Tag / John Grisham

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Book 19 (of 52) – The Widow

The Widow – John Grisham

A small-town lawyer in Virgina thinks he has hit the jackpot: a rich client with no family looking to prepare a will.  When she then dies suddenly, an autopsy shows she was poisoned and that will, which looked like a godsend to the financially struggling lawyer, now acts as a motive for murder.  When he is convicted of the crime despite a distinct lack of non-circumstantial evidence, he goes on the offensive, looking for the real killer before he reports to prison.

The Widow, the latest from John Grisham, was a 2025 nominee for Favorite Mystery & Thriller in the Goodreads Choice awards.  This was a small change of pace from Grisham, adding a who-done-it mystery to his usual legal thriller genre.  I’ve been reading Grisham’s work for well over 30 years now, albeit with a few fallow years along the way, so a little variety in approach is not a bad thing.

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Prolific Authors – Nine Books

It is time once again to take a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school.  This year, I’m once again on pace to set a new record for books read in a year, so I thought it would be nice to take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through August of this year. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 114 books, so there should be some movement over the past two years.  Without further ado, it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much over the years.  We continue today with the four authors I’ve read nine times, three more than two years ago.

Michael Jan Friedman

Known primarily for licensed works, Friedman first entered my world in 1990, thanks to a trio of Star Trek: The Next Generation novels.  There were another two in 1992 and then he reappeared in 1996 with another trio of Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman tie-ins.  That was it until he reappeared on my radar in 2021, with yet another Next Gen entry.

The Judge’s List – John Grisham

John Grisham

The former attorney, who I first read in 1993 with his smash hit The Firm, returned to my attention with The Exchange, a sequel 31-years in the making.

Mary Kubica

The local author, who is a New York Times best seller, moves up two slots and has placed nine entries on my bookshelf over the past ten years, starting with The Good Girl, which I read in 2015.

Scott Turow

The Chicago-based lawyer, who I first read in 1992 with Presumed Innocent and Burden of Proof, returned to my attention in 2021 after an eleven-year absence and has added three books in these past two years.

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Book 46 (of 52) – Sycamore Row

Sycamore Row – John Grisham

Three years after the trial of Carl Lee Hailey, Jake Brigance finds himself in another charged trial, arguing in favor of the estate of Seth Hubbard, who wrote a new will and mailed it to Jake the day of his suicide.  In this will, Seth, whom Jake had never met, dis-inherits his children and grandchildren and leaves almost his entire estate, estimated at over $20 million, to his black housekeeper.  Facing higher powered lawyers arguing in favor of the dead man’s children, Jake seems to be at the end of his rope.  At least until his former boss tracks down the one man alive who can explain the reasoning Seth did what he did.

While only three years passed between the trials of Carl Lee Hailey and the Seth Hubbard’s estate, it has been 24 years between A Time to Kill, John Grisham’s debut novel, and Sycamore Row, which was published in 2013.  It has been 31 years since I read A Time to Kill, so I have little to no recollection of the details, but it still feels good to revisit these old friends.  This outing was much deeper in the legal minutia than having thrills, which also made it a little different from Grisham’s more recent work.  At least that which I have read.

 

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Book 4 (of 52) – The Exchange

The Exchange – John Grisham

Fifteen years after his unfortunate business in Memphis, Mitch McDeere is living in New York, a partner at one of the world’s biggest law firms.  When a beloved colleague in Rome falls ill, Mitch agrees to take over his prized case: suing the Libyan government for money owed to a Turkish firm who built a bridge in the middle of the desert.  Things quickly go south, though, when an associate, the daughter of Mitch’s Italian colleague, is kidnapped while attempting to visit the bridge.  When Mitch’s wife is contacted about the ransom demands, they are reminded of the trouble they faced fifteen years prior, quickly putting their kids into hiding.  Can Mitch work with his firm and the involved governments to raise the money needed to save his associate?  Or will she suffer the same fate as her male bodyguards: killed and beheaded?

Back in 1993, I read The Firm, my first John Grisham novel.  30 years later, we finally get a sequel in The Exchange, though there isn’t much of a throughline aside from the McDeeres and the trauma the suffered in the earlier work. I enjoyed most of it, though the ending felt a little anti-climatic and seemed to wrap everything up too quickly.  I’ve been in and out on Grisham since the early days in the 90s, and it feels like I’m heading towards out again, at least for the foreseeable future.

 

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Prolific Authors – 7 Books

Way back in December of 2011 (and again every other December since), we’ve taken a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school. Since I’ve far surpassed my “normal” reading output the last three years, I thought it would be nice to once again take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through the start of October. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 118 books, so there could be some movement over the past two years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span.  We continue today with the five authors I’ve read seven times, up five since 2021.

Michael Crichton

The prolific author, who died in 2008, first entered my bookshelf in 1989, when I was assigned to read The Andromeda Strain as part of my high school Biology class.  He continued to be a big part of my 90s reading, but has only added a single title, Airframe, in this century.

John Grisham

The former attorney, who I first read in 1993 with his smash hit The Firm, returned to my attention after a nine-year absence in 2022 thanks to The Judge’s List.

