An ancient law, a modern war, and a Father's love that know no bounds.
Retired Army Ranger Thomas Lane once burned for the taste of gunpowder and the thrill of the battle. But as he struggles to cope with his own PTSD and the death of his eldest son, killed by an IED in Afghanistan, Lane learns that price of war is far too dear.
When the National Guard calls up Lane's youngest son to serve, Lane knows he will do anything to save this child -- even if it means going in his place, a pursuit unheard of since the Civil War when slaves were sent to war in place of their masters.
In His Stead, Judith Sander's second novel, follows Thomas Lane's crusade against the United States Army, its JAG corps, a vengeful officer, the very son he is desperate to save, and his own wife, who has the Solomon-like choice to losing either a husband or a son.
Capturing the essence of family life in wartime -- the good, the bad and the hopeful — In His Stead explores what it means to be a father and a man.