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A Calamity of Souls

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By David Baldacci

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$50.00

Price

$63.00 CAD

Set in the tumultuous year of 1968 in southern Virginia, a racially charged murder case sets a duo of white and Black lawyers against a deeply unfair system as they work to defend their wrongfully accused Black defendants in this courtroom drama from #1 New York Times bestselling author David Baldacci.  
 

Jack Lee is a white lawyer from Freeman County, Virginia, who has never done anything to push back against racism—until he decides to represent Jerome Washington, a Black man charged with brutally killing an elderly wealthy white couple. Doubting his decision, Lee fears that his legal skills may not be enough to prevail in a case where the odds are already stacked against both him and his client. He quickly finds himself out of his depth when he realizes that what’s at stake is far greater than the outcome of a murder trial.   

Desiree DuBose is a Black lawyer from Chicago who has devoted her life to furthering the causes of justice and equality for all. She enters a fractious and unwieldy partnership with Lee in a legal battle against the best prosecutor in the Commonwealth. Yet DuBose is also aware that powerful outside forces are at work to blunt the victories achieved by the Civil Rights era.    

Lee and DuBose could not be more dissimilar. On their own, neither one can stop the prosecution’s deliberate march towards a guilty verdict and the electric chair.  But together, the pair fight for what once seemed impossible: a chance for a fair trial and true justice. 

Over a decade in the making, A Calamity of Souls breathes richly imagined and detailed life into a bygone era, taking the reader through a world that will seem both foreign and familiar.

  • "A Calamity of Souls by David Baldacci is the immovable object of history slamming into the irresistible force of truth. An examination of a fractured place and time where the mores of the past were confronted by the implacable ferocious tenacity of justice. A tour de force."
    S. A. Cosby, bestselling author of ALL THE SINNERS BLEED and RAZORBLADE TEARS
  • A Calamity of Souls, the story of a murder in southern Virginia in the mid-1960’s, may be the best novel David Baldacci has ever written, which is saying a great deal.  It has a gripping plot and a shocking ending, and even better than that, is also a perfect evocation of a difficult time in America’s history, propelled by deep and moving characters and beautiful writing. It captured me completely from the very first page.”
    Scott Turow, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author
  • "This is David Baldacci at his best. Using the law and the courtroom as the stage for a searing parable on race and the cost and courage to do the right thing."
    Michael Connelly, #1 New York Times bestselling author

On Sale
Apr 16, 2024
Page Count
672 pages
ISBN-13
9781538766477

David Baldacci

About the Author

David Baldacci is a global #1 bestselling author, and one of the world’s favorite storytellers. His books are published in over 45 languages and in more than 80 countries, with 150 million copies sold worldwide. His works have been adapted for both feature film and television. David Baldacci is also the cofounder, along with his wife, of the Wish You Well Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting literacy efforts across America. Still a resident of his native Virginia, he invites you to visit him at DavidBaldacci.com and his foundation at WishYouWellFoundation.org.

Learn more about this author