Furious Hours

This true-crime book tells the story of an Alabama serial killer and the obsession of Harper Lee, the author of To Kill a Mockingbird, with his crimes. Reverend Willie Maxwell was accused of murdering five family members for insurance money in the 1970s and managed to escape justice until he was killed at the funeral of his last victim. Harper Lee attended the trial of his killer, hoping to write her own true-crime novel. This book brings this shocking case to life, from the murders to the courtroom drama and racial politics of the Deep South.