allysonporter's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, Death of parent, Grief, Violence, Trafficking, and Gun violence
asourceoffiction's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Ultimately, as with all of the John Grishams I've read, I really enjoyed The Boys From Biloxi. But at the same time, there was something detached about the way the story was told, and it made me feel a little detached from the characters themselves. It's possibly because at the beginning there's an awful lot of scene setting to introduce a huge cast of characters, their back stories and the way they differ. I couldn't muster any empathy for the Malcos and it felt like the focus was more on them in the early part of the book.
But once we hit a courtroom, where Grisham is clearly in his element, I was gripped; it's just a shame this didn't happen until half way through . Even then I still hadn't fully connected with any of the characters, but I was finally getting to know the Rudys and that certainly helped. Finally there were protagonists I could support and get behind.
What I did find fascinating were all the legal battles that Jesse took on, from the insurance companies in the wake of the hurricane, to all the myriad indictments as he tried to tackle the corruption epidemic in Biloxi. It was also fun to see how the Dixie Mafia would dodge many of the charges thrown at them.
Grisham's writing is always excellent and the scene setting here is fantastic, but I wish I'd felt more of a connection to the story and the characters.
But once we hit a courtroom, where Grisham is clearly in his element, I was gripped; it's just a shame this didn't happen until half way through . Even then I still hadn't fully connected with any of the characters, but I was finally getting to know the Rudys and that certainly helped. Finally there were protagonists I could support and get behind.
What I did find fascinating were all the legal battles that Jesse took on, from the insurance companies in the wake of the hurricane, to all the myriad indictments as he tried to tackle the corruption epidemic in Biloxi. It was also fun to see how the Dixie Mafia would dodge many of the charges thrown at them.
Grisham's writing is always excellent and the scene setting here is fantastic, but I wish I'd felt more of a connection to the story and the characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Murder, Gun violence, and Violence
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