John Grisham

Washed-up public defender Clay Carter's latest case, a routine street killing, takes an unexpected turn when he discovers evidence of a conspiracy involving a large drug company and a lawsuit with a huge potential settlement.

Ray Atlee and his brother, Forrest, receive a letter from their father, a reclusive, retired judge, instructing them to return home to Clanton, Mississippi, to discuss his estate, but the judge dies before his sons arrive, leaving behind a secret known only to Ray.