The Summons by John Grisham

Under the stern gaze of General Nathan Bedford Forrest, and standing there in the center of a room that was timeless, Ray began to realize that his father was not breathing. He comprehended this slowly. He coughed, and there was not the slightest response. Then he leaned down and touched the Judge's left wrist. There was no pulse.

Judge Reuben V Atlee was dead.

The Summons by John Grisham: Judge Reuben Atlee is a much respected person in Clanton, Mississippi. He lives alone in his ancetral home. Then one fine day he summons his sons to talk about the estate. Ray Atlee is a professor and Forrest Ray is the proverbial black sheep who is into all kinds of addiction. Both his sons have issues with the Judge. 

None wants to visit him but when Ray reaches the estate, he finds the judge dead and also he becomes a part  of a secret which is only known to the judge and now him. But there is someone else who knows about the secret....

Ray tries to play an amateur detective and for that he almost gets killed. The ending is, well, unexpected. Grisham is a master of that. He can hold you enthralled  till the end. This is another one which does the same, minus the courtroom drama......