The Partner by John Grisham

"The Partner", by John Grisham.

This is the story of Patrick Lanigan, a brilliant attorney and partner in law firm, with a beautiful but unfaithful wife.

Patrick learns about a conspiracy by his partners to get 30 million $ in fees and removing him before the money comes. He hatches a brilliant plan and steals 90 million $ by faking his death and is on a run.

He is captured. Who captures him? How did he plan all this? Does he have any more surprises up his sleeve?  Who is his partner? Do they succed?

The story is set up in US and Brazil. Its a brilliant plan. Execution is flawless but then he is captured. Grisham has kept up the pace and excitement till the end. Book starts with Patrick's capture and flash back is used liberally. This book is not a lengthy one and does not allow you to get bored.

This being a John Grisham book is a legal thriller alright, but there is hardly any court room drama. World of legal settlements is presented well. The social, political, publicity & reputation considerations are shown in detail and without being sarcastic.

Patrick does everthing right, however book ends on a very very sad note and you feel really bad.

Recommend reading.

The racketeer by John Grisham

"The Racketeer" a novel by John Grisham.

Grisham is well known for his legal thrillers. This one is a borderline legal thriller. It has no court room drama.

Malcom Bannister, a black lawyer and ex marine, is sentenced for 10 yrs for money laundering. He claims to be innocent, his only fault being choosing wrong client.
A fedral judge is murdered with his girlfriend. His locker opened. Why was the judge killed? Banister may or may not have some vital info about the murder and killer.

Does the FBI get the info from Banister? What is the price? Is the murderer found? Who is the racketeer?

The story takes place in America and Carrebien. The pace is good, although it slows down in a couple of places. Writing style of this book seemed to be different from the previous Grisham books. Moreover this book is written in present tense (but not continuous present), which is a novelty.

There is a big twist to the story towards end that I did not see coming. It changes all the equations.                      

Its a good change from hard core Grisham legal thrillers. Although this book is not in the same league as 'The runaway jury' its a good one. If you don't like legal thrillers but would still like to read John Grisham, this is your book.