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taylers_library 's review for:
The Exchange
by John Grisham
Thank you to Doubleday Books and NetGalley for the ARC!
Oh boy, here we go.
In our bookstore John Grisham has to be in the top 5 of our bestselling authors, the clientele that loves him is pretty exclusively middle aged white men. After finally picking up a Grisham for myself, I can absolutely see why.
The book opens with the introduction of Mitch and Abby McDeere, if you have already read The Firm, you should already be well acquainted. The whole beginning of the book attempts to slyly inform the reader of what happened in The Firm with Mitch flying back to the city he narrowly escaped for a death penalty case that conveniently falls through the second he gets there. Just enough time to catch up with an old "friend". The Dialogue in this book makes me crazy. If I wanted to read a play by play conversation I would probably pick up a kids books.
"Meanwhile I was in Prison." "Are you going to keep blaming me for that?" "No, Mitch. As of today I'm letting go." "Thanks. Me too." *snore*
And then, we get to the actual plot. A friend in Rome asks Mitch for a favour that will take him to Libya for a lawsuit against the government who is refusing to pay for a bridge. Long story short, someone gets kidnapped, the McDeere family is in danger, the kidnappers want $100 million, they get $75 million and everyone lives happy ever after. But wait, what about the lawsuit that brought him to Libya in the first place? Guess we'll never know. They let $75 million go just like that? Seems so. And yes, of course, The Firm will play into this whole ransom ploy in an unexpected way.
My other issue with this book is the slightly racist feel that seems to be happening here. For example: "In a place like Libya, there was always the flash of horror that an American could suddenly be on the floor, handcuffed, and then hauled away and detained for life. Mitch loved the thrill of the unknown." HUH
Anyway, it takes a lot for me to give a book a single star, so this feels like a solid two, but between the juvenile writing style and vaguely racist undercurrents in this book, I am not sure I will be picking up another book by John Grisham.
Oh boy, here we go.
In our bookstore John Grisham has to be in the top 5 of our bestselling authors, the clientele that loves him is pretty exclusively middle aged white men. After finally picking up a Grisham for myself, I can absolutely see why.
The book opens with the introduction of Mitch and Abby McDeere, if you have already read The Firm, you should already be well acquainted. The whole beginning of the book attempts to slyly inform the reader of what happened in The Firm with Mitch flying back to the city he narrowly escaped for a death penalty case that conveniently falls through the second he gets there. Just enough time to catch up with an old "friend". The Dialogue in this book makes me crazy. If I wanted to read a play by play conversation I would probably pick up a kids books.
"Meanwhile I was in Prison." "Are you going to keep blaming me for that?" "No, Mitch. As of today I'm letting go." "Thanks. Me too." *snore*
And then, we get to the actual plot. A friend in Rome asks Mitch for a favour that will take him to Libya for a lawsuit against the government who is refusing to pay for a bridge. Long story short, someone gets kidnapped, the McDeere family is in danger, the kidnappers want $100 million, they get $75 million and everyone lives happy ever after. But wait, what about the lawsuit that brought him to Libya in the first place? Guess we'll never know. They let $75 million go just like that? Seems so. And yes, of course, The Firm will play into this whole ransom ploy in an unexpected way.
My other issue with this book is the slightly racist feel that seems to be happening here. For example: "In a place like Libya, there was always the flash of horror that an American could suddenly be on the floor, handcuffed, and then hauled away and detained for life. Mitch loved the thrill of the unknown." HUH
Anyway, it takes a lot for me to give a book a single star, so this feels like a solid two, but between the juvenile writing style and vaguely racist undercurrents in this book, I am not sure I will be picking up another book by John Grisham.