Jennifer McMahon

After feeling unimpressed after finishing my first of her works, Dismantled, in 2010, I eventually gave her another try and she has been a consistent presence ever since.

Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows – J.K. Rowling

J.K. Rowling

All seven entries in the Harry Potter series, which I read in 2016, make up Rowling’s total.  She continues to write under a pen name, so she may, one day, end up on this list twice.

Riley Sager

One of my newer favorites, I’ve read all of his novels as they’ve been released annually since 2017’s Final Girls through this year’s The Only One Left.

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Book 46 (of 52) – The Whistler

The Whistler – John Grisham

When the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct is contacted by a former lawyer with a compelling story about a judge on the take, an Indian casino, and the ruthless gang behind the criminal conspiracy tying everything together, Lacy Stoltz has no choice but to start an investigation.  But when Lacy and her colleague Hugo start digging, they get a little too close, which puts Lacy in the hospital and Hugo in the ground.  Once she recovers, Lacy collects her evidence, turns it over to the FBI, and waits for the wheels of justice to do their thing.  Will that happen before the unknown whistleblower meets the same fate as Hugo?

John Grisham’s The Whistler, his first of his two books to feature Lacy Stoltz and the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct to date, brings Grisham back to my attention after nearly two years.  He’s recently released a follow-up to his biggest hit, The Firm, which I hope to get to sooner rather than later, though my history with his work shows that I tend to have years-long spurts of inactivity followed by a quick hit or two.  We shall see what happens.

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Book 6 (of 52) – Judge’s List

The Judge’s List – John Grisham

Catching up on the books I read while in Hawaii (or, in the case of this one, on the airplane on the way to Hawaii) on vacation.

When a woman contacts the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct with a compelling theory. but little proof, that a sitting judge is a serial killer, Lacy Stoltz has to decide whether to pursue the case.  The judge seems untouchable, but when the contact connects him to a new murder, one where a complication led to an unplanned killing, the road to finding actual proof reveals itself.  Lacy brings in the FBI, and, together, they draw down on the rogue judge.  Can they stop him before he kills again?

The Judge’s List, the latest offering from John Grisham, is my first exposure to his work in nearly nine years.  It is his second book to feature Lacy Stoltz and the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct, but, thankfully, he does a good job of making the earlier work unnecessary for new readers.  This was a nice re-introduction to Grisham’s work and I hope to catch up on more of it in the future.

 

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Prolific Authors – 6 Books

Way back in December of 2011 (and again every other December since), we’ve taken a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school.  This year, since I’ve far surpassed my reading output of any year on record, I thought it would be nice to take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through August. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 60 books from 54 different authors. There shouldn’t be much movement over the past 2 years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span.  Today, we continue with the 4 authors I’ve read 6 times.

John Grisham

One of my favorites back in college, I last read one his works, The Testament, back in 2013.

Don’t You Cry – Mary Kubica

Mary Kubica

The local author has racked up all 6 of her books over the last 6 years.

David Mack

All six of his entries come from Star Trek: The Next Generation works I’ve read on my Kindle.

Pretty Girls – Karin Slaughter

Karin Slaughter

Another recent favorite, I’m working my way through her Will Trent series.

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Prolific Authors 2019

Way back in December of 2011 (and again in the Decembers of 2013, 2015, and 2017), we took a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 48 books from 50 different authors. There shouldn’t be much movement over the past 2 years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span. Once again, we will be limiting ourselves to the now 70 authors from whom I have read more than one book.

 

Author Name Current Total 2017 Total Difference
Nancy Holder 16 15 1

Nancy Holder adds 1 new book over the past 2 years to maintain her lead.

Richard Castle 15 14 1

The writer (or writers) using the nom de plume of the main character from the television show Castle sees a slight increase, despite the show being off the air for well over 3 years now.

Stephen King 13 12 1
Greg Rucka 13 13 0
Christopher Golden 12 12 0
Brad Meltzer 12 11 1

Very little movement in the next tier the past 2 years.

Jeffery Deaver 11 8 3

We round out the double digits with Deaver, who will be going up again soon, as I’m currently reading one of his books. Continue reading →

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Prolific Authors 2017

Way back in December of 2011 (and again in the Decembers of 2013 and 2015), we took a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 60 books from 47 different authors. There shouldn’t be much movement over the past 2 years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span. Once again, we will be limiting ourselves to the now 54 authors from whom I have read more than one book.

Author Name Current Total 2015 Total Difference
Nancy Holder 15 13 2

A new leader in the clubhouse, as Nancy Holder adds 2 new additions over the past 2 years to put her out front.

Richard Castle 14 9 5

The second largest increase (or largest for someone I had read before) goes to the writer (or writers) using the nom de plume of the main character from the television show Castle.  I’m guessing this total will stay pretty static, with the show off the air for over a year now.

Greg Rucka 13 13 0
Christopher Golden 12 12 0
Stephen King 12 12 0

These three round out the top 5 with absolutely no movement over the past 2 years.

Brad Meltzer 11 9 2
Jeffery Deaver 8 5 3

Slight increases for both of these authors, with more to come.  Meltzer’s next book is already pre-ordered, while there are a few unread Deaver works on my Kindle. Continue reading →