The Broker : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: Better than the last few...
Review:
I think "The Broker" is an improvement from the last few Grisham's titles which gave me the impression that he was already past his prime. On the other hand, considering the number of titles that he "produced" within the last few years, sometimes I was even questioning whether some to the books were indeed written by him, or maybe they were just bearing his name to help the sells.

In some way "The Broker" brought us back the old Grisham . I was again spending a few sleepless nights with the book in bed... Last time that this happened to me, it was with the book by M. Tombak "Can We Live 150 Years?" Interestingly it was not a novel at all...


Rating:
Summary: Opinion Reconfirmed
Review: After I read "Painted House", I told my wife to never, ever buy another Grisham book for me. She didn't listen, and once again I was disappointed. Grisham's first few books were very good, but "The Broker" was a terrible waste of paper. The whole premise of the book was ridiculous and uninformed, the characters and events unbelievable, the "Italian lessons" were filler, and of course, the ending...well, there wasn't an ending. So many potentially interesting characters (the Chinese assissin)that fell by the wayside in Grisham's apparent rush to finish the book and collect the check. Apparently, this book was written for the single purpose of paying for his new home on the outskirts of Oxford. The Final Insult...the author's note at the back of the book.

Rating:
Summary: Torturously Bad Fiction
Review: I could only read the first 100 pages.

If you were to read this book, not knowing who the author is, you would deem it unpublishable.

This is NOT an engaging page turner. From the first chapter, I realized that this book was written by somebody who has little expertise on the Washington political system. This is the type of fiction that you realize could never really be true.

For example, we are to believe that one of the characters, Critch, who was at one time the President's Chief of Staff and political campaign chairman, can just walk around in pubs in London unrecognized by the public, after the election. Can you imagine Jim Baker, Colin Powell, etc. just walking around Europe in complete obscurity?

Grisham obviously has enjoyed a few Italian vacations, and enjoys enlightening readers on the finer points of Italian cuisine and coffee beverages.

So, save your money and read a classic, or buy yourself a nice Italian dinner instead.



Rating:
Summary: Please take a break from writing
Review: I found this to be one of the slowest, most boring books he's ever written. It was all I could do to get through it. It was very tiresome being forced to learn Italian along with the character. I found no intrigue, no suspense until the very end. I miss story types like "The Firm" and "Pelican Brief". This was you last chance John; I'm not wasting my money again.

Rating:
Summary: Really good stuff here, folks.
Review: If it ain't broke . . . well, you know the rest. And folks, this one ISN'T broken. As a matter of fact, this is probably the best Grisham to come out in years. For those that didn't like THE LAST JUROR, I'm truly sorry, but I do understand. JUROR fit into a category not like the rest of Grisham's works-more like BARK OF THE DOGWOOD or Kidd's SECRET LIFE OF BEES than his courtroom thriller. Oh,well. While this isn't the typical Grisham read, I was genuinely pleased with the overall tone of the story. While one does get the sense that the author is more concerned than usual (and perhaps to the detriment of a truly pulse pounding plot) with relating personal observation/experience - this latest Grisham will not disappoint.

Rating:
Summary: Must read but not a good one
Review: If you are a Grisham fan, you have to read this book. He has written some great novels in the past and that forces you to want to read The Broker. Problem is, its not very good.

In a 350 page book, Grisham spent nearly 200 pages developing the character. There was a weak storyline built in to those pages but it wasn't until the last 100 pages that he half drew you into the story. At that point it picked up a little in pace. The end of the book was OK but far from spectacular.

Since I have read every other Grisham book, I had to read this one and I'm sure I will read the next. As for the review, if you are a new Grisham reader, don't start with The Broker.

Rating:
Summary: Grisham needs to review some of his better work.
Review: Okay, considering the fact that I finished it in a night and usually only reserve this honor for something truly engrossing (the fact was that there was nothing on on a Sunday night), it wasn't bad. But while I was perfectly enchanted with the Clancy-esque idea of dangling a parolee out as bait to find out what country wanted him dead the most (and by doing so, find out what country got shafted by him at the height of his power), Grisham didn't do a very good job of unraveling the web of this plot. The immersion in Italian culture aspect of the story was wonderfully written, which may be a product of his recent non-suspense efforts, but his sense of climax and closure is barely a tenth of what it used to be. The ending is a pretty big let-down, and is hardly above the threshhold of the old "suspension of disbelief" yardstick. I don't want to give anything away (not that there is a whole heckuva lot to give away in this anticlimactic disappointment), so I'll leave my review with this: enjoy the buildup, enjoy the body, but be prepared to have a bad taste left in your mouth once you read the final 30 pages.

