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3.32 AVERAGE
3.32 AVERAGE
It was a struggle making it through this book. Listened to the Audiobook and had the speed at 1.75 to speed it along...
This was my first John Grisham. Looking back, this was probably a poor decision. It was one of only two available at my library on audiobook (CD) so I figured I'd give it a shot. If I was not listening to it, I would certainly have put it down before the halfway mark. There is no clear plot, the main character is wishy washy and annoying, and the entire thing read like a bad PSA. Every other chapter characters were sitting down with drinks and exposition-dumping. Grisham tried to cover too many things in too short a time- and the result is an Al Gore type feel documentary. It would have been much more interesting had we been following Donovan and focusing on the Tate case- and instead of having him die (happens halfway through) they should have had him survive the plane crash, find his way out of the wilderness and discover who tried to kill him and pursue that story instead of the haphazard mess that Gray Mountain is. I gave it two stars only because I actually did learn something from it about coal mining and black lung disease. That, and the narrator, Catherine Taber, does voice work in my favorite MMO, Star Wars The Old Republic. If you are looking for a Grisham novel, I'd steer clear of this one.
(I have a few gripes about the ending, so here's your spoiler warning. )I hate that at the end, Samantha runs to her parents to fix her problems. She claims to not need them, to live her own life, and then when the stakes are high she runs straight to mommy and daddy to fix things. The other thing that bothered me is the last chapter came completely out of nowhere- as if Grisham had another ending prepared but changed it last minute, and the pieces just don't line up. Throughout the novel Samantha is saying how much she hates Appalachia, and Virginia, and how she can't wait to go back to Manhattan- actually right up until the chapter before the last one. Then all of a sudden she tells Maddie she wants to stay, for 2 years??? It makes zero sense to her character. She doesn't show any growth, or any arc of any kind, and now she does a 180 in the last 3 pages? I don't buy it, sorry. Give this one a hard pass.
(I have a few gripes about the ending, so here's your spoiler warning. )I hate that at the end, Samantha runs to her parents to fix her problems. She claims to not need them, to live her own life, and then when the stakes are high she runs straight to mommy and daddy to fix things. The other thing that bothered me is the last chapter came completely out of nowhere- as if Grisham had another ending prepared but changed it last minute, and the pieces just don't line up. Throughout the novel Samantha is saying how much she hates Appalachia, and Virginia, and how she can't wait to go back to Manhattan- actually right up until the chapter before the last one. Then all of a sudden she tells Maddie she wants to stay, for 2 years??? It makes zero sense to her character. She doesn't show any growth, or any arc of any kind, and now she does a 180 in the last 3 pages? I don't buy it, sorry. Give this one a hard pass.
Did John Grisham even write his book?! How can A Time To Kill (the first legal thriller I'd ever read!) and this book come from the same author? There was barely a plot let alone a likeable, relatable character. I re-read the last chapter just to see if my book was perhaps missing some pages but nope...it was just a clunky ending. So disappointing.
This book had no redeeming qualities. The main character was whiny and non-committal. There was essentially no real plot. I can't think of a single thing I enjoyed about this book. You may ask why I finished it. I had it on audiobook and it was already downloaded on my phone. In the end it served as background noise while I exercised.
Fascinating background on coal mining is woven into another great John Grishman legal thriller. He never disappoints.
Typical Grisham. I keep going back with the hope that some day he will learn how to write an ending - foolish me. This was drivel of the highest degree - could have been good but...no
I have so many mixed feelings about this book, I enjoyed learning and reading about the injustices in coal mining. The first half of this book however was really boring and I really struggled to get through it to be honest. The second half picked up slightly and I actually found myself hooked at some points. But I definitely don’t agree that this is the ‘fast paced thriller’ it has been branded as.
What's with this ending? The rest of this book is so horrifyingly real I guess this was the only ending to have since what else can be said but that the fight goes on... and on and on and on and on....
I'm torn between wanting to do this kind of work... and knowing that the realities of this stuff would eat me alive.
I'm torn between wanting to do this kind of work... and knowing that the realities of this stuff would eat me alive.
This is the first book I have read by this author...it was an ok read. I will give another book a try. There were things I liked about the story and there were times it was a bit slow. I am sure others might enjoy this book more than I did.
It was so satisfying to follow a group of people working against greedy corporations! Loved following the main character from nyc lawyer just a pet of the system to a a lawyer using their skills for maximum good.