Reviews

I finished this over Christmas break. Interesting premise. Grisham is, no doubt, a master of the attention-grabbing beginning. I was a bit disappointed with the ending - a bit anti-climatic, given the excessive build-up throughout the entire book. Not a bad novel, but not one of his best.

maaike_gb's review against another edition

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adventurous funny mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

ja_hopkins's review against another edition

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4.0

Yet another revisit to an older Grisham book available on offer for the Kindle, and an excellent return.
When Mark Sway, and 11-year old unwittingly learns where the body of a murder victim is hidden, he is cast into a maelstrom of competing deands. The FBI demand to know where the body is hidden, the criminals are keen that it remains a secret.
The characters are from central casting (the caring lawyer, the ambitious politico, the smart kid), but despite that they are well developed, and it is easy to like/dislike the right characters. The lawyer, Reggie, is especially well drawn, and as the story unfolds you learn more about her life, and why she is working so hard for Mark. The end stretched credulity a little, but it is forgiveable in this case.
Up there near the top echelon of the Grisham canon, if not quite The Broker, The Racketeer or The Pelican Brief.

ethannorwoodbooks's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

ricefun's review

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4.0

While I think that Grisham books are quite fluffy compared to most other authors that I read (fluffy referring to ease of reading and concept - NOT characters or plot), he certainly knows how to write a page-turner. I read this book as part of the Society of Heroines book club because of the lawyer character, Reggie Love, a scrappy but warm woman who takes the case of a little boy in big trouble. Eleven year old Mark is really the main character of this story, and he is thrust into a world of Mafia, FBI, and judges when he attempts to stop a suicide in progress but learns a terrible secret from the lawyer taking his own life. The unfolding drama happens much like the movies that Mark has gleaned his legal knowledge from. It was a bit of an abrupt ending for me, but I do like Reggie's character, along with several others that Grisham has drawn in this book.

kecb12's review

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3.0

I read this book in an effort to get it off my shelf. I have always liked John Grisham. His stuff is really readable and easy to get through. Plus, it fulfills my secret desire (which has no fuel) to be a lawyer. That being said, I didn't like this one as much as some of his other books. The use of a kid as the central character was really interesting, but it also limited some of the movement of the story, and I found myself just wanting to be done with it. Overall, though, a great read!

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