Read Scott Turowâs new âunputdownableâ courtroom drama from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Presumed Innocent, the phenomenon that redefined the legal thriller and is the basis for Apple TV+âs most-watched drama series ever (Kristin Hannah, #1 NYT bestselling author).Â
âNo one does it better.ââDavid Baldacci, #1 NYT Bestselling Author
âThe truth is, Turow is just better at this than the rest of us.ââGreg Iles, #1 NYT Bestselling Author
âThis is manna for legal-thriller fans."âBooklist, starred review
âThis easily ranks among Turowâs best."âPublishers Weekly, starred review
âAn absorbing and entertaining read.â âKirkus
Rusty is a retired judge attempting a third act in life with a loving soon-to-be wife, Bea, with whom he shares both a restful home on an idyllic lake in the rural Midwest and a plaintive hope that this marriage will be his best, and his last. But the peace thatâs taken Rusty so long to find evaporates when Beaâs young adult son, Aaron, living under their supervision while on probation for drug possession, disappears. If Aaron doesnât return soon, he will be sent back to jail.
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Aaron eventually turns up with a vague story about a camping trip with his troubled girlfriend, Mae, that ended in a fight and a long hitchhike home. Days later, when she still hasnât returned, suspicion falls on Aaron, and when Mae is subsequently discovered dead, Aaron is arrested and set for trial on charges of first-degree murder.
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Faced with few choices and even fewer hopes, Bea begs Rusty to return to court one last time, to defend her son and to save their last best hope for happiness. For Rusty, the question is not whether to defend Aaron, or whether the boy is in fact innocentâitâs whether the system to which he has devoted his life can ever provide true justice for those who are presumed guilty.