Rating: 
Summary: The best
Review: Told in first person, this latest Grisham tale is a plethora of interesting and eccentric characters, intrigue, realism and tension, and wonderful writing that we've all become accustomed to in a work by Grisham, Like "A Painted House" this book is set in the South. Like Grisham's legal thrillers, this one deals with trials, courtrooms, and everything in between. But this novel is a hybrid of all of his past (successful) attempts. This one blends his previous styles into a great melange of inspirational writing and plot. The premise alone should make you want to read it, but that aside, the execution and writing are marvelous. A truly enjoyable tale of small town life, mystery, and local color, all blended into a fun read. Also recommended: The Firm, Pompeii, Bark of the Dogwood, Drop City
Rating:
Summary: Grover's Corner With A Bite
Review: A Syracuse U. dropout buys a small town newspaper in Clanton, Mississippi and wakes the townspeople up! Grisham captures the atmosphere and attitudes of this town as if he'd lived there most of his life. Beautiful character profiles and enough action to give the story punch involving a brutal rape/murder, a trial and a promise for revenge. But the "last juror" is Mrs. Callie, a black mother of seven PHD offspring whose inspiration (and great cooking) is the glue that gives an immature, 23 year old the guidance and stability to persevere and eventually, after 10 gritty years, to make his mark. Grisham in a 5 star effort.
Rating:
Summary: PROBABLY GRISHAM'S BEST NOVEL EVER
Review: THE LAST JUROR blends Grisham's slice of life style in PAINTED HOUSE with his traditional potboilers, making it more real and not so fantastic as past works. The first person narrator, Willie Traynor, takes over a small town paper, The Times, in 1971, about the time local punk, Danny Padgitt, rapes and murders a young woman in front of her children. As owner/editor of the Times, Traynor gets to know many of the local characters, not least of which is a black woman from the wrong side of the racially divided tracks, named Callie Ruffin. Callie is THE LAST JUROR referred to in the title, as the novel is more about the relationship between her and Traynor than it is about the criminal, Danny Padgitt. Grisham does not disappoint the reader, as by the end of his trial Padgitt threatens the jurors, that if they find him guilty he will "get" every one of them. They find him guilty anyway. Though sentenced to two "life" sentences in the Mississippi penal system, Padgitt ends up serving about 10 years. And then jurors start getting murdered. The meat of the book is devoted to Traynor and Callie and her remarkable family who have managed to educate themselves out of their racist little town. Callie has broken barriers throughout her life, and being the first black to sit on a Ford County jury (and the last juror seated on the jury) was just one of her many accomplishments. The lunches cooked by Callie for Traynor are mouthwatering to read. Over all, the story and wonderful prose are very compelling. With a twist ending that comes as a welcome surprise I felt this was Grisham's best work yet and I highly recommend it to Grisham fans and first time readers.
Rating:
Summary: This is the John I fell in love with
Review: Yes! We return the brooding town of Clanton for a thriller with heart that reminds me of the passion that made A Time to Kill and The Firm such great books. Danny Padgitt gets released from prison a mere 10 years after getting a "life" sentence, and members of the original jury are starting to drop like flies. If you're like me you felt a steady decline in Grisham's writing since his first few novels. It was almost like he'd forgotten where he came from. He tried to redeem himself with Painted House and Bleachers, but I really couldn't get into them. There was a lot of heart in those books, but I didn't feel for the plot. There was a lot of plot in some of his later thrillers, but not a lot of heart. Finally we have both and it's a grand slam.
Rating:
Summary: Still hangin' in there
Review: I loved this book, along with all of Mr. Grisham's books! While it's a social commentary on small-town life in the South, it's really much more. It's a wonderful stream of character studies that all mesh to form the fabric for this excellent book. The story isn't complicated but it is interesting enough to keep your attention. Also recently read "Odd Thomas," "Angels and Demons," and "Bark of the Dogwood."
Rating:
Summary: What a book!
Review: As usual, Grisham doesn't disappoint, whether it's a legally-based thriller, a down-home "Painted House" or any of his other great reads. At least there's some consistancy in this world. Also liked "The Firm," "Bark of the Dogwood," "A Child called It."
Rating:
Summary: Much Relieved
Review: Thanks goes out to John Grisham for a great book. I've read all of his books before, and of lately they have been only so so. Grisham wrote a great book after what I consider to be a slump. THE LAST JUROR is a good read, a page-turner, and the John Grisham book we all love. I suggest buying and reading this book.
Rating:
Summary: Back to basics
Review: This plot and the fully-realized characters bring back the basics of good storytelling at which Grisham excelled in his earlier work. An example of the reason we all flocked to buy his work once upon a time. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic Book
Review: This book is fantastic. I loved everything about this book, and it reminds me of one of Grisham's first book. The characters were so real and well-developed. There were really two plots going on in this book, and Grisham does a remarkable job of weaving these two plot lines together.
The author's sense of humor is sharper than ever. The author here in true form doing what he does best, and you get the sense of an author who has all the confidence in the world. There are few contemporary authors in pop literature to compare to this author.
Rating:
Summary: One of Grisham's best!
Review: If you crossed "The Painted House" with "The Firm", you'd get a book like this one. I thought it was one of Grisham's best ever. I haven't cared for Grisham's latest mysteries - they've merely been vehicles for his heavy-handed and probably recently-discovered social conscience. Only the newly-saved get that preachy. I surprised myself by enjoying 'Painted House', though it's not the kind of book I read for pleasure very often. I'm fully aware of how grim reality is and tend to look for entertainment that let's me escape from the brutality & tragedy of real life. In movies, if it has explosions, I'll probably like it. Now you know where I'm coming from. "Last Juror" had just enough literary "merit" to make the characters come alive. But, it still had good guys and bad guys and action and all the other stuff that make it a fun read. And, it kept me up late, on the edge of my seat.
| 
