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Avg. Rating: 3
Not for everyone, but I think its the best Grisham in a while
Much of the negative reviews for this novel are a result of the reader's expectations. Readers of John Grisham expect him to write legal thrillers (which is arguably an oxymoron anyway) in the spirit of The Firm, A Time to Kill, and The Pelican Brief. The reality is, it's been a long time since Grisham wrote anything remotely suspenseful.
I listened to The Appeal as an audio book (the selection for unabridged audio books is limited, so I tend to listen to novels that would never make it to the front of the reading queue otherwise) and fully expected it to be underwhellming. Grisham's recent efforts have been moderately interesting at best, overly preachy at worst.
Grisham is good story teller. The novel (which could just as easily been called `The Election') is quite a bit more interesting than I expected. The novel is, however, very preachy and one sided. This isn't necessarily a bad thing. I'm not opposed to an author having a point of view and using fiction as a means to express it. No one could accuse Orwell of providing a fair and balanced viewpoint in 1984 or Animal Farm. The difference (aside from the literary merit of Orwell's work) is that few people reading 1984 are likely to be of the opinion that totalitarianism is a good thing.
In Grisham's case, people whose politics lean to the right may not enjoy the novel, in large part because they don't share Grisham's view of the world. Regardless of your politics, the novel does have that "after-school special" vibe, that let's you know that you're learning an important life lesson while you're being entertained.
A strange thing about the novel is that there is no one to root for. The evil characters are considerably more interesting than the good guys (but you can't root for them because of their evilness). The good characters are too naïve and syrupy sweet to root for. The novel suffers a little as a result of the absense of a clear protagonist to rally behind.
A contrived plot device near the end almost ruined the novel for me. I was pleased though that Grisham opted for a cynical ending, which redeemed the novel for me. I suspect that a lot of people will not care for the ending, but I'm glad Grisham made the choice he did.
The bottom line: I almost gave The Appeal 4 stars. It's definitely the best Grisham novel I've read in a long time. In much the same way that I found the tort law lesson in King of Torts interesting, I found the election strategy in The Appeal to be quite fascinating. I'm Canadian, so needless to say, Grisham's left leaning politics posed no concerns for me. This novel is worth reading if you are interested in the subject matter.
This novel is not for everyone though. Don't read this novel
1. If you're in the mood for a suspenseful thriller.
2. If you're the CEO of a Fortune 500 company (or sympathetic to the interests of corporate polluters).
3. If you're a sucker for a happy ending.
A Lawyer's Perspective
As an in-house counsel in a large corporation, I (perhaps surprisingly) enjoyed The Appeal, both as a thriller and as a stimulating piece of political commentary. For those familiar with Grisham's body of work, The Appeal stands as a bookend to The King of Torts. That Grisham is able to catigate mass tort lawyers in one thriller, and then turn around and denounce big business in another novel, is a testament to his ability to argue both sides of a case.
Some reviewers have critiqued this novel for being too plot driven and for being populated by cardboard characters. I disagree. This is a thriller, folks, not a literary character study. And while many characters are recognizable as white hats or black hats, they are sketched with more depth than the denizens of most thrillers, and their actions are (generally) believable. Carl Trudeau, while over-the-top for sure, is a wickedly entertaining villian. Ron Fisk also stands out as a character who wears a nuanced shade of gray, being a generally likeable guy who gets caught up in circumstances beyond his control.
This novel grabbed me right away and kept me on board with a good blend of pacing, legal intrigue and real-world political commentary. (You need only follow the daily absurdities in our presidential election process to see what lengths campaigns will go to buy votes.) I also loved what Grisham did with the ending, throwing a curve ball that will make many Grisham devotees swing and miss.
All in all, this may be Grisham's best-written, most realistic and politically-astute legal thriller.
Gripping story
Grisham proves once again that the legal world is his domain. While not a great deal of the novel takes place in the courtroom, the legal world stays front and center. The novel revolves around big business and those it hurts and the legal world that tries to play referee. There were many facets that especially struck me. One of those is who well he demonstrates how the election of judges can lead to conflicts for the justices and sidetrack the cause of justice. I also enjoyed seeing how Grisham depicted Christians. He accurately portrayed some as radicalized by their focus on specific issues, but he also portrayed others as genuine and balanced in their faith. He also had several characters, especially Ron Fisk, who are good people, but can find themselves in situations beyond their control. In essense, Grisham did a good job of writing about genuine people and not just the caricatures so often found in fiction. An excellent book on numerous levels.
vote no on judicial elections
This is a book with an agenda, one Grisham doesn't try to hide, to his credit. In his afterword, while assuring us that all the people are completely made, Grisham also assures us that the problem he depicts is all too real. The issue is an elected judiciary and the effect that special interests can have on a judicial election.
Grisham seems to have recovered his ability to write with this book, and although none of the character are particularly well fleshed-out, this is a plot-driven book, and the plot moves along nicely.
I have to say that I wasn't altogether enamored with the ending. As things look worse and worse for the good guys, the plot takes a sharp turn, but not necessarily for the better. The turn itself is unpredictable, and makes the ending even more unpredictable, but I felt that the turn itself came from so far out in left field that it took away from the plot, which, until that point, had been running very smoothly, if somewhat depressingly.
Despite that, this is a good effort by Grisham, and one worth reading if for no other reason that than to read about a fictional, but all too possible and pernicious threat to justice and democracy that is seldom discussed.
Not even mediocre
Sadly, this book hardly deserves to be ranked as mediocre. The subject matter is rich with possibilites, but Grisham phoned this in to his editors. Shame on you, John, but it is really not up to your standards. The book should have been called, "The Election" or perhaps, "How John Grisham Met a Publisher's Deadline and Duped His Fans into Buying a Poorly Written Book".
Where is the character development...and that ending...even Hallmark Hall of Fame would not have accepted that ending...I mean, how pat and predictable...I felt like I wasted my time reading it. Why do author's foist this off on us? We expect quality and get this tripe...sorry, John, but I'm done with your books until someone else, whom I really trust swears it is worth the read.
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