The Brethren [Paperback]

John Grisham (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Arrow Books Ltd (March 1, 2007)
• ASIN: B001NLZJII
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1,052 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,976,667 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

96 of 104 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars They are never the same..., January 31, 2000

By 

R. Watkins "Rob The Reader" (Sydney, Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Brethren (Hardcover)

With the majority of mass market autors, you are guaranteed the same kind of read over and over. Not grisham. The Brethren focuses on a little clan of judges in a low security prison setting up a get rich quick scheme that will guarantee they are set up for good after jail. They lure the men in through placing ads in gay magazine and then track down the men who reply. This leads to the perfect extortion scheme because these men don't want to be found. They make a mistake with one of the men and it just gets better. if you like Grisham, you'll love the Brethren. Not his best, but great anyway, you won't be disappointed.

101 of 111 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another solid Grisham book, February 6, 2000

By 

Durand Sinclair - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Brethren (Hardcover)

Firstly, this book is written by John Grisham, which means that you get the usual well-written book, so that once you start it, you don't put it down till you finish. (At least, that's what happened to me. I read it in a weekend.) What makes this one different is that there aren't really any good guys. It's the story of how some crooked judges are able to run a scam from inside a jail, paralleled with how a completely evil general tries to buy an election and start a war. The scam itself is really the hero of the story. I often caught myself thinking "Isn't that clever?". Also, Grisham shows his usual cynicism of lawyers with a funny character called Trevor. (Here's betting Steve Buscemi will play him in the movie!) Other reviewers have commented that the plot could have done with some more twists. But I didn't mind the way the plot developed. I found it more believable than The Firm, (whose main character seemed a bit too superhuman), but not quite as intriguing as The Runaway Jury (which is my favourite). All in all, it's a good solid Grisham book that will be well worth the price when it comes out in paperback.

24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Definitely a disappointment, February 9, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Brethren (Hardcover)

For me this was the most disappointing Grisham novel yet. Unlike some of his more polished stories, Brethren lacked the essentials of a good novel. Certainly nowhere near the underlying psychological tension of The Firm, for example.

Character development was weak, the plot lines were strained and the hypothesis completely unbelievable. The ending failed to bring any sort of critical denouement to the storylines and seemed as if it was thrown together because the author ran out of typewriter ribbon. It may sell a lot of copies but I'd only recommend purchasing this if you are the ultimate diehard Grisham fan...or if you just want to read a sodapop novel, have it taste good and then burp, it's gone.