Fiction / Legal Thriller Best Sellers

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • John Grisham is the acclaimed master of the legal thriller. Now, he’s back with his first-ever whodunit, even more suspenseful than his courtroom dramas, as a small-time lawyer accused of murder races to find the real killer to clear his name. “A classic, compulsive, taut and thrilling novel from one of the great storytellers of our time. The Widow is John Grisham at his irresistible, unforgettable best.”—Chris Whitaker, author of All the Colors of the Dark Simon Latch is a lawyer in rural Virginia, making just enough to pay his bills while his marriage slowly falls apart. Then into his office walks Eleanor Barnett, an elderly widow in need of a new will. Apparently, her husband left her a small fortune, and no one knows about it. Once he hooks the richest client of his career, Simon works quietly to keep her wealth under the radar. But soon her story begins to crack. When she is hospitalized after a car accident, Simon realizes that nothing is as it seems, and he finds himself on trial for a crime he swears he didn’t commit: murder. Simon knows he’s innocent. But he also knows the circumstantial evidence is against him, and he could spend the rest of his life behind bars. To save himself, he must find the real killer…. Don’t miss John Grisham’s forthcoming thriller, The French Illusion!

In this #1 New York Times bestseller, undefeated criminal defense attorney Jane Smith—known as the Hamptons Lawyer—is ready to do whatever it takes to make her case. “Great book. Great series. Best yet.” —Morning Joe The Hamptons on Long Island is known for its beautiful beaches, its luxury lifestyle—and its exclusive legal advice. When Jane Smith takes on a famous celebrity client, she’s armed and ready: with brilliant arguments, hard evidence—and two Glocks. Yet she’s chased down, shot at, and risks contempt of court. That’s when mounting a legal defense turns into self-defense. Knowing every day in court could be her last, she’s a survivor. For now.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Escape to Camino Island, where bookseller Bruce Cable and novelist Mercer Mann always manage to find trouble in paradise. Don’t miss Framed, John Grisham’s first work of nonfiction since The Innocent Man! Mercer Mann, a popular writer from Camino Island, is back on the beach, marrying her boyfriend, Thomas, in a seaside ceremony. Bruce Cable, infamous owner of Bay Books, performs the wedding. Afterward, Bruce tells Mercer that he has stumbled upon an incredible story. Mercer desperately needs an idea for her next novel, and Bruce now has one. The true story is about Dark Isle, a sliver of a barrier island not far off the North Florida coast. It was settled by freed slaves three hundred years ago, and their descendants lived there until 1955, when the last one was forced to leave. That last descendant is Lovely Jackson, elderly now, who loves her birthplace and its remarkable history. But now Tidal Breeze, a huge, ruthless corporate developer, wants to build a resort and casino on the island, which Lovely knows, deep down, is rightfully hers. Mercer befriends Lovely, and they plunge into an enormous fight over who owns Dark Isle, taking on Tidal Breeze Corporation, its lawyers, lobbyists, and powerful Florida politicians. But Lovely knows something about the island that could seriously cloud the dollar signs in the developer’s eyes: the island is cursed. It has remained uninhabited for nearly a century for some very real and very troubling reasons. The deep secrets of the past are about to collide with the enormous ambitions of the present, and the fate of Dark Isle—and Camino Island, too—hangs in the balance. Look for all of John Grisham’s rollicking Camino novels: Camino Island Camino Winds Camino Ghosts

Avery, a promising young law clerk to Supreme Court Justice Howard Wynn, becomes her boss's power of attorney after he falls into a coma. As Justice Wynn held a powerful swing vote, Avery suddenly finds herself having to make difficult, high profile decisions. On top of all this, she uncovers secret links between Wynn and a controversial new biotech case coming before the court. Following the chess-like clues that Wynn left behind, Avery must make dangerous moves in this suspenseful, DC politics novel.

