The Quiet Game — Greg Iles

Natchez, Mississippi, is the jewel of the antebellum South, a city of old money and older sins, where passion, power, and racial tensions seethe beneath its elegant facade.

It is here that Penn Cage, a Houston prosecutor-turned-novelist, returns to his childhood home, hoping to find some solace in the aftermath of his wife's death. But peace is not what he finds.

Penn is stunned to discover that his own family is trapped in a web of intrigue and danger. But as Penn tries to right the wrongs, he stumbles over the town's darkest secret--and soon learns that this haunting mystery is inextricably bound up with the highest levels of government. With the, town closing ranks around him, Penn suddenly realizes that his crusade for justice may cost him his illustrious career--and his life....