Customer Reviews

The Racketeer

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Grisham is writing as a black man, though I kept forgetting that he was supposedly black until he mentioned it again. Grisham is not really a suspense writer - his strength is writing books that go down smooth and easy. This one does that and tries to be a thriller as well with big twists and everything. The initial premise is thoroughly unbelievable and the twist that comes later even more so, primarily because the characters are not established with enough depth for us to believe in in much of anything they do. In spite of this, I don't really regret reading this. Love it or hate it, that's the power of Grisham.

And I am not referring to the plot. Kudos to Mr. Grisham for creating a unique style within the mystery genre but this effort was on auto-pilot. One only has to read the author's note at the end which is an admission of sorts. The least enjoyable aspect was the main character. In his past novels the Grisham formula includes a main character that you empathize with and root for. In The Racketeer, I was actually hoping that the plot would see Malcolm Bannister get duped. I expect the author will return to form and may even innovate again.

Have read all the Grisham's thus far, and absolutely loved this book. This book kept me guessing throughout and reminds me of the writing style of his earlier novels (ie: Time To Kill, Runaway Jury and The Chamber). Would definately recommend this to anyone who likes a good read that will keep you interested and guessing!

Definitely not one of Grisham's best. He decides, in this book, that he is a black man. I'm not sure what effect he was going for, but it doesn't work because not actually being black himself, he can't write as if he were. He mentions several times in the book that he is feeling like he stands out, but it's neither relevant nor believable. He says in the author's note at the end of the book that he did no research and that is obvious as you read the book. Simply put, the story is not believable at all. It involves a "pile" of little gold bars which he is able to carry around and use as if it were currency. Still, it is written by Grisham and is therefore worth a read if only for his writing.

John Grisham's last book - The Litigators - was one of my favourites by this award winning author. I was pretty excited to read his latest - The Racketeer.

Racketeer: "A person who commits crimes such as extortion, loansharking, bribery, and obstruction of justice in furtherance of illegal business activities."

Malcolm Bannister is a former attorney, currently serving time in the Frostburg, Maryland prison camp for money laundering. Trouble is, he swears he's innocent - he just picked the wrong client. License gone, wife gone, everything he had - gone. Five years into his sentence, he may have found a way out. He knows who killed Federal Judge Raymond Fawcett, found dead in his cabin retreat beside an empty safe. Can he bargain the killer's name for his freedom? And what about what was taken from the safe? There's a lot of people after that knowledge...

I love 'heist' and 'sting' type movies such as Ocean's Eleven. Grisham weaves his own take on the heist scenario with The Racketeer. And it's a great piece of storytelling. This is still a 'legal' thriller to a degree, but I think Grisham just had a lot of fun with this one. It's not a serious book, but an entertaining tale.

As he says in the author notes at the end: " The Racketeer is indeed a work of fiction. Accuracy was not deemed crucial. Long paragraphs of fiction were used to avoid looking up facts."

I chose to listen to this book. J.D. Jackson was the reader and his voice was perfectly suited to the main character. Macolm changes his speech patterns at one point and I did find the slower pace a bit annoying. I just wanted the story to move along.

The only reason I'm giving this a four instead of a five is that there was just something about Malcolm I didn't like. He's the one we should be rooting for, but I found him to be pompous and cocky. I never did feel sorry for him. Did he get what he deserved? In his eyes, yes. In mine - not really. I almost felt sorry for the 'bad guy'. I don't know that it was Malcolm's place to mete out judgment. In the end he's no better and his protestations of innocence at the beginning of the book are moot.

Still, I quite enjoyed it. Not his best, but entertaining nonetheless.

I just love the way this author manages to give it various twists, it sure keeps you guessing. and of course it is well written.

Grisham is such a good story teller that I knew I'd love this book even before I opened it, and he didn't disappoint.

I am a great fan of Grisham ever since I read his first book "A Time to Kill" even though the beginning was quite violent. Grisham managed, as is his habit, to capture my attention from the start right up to the end as usual. I did not want to reach the end because I was enjoying the book but I wanted to see what happened.

In my opinion, these reasons are what make a book a good read.

Un excellent livre qui correspond bien à John Grisham. L'intrigue est soutenu du début à la fin. Je vais continuer à lire sa collection.

John Grisham's latest legal thriller is fast-paced, engaging, and slaps the unwary reader with a few surprises. We've come to expect this. Among Grisham's other works, this story most resembles The Partner. That's at the general level of tone and feel. The plot twists of The Partner won't give anything away about this book. Don't bother checking.

Malcolm Bannister is an ex-attorney and a current involuntary resident of a minimum security prison camp just outside of Frostburg, Maryland. Halfway through a ten-year sentence, Malcolm has made his peace with his divorce and with the fact that his son's letters have stopped coming. He works in the prison library, gives legal advice to other inmates, and has stopped telling people that he was innocent of the money-laundering charges that put him inside. Malcolm is a model prisoner.

One day he makes an appointment with the warden and claims he can solve the brutal murder of a Federal judge. The warden, the FBI, and the Federal prosecutors are slow to believe yet another prisoner looking for a deal. But his information about the killer checks out. The murderer is identified, apprehended, and indicted. Malcolm is released, collects a substantial reward, and begins a new life in the Federal Witness Protection Program. Where it gradually becomes clear that Malcom--now Max--has his own agenda.

Grisham spins a good yarn, showing the same contempt for Federal agents and other attorneys that figures so prominently in The Firm. It isn't at all clear that the good guys will win or even who the good guys are. Or that there are any. But it is worth the time to watch the mysteries reveal themselves. This book is highly recommended for both Grisham fans and first-timers.