Rating: 
Summary: Average Book
Review: This book had the typical intelligent writing style of John Grisham with a below average to poor ending. I'm glad that I bought and read it, but I'm disappointed with the conclusion or lack thereof.
Rating: 
Summary: Good weekend read...
Review: I have to agree with some of the earlier reviewers in that I lost a few characters along the way and that the story was a little rough. In comparison with Grisham's earlier work, this novel fell a little short. I think something I missed was the "good guy." I didn't have anyone to root for, and because of that, there wasn't much motivation to continue reading. However, for a weekend relaxation tool, it fit the bill.
Rating: 
Summary: Daring Author Takes Chance
Review: In his earlier books, Grisham seemed to have hit on a plot formula which worked and appeared several times - seemingly powerless little guy against vast conspiracy, a la Robin Cook. He probably could have continued in this vein. However, he chose to deviate from the formula, and we discovered that he was a good story teller in addition to having writing talent. This book exemplifies that.I don't remember the last time I read a story without a clear protagonist, and it took me a while to adjust to the idea, but I liked it. There were no blameless souls in the story (except for one very minor character), and I enjoyed the detatchment of just finding out what happened without identifying with a particular person. I liked the way characters were drawn, some more completely than others, and I liked the pace and style of the writing. There were no tense chases or buildings exploding at the end, no hero heading off with the girl into the future, not a lot of flash - just a clever, well presented plot with a not unsatisfying ending. This is not great literature, but it is exactly what it's supposed to be - great entertainment.
Rating: 
Summary: Writer creativity or computer generated?
Review: With his latest novel, The Brethren, Grisham seems to have crossed that threshold of an artistic writer to one who is churning out words for commercial reasons only. Perhaps even using a commuter to generate some of the text. How else can you explain the fact that one of the characters in the book, someone who has been involved one way or another with the legal profession for many years, didn't know the meaning of "pro bono". Just one of many examples that makes the novel extremely juvenile in structure and character development. The story line is weak and the character development even weaker. The writing is such a far drop-off from Grisham's earlier novels I even wonder whether he actually "wrote" it or generated it using some computer software program.
Rating: 
Summary: What a passel of unsavory, implausible characters
Review: Who ever heard of a crooked judge? Or a crooked lawyer? And if we can't trust the CIA, who CAN we trust? Can you imagine a presidential nomination being bought, not to mention the presidency? Mr. Grisham, are you having us on?
Rating:
Summary: another good book by grisham
Review: Although the critics seem to have a field day anymore when Grisham comes out with a new book, once again they are wrong. As usual, Grisham has put together a fun and interesting read once again. I found his deviation from his normal writing style to be interesting and fresh. Can't wait for his next book.
Rating:
Summary: Not quite up to par
Review: I read the new Carl Hiaasen and found it to be a notch down from his standard, and then I read the new John Grisham and found the same. "Brethren" is an interesting story with two problems. First, the idea that the CIA could, without any difficulty whatsoever, fix a presidential election with nobody at all noticing stretches credibility. Secondly, there are a number of loose ends in this book. A character appears midway with no apparent purpose other than to allow John Grisham to deliver a sermon about drug sentencing and to deliver a letter. Then he disappears. And there is certainly no payoff for those of us who spend the entire book gritting our teeth at the sleaziness of the villains -- I don't want to spoil the ending for people who haven't read the book yet, but scratch the idea that crime doesn't pay out of your understanding of the world before you tackle this one. All in all, "Brethren" kept me actively involved, but it was not John Grisham's best work -- I'll be looking forward to the next one.
Rating:
Summary: HIS BEST YET
Review: The Brethren is one of the best books from Grisham, he will have to work awfully hard to top this one.
Rating:
Summary: MY FIRST GRISHAM BOOK AND PROBABLY MY LAST
Review: What happened here? The story dropped off into space, what there was of it. The characters were unbelieveable and there really was no real plot. I was very disappointed in this book after having read "Void Moon", "Plum Island" and other authors. Because of Grisham's name alone I bought this book. Waste of time - read something else. That's my recommendation!
Rating:
Summary: Not What I Expected From Grisham
Review: I was very disappointed in John Grisham's latest novel. I have read all of his books and always look forward to the next release. This was a big disappointment. It is unlike his other novels, in that it lacks a real hero, or even a good lead character. When I read the book, I didn't enjoy it from the beginning, but I kept waiting for it to get better - it didn't! I should have listened to the reviews that I read on Amazon before I bought the book. I can only hope that Grisham's next book is more like his earlier novels.
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