The Chamber - by John Grisham (Paperback)

About the Book

Known Klan member Sam Cayhall sits on death row accused of bombing the law offices of a Jewish civil rights activist in 1967. Within weeks, Cayhall will be the last man in Mississippi to die in the gas chamber, now abolished in favor of the more humane lethal injection. When Adam Hall from the large Chicago law firm of Kravitz & Bane takes the case, everyone tells him it is a no-win situation. But Adam has much more to lose than his reputation--Cayhall is his grandfather. Now Adam's in a race with the clock to find a defense that will keep his grandfather from the chamber.

Book Synopsis

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - "A dark and thoughtful tale pulsing with moral uncertainties . . . Grisham is at his best."--People

In Chicago's top law firm, a young lawyer stands on the brink of a brilliant career. Now twenty-six-year-old Adam Hall is risking it all for a death-row killer and an impossible case: Sam Cayhall is a former Klansman and unrepentant racist facing the death penalty for a fatal bombing in 1967. Cayhall has run out of chances--except for one: a determined lawyer who just happens to be his grandson.

While the executioners prepare the gas chamber, while the protesters gather, and while the TV cameras wait, Adam has only days, hours, minutes to save his client. For between the two men is a chasm of shame, family lies, and secrets--including the one secret that could save Sam Cayhall's life . . . or cost Adam his.

Review Quotes

"Totally hypnotic . . . full of booming, echoing prose . . . Scenes unfold and unfold and you can't stop reading."--The Washington Post

"Compelling . . . powerful . . . The Chamber will make readers think long and hard about the death penalty."--USA Today

"The Chamber does grab hold and it doesn't let go."--The Boston Globe

"Mesmerizing . . . with an authority and originality . . . a grasp of literary complexity that makes Scott Turow's novels pale by comparison."--San Francisco Chronicle

"His best yet."--The Houston Post

About the Author

John Grisham is the author of numerous #1 bestsellers, including The Firm, A Time to Kill, The Rainmaker, The Innocent Man, The Whistler, The Boys from Biloxi, and many more. His books have been translated into nearly fifty languages. Grisham is a two-time winner of the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction and was honored with the Library of Congress Creative Achievement Award for Fiction. Grisham serves on the board of directors of the Innocence Project and Centurion Ministries, two national organizations dedicated to exonerating those who have been wrongfully convicted. Much of his fiction explores deep-seated problems in our criminal justice system. He lives on a farm in central Virginia.