The Reckoning

Why would a respected war hero cold-bloodedly gun down the local pastor? That’s the central mystery in this subpar outing from bestseller Grisham (The Rooster Bar). One morning in 1946, Pete Banning, a WWII vet and Ford County, Miss., cotton farmer who recently committed his wife, Liza, to a hospital, accepts “the solemn reality that it was time for the killing.” After having breakfast with his sister, Florry, Banning drives to the Clanton Methodist Church, where he shoots the Rev. Dexter Bell three times at point-blank range. He then aims his weapon at the black man who cleans the church, Hop Purdue, before sparing Hop’s life and instructing him to fetch the sheriff. Banning offers no resistance to his arrest and no explanation for his actions—to the sheriff, his defense attorney, or Florry. He refuses to allow his attorney to plead insanity, or even to ask for a change of venue. It seems that the shooting may have something to do with Liza, but Banning’s motive is only clarified late in the book, and that revelation doesn’t make it easy for readers to empathize with him. Grisham fans will hope for a return to form next time. [em]Agent: David Gernert, Gernert Company. (Oct.) [/em]