 | This article needs additional citations for verification .(January 2012) |
 First edition cover | |
| Author | John Grisham |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Adventure Story |
| Publisher | Doubleday |
Publication date | 2 February 1999 |
| Media type | Hardcover Paperback |
| Pages | 448 |
| ISBN | 0-09-924502-7 |
The Testament is an adventure story by American author John Grisham. It was published in hardcover by Doubleday on February 2, 1999. [1]
Troy Phelan, an eccentric elderly billionaire, has written many wills during his life, but right before he dies by suicide, he leaves one final will, a holographic will, as a last surprise. He then leaps from a balcony to his death. He leaves his vast fortune to an illegitimate daughter, Rachel Lane, instead of his six children by three marriages. Her existence comes as a total surprise to everyone. His reason is revulsion over years of fighting with, and embarrassment from, his family, as well as their greed — much of which was due to his neglect of his children and multiple affairs (both personal and business).
His lawyers are now tasked with protecting Troy's wishes as well as finding the heiress. Nate O'Riley, a high-powered litigation lawyer and now recovering alcoholic, is sent to Brazil, where Rachel is believed to be living as a missionary.
While Nate is trying to find Rachel, Troy's family does everything in their power to contest the new will. They argue that although Troy was examined by three of the top psychiatrists in the nation, he was lacking sanity at the time of the new will.
The journey into the Pantanal of South America by way of Corumbá nearly kills Nate, but finally he and his guide locate the tribe with which Rachel Lane is living. She refuses the legacy or anything connected with it. Nate is unable to convince her otherwise. Incidentally, he falls deeply in love with her and is influenced by her to become religious. Contracting dengue fever from a mosquito, when lying delirious in the hospital he seems to see Rachel standing by his bed and saying "Nate, don't die, God has plans for you".
In the meantime, the ex-wives, children and respective lawyers continue attempting to destroy and disprove all evidence of Troy Phelan's sanity and even the will itself. They finally decide not to contest the will in court, fearing that their testimony during the deposition will further hurt their case. They also realize that two witnesses for the plaintiff are lying and would be torn to shreds by Nate should a trial ever take place. To settle the matter, Nate agrees that the relatives of Troy Phelan will be paid $50 million each (minus lawyers' fees) to stop turning the will contest into a legal quagmire.
When all is over, Nate returns to the jungle in order to get Rachel to sign off on the settlement. But when he arrives, he learns that Rachel has died from malaria. She has, however, left instructions that the money be put into trust for the benefit of the indigenous peoples and that Nate will have control of the trust. The end of the book shows Nate riding off in a boat into the Pantanal, not caring if it took a month to get back to civilization.
Troy Phelan, an eccentric, reclusive, ruthless billionaire businessman, commits suicide. In order to cut his family out of his will, he makes a fake will a few hours before his suicide, putting his family into that will. Minutes before his suicide, he shows his lawyer a new will that he would like carried out. This will leave only enough money to each of his heirs to pay off their debts up until the day of his death, and leaves everything else to Rachel Lane, an illegitimate daughter that none of his family and associates know about.
Josh Stafford, Troy's lawyer, confidant, and executor, must find Rachel, but he knows only that she is a missionary somewhere in Brazil. He decides to assign Nate O'Riley, a former high-powered litigator and recovering alcoholic, to find her. Nate is emerging from his fourth stay in rehab, and he reluctantly agrees to go. Josh manipulates the situation from behind the scenes.
Rachel Lane, an illegitimate daughter whom Troy wills eleven billion dollars to. She is a missionary in Brazil who wants nothing to do with the money and refuses to sign any legal papers. She was re-contacted by her father when she was a teenager. Troy paid for her to attend college, but she then disappeared into medical school and seminary. She dies after contracting malaria.
Nate O'Riley, the lawyer sent to find Rachel Lane. He has been off-and-on drugs/alcohol several times, crashing harder every time. A workaholic whose habits have shattered both of his marriages; he is sent to Brazil to get him away from the office. He has two children from his first marriage and two younger children from his second marriage. His encounter with Rachel eventually sets him on a path to spiritual redemption. He grows feelings for Rachel before she dies.
Father Phil Lancaster, the Rector of Holy Trinity Church in St Michaels, Maryland, who makes Nate welcome.
The Phelan Children, six children who were born to three different women (a seventh one died in a car accident). All of them, despite being given a gift of $5 million at the age of 21, are either broke or heavily in debt. They are desperate for a cut of Troy's wealth and employ even greedier lawyers.
| | This section needs additional citations for verification .(February 2015) |
According to The Hollywood Reporter , in 2009, producers Mark Johnson and Hunt Lowry were developing a film adaptation of The Testament. Stuart Blumberg was attached to direct the film adaptation.[ citation needed ]
Babylonian law is a subset of cuneiform law that has received particular study due to the large amount of archaeological material that has been found for it. So-called "contracts" exist in the thousands, including a great variety of deeds, conveyances, bonds, receipts, accounts, and most important of all, actual legal decisions given by the judges in the law courts. Historical inscriptions, royal charters and rescripts, dispatches, private letters and the general literature afford welcome supplementary information. Even grammatical and lexicographical texts contain many extracts or short sentences bearing on law and custom. The so-called "Sumerian Family Laws" are preserved in this way.
