Author: John Grisham
Year Published: 2020
Category: Adult fiction
Pages: 480
Rating: 4 out of 5
Location (my 2021 Google Reading map): USA (MS)
Summary (from Amazon): Clanton, Mississippi. 1990. Jake Brigance finds himself embroiled in a deeply divisive trial when the court appoints him attorney for Drew Gamble, a timid sixteen-year-old boy accused of murdering a local deputy. Many in Clanton want a swift trial and the death penalty, but Brigance digs in and discovers that there is more to the story than meets the eye. Jake’s fierce commitment to saving Drew from the gas chamber puts his career, his financial security, and the safety of his family on the line.
Summary (from Amazon): Clanton, Mississippi. 1990. Jake Brigance finds himself embroiled in a deeply divisive trial when the court appoints him attorney for Drew Gamble, a timid sixteen-year-old boy accused of murdering a local deputy. Many in Clanton want a swift trial and the death penalty, but Brigance digs in and discovers that there is more to the story than meets the eye. Jake’s fierce commitment to saving Drew from the gas chamber puts his career, his financial security, and the safety of his family on the line.
In what may be the most personal and accomplished legal thriller of John Grisham’s storied career, we deepen our acquaintance with the iconic Southern town of Clanton and the vivid cast of characters that so many readers know and cherish. The result is a richly rewarding novel that is both timely and timeless, full of wit, drama, and—most of all—heart.
There is a time to kill and a time for justice. Now comes A Time for Mercy.
Review: Another book over 400 pages, I love summer! And it's a John Grisham, so I know exactly what I am getting into; I am pulled in from page one. It's not great literature, but Grisham novels are comfort reads for me.
Small town Mississippi is depicted so well by Grisham, he has set many of his books in this fictional town with these same characters over the past 40 years so he and his readers know them well. It is easy to immediately sympathize with Drew and his family as he tumbles into an unexpected adult world of lawyers and jail time.
There are a number of social issues that appear in this novel, which gives it an extra interest beyond just a story. Through the course of the trial (and a parallel trail on a totally not related issue) we read about corporate liability and power, small town courts, rape, abortion, domestic abuse, the role of the church in helping and hindering, and more. If you enjoy a good court room drama, you'll enjoy this novel.
Challenges for which this counts:
- Big Book Summer Challenge: 480 pages
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