The Twelfth Juror (edit title/settings)

Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit see section history

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Characters/People edit see section history

• Megan Cleary: A young beautiful ambitious attorney with a great apartment, great job and great boyfriend whose perfect world is shattered when she is brutally attacked while working late one night in December.
• Mother Harriet: The pivotal character to the story although she does not appear until the last half of the book. She is the mother figure whom Megan really needs in order to begin to look at her own situation and her life in general differently.
• Jonathan Andrews: A university professor originally from England whose wife and two children were killed in a car accident. After the tragedy, he relocates from New York City to Buffalo.
• Holmes: Megan's German Shepherd which she purchases after her attack to make her feel safer. Holmes is not just a pet; he becomes the silent sounding board for her fear, loneliness and frustration.
• Jennifer: Megan's ambitious mother who wants the best for her daughter but also wants to save face in the eyes of her own social circle of friends.
• Maria: When Maria was an infant, her father dipped her in boiling water which left permanent scars on her body. Now a toddler, Maria has scars on her heart as well as her body. But her face is as beautiful as an angel.
• Janet Dobson: A diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, Janet Dobson took children from the daycare where she worked and murdered them. Megan represents her in her murder trial.
• Jack Forbes: Senior partner at Pratt, Forbes and Magoff, where Megan works and aspires to become a partner.
• Jeff: Megan's long term stockbroker boyfriend. Like the other people in Megan's world, he is more concerned about his status than he is about anything else.
• Mike: Megan's quirky, oddball cousin. Mike does not really fit in with his ambitious family, but he and Megan have been friends since childhood.
• Linda Pearson: A social worker at a daycare in Buffalo, Linda Pearson is in charge of the daycare where Maria spends her days while her mother works.
• Ian Cleary: Megan's protective father. Like Jennifer, he is proud and ambitious, and though he loves his daughter, he does not want to allow anything to upset his perfect world.
• Sam Dyer: One of the first characters introduced in the book, Sam Dyer is convicted for shooting a young criminal who breaks into his home. His conviction sets the stage for all of the rest of the action in the story.
• Jill Wheaton: Jonathan Andrew's beloved wife who was killed in a car accident. Her loss and that of his children caused him to give up his job teaching and lose himself in alcohol.
• Joanna: Megan's flighty cousin who is getting married just as Megan is dealing with her own problems.
• Hector: Maria's father who is now in prison for child abuse. He blames Maria and her mother for his incarceration.
• Mr. Cukor: Tthe head of the homeowner's association at Megan's apartment complex. He has to deal with the complaints about her new companion, Holmes.
• Howard Breck: Add a description of this character.
• Cheryl McGuire
• Simon Winter
• Rita
• Madelyn Winter
• Heidi
• Harry
• Uncle Ted
• John Kindale
• Ed
• Rachel
• Alfredo
• Anne Sutherland
• Patricia
• Yolie
• Ralph
• Veronica
• Dr. Jameson
• Dan Woodruff
• Marge
• George Carpenter
• Carmen
• Harriet Porter
• Gerald Humphrey
• Bob Pratt
• Hank Dorson
• Peter Winter
• Marla
• Mark Perkins
• Sally Benson
• Aunt Martha
• Cynthia Harris
• Benedict

Quotes edit see section history

• “All love is tough. Few things take the strength and energy that it requires, and to love the unloved requires the greatest strength of all. Only three things last--faith, hope and love, and the greatest of these is love."”

  Carmen

• “When ya know Jesus, and ya ask Him for somethin' ya expect Him to answer ya 'cause He's your friend. And even if the answer don't come right away or it ain't what ya was expectin' ya know that you can trust Him because He cares about ya.”

  Mother Harriet

• “Life has kicked me in the teeth. I was allowed to be successful just so that I could lose it all to some maniac. I always thought that I was going to get through this, but now I know that I am not. Things are never going to get any better.”

  Megan Cleary

• “I love you with my whole heart and you know it. This experience is something you are going to have to live with for the rest of your life, and you might as well start getting used to that right now. Your father and I have been very patient with you since you came home. Other people are not going to be as patient or as understanding. You're going to have to get a grip on yourself and rejoin the real world, at least in terms of your behavior in public. And if you're not able to do that alone, you will have to go into counseling.”

  Jennifer Cleary

• “How can I trust Him? If God is just, how could He allow a wonderful young woman like my wife to die? How could He take my children away from me? That's not justice; it's not even fair.”

  Jonathan Andrews

• “Nobody knows why some folks lives to be old and others dies real young, and it's usually the good ones dyin' and the bad ones livin'. I do know this--everybody's got to die sometime, and when it's all said and done, nobody lives on this earth very long. I can't tell ya why your family went when they did, just like I can't tell ya why my husban' went when he did, but I can tell ya this--in Jesus they's alive forever.”

  Mother Harriet

• “I'm grateful for this house and each of these people here tonight. I'm grateful to be part of this community and to know the people here--they's been such a blessing to me. Mostly, I'm grateful for Jesus and the life He gives to all of us. Ain't no better life than the one we got in Him."”

  Mother Harriet

Setting & Locations edit see section history

• Buffalo: Buffalo is Megan's parents' home. She never wanted to stay there, but the circumstances of her life eventually force her back to her roots.
• New York City: The story starts against the exciting back drop of New York City, where Megan's life is exactly what she hoped it would be.
• Safe Haven: Safe Haven is the daycare run by social worker Linda Pearson. It is run down and unimpressive but the facility is a genuine place of safety for the children and the people who work there.

First Sentence edit see section history

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

• Life is not about the abundance of things.: The true theme of "The Twelfth Juror" is that life is not about the abundance of things. Megan Cleary, her parents, and everyone in her circle of friends believe that success and material possessions are the most important elements in life. But through having everything she has relied on taken away from her, Megan learns that real life and real living are not about money, or success or social position. Through what she experiences, she finds out what life is really all about.

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

1. Alexandra Swann (Author)
2. Joyce Swann

Other Contributors:

1. Stefan Swann (Illustrator) - Stefan Swann is the designer for the front and back cover,
2. Israel Swann (Cover Artist) - The cover art for this book was created by Israel Swann over 15 years ago. The picture was not drawn to be used as cover art, but when Joyce and Alexandra saw the picture they asked him to let them use it for their cover.

First Edition edit see section history

Classification edit see section history

• Library of Congress: Add the Library of Congress Classification.
• Dewey: 813

Notes for Parents edit see section history

This story is about the effects of a sexual assault on a young woman's life. While the assault is not graphic, the subject matter makes it inappropriate for young readers. In addition, there is quite a bit of non-graphic violence throughout the story. Caution is recommended with readers under the age of 17.

Subjects edit see section history

• Books › Mystery & Thrillers › Thrillers › Suspense
• Books › Literature & Fiction

Links to Supplemental Material edit see section history

• Christian Book Notes: Read Terry Delaney's review of "The Twelfth Juror"
• Sally Shupe's blog: Book blogger Sally Shupe's review of "The Twelfth Juror"
• Frontier 2000 Media Group: The official website of Joyce and Alexandra Swann

More Books Like This edit see section history