Viola Davis and James Patterson to collaborate on novel set in the contemporary, rural South

An upcoming thriller about a female judge in the contemporary, rural South will have two very famous, and very different, authors, Oscar winner Viola Davis and mega-selling novelist James Patterson. Little, Brown and Company announced Tuesday that Davis and Patterson are collaborating on a novel, currently untitled and scheduled for 2025 or 2026. In the novel the “dynamic and brilliant” Judge Stone faces “a decision with seismic repercussions for her small county, and potentially the whole nation.” It will be the first work of adult fiction for Davis, and the latest high-profile partnership for Patterson, whose previous co-authors include Dolly Parton.