The first of a series, the novel follows criminal defense attorney and television pundit Samantha Brinkman as she takes on a high-profile murder case.

[3][8] While Knight is straightforward and unlikely to bend the rules, Clark called Blood Defense's lead character Samantha Brinkman "more morally ambiguous".

[2] Clark said that she developed Rachel Knight from a desire to write a realistic take on a prosecutor and her friends, with women supporting each other at a time when the opposite was being celebrated with The Real Housewives.

[9] She said: I also wanted to write a character who was a lot more twisted than Rachel Knight ... She really doesn't believe that the law is anything but a suggestion, which she chooses to not follow most of the time.

"[10] Clark said, "I particularly wanted to show what a defense attorney's job is in this age of social media, as well as the ability of a lawyer to access public opinion through Twitter and Facebook.

"[11] Samantha Brinkman, an eager criminal defense attorney with few clients but a good reputation in the Los Angeles courts, lands the high-profile double murder case of Detective Dale Pearson.

[9]Clark's contract is for two books a year,[2][9] which she calls a "tough" pace as a writer but also "a brilliant marketing choice".

"[12] Shawna Seed of The Dallas Morning News described the "ethically flexible" Samantha as believably flawed, praising the novel's ending and Clark's portrayal of "the symbiotic relationship between the L.A. criminal justice system and the media".

[2] In Moral Defense, Samantha defends a 15-year-old girl accused of brutally murdering her adoptive family.

[15][16] Clark said that though Samantha is dealing with a new crime, "the issues that are hatched in Blood Defense are definitely going to come back to haunt her".