"New superiour court judge Alex Cormier is assigned to preside over the case of the alleged Sterling High School shooter. Lawyer Jordan McAffee represents Peter--the boy who, on the day of the shooting, was found in the corner of the gymnasium holding a gun to his head with a shaky hand. Detective Patrick DuCharme has one star witness, but her story keeps changing. And then there's the biggest problem of all--the star witness happens to be Judge Cormier's...

A young mother moves to a postcard-perfect Connecticut town where she unravels the murder of a fellow mother while her children are in nursery school. While investigating the murder, she discovers disturbing secrets and lies behind Upchurch's placid picket-fence facade.