A review by thebookshrimp
The Client by John Grisham

3.0

“There was something unfair about a system in which a little kid was brought into a courtroom and surrounded by lawyers arguing and sniping at each other under the scornful eye of a judge, the referee, and somehow in the midst of this barrage of laws and code sections and motions and legal talk the kid was supposed to know what was happening to him. It was hopelessly unfair.”

3.7 stars. John Grisham's novels, although good, all follow the same formula-just with a change of names. Which is why I was pleasantly surprised to find that this book has it's own plot line with a refreshingly different cast of characters. Don't get me wrong-I could still predict the ending halfway through the book, but the rest of the novel was different enough that I didn't even mind.

The most intriguing aspect of this novel was that Grisham took what would typically be the plot in any other legal thriller and made it the backstory. When a member of the mafia is charged with the murder of a missing senator, he confides in his defence lawyer and long time friend, where he hid the body. Defence lawyer commits suicide. End of story.

Only- instead of the novel being told from the point of view of the prosecutor or the new defence lawyer, as with most of his novels, our main character is a street-smart spunky 11 year-old who managed to stumble upon the secret. The right thing to do, would of course be to tell the police; but doing the right thing, will also get him and his family killed. It's a morally grey area that Grisham- surprisingly- explores well.

As far the cast goes- my favourite character would have to be Reggie( Mark's lawyer), a sharp quick-witted 50 something year-old who will fight tooth and nail for the kids she represents.

“You wired the kid," Truemann said meekly to no one in particular.
"Why not? No crime. You're the FBI, remember. You boys run more wire than AT&T."[Reggie Love]”

Overall The Client is an unputdownable suspense-filled novel with memorable characters. I did, however, have to knock off a few points because of the predictable ending. I would've also liked to see a bit more character development.