Thursday, February 5, 2015

Courtroom Drama and Racial Tension

It's 1964 in Justice, Mississippi and racial tension is high. Calvin Ross, a black college student, is accused of murdering a young white girl. The white community thinks this is an open and shut case, but Calvin's aunt, Hattie Ross, believes he couldn't have done it.

Hattie convinces Cooper Lindsey, a young attorney, to take the case. He was born in Justice, the son of the preacher, and has just returned home to practice law. Coop doesn't want to take the case. He knows it will put him and his family in danger from an outraged white community, but he remembers his father's sermons about the Good Samaritan. Because of his belief in justice and being his father's son, he agrees to represent Calvin.

Fifty years later, Coop's grandson returns to Justice to find out what happened to his grandfather after the end of the case. It's now 2014 and Justice is an integrated community. In fact, many of the officials are now black. Another case is coming to trial when the younger Coop arrives. This time a white teenager is accused of killing a black teenager. Like his grandfather, the younger Coop becomes involved in this racially tense case.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The plot is fast paced, full of twists and courtroom tension. The author has done an excellent job of capturing the tone of the community in both time frames. The characters, particularly the older Coop and his grandson, are people you can't help but root for. The villains are clearly evil. In fact, the characters could have been more nuanced, but since this was a story of good and evil rather than a character study, it wasn't bothersome.

I highly recommend this book if you enjoy legal thrillers with a Christian background.


I reviewed this book for the Amazon Vine Program.

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