 74th Street and then makes an anonymous call to the police and blames an innocent man, John Jackson, a well established surgeon and also her employer. John is setup for the murder and is referred by his lawyer to criminal lawyer, Eddie Flynn for help. Eddie and crew are tasked with clearing an innocent man and finding out who actually did the crime. There’s a great mixture of drama in the courtroom and a lot of action as well. Very well written book. I really enjoyed it and found myself rooting for the characters. Looking forward to the next Eddie Flynn book.

This one gets a solid 2.5 stars from me, which was a little disappointing because I absolutely adored Kill for Me, Kill for You. The writing style was totally different from what I read here. I will say going into it that I did not know it was part of a series, so I think my rating should come with an asterisk, as I may have felt differently about some aspects of this book had I known that or had I read the previous related books. But now onto the salient points.

I expected this to be a lightning fast legal thriller. The pace was less of a maelstrom and more of a garden variety thunderstorm. I found myself forcing myself to keep going in parts, which is never where I want to be with the book I’m reading.

There were WAY too many characters for my brain to be able to track. Part of this could be due to jumping into a series without any context, but it was just so difficult to keep everyone separate in my head and to distinguish them from one another. I will say that the author did a good job of explaining characters’ back stories in a way that likely summarized what had happened in previous books, though I can’t confirm that.

Ruby’s storyline was by far the most compelling. What started out as hints at a supernatural element quickly turned into something else entirely. Her motive and her ending were not things I expected to see from her character!

The best part, of course, was the courtroom scenes. I don’t practice criminal law, but there was enough there to satisfy my lawyer brain. Of course certain liberties have to be taken for the sake of the drama, but it was definitely the most engaging part of the book.

Read this if you are looking for a John Grisham/Harlan Cohen mashup. Maybe add an extra star to my rating if you have read any of the Eddie Flynn series before.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Slow burn at first but overall kept my interest! Great book! Loved the setting in an affluent neighborhood where “nothing can happen here”.. Highly recommend!!

What an interesting twist on a thriller that definitely kept me guessing. Thank you Netgalley and Atria books.

A very intriguing and suspenseful read. Wasn’t aware it was a series so did feel a bit lost (my fault). Overall a great mystery and thriller!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for his ARC. I was a tad confused with all the characters, but the suspense is definitely there and made for a good read. I do wish I had ready more in the series before starting this one.

I enjoyed this thriller. There were several points of view and I always like that in a book. The characters were quite interesting.- ex con man attorney especially. There were some twists and surprises that I wasn’t expecting. I’d read more works by this author and based on the ending, I’d be interested in a sequel as well.

Wellll.... I did not at all realize that this was the next installment in a series - I wish that had been made more clear in the description. This author's 2023 release was in my top ten of the year, and I'm sure this one is fantastic for anyone who has been following along up to date on this series.

True confession: I'm in love with Eddie Flynn, the brash-talking, former con man turned lawyer. I have read all of Cavanagh's books, and he never disappoints me. Witness 8 centers around a murder that takes place in a wealthy neighborhood. There is one witness, Ruby, the maid. Ruby, at one time, lived in this neighborhood and enjoyed a life of luxury. Her father loses all their money and hits the road. Meanwhile, Ruby and her ailing mother are living in the slums. The families in the 'hood share Ruby as a paid servant. She cleans as well as babysits. And Ruby also hides a dark secret. No worries, folks, Eddie is defending the innocent neighbor who is on trial for murder. I could tell you the rest of the story, but then I would have to kill you. Steve Cavanaugh, thank you for giving me the many delightfully entertaining hours in your books with Eddie and Harry. Please keep writing.

I’ve read one other book in this series and felt like I wasn’t missing too much backstory to read them as standalone. Cavanagh does a good job filling in with just enough of the character details while also making me want to go back and read the earlier books in the series to uncover more on the characters. Eddie is a classic redemption driven character. I want to learn more about Lake, Bloch, and Harry.

The plot was very strong and had me guessing all the way to the end.

Ok, I had NO clue what I was reading. Totally thought I was getting just another thriller, and missed the fact that this is #8 in a series and it’s a LEGAL thriller. But anyway….none of that matters because I loved this book so much! Lots of twists and turns and action and I couldn’t put it down.

No need to read any of the other Eddie Flynn novels, although if I were to go back and read them, I’m sure I just read a lot of spoilers for those. But I might anyway!

Eddie Flynn gives me total Saul Goodman vibes, which are the best kind of vibes. Highly entertaining and I love to see the fragments of things start to come together both in his actions and in the unfolding of the story itself.

Took away one star only because the way things ended up with Ruby seemed a little out of nowhere.

Loved this book! My first Steve Cavanagh book and definitely not my last. The twist and turns were great, although not all came as a surprise. I didn't love Kate or Bloch, something rubbed me the wrong way about both. Would definitely recommend this thriller to other people though and check out other books by Cavanagh myself.

🆁🅴🆅🅸🅴🆆 ⁣
𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: Witness 8
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: Steve Cavanagh
⁣𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: March 11, 2025

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐝:⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
⇥ The opening scene and initial chapters had me hooked!
⇥ I love a book that makes you wonder how all the puzzle pieces will fit together, and then reveals the big picture at the end.
⇥ This would make an amazing movie!

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐚𝐝:⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
⇥ How many times do I need to hear that Eddie, the main character, was a conman before turning his life around to become a lawyer? Sixteen times, in various forms like "con-artist" or "conman." It got old quickly. Repetition really stands out for me.
⇥ The tagline: "What if the witness was more twisted than the killer?" was severely overhyped.
⇥ At one point, the story felt like two separate plots. There were chapters where I'd think, "Oh right! This isn't just about Eddie's personal life" (Plot #1), "but also the trial for the murder" (Plot #2).

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠:⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣
★★★★.5
This is one of those books that doesn't explain everything right away, which keeps you reading further in hopes that it will all make sense. And it does! While the middle dragged a bit, it was worth it in the end. Although this is part of a series, it can be read as a standalone. You can tell there are stories and prior history between the recurring characters. You’re never lost, but there's definitely a backstory from previous books. I read Thirteen (Book #4) years ago and was floored by its creativity. Cavanagh is such a phenomenal author. Keep this on your radar for release next year!

From the very first page I was absolutely indulging this book. I could not put it down and almost gave myself a reason to call into work! If you love twists and mind blowing endings that leave you questioning what you just read, this book is for you! I’d like to thank Steve Cavanagh and net galley for this amazing opportunity! I will definitely be reading more of his books!

I was super intrigued by this and really wanted to like it, but I just didn't. I didn't really like any of the characters and I wasn't super invested in the story or the outcome. The pacing and the writing was good, just not one that will go down as a favorite.

I've been eager to read another book by Steve Cavanagh after Thirteen, which remains my favorite. However, I did enjoy Witness 8, It started off strong and captured my interest fairly quickly. I thought the plot was very intriguing and kept me guessing about how everything would connect in the end. The main issue I had with this book was the numerous points of view, which made it difficult to keep track of the characters. Overall, it was a decent read, and I can't wait for the next one.

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Family.
Steve Cavanagh has written another Eddie Flynn novel and hit every single emotional nuance. Eddie Fly is one of my favorite hero’s. He is part con artist, part magician and has a “family” surrounding him that are the perfect sidekicks and back ups.

I’ve read almost all of the previous Eddie Flynn books I could get my hands on but I’m still missing a few I can’t get on audiobooks. So I ordered the print versions. I need more of this series forever!