A former international trial lawyer, Antoinette van Heugten’s first novel, Saving Max (Mira Books/Harlequin, October 2010, $14.95), follows a single mother whose teenage son has Asperger’s syndrome and becomes the primary suspect in a gruesome murder case. More than just a heart-pounding thriller, Saving Max is based on her real life experience as the mother of two autistic children.
Antoinette knows first-hand the struggles and triumphs of living with autism, and has always been an advocate for her children in a world where few people understood their disorder. She is an avid follower of the Autism Society of America, Talk Autism, Autism Speaks, the National Autism Association and Moms Fighting Autism, and has worked with parents who have recently received a diagnosis of autism for their children.
“My goal in writing Saving Max was not only to create an entertaining book,” she says, “but also to shed light on some of the misconceptions people have about the autism spectrum and to help other parents of children with autism know that they are not alone.”
Saving Max follows mother and lawyer Danielle Parkman as she admits her autistic son, Max, to a psychiatric hospital for his increasingly violent behavior. When Max is accused of murdering another patient, Danielle races to solve the case and uses her legal prowess to prove her son’s innocence. Danielle stands by the son she has always struggled to protect – even when no one else believes in him.
Antoinette received both her undergraduate degree and law degree from the University of Texas in Austin, Texas. During her 15-year career as a trial lawyer, she practiced all over the world, in locations such as Scandinavia, Germany and the Netherlands to Houston, her hometown.
Antoinette resides in Fredericksburg, Texas, with her husband, a former prominent oil and gas lawyer.
To schedule an interview with Antoinette or to receive a review copy of Saving Max,
Please contact Amy Currie at (512) 478-2028 ext. 211 or acurrie@phenixpublicity.com.
