This book is set in the late 1940's. War hero Pete Banning has made it home after escaping Japanese brutality of the Bataan Death March and prison in the Philippines. He has led men and fought the invaders for years until the Army returns. He then returns home to his family and farm in Mississippi.

Then, on a cool October morning he calmly walks to his church, walks in to the preacher's office and kills him. Pete Banning mounts no legal defense whatsoever. Judgment is death by electric chair.

The rest of the book is about his experiences in the war and what he found when he got back. It's loaded with a lot of detail, more than necessary in my view, but when all the social views of the time come out it turns out to be an interesting book. 417 pages.

I thought it was by far Grisham’s best work

I just finished it,, it seems to me that Grisham just overloaded the whole book,, my guess on the ending came way before the big surprise. Sorry to be such a prick but it was work reading the book,,