Tag / The Firm

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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 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 22 (of 52) – The Runaway Jury

The_Runaway_Jury_John_Grisham

The Runaway Jury – John Grisham

In the early 1990s, John Grisham was at the top of the bestsellers lists and I was along for the ride.  Starting with The Firm in 1993 and continuing through The Rainmaker in 1996, I had plowed through four* of his first six novels in four years time.  But then, for some reason, I stopped.  The Runaway Jury was book number seven for Grisham, and, by all accounts, it has been sitting in my To Read drawer for quite some time.  Some 16 years after its release, it was time to give it a chance.

*Although my records indicate otherwise, I’m pretty sure that I read The Client too.  That would put me at five out of six in the same four year time period.

My time away from Grisham seems to have done me well, as I was thouroughly engrossed by this book, the tale of a tobacco trial, the defense operatives trying to ensure a verdict through any means necessary, and the jury led by a man who has a hidden agenda.  Grisham tells an interesting tale of deceit and lawlessness in showing how the tobacco industry will go to any lengths necessary to keep all judgments on their side.  One has to wonder how much of this is truly fiction and if the judicial process can be so easily manipulated.

The Runaway Jury was a fun read and I’ve already moved the movie adaptation to the top of my Netflix queue so I can revisit this story and its characters soon.  I have a strong feeling that it will not be another 16 years before I pick up a John Grisham book again.

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Midseason Review – Thursdays

Nearing the end of our look back at the fall television season.

CBS

Big Bang Theory – The nerds return for more fun.

This show has wisely mixed things up, with the focus nearly equal between the guys and the girls.  The additions of Melissa Rauch and Mayim Bialik to the cast have made a strong show even stronger.  There was one occassion where the show fell victim to the main charge of its critics, where it laughed at nerds instead of with them.  Hopefully that was a blip and not a tonal shift.

How To Be A Gentleman –  This looks to be horrible.  I doubt it lasts through November sweeps.

And it didn’t.

Person Of Interst – Michael Emerson’s first post-Lost series.  That alone is enough of a reason to give this a chance.

This is not really a bad show, but it isn’t really a good one and it seems like a total waste of Michael Emerson’s talents.  It looks like they may be mixing things up a bit by bringing Taraji P. Henson into the fold, so maybe that will help.

The Mentalist – Based on the premiere, it will be more of the same from The Mentalist.  It’s a good enough show, but I can see it burning out quickly if they don’t shake things up sometime soon.

More of the same indeed.  The addition of one of the kids from the new Melrose Place as the new boss is kind of weird, but beyond that, nothing really new.

NBC

Community – Back for a surprising third season.  John Goodman has joined in a recurring role, and, so far, looks to have brought his A-game. 

Well, John Goodman only appeared 2 or 3 times, but this season has been bizarrely brilliant.  Of course, this means that NBC has pulled it from the schedule, claiming it will return at some undetermined point in the future.  I know 3 seasons is more than most series see, but losing this show will hurt more than most. Continue reading →

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Upfronts Day 0

NBC jumped the gun and released their schedule for the upcoming fall season a day early.  Chuck returns for a 13 episode final season, moving to Friday nights.  30 Rock gets bumped to mid-season due to Tina Fey’s pregnancy.  Harry’s Law gets a surprise renewal and moves to Wednesdays. 

New dramas in the fall include Prime Suspect, starring Maria Bello as a homicide detective fighting her way through the boys club.  The Playboy Club tries to follow in the footsteps of Mad Men and goes back to the 60s at the legendary Chicago club.  Grimm tries to follow in the footsteps (notice a pattern here?) of Supernatural, following a group of hunters going after the creatures from the Grimm fairy tales.  Awake (finally a somewhat new premise) is a drama about a man who wakes up from an accident to find out he is living in two parallel worlds, one where his wife died in the accident and one where his son died.

On the comedy front, Whitney is a starring vehicle for roast sensation Whitney Cummings.  Up All Night is “a modern take on parenthood.”  Free Agents is based on a cult UK comedy and returns Anthony Head, TVs Giles, to America’s shores.  Are You There Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea is inspired by the book from late night host Chelsea Handler and stars Laura Prepon.  Best Friends Forever looks at best friends who promise to support each other.  Bent is about a couple who are attracted to each other despite not having much in common.

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