Dorothea Jordan was an Anglo-Irish actress, as well as a courtesan. She was the long-time mistress of Prince William, Duke of Clarence, and the mother of 10 illegitimate children by him, all of whom took the surname FitzClarence. She was known professionally as Dorothea Francis and Dorothea Jordan, was informally Dora Jordan, and she commonly was referred to as Mrs Jordan and Mrs FitzClarence.
Urraca, called "the reckless" (la temeraria), was Queen of León, Castile and Galicia from 1109 until her death. She claimed the imperial title as suo jure Empress of All Spain and Empress of All Galicia.
Anne Isabella Noel Byron, 11th Baroness Wentworth and Baroness Byron, nicknamed Annabella and commonly known as Lady Byron, was an educational reformer and philanthropist who established the first industrial school in England, and was an active abolitionist. She married the poet George Gordon Byron, more commonly known as Lord Byron, and separated from him after less than a year, keeping their daughter Ada Lovelace in her custody despite laws at the time giving fathers sole custody of children.
Elizabeth Blount, commonly known during her lifetime as Bessie Blount, was a mistress of Henry VIII of England.
Lettice Knollys, Countess of Essex and Countess of Leicester, was an English noblewoman and mother to the courtiers Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, and Lady Penelope Rich. By her second marriage to Elizabeth I's favourite, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, she incurred the Queen's unrelenting displeasure.
Infanta Catherine of Portugal, Duchess of Braganza by marriage was a Portuguese infanta (princess) claimant to the throne following the death of King Henry of Portugal in 1580.
Amélie of Leuchtenberg was Empress of Brazil as the wife of Pedro I of Brazil.
Susanna Hall was the oldest child of William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway and the older sister of twins Judith and Hamnet Shakespeare. Susanna married John Hall, a local physician, in 1607. They had one daughter, Elizabeth, in 1608. Elizabeth married Thomas Nash, son of Anthony Nash on 22 April 1626 at Holy Trinity Church, Stratford-upon-Avon.
Louise of Lorraine was Queen of France as the wife of King Henry III from their marriage on 15 February 1575 until his death on 2 August 1589. During the first three months of their marriage, she was also Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania. As a dowager queen, Louise held the title of Duchess of Berry.
Louise d'Aumont, duchesse d'Aumont, duchesse Mazarin et de La Meilleraye, was a French Duchess and a Princess of Monaco by marriage to Honoré IV, Prince of Monaco.
Judith Quiney, née Shakespeare, was the younger daughter of William Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway and the fraternal twin of their only son Hamnet Shakespeare. She married Thomas Quiney, a vintner of Stratford-upon-Avon. The circumstances of the marriage, including Quiney's misconduct, may have prompted the rewriting of Shakespeare's will. Thomas was struck out, while Judith's inheritance was attached with provisions to safeguard it from her husband. The bulk of Shakespeare's estate was left, in an elaborate fee tail, to his elder daughter Susanna and her male heirs.
Charlotte Elizabeth Tonna was a popular Victorian English writer and novelist who wrote under the pseudonym Charlotte Elizabeth. She was "a woman of strong mind, powerful feeling, and of no inconsiderable share of tact." Her work focused on promoting women's rights and evangelical Protestantism, as seen in her book Protection; or, The Candle and the Dog, in which the following characteristic quote appears: "Our greatest blessings come to us by prayer, and the studying of God's word." As Isabella A. Owen remarked in 1901, "She was above all else an anti-Romanist, a most protesting Protestant." Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote of her memoir Personal Recollections (1841): "We know of no piece of autobiography in the English language which can compare with this in richness of feeling and description and power of exciting interest."
This is a list of fictional stories in which illegitimacy features as an important plot element. Passing mentions are omitted from this article. Many of these stories explore the social pain and exclusion felt by illegitimate "natural children".
Bamba Müller was the wife of Maharaja Duleep Singh, the last Maharaja of Lahore. Brought up by Christian missionaries, her transformation from illegitimate girl, born to a German father and Abyssinian (Ethiopian) mother, living in a Cairo mission to a Maharani living a life of luxury with the "Black Prince of Perthshire" has been compared to the "Cinderella" story.
Alice de Lacy, suo jure Countess of Lincoln, suo jure 5th Countess of Salisbury was an English peeress.
Jane Gordon, Duchess of Gordon was a Scottish Tory political hostess. Together with her husband Alexander, 4th Duke of Gordon, and son George, Marquess of Huntly, she founded the Gordon Highlanders, a British Army infantry regiment which existed until 1994.
Louis Henry Scipio, Count Duroure (1763–1822) was a French revolutionary and English radical.
Happy Marriage!? is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Maki Enjōji. It began serialization in Shogakukan's josei magazine Petit Comic on June 14, 2009 and ran until September 23, 2012. It is completed in 10 volumes. It has been published in French by Kazé and in German by Tokyopop. Viz Media has licensed the English version, which was released on August 6, 2013.
