When the wealthy Seth Hubbard hangs himself on a piece of his land known as Sycamore Row, his adult children, his black maid, and Jake Brigance discover a handwritten, revised will and testament. For reasons unknown, Hubbard has left nearly everything to his maid, and that doesn't sit well with Jake, nor with Hubbard's children. Racial tensions flare, and secrets from the past arise to threaten the very society of Ford County.