Stephen Terrell

Stephen Terrell is a writer and lawyer who practices in his own firm in Indianapolis.

He is the author of two tense legal thrillers: the 5-star rated Stars Fall and its recently-released sequel The First Rule.

In Stars Fall, Matt Demaree, a brilliant but naive recent law school graduate, finds himself charged with the murder of his boss, a justice on the Alabama Supreme Court. As he tries to clear himself of the crime for which he has been set up to take the fall, Matt must decide how far he will go to save his career -- and his life.

The First Rule revisits many of the characters from Stars Fall. When an autistic boy is charged with the murder of his family, criminal defense lawyer Kisti Newcombe takes on what becomes her most dangerous case. She must find a way to defend her non-communicative autistic client. In the process, she breaks the First Rule of criminal defense -- she begins to care about her client.

Stephen has written two other books. Visiting Hours and Other Stories from the Heart features the award-winning short story Visiting Hours. It tells about the unexpected truth found by a woman who was drawn by curiosity to the funeral of a young black girl. The stories in this book are drawn from the author's deep Midwestern roots.

There and Back: Journal of a Last Motorcycle Ride recounts in words and photos a week-long motorcycle trip through the Blue Ridge mountains by the author and his closest friend. Neither knew that it would be their last ride together.

Stephen has two short stories included in the mystery anthology The Fine Art of Murder, published by Blue River Press. “Expose Yourself to Art” is a fun romp in the style of a classic English mystery transported to the Midwest. “Street Art” is a hard-edged cop story dealing with a serial killer who leaves behind his calling card at each murder scene -- graffiti murals showing his kills.

In his capacity as a lawyer, Stephen has been recognized as a Distinguished Barrister by the Indiana Lawyer publication, and selected as a member of the Indiana Bar Association's General Practice Hall of Fame. He is a frequent speaker on a wide variety of legal topics, including legal technology, ethics and trial practice. He has written numerous articles for regional and national professional journals.

He is an avid motorcyclist and photographer, and an amateur chef. He loves music, but can't sing a lick.