THE LOWCOUNTRY

tells the story of Gilbert Gattling, a talented middle-aged attorney in the small town of Beaufort, South Carolina, with a successful private practice, a beautiful wife, and a young growing family.  The tragic death of a young college student in a boat crash caused by the drunken negligence of the spoiled son of a powerful family charts Gil on a dangerous course.  The powerful family has controlled the Circuit Solicitor’s Office in the five counties of South Carolina’s Lowcountry for nearly a century and they are determined to protect their own.  Gil agrees to represent the young girl’s grieving parents in a civil wrongful death lawsuit and to try to ensure that criminal justice is obtained.  Contending with small town corruption and the wealthy family’s unethical influence peddling, Gil works to maneuver the civil case to a successful conclusion, and to prevent the derailing of criminal charges against the privileged son.

As Gil investigates, he learns that for years the patriarchs of the powerful family have stolen millions of dollars from unsuspecting clients and hidden the proceeds in Caribbean banks.  When the Solicitor’s divorcing wife threatens to expose the family’s crimes, and the patriarchs face the real likelihood of losing their ill-gotten wealth, they resort to violence and eventually murder.  When the Solicitor tries to pin the murders of his wife and son on an innocent man, Gil is hired to defend him.  Gil builds a defense in the murder case that seeks to identify the real killer and as he does the pressure builds until eventually the riveting crescendo explodes in the middle of the murder trial.

From the beginning of the story to the climatic ending, Gil struggles to maintain his integrity and protect his friends and family, all while contending with the evil of local corruption he never imagined.