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3.56 AVERAGE
3.56 AVERAGE
It's no surprise that I love legal thriller and Grisham does it best.. but this book isn't really one of his greatest works. I love the idea of a typical firm-associate out witted the Feds and made a fool out of themselves, manipulating them and all. Patience indeed is a good thing but making the best of what you got is another. And the Racketeer is both.
But this has too many narration though and less action, too many words better left out and the story would still be the same. Any which way, still Grisham's work. Awesome, if not best.
But this has too many narration though and less action, too many words better left out and the story would still be the same. Any which way, still Grisham's work. Awesome, if not best.
Finished reading: December 22nd 2014
"I was guilty all right. Guilty of stupidity for allowing myself to fall into such a mess."
Spoiler
I've read a few of John Grisham's books in the past, so when I came across a copy of The Racketeer I decided to give it a go. I finished it with mixed feelings. It's not that I didn't like the story or that the prose was bad, but I just couldn't connect to the main characters. Especially Max/Malcolm; he is actually turns out to be a first class crook and I was supposed to feel empathy for him? Yeah, that didn't happen. The story is entertaining enough to keep reading though. It was interesting to read how they were able to deceive the government and FBI, even though the story is fully fictional. All in all a book for an entertaining afternoon as long as you don't care too much about having a thief as a main character and keep in mind this was ment as a fiction novel.
Federal judge Raymond Fawcett has been murdered, and the FBI doesn't have a clue who is responsable. No physical evidence was found in the remote cabin his body was found along with the body of his young secretary, and they don't know where to start. Former attorney Malcolm Bannister claims he knows the identity of the killer and why the judge was murdered, and sees this information as his way out of The Federal Prison Camp he currently calls his home. The Feds promise to get him out of prison and into witness protection if he shares his information, and soon Malcolm is a free man with a new face and identity.
What the FBI doesn't know is that Malcolm, now Max, has a plan that will make him a very rich man. At the murder scene an empty safe was found, and Max knows what was inside. Together with Vanessa, the sister of the man he claimed to be the murderer, they slowly put their plan into action to get the contents of the safe. Max leaves witness protection and disappears; the Feds don't have a clue where he is or what he is doing. And the real killer doesn't realize he is about to be deceived and trapped by Max...
Part of the story was a bit hard to believe, but as Grisham explained, The Racketeer is ment as a work of fiction. The story itself is quite entertaining, which makes up for the lack of connection to the characters. It's not the perfect read and some of the scenes close to cliche, but it is still worth reading if you like treasure hunts and seeing FBI agents running around in circles.
P.S. Find more of my reviews here.
Loved this book. It was the first John Fordham book I've read and I found it brilliant I could put it down
I hated this book. I couldn't get behind the characters and the story was overworked and overly complicated! I almost overcame my compulsion to finish every book that I start because I hated this book so much! Ugh!
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A fun Grisham novel. No court room scenes which was a nice change.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
John Grisham's The Racketeer is an exciting crime novel that keeps the reader on the edge of their seat. With its thrilling twists and turns, The Racketeer is sure to keep readers hooked until the very end. Grisham's masterful storytelling paints a vivid picture of the inner workings of the criminal underworld, and his complex characters create an intriguing and captivating narrative. This is a great read for anyone who loves a fast-paced story with plenty of mystery and intrigue. Highly recommended.
Content Warnings
John Grisham's The Racketeer is an exciting crime novel that keeps the reader on the edge of their seat. With its thrilling twists and turns, The Racketeer is sure to keep readers hooked until the very end. Grisham's masterful storytelling paints a vivid picture of the inner workings of the criminal underworld, and his complex characters create an intriguing and captivating narrative. This is a great read for anyone who loves a fast-paced story with plenty of mystery and intrigue. Highly recommended.
I’ve never read a John Grisham book before so I didn’t know what to expect, in terms of writing and plot. It was a little hard to get into in the beginning, but once I read about 25% of the book, that’s when I was reeled in. It was pretty thrilling towards the middle, how the protagonist gets out of jail and the twist in the end was pretty unexpected. But to be very honest, when Malcolm tries scamming Nathan Cooley, it was very random and sudden. I don’t know if it’s because I’m dumb or I missed it somehow but it was a little out of nowhere. I mean we were included in his plan throughout the book and then suddenly we’re left out. I was very confused and I had to Google why he’s trying to scam this poor dude and obviously that was the spoiler, the twist lol. And also, it does seem a little unrealistic, how he gets those gold bars and that FBI guy knows. Like, it’s too happy of an ending. But I guess it’s fiction so...I don’t know.
Will I read another John Grisham book? I think I will, I’ve heard some of his other books are better than this one.
Will I read another John Grisham book? I think I will, I’ve heard some of his other books are better than this one.
Easy to read and has a very interesting story line. Requires suspension of reality a bit for some of it to piece together, but a fun read overall.