Maurice Chammah

Overall I thought this was a great read. It gives a good overview of the death penalty, particularly in the state of Texas, but it does branch out a bit beyond that. It really only covers the last 50 years or so, and again mainly focuses on Texas, but it paints a good picture of the system as a whole.

The subtitle notwithstanding, this book not about the rise and fall of the death penalty in general. Instead, the book is about the recent history of death penalty cases and activism in Texas, a state known for its strong sense of "frontier justice." The book is well-written and informative, but this narrow focus and the narrative's emphasis on lawyers' personal lives and personality quirks leave something to be desired.