In The Whistler, Lacy Stoltz investigated a corrupt judge who was taking millions in bribes from a crime syndicate. She put the criminals away, but only after being attacked and nearly killed. Three years later, and approaching forty, she is tired of her work for the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct and ready for a change. Then she meets a mysterious woman who is so frightened she uses a number of aliases. Jeri Crosby’s father was murdered twenty years earlier in a case that remains unsolved and that has grown stone cold. But Jeri has a suspect whom she has become obsessed with and has stalked for two decades. Along the way, she has discovered other victims. The man Jeri holds responsible for all these deaths is brilliant, patient, and always one step ahead of law enforcement. He is the most cunning of all serial killers. He knows forensics, police procedure, and most important: he knows the law. He is a judge, in Florida—under Lacy’s jurisdiction. But the man keeps a record of all his victims and targets, people unlucky enough to have crossed his path and wronged him in some way. Lacy must work to take him down, while somehow keeping her name off his list.

The third book in the Jake Brigance series. A 16-year-old is accused of killing a deputy in Clanton, Miss., in 1990.

The sixth book in the Mickey Haller series. Haller defends himself when police find the body of a former client in his car\'s trunk.

Cullen Post, a lawyer and Episcopal minister, antagonizes some ruthless killers when he takes on a wrongful conviction case.

The lives of patients, doctors and activists intersect when a gunman holds them all hostage in a woman\'s health center in Mississippi.

A decorated World War II veteran shoots and kills a pastor inside a Mississippi church.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • John Grisham’s newest legal thriller takes you inside a law firm that’s on shaky ground. Mark, Todd, and Zola came to law school to change the world, to make it a better place. But now, as third-year students, these close friends realize they have been duped. They all borrowed heavily to attend a third-tier, for-profit law school so mediocre that its graduates rarely pass the bar exam, let alone get good jobs. And when they learn that their school is one of a chain owned by a shady New York hedge-fund operator who also happens to own a bank specializing in student loans, the three know they have been caught up in The Great Law School Scam. But maybe there's a way out. Maybe there’s a way to escape their crushing debt, expose the bank and the scam, and make a few bucks in the process. But to do so, they would first have to quit school. And leaving law school a few short months before graduation would be completely crazy, right? Well, yes and no ... Pull up a stool, grab a cold one, and get ready to spend some time at The Rooster Bar. Don’t miss John Grisham’s new book, THE EXCHANGE: AFTER THE FIRM!

A Katie Couric Book Club Pick / One of President Obama's '26 Summer Reading List Picks / A Good Housekeeping Book Club Pick / A GoodReads Most Anticipated Book of Summer “Ann Patchett’s new novel is a rare phenomenon in contemporary fiction: a novel both majestic and intimate, original and masterful in its structure, crystalline in its prose, revelatory in its insights, utterly devastating yet ultimately uplifting in its emotional impact. . . . I think it is her best novel yet.” —The Boston Globe The acclaimed, prize-winning #1 New York Times bestselling writer returns with a moving, luminous novel that reminds us of the sweetness and impermanence of life and the power of connection to defy time. When Daphne Fuller and her husband Jonathan visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, they notice an older, white-haired gentleman following them. The man turns out to be Eddie Triplett, her former stepfather, who had been married to her mother for a little more than year when Daphne was nine. Now fifty-three, Daphne hasn’t seen Eddie for many years, not since the fateful event that changed the direction of both their lives. Meeting again, time falls away; while their relationship was brief, it had a profound impact on them both, and now that they are reunited, they have no intention of ever being separated again. Whistler is a story about two adults looking back over the choices they made, and the choices that were made for them. It’s a story about bravery, memory, the often small yet consequential moments that define our lives, and the endless stream of loss that in time comes for us all. Beautiful in its simplicity, it is ultimately about how love endures, and how the feeling of being known by one other person, even for a short period of time, can change everything.

