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annabickley's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
lizziereads33's review against another edition
3.5
While I really enjoyed the writing style of the author, the mystery wasn’t that compelling. From the beginning it was pretty clear that the murder had something to do with Liza, and to make it because of cheating was fairly predictable. I did really like the second part of the book about World War 2. As a bit of a history buff , I found all of the stuff about the war very interesting. Some of the details that were included were a bit graphic and made some parts a bit harder to read, but I think it did provide some important context to the character of Pete. Further, I liked getting to see all of the consequences of the execution on the kids. It felt like the world was expanded through the additional information, specifically because there were a lot of different characters that each played their part in the story. Overall, while I love the writing style of John Grisham, the mystery was a bit lacking.
viegreifen's review against another edition
3.0
Well written but I felt it was unnecessarily too long (like when you're trying to reach the word count in an essay). Part two, while well described, did not really do much I felt. The ending was also disappointing if not predictable, and I was left like "oh...".
justme856's review against another edition
4.0
3 1/2 stars rounded up just for the twist at the end. I had some suspicions. The story was a bit bloated. The audiobook could’ve been cut by at least 2 hours.
booksmy's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars
Different from most Grisham books, and very good. Part Bataan Death March historical fiction, part Southern Gothic, part Greek Tragedy.
Different from most Grisham books, and very good. Part Bataan Death March historical fiction, part Southern Gothic, part Greek Tragedy.
jnadzamreads's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
krystalwithakr's review against another edition
2.0
This was definitely not a favorite book of John Grisham's. I typically race out to get every book he releases but I could have lived without reading this. It felt pointless. Something that could have been revealed in 100 pages, not the extent he went to. I could have lived without the detailed description of the war as well. I get that it was to make the reader understand how terrible the conditions were, but it seemed kinda sorta irrelevant.
new_ditty's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
- Loveable characters? It's complicated