Rachel Simmons, an idealistic thirty-four-year-old widow with two children to raise, joins the Oak Grove, California police force for reasons that go beyond economic necessity. Upholding the law has had a special meaning for Rachel ever since she was kidnapped as a child and her life was saved by a courageous policeman.

When Rachel witnesses a vicious abuse of police authority-and reports it-she propels herself into a nightmare of conflict and terror. By cracking the sacred blue code of silence, she has made enemies of the very men and women who hold her life in their hands-armed adversaries who are accustomed to exercising their power and will stop at nothing to ensure her silence.


Suddenly there is danger everywhere. Rachel's children are threatened, her name is slandered, a shooting frame-up puts her on the legal defensive, and someone is bent on her death. She is alone, increasingly afraid, and forced to rely on an ambitious attorney whose motives she questions, even as he seems to offer a way out.


With its riveting revelations of the harsh reality of life behind the badge and a plot that moves from shock to shock, Abuse of Power bristles with danger and excitement, both on the streets, and in court. Its shattering conclusion will make readers think hard about many issues in today's headlines. This compelling novel shows Nancy Taylor Rosenberg at her best.