It's worth a read, but for god's sake, don't pay full price for this hardcover.

Rating:
Summary: Did you read what I read?
Review: The books I read most recently by John Grisham were Skipping Christmas and Bleachers. The first title I found amusing. But the latter title I thought was a waste of my time. And if I thought it was a waste to me, I wondered why Grisham bothered to write it. Well, if I felt that way about Bleachers, it is nothing in comparison to the way I felt about The Broker. I will admit that its been some time since I read a Grisham book on the order of what he's been known for, but like falling off a horse and getting back on afterwards, I thought that after a couple of pages I would be on familiar territory. To be honest, the first few chapters were OK but then it became all too clear that something was very wrong with this book. And that was, that for a suspense book, there was little suspense. And if I was really forthright, the book was downright boring. But since I always try to look for the good in all books I will say that one aspcet of this book did spark my interest. It was the long walks in Bologna, Italy and a bit of information about some of the sights that at least kept my eyes on the page. But in the end, I thought that perhaps Mr. Grisham is applying as a writer for the Fodor guide books or to be a tour leader next summer.

I don't want to reiterate what many have already said about this plot but just in case you know little about the theme I offer you this condensed version. A power broker released from jail on a presidential pardon has secrets that can't be revealed. So at the hands of the US government, the broker is spirited away from prison by the United States governemnt and placed in Italy where he is supposed to go underground. While news of his pardon reaches the rest of the world, those that have conceived this pardon are hopeful that somebody else will kill him before what he knows can leak out. Naturally the broker is way too crafty for this to happen. But by the time he catches on to what may happen to him and is being pursued by many countries, I was already wishing the book would end. What could have been a really good book like the Robert Ludlum or John LeCarre novels, never got off the ground and when it did, it landed with a flop. It was at best mediocre and if anybody but John Grisham tried having this published, they'd most likely have the manuscript for wallpaper. In the end I read and read and surely thought that there would be some redeeming value. But all there was, was great relief that this book was finally over and I could move on to another book.

Rating:
Summary: Thrilling
Review: The Broker is an exciting, action packed fiction and page-turner of the top class. I found it as enjoyable as most of his previous titles. I enjoyed this book as a good thriller which left me on the edge of my seat. The characters are masterfully depicted, and so too is the plot. John Grisham's portrayal of international conniving, espionage, conspiracies, betrayal, corruption in government, mystery, suspense, murder and sex are the ingredients that put this book amongst his best. With the fastness of the pace, any reader will certainly finish the book before he/she realizes it. As someone who lived in Europe and Italy in particular, John Grisham's tItalian setting was perfect. I also loved the way he wrote about food in the book.


The fact that international espionage is not his field, I give credit to Grisham for making this story remarkably believable. Even though it wasn't entirely credible, it had a lot of credibility. I recommend this book to any thriller fan.

I also recommend: DISCIPLES OF FORTUNE, THE BOURNE IDENTITY

Rating:
Summary: The Broker represents Grisham broken!
Review: This is not representative of John Grisham's best work. While the book was a typical Grisham page turner, I found parts of it to be laborious and not interesting to read. The first part of the book was interesting while the last several chapters were convoluted, difficult to navigate and seemingly rushed. The descriptions of Italy and the restaurants were entertaining. There were too many named characters (Joel's children, ex-wives, employees, partners, enemies)who truly added nothing to the storyline and served no purpose. Some characters in the story are undeveloped. Their purpose, I suppose, is to establish intrigue and a sense of terrorism. It was difficult to feel sympathy for a main character who is an adulter, liar, cheater, and selfish felon. His level of intelligence and desire to learn a foreign language at age 52 was however admirable. The end of the book was a disappointment. Perhaps this character will appear in future Grisham novels and I will grow to like him.