Sebastian Rudd is not your typical street lawyer. He works out of a customized bulletproof van, complete with Wi-Fi, a bar, a small fridge, fine leather chairs, a hidden gun compartment, and a heavily armed driver. He has no firm, no partners, no associates, and only one employee, his driver, who's also his bodyguard, law clerk, confidant, and golf caddy. He lives alone in a small but extremely safe penthouse apartment, and his primary piece of furniture is a vintage pool table. He drinks small-batch bourbon and carries a gun. Sebastian defends people other lawyers won't go near: a drug-addled, tattooed kid rumored to be in a satanic cult, who is accused of molesting and murdering two little girls; a vicious crime lord on death row; a homeowner arrested for shooting at a SWAT team that mistakenly invaded his house. Why these clients? Because he believes everyone is entitled to a fair trial, even if he, Sebastian, has to cheat to secure one.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • John Grisham has a new hero ... and she’s full of surprises. The year is 2008 and Samantha Kofer’s career at a huge Wall Street law firm is on the fast track—until the recession hits and she is downsized, furloughed, and escorted out of the building. Samantha, though, is offered an opportunity to work at a legal aid clinic for one year without pay, all for a slim chance of getting rehired. In a matter of days Samantha moves from Manhattan to Brady, Virginia, population 2,200, in the heart of Appalachia, a part of the world she has only read about. Samantha’s new job takes her into the murky and dangerous world of coal mining, where laws are often broken, communities are divided, and the land itself is under attack. But some of the locals aren’t so thrilled to have a big-city lawyer in town, and within weeks Samantha is engulfed in litigation that turns deadly. Because like most small towns, Brady harbors big secrets that some will kill to conceal. Don’t miss John Grisham’s new book, THE EXCHANGE: AFTER THE FIRM!

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • John Grisham returns to the iconic setting of his first novel, A Time to Kill, as Jake Brigance finds himself embroiled in a controversial trial that exposes a tortured history of racial tension. “Welcome back, Jake. . . . [Brigance] is one of the most fully developed and engaging characters in all of Grisham’s novels.”—USA Today Seth Hubbard is a wealthy white man dying of lung cancer. He trusts no one. Before he hangs himself from a sycamore tree, Hubbard leaves a new, handwritten will. It is an act that drags his adult children, his black maid, and defense attorney Jake Brigance into a conflict as riveting and dramatic as the murder trial that made Brigance one of Ford County’s most notorious citizens, just three years earlier. The second will raises many more questions than it answers. Why would Hubbard leave nearly all of his fortune to his maid? Had chemotherapy and painkillers affected his ability to think clearly? And what does it all have to do with a piece of land once known as Sycamore Row? Look for all of John Grisham’s gripping Jake Brigance novels: A Time to Kill Sycamore Row A Time for Mercy

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “The Racketeer is guilty of only one thing: keeping us engaged until the very last page.”—USA Today • In the history of the United States, only four active federal judges have been murdered. Judge Raymond Fawcett has just become number five. His body is found in his remote lakeside cabin. There is no sign of forced entry or struggle. Just two dead bodies: Judge Fawcett and his young secretary. And one large, state-of-the-art, extremely secure safe, opened and emptied. One man, a former attorney, knows who killed Judge Fawcett, and why. But that man, Malcolm Bannister, is currently residing in the Federal Prison Camp near Frostburg, Maryland. Though serving time, Malcolm has an ace up his sleeve. He has information the FBI would love to know. Malcolm would love to tell them. But everything has a price—and the man known as the Racketeer wasn’t born yesterday. Don’t miss John Grisham’s new book, THE EXCHANGE: AFTER THE FIRM!

