Rating: 
Summary: Grisham is back!
Review: Along with Britt Gillette's CONQUEST OF PARADISE, this is my favorite book of the year. The title of this one from Grisham is quite unusual as compared to his other books and the story is also quite unusual. In THE KING OF TORTS, Grisham shows what happens behind the scenes and beautifully writes about the meteoric rise of a lawyer from nothing to a star and his equally fast downfall. Compelling and enjoyable and a good departure from his last so-so novel, THE SUMMONS. Grisham is back! Highly recommended!
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Summary: A morality tale about greedy and unscrupulous lawyers.
Review: In his latest novel, "The King of Torts," John Grisham explores a topic that he has dealt with many times in the past. Can an individual be a successful lawyer and a moral individual? Or are the words "honest lawyer" paradoxical?Clay Carter is a bright young public defender in Washington, D. C., where he has worked for five years. He is thirty-one, burned out, underpaid and frustrated. Clay's girlfriend, Rebecca, loves him but her snooty parents loathe both Clay and the career path that he has chosen. They want Rebecca to dump Clay and find a better matrimonial prospect. Suddenly, Clay's career takes a weird turn. A murder case falls into his lap, and there are aspects of this investigation that simply do not add up. Soon, a mysterious stranger appears and convinces Clay that it would be in his best interests to quit the Public Defender's office and become a mass tort lawyer. His main job would be to collect the names of individuals who were harmed by pharmaceutical companies, sign these people up, and file class action suits on their behalf. Clay is seduced by the promise of fame and fortune, and he soon becomes "The King of Torts." Can Clay keep his wits about him after he tastes the high life of private planes, yachts, beautiful women, and fancy real estate? Or is he selling his soul in the process of becoming wealthy and successful? Grisham's breezy writing style is pleasant and easy to take. The book moves forward at a fast pace and its theme about the downside of greed is certainly a timely one. However, the plot is a bit far-out and the ending is both heavy-handed and predictable. Unfortunately, "The King of Torts" is more a morality tale than it is a novel.
Rating: 
Summary: Big Disappointment
Review: Unless you want to learn about mass tort law, skip this book. It's boring. The main character isn't even likeable! A great disappointment and waste of money.
Rating: 
Summary: Where's volume 2?
Review: "John Grisham" envokes thoughts of solid, fast paced, legal mystery books which evelope the reader and hold him/her steadfast in the plot until the last word. This book MUST have been written by someone else. As someone else has stated here, the books is a great introduction to the world of mass torts (while I have to say, much much simplified - most companies don't just roll over as they do in this book) it lacks the compelling tension that marked other Grisham novels before it. I kept turning pages for one reason - to get to where the plot thickened. The character of Max Pace is well done, but then left out to dry off, unused. The romantic element, which is so well laid out in the beginning, falls flat on its face. I would have been happy to read 5 or 6 more chapters if Mr. G would have continued with the structure he started with. It was like writing the blueprint for the Sistine Chapel design and then calling Maaco to finish up. The beginning is well scripted, lays an amazing foundation and then sputters to a pathetic close, which left me unfulfilled.
Rating:
Summary: Where's the beef
Review: Like many of Grisham's recent works, this one disappointed mightly. The first 3/4 of the work was interesting although many questions were left unanswered. The ending is where I really felt disappointed and betrayed. It's as though he's writing to a certain page count and suddenly realized he only has a few pages left and so abruptly cuts to the end. I thoroughly enjoyed his earlier books which were well developed all the way through but his more recent efforts have displayed a tendency to just throw out some ending to meet either a page count limit or a publisher's deadline. DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK. Use the copy from your local library if you want to read it. One can only hope that this once interesting author will put more effort into his future efforts.
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Summary: The King of Legal Thrillers
Review: Grisham is a little like Clay Carter, his protagonist in the King of Torts. He has risen to the top of the legal thriller genre, indeed, he is King, although more recent books have hinted at his possible downfall. Yet Grisham remains at the top of his game with King of Torts. His characterization and plot development is just complex enough to be enjoyed by the masses. (Albeit, there are some slight faults in the plot that a close reader will pick up.) Overall, King of Torts is a predictable but enjoyable (and timely) thriller.
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Summary: textbook with a plot
Review: If you want to learn a whole lot about mass tort litigation, this is an excellent starting point. The writing is digestible, mildly entertaining, and thoroughly believable. However, if you want a good yarn along with your education (which is what most readers have come to expect from Grisham), pick up a different book. The blurb on the dusk jacket is thoroughly misleading. This is not a story about a burned out young lawyer's uncovery of a conspiracy. On the contrary, the conspiracy appears and disappears very early in the novel, and while you keep expecting closure, you never get it. Max Pace, the mysterious mover and shaker of the book, is never explained or even fully identified with a real name. He repeatedly delivers insider tips to our protagonist and finally vanishes without a trace. I kept waiting for the "so what?" of the book, and it just didn't happen. Furthermore, I did not find a single major character in the story sympathetic. The lawyer protagonist is a man with just enough conscience to feel really bad, but not enough of a backbone to turn down money in order to do the right thing. Rebecca, the love interest, is a completely unsurprising, flat character. I kept waiting for either of them to do something that would make me care what happens to them, and they didn't. On the other hand, I'm not sorry I read the book. I learned a whole lot about mass torts. Just be aware before you buy that this is basically a textbook with a plot.
Rating:
Summary: Predicatable, hackneyed
Review: As a past fan, I looked forward to reading the latest from Grisham. Alas he is no doubt under contract to produce a new title every so often and this one was written with an eye toward little other than fulfilling his obligation to his publisher. All the worse for his readers! The mental machinations of the main character defied explanation and the plot was obvious from the get-go. One spent the first half of the book hoping for an unexpected "gotcha" and the last half dreading what had by then become the inevitable predictable outcome.
Rating:
Summary: Grisham at his best
Review: This book grabbed me the minute I opened it. This is Grisham at his best. The King of Torts is not only a mezmerizing read, but a learning tool. Can't wait for the next Grisham book.
Rating:
Summary: 300 pages and counting.....
Review: This book has 72 pages left to get good. My wife gave me this book for Valentine's day, and I'm laboring to finish it. I have all of JG's books since the very beginning because I'm a fellow Mississippian. I even have an autographed copy of "The Client." "The King of Torts" - no mystery, no redeeming qualities in characters, no intrigue - the most boring book I've read in years. Why do I keep buying his books? In the hopes that I'll be pleasantly surprised which hasn't happened in years (with the lone exception being "A Painted House")!
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