The Reckoning

#1 bestselling author John Grisham’s The Reckoning is his most powerful, surprising, and suspenseful thriller yet.
 
“John
Grisham is not only the master of suspense but also an acute observer
of the human condition. And these remarkable skills converge in The Reckoning—an original, gripping, penetrating novel that may be his greatest work yet.”
—David Grann, New York Times bestselling author of Killers of the Flower Moon
 
 October 1946, Clanton, Mississippi

Pete Banning was Clanton, Mississippi’s favorite son—a decorated World
War II hero, the patriarch of a prominent family, a farmer, father,
neighbor, and a faithful member of the Methodist church. Then one cool
October morning he rose early, drove into town, walked into the church,
and calmly shot and killed his pastor and friend, the Reverend Dexter
Bell. As if the murder weren’t shocking enough, it was even more
baffling that Pete’s only statement about it—to the sheriff, to his
lawyers, to the judge, to the jury, and to his family—was: “I have
nothing to say.” He was not afraid of death and was willing to take his
motive to the grave.
            In a major novel unlike anything he
has written before, John Grisham takes us on an incredible journey,
from the Jim Crow South to the jungles of the Philippines during World
War II; from an insane asylum filled with secrets to the Clanton
courtroom where Pete’s defense attorney tries desperately to save him.
            Reminiscent of the finest tradition of Southern Gothic storytelling, The Reckoning would not be complete without Grisham’s signature layers of legal suspense, and he delivers on every page.

**

“In this saga of love and war, John Grisham has given us a sprawling
and engrossing story about a southern family, a global conflict, and
the kinds of secrets that can shape all of us.  From the courtrooms and
jails of rural Mississippi to the war-torn Pacific, Grisham spins a tale
that is at once entertaining and illuminating.”
—Jon Meacham, New York Times bestselling author of The Soul of America
 
“John Grisham is not only the master of suspense but also an acute
observer of the human condition. And these remarkable skills converge
in The Reckoning—an original, gripping, penetrating novel that may be his greatest work yet.”
—David Grann, New York Times bestselling author of Killers of the Flower Moon
 
“John Grisham is the master of legal fiction, and his latest starts
with a literal bang — and then travels backward through the horrors of
war to explore what makes a hero, what makes a villain, and how thin the
line between the two might be.”
—Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Spark of Light and Small Great Things
“When
a master of storytelling and suspense takes on one of the most
wrenching stories in history, the result is a book that will break your
heart, set your blood pumping and your mind racing, and leave you
gasping for breath by the final page. I’m still trying to recover from The Reckoning.”     
–Candice Millard, New York Times bestselling author of The River of Doubt and Destiny of the Republic

John Grisham is the author of thirty-two novels, one work of nonfiction, a collection of stories, and six novels for young readers.