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • John Grisham takes you to a different kind of court in his first basketball novel. Samuel “Sooley” Sooleymon is a raw, young talent with big hoop dreams—and even bigger challenges off the court. “Hard to put down ... the pages turn quickly ... building to a climax that won’t leave readers doubting whether this is a John Grisham novel.” —Associated Press In the summer of his seventeenth year, Sam­uel Sooleymon gets the chance of a lifetime: a trip to the United States with his South Sudanese teammates to play in a showcase basket­ball tournament. He has never been away from home, nor has he ever been on an airplane. The opportunity to be scouted by dozens of college coaches is a dream come true. Samuel is an amazing athlete, with speed, quick­ness, and an astonishing vertical leap. The rest of his game, though, needs work, and the American coaches are less than impressed. During the tournament, Samuel receives dev­astating news from home: A civil war is raging across South Sudan, and rebel troops have ran­sacked his village. His father is dead, his sister is missing, and his mother and two younger brothers are in a refugee camp. Samuel desperately wants to go home, but it’s just not possible. Partly out of sympathy, the coach of North Carolina Central offers him a scholar­ship. Samuel moves to Durham, enrolls in classes, joins the team, and prepares to sit out his freshman season. There is plenty of more mature talent and he isn’t immediately needed. But Samuel has something no other player has: a fierce determination to succeed so he can bring his family to America. He works tirelessly on his game, shooting baskets every morning at dawn by himself in the gym, and soon he’s dominating everyone in practice. With the Central team los­ing and suffering injury after injury, Sooley, as he is nicknamed, is called off the bench. And the legend begins. But how far can Sooley take his team? And will success allow him to save his family? Gripping and moving, Sooley showcases John Grisham’s unparalleled storytelling powers in a whole new light. This is Grisham at the top of his game. Don’t miss John Grisham’s new book, THE EXCHANGE: AFTER THE FIRM!

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • After leaving a fast-track legal career and going on a serious bender, David Zinc is sober, unemployed, and desperate enough to take a job at Finley & Figg, a self-described “boutique law firm” that is anything but. What they are is a two-bit operation always in search of their big break, ambulance chasers who’ve been in the trenches much too long making way too little. Their specialties, so to speak, are quickie divorces and DUIs, with the occasional jackpot of an actual car wreck thrown in. After twenty plus years together, Oscar Finley and Wally Figg bicker like an old married couple but somehow continue to scratch out a half-decent living from their seedy bungalow offices in southwest Chicago. And then change comes their way. More accurately, it stumbles in. David Zinc, a young but already burned-out attorney, walks away from his fast-track career at a fancy downtown firm, goes on a serious bender, and finds himself literally at the doorstep of our boutique firm. Once David sobers up and comes to grips with the fact that he’s suddenly unemployed, any job—even one with Finley & Figg—looks okay to him. With their new associate on board, F&F is ready to tackle a really big case, a case that could make the partners rich without requiring them to actually practice much law. An extremely popular drug, Krayoxx, the number one cholesterol reducer for the dangerously overweight, produced by Varrick Labs, a giant pharmaceutical company with annual sales of $25 billion, has recently come under fire after several patients taking it have suffered heart attacks. Wally smells money. A little online research confirms Wally’s suspicions—a huge plaintiffs’ firm in Florida is putting together a class action suit against Varrick. All Finley & Figg has to do is find a handful of people who have had heart attacks while taking Krayoxx, convince them to become clients, join the class action, and ride along to fame and fortune. With any luck, they won’t even have to enter a courtroom! It almost seems too good to be true. And it is. The Litigators is a tremendously entertaining romp, filled with the kind of courtroom strategies, theatrics, and suspense that have made John Grisham America’s favorite storyteller.

A criminal wants to save an innocent man on death row, but he must convince the authorities he\'s telling the truth.

In this bestselling thriller, after DNA evidence frees a sadistic killer, defense attorney Mickey Haller and LAPD Detective Harry Bosch must put him behind bars before he strikes again. Inspiration for the #1 Netflix series The Lincoln Lawyer.​ Longtime defense attorney Mickey Haller is recruited to change stripes and prosecute the high-profile retrial of a brutal child murder. After twenty-four years in prison, convicted killer Jason Jessup has been exonerated by new DNA evidence. Haller is convinced Jessup is guilty, and he takes the case on the condition that he gets to choose his investigator, LAPD Detective Harry Bosch. Together, Bosch and Haller set off on a case fraught with political and personal danger. Opposing them is Jessup, now out on bail, a defense attorney who excels at manipulating the media, and a runaway eyewitness reluctant to testify after so many years. With the odds and the evidence against them, Bosch and Haller must nail a sadistic killer once and for all. If Bosch is sure of anything, it is that Jason Jessup plans to kill again.

