Reviews

The Laws of our Fathers by Scott Turow

teacherlovesbeauty's review

2.0

Got about halfway through it and couldn't finish. I liked it, but not as much as other stuff I was reading and did not want to read 300 more pages of an "ok" book!

chrisburton's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

crashhard's review against another edition

adventurous slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.5

Here is my rating system.  Of course this is all subjective

5 star exceptional.  Must read book
4 star excellent book.  I enjoyed it
3 star. Average.  Take it or leave it.  Just ok
2 star.  Bad.  I finished it but didn’t enjoy it
1 star.  Did not finish or so bad I wouldn’t recommend it

Review:

I bounced between giving this a 3 star and 4 star.  The trial parts I didn’t find interesting in this book.  I can’t put a finger on it.    The backstory portions of the book I found more interesting.   

The characters aren’t lovable but not bad either.   They are just people.  

Give it a shot if you like other Scott Turow books.   They are not quite like John Grisham.  

gizmoto16's review

2.0

I started this book and almost gave up on it from the beginning. The first chapter was written in this gangster's tone of voice, and it just pissed me off. But I didn't have anything else to read, so I stuck with it, and a few chapters in it started to get really interesting, and never went back to the gangster's point of view again. Then I got to the last 50 pages or so and completely stopped caring, and consequently stopped reading. Oh well.

clara_lotte's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

kdowli01's review

slow-paced

2.0

gentlemenpreferbooks's review against another edition

3.0

I went through a period last summer where I wasn't reading, or I was reading fiction. This was the last book in that run. It is the first book by Turow that I have read. My reads all of his books, so if I ever want another one, I can just borrow from him.

The main story follows the murder trial of a young man who has killed his mother. He didn't actually do, but he made it happen. The book also attempts to give the back story of the main characters and how they all have a past together. The presiding judge knows the young man, the lawyer, and the reporter behind the attorney making things happen. There's a lot of deceit in this story.

The book at times is ponderous. I often found myself skimming rather liberally through some of the back story. I thought the the actual main story line was interesting, and deserved more attention. I guess I'm a dork like that.

poedogruns's review against another edition

3.0

The Law of Our Fathers is an ambitious work, taking on several meaty, hot button issues from the last 40 years: war protesting, the Holocaust, political activism, recreational drug use, gang violence, poverty, grief and oh lets see, unhappy childhood/unresolved parental conflict/middle age divorce. [return][return]Scott Turow writes such total insight and witt, its hard to believe that a writer can create characters with that total depth and rich history. This is a lengthy novel that takes time to journey through given its sheer size. The story itself unfolds as two parallel universes; flipping between the past and the present, with the breaks coming at times of suspense, so there is motivation to read on. However, the story can be boggy. And the characters themselves? I can't say I really connected with them. But I do appreciate a well written story with a complex plot. [return][return]This is a work typical of Turow, just not my favorite.