“I have to confess that I haven’t read any books by John Grisham in a while, but when “The Associate” hit the bookstores, I felt compelled to read this book. I was taken back by the great difference in opinion with current reviews, but quickly put them aside as I enjoyed the book with only a couple of objections.
It is true that this story is somewhat reminiscent of “The Firm”, but with a distinction of the outside sources blackmailing the main character into stealing secrets from the biggest law firm in the world. Young Yale graduate, Kyle McAvoy, is being blackmailed by an unknown secret source and by a handler known only as “Bennie Wright” for his participation in a possible frat house rape years before. McAvoy must secretly steal documents from a large and controversial lawsuit or fear the consequences of a damaging video going public.
This book is an easy read in Grisham’s typical storytelling style. It begins with an interesting angle, but keeps a somewhat monotonous pace until page 104. Then the story picks up with interesting angles and begins to unfold in the usual entertaining fashion. At times, I did feel that the book read more like a field report from a private investigator than a thriller novel. My main complaint would be that the character of “Bennie Wright” should have been more of an integral part of the storyline. We needed to see this crafty and secret character conducting business so that it would really pull the reader into a more suspenseful mode for McAvoy. I think the reader would have felt more distress and not feel cheated with the ending. As far as the ending goes, it has an ending but maybe not as satisfying as most would like.
If you want a nice easy weekend read in the standard Grisham style, I would recommend this book. However, if you’re expecting a giant climatic scene with an aggressive confrontation, you will not find that with this book.
-Jennifer Chase, author of thriller “Compulsion”
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Jennifer C wrote this review Monday, February 23, 2009.
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