Three months after leaving Yale, Kyle McAvoy becomes an associate at the largest law firm in the world, where, in addition to practicing law, he is expected to lie, steal, and take part in a scheme that could send him to prison, if not get him killed.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • In his first collection of short stories John Grisham takes us back to Ford County, Mississippi, the setting of his first novel, A Time to Kill. This riveting collection of short stories features an unforgettable cast of characters: Wheelchair-bound Inez Graney and her two older sons embark on a bizarre road trip through the Mississippi Delta to visit Inez’s youngest son, Raymond—on death row. A hard-drinking, low-grossing divorce lawyer fed up with his wife, his life, and the law plans a drastic escape after an unexpected phone call. A quiet, unassuming data collector sets out to bring down a flashy casino owner with his skill at blackjack—as payback for the theft of his wife. A stalker hunts victims in a retirement home, a lawyer confronts a vengeful adversary from the past, and a young man from a prominent family is driven off by scandal and fear—but finds unexpected redemption on the wrong side of the tracks. Often hilarious, frequently moving, and always entertaining, this collection makes it abundantly clear why John Grisham is our most popular storyteller.

Carl Trudeau is very unhappy that the Mississippi court system has ruled against his chemical company. His company was accused of dumping toxic waste into the water supply of a small town thus causing a large outbreak of cancer in the community. He proceeds to buy a seat on the Supreme Court by recruiting, manipulating and financing a candidate who he hopes will be sympathtic to his company since he has invested so much in him.

A superb novel featuring both Mickey Haller and Harry Bosch from the No. 1 bestselling author of The Lincoln Lawyer and The Gods of Guilt. Defence lawyer Mickey Haller has had some problems, but now he's put all that behind him and is ready to resume his career. Then another lawyer, Vincent, dies, and Haller gets an unexpected windfall: he inherits all Vincent's clients, putting his stalled career back on track at a stroke. Not only that, but Vincent had taken on a high-profile and potentially lucrative murder case. It'll be a trial that promises big fees and an even bigger place in the media spotlight - and if Mickey can win against the odds, he'll really be back in the big leagues. The only problem is the detective handling the case - a certain Harry Bosch - is convinced the killer must be one of Vincent's clients. Suddenly Mickey is faced with the biggest challenge of his career: how to defend a client successfully who might just be planning to murder him.

The acclaimed #1 "New York Times"-bestselling author presents a spellbinding tale of a mother's tragic loss and one man's last chance at gaining salvation. Once again, Picoult mesmerizes and enthralls readers with this story of redemption, justice, and love.

Powerful Washington lawyer Joel Backman, who has made a career out of getting criminals off, is finally caught by the FBI. Desperate to avoid jail, Backman makes a last-ditch effort to strike a deal with the Justice Department, offering to give up the names of powerful clients who have employed him over the years in return for his freedom. But the deal quickly goes sour, and Backman finds himself on the run. With the FBI and Russian intelligence agents on his trail, Backman will have to use all of his cunning and experience to stay alive and out of jail.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • In 1970, one of Mississippi's more colorful weekly newspapers, The Ford County Times, went bankrupt. To the surprise and dismay of many, ownership was assumed by a 23 year-old college dropout, named Willie Traynor. The future of the paper looked grim until a young mother was brutally raped and murdered by a member of the notorious Padgitt family. Willie Traynor reported all the gruesome details, and his newspaper began to prosper. The murderer, Danny Padgitt, was tried before a packed courthouse in Clanton, Mississippi. The trial came to a startling and dramatic end when the defendant threatened revenge against the jurors if they convicted him. Nevertheless, they found him guilty, and he was sentenced to life in prison. But in Mississippi in 1970, "life" didn't necessarily mean "life," and nine years later Danny Padgitt managed to get himself paroled. He returned to Ford County, and the retribution began.

