I'm back and this time I will be writing some new reviews as well as making some long-overdue update...
I'm back and this time I will be writing some new reviews as well as making some long-overdue updates on my older work.
Member since:11.07.2000
Reviews:82
Members who trust:43
The Testament, another hefty best-seller from John Grisham. Just how well does it stack up against his other novels?
The Plot ~~~~~~~~
Ageing billionaire businessman Troy Phelan, tiring of life, draws up a new will before committing suicide. The hopes of his six children and three ex-wives are confounded by the surprise naming of a previously unsuspected illegitimate daughter as the major beneficiary. The bequest is complicated by the fact that no one knows the whereabouts of the daughter who is thought to be serving as a missionary somewhere in Brazil.
The story develops on two strands; the legal challenges of the children and the quest for the missing daughter. The defence of the will is led by the late Troy Phelan’s lawyer, Josh Stafford. The quest for the daughter, Rachel Lane, is undertaken by Nate O’Riley, a partner in Stafford’s law firm. O’Riley is newly discharged from rehab for his drug and alcohol addictions.
This novel has far less of the legal technicalities than other works by this author. The emphasis is far more on the second strand, the search for
Rachel Lane, than on the legal battle. I do have one point that I just can't figure out, see the footnote if you have read the book and tell me if you understand.
The Characters ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Frankly it is difficult to describe many of the performers in this story as characters. We really learn little about any of the characters other than O’Riley. The characterisation overall is so shallow as to hardly merit the description two-dimensional. Not a stereotype is left unturned; the putative heirs are uniformly drawn as irredeemably greedy and stupid, the lawyers are unscrupulous and manipulative, the police uninterested, the judge ambitious and publicity seeking.
Nate O’Riley, the only character to have any depth, is himself little more than a quick sketch – ambitious and brilliant trial lawyer, burnt out by 40, dependent on drugs and drink between periods of rehab. The effects of the search for Rachel Lane on O’Riley are the sole area of character development in the whole novel.
The Background ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The search for Rachel Lane takes place in an area of Brazil called the Pantanal. This is a vast area of rivers, tributaries and swampland that is home to a number of surviving indigenous peoples. Ten years ago the research apparently carried out by Grisham would have looked impressive. Today it took about thirty minutes to extract from the internet all the geographical information that Grisham so liberally scatters in his narrative. At times the text smacks more of a travelogue than the gripping thiller presumably intended.
My Critique ~~~~~~~~~~~
The story relies on a very broad suspension of disbelief. The initial premise is just incredible (and I use the term in its proper sense of unbelievable) that a man would be so petty and spiteful as to snub his family in such a convoluted way. The story then progresses through improbable (would you really choose someone coming out of rehab to travel into the untamed wilderness looking for the heiress to an $11 billion fortune) and back to incredible. The coincidences that are required to carry the story forward to its conclusion beggar belief.
And yet… Having said all this, the story does rattle along at a tremendous pace. Regardless of its deficiencies it is, to use a cliché, a real page-turner. I bought this book passing through an airport and read it at a single sitting. I later reread it so that I could make a proper assessment of it here. Even on a second reading it remained enjoyable, although less so when the element of surprise was removed. I would heartily recommend this as a relaxing holiday read. Unlike some other Grisham works, the storyline is uncomplicated and the focus is on the fast moving action rather than complex legal argument.
Footnote ~~~~~~~~
The one legal point that I don't follow is this; the instruction of the late Troy Phelan to his lawyer, Stafford, is to delay disclosure of the contents of the will for one month after his death. Why, therefore, is Stafford so happy to have the will read on 27 December, two weeks before the date Phelan instructed. I have reread this a number of times and it doesn't seem as if he makes any opposition to this move. Indeed he appears to welcome the opportunity. This seems at odds with his otherwise dogged determination that Phelan's wishes be carried out. Are we supposed to think that he feels sorry for the supposed heirs? Any suggestions gratefully received.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Troy Phelan, a 78-year-old eccentric and the 10th-richest man in America, is about to read ... more
his last will and testament, divvying up an estate worth $11 billion. Phelan's three ex-wives, thei r grasping offspring, a legion of lawyers, several psychiatri...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Troy Phelan, a 78-year-old eccentric and the 10th-richest man in America, is about to read ... more
his last will and testament, divvying up an estate worth $11 billion. Phelan's three ex-wives, thei r grasping offspring, a legion of lawyers, several psychiatri...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Troy Phelan, a 78-year-old eccentric and the 10th-richest man in America, is about to read ... more
his last will and testament, divvying up an estate worth $11 billion. Phelan's three ex-wives, thei r grasping offspring, a legion of lawyers, several psychiatri...
Postage & Packaging: £2.75 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Advantages: Objective tone, excellent characterisation, Grisham's characteristic page-turning suspense. Disadvantages: Won't be to everyone's taste: this is not The Firm, nor does it pretend to be
Advantages: Objective tone, excellent characterisation, Grisham's characteristic page-turning suspense. Disadvantages: Won't be to everyone's taste: this is not The Firm, nor does it pretend to be
Jul 31st, 2001
very helpful by (100%):