A legal thriller novel involving a lawyer's rise to wealth and power

Law professor Ray Atlee and his troublesome younger brother Forrest are called home to Clanton, Mississippi, by their dying father, Judge Atlee, but when the judge dies before the meeting can take place, Ray is left to untangle an old family secret.

"The Brethren" by John Grisham is a legal thriller that follows the lives of three former judges serving time in federal prison. The judges engage in a lucrative blackmail scheme targeting wealthy individuals. As the plot unfolds, it explores themes of corruption, morality, and the consequences of legal and ethical transgressions. Grisham's storytelling mastery is evident in this gripping legal drama.

"The Testament" by John Grisham is a legal thriller that revolves around a missionary in the Brazilian jungle who inherits a fortune from a deceased billionaire. The legal battle that ensues explores themes of faith, morality, and the clash between the worlds of law and spirituality. Grisham weaves a compelling narrative that combines legal drama with a thought-provoking exploration of human nature.

In a sequel to “The Firm,” Mitch McDeere, who is now a partner at the world\'s largest law firm, gets caught up in a sinister plot.

"The Partner" by John Grisham is a legal thriller that follows a lawyer, Patrick Lanigan, who fakes his death and embezzles millions of dollars, leading to a high-stakes pursuit. Grisham's storytelling expertise and legal background contribute to the novel's suspenseful plot and exploration of ethical dilemmas within the legal system.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • Every jury has a leader, and the verdict belongs to him. In Biloxi, Mississippi, a landmark tobacco trial with hundreds of millions of dollars at stake beginsroutinely, then swerves mysteriously off course. The jury is behaving strangely, and at least one juroris convinced he's being watched. Soon they have to be sequestered. Then a tip from an anonymous young woman suggests she is able to predict the jurors' increasingly odd behavior. Is the jury somehow being manipulated, or even controlled? If so, by whom? And, more important, why? Don’t miss John Grisham’s new book, THE EXCHANGE: AFTER THE FIRM!

"The Rainmaker" by John Grisham is a legal thriller that follows a young attorney, Rudy Baylor, as he takes on an insurance company accused of denying a leukemia patient's claim. The novel explores the challenges of the legal system, corporate greed, and the pursuit of justice. Grisham's storytelling skill is evident as he navigates the complexities of the legal world while addressing moral and ethical dilemmas.

"The Chamber" by John Grisham is a legal thriller that addresses issues of racism and capital punishment. The novel revolves around a young attorney defending his racist grandfather, who is on death row. Grisham explores the complexities of morality, justice, and family dynamics, creating a thought-provoking narrative.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A white-knuckle legal thriller that begins in a weedy lot on the outskirts of Memphis, when two boys watch a shiny Lincoln pull up to the curb. . . . “The desire to find out what happens next keeps the reader turning the pages. Grisham is an absolute master of the chase story.”—The Washington Post Eleven-year-old Mark Sway and his younger brother were sharing a forbidden cigarette when a chance encounter with a suicidal lawyer left Mark knowing a bloody and explosive secret: the whereabouts of the most sought-after dead body in America. Now Mark is caught between a legal system gone mad and a mob killer desperate to cover up his crime. And his only ally is a woman named Reggie Love, who has been a lawyer for all of four years. Prosecutors are willing to break all the rules to make Mark talk. The mob will stop at nothing to keep him quiet. And Reggie will do anything to protect her client—even take a last, desperate gamble that could win Mark his freedom . . . or cost them both their lives.

"The Pelican Brief" by John Grisham is a legal thriller that follows a law student, Darby Shaw, who becomes entangled in a conspiracy involving the assassination of two Supreme Court justices. Grisham's fast-paced narrative, legal expertise, and suspenseful storytelling contribute to the novel's popularity and success.

"The Burden of Proof" by Scott Turow is a legal thriller that revolves around defense attorney Sandy Stern as he navigates a complex murder case and confronts personal challenges. Turow's novel explores themes of family, love, and the burdens individuals carry. The story combines legal drama with elements of mystery and introspection, creating a compelling narrative.

"Presumed Innocent" by Scott Turow is a legal thriller that follows prosecutor Rusty Sabich,