The Appeal: A Novel

A typical, quick John Grisham read. Not as riveting as many of his works, but still interesting to those of us whose professional life touches the political world because we live in a state that elects its judges. Is it realistic? Not completely. The rate at which appeals and political campaigns move in the real world make the sort of machinations set out in the book unlikely. In all other respects, however, it is an accurate depiction of that which is involved in mass torte litigation.

A multi-national industrial company is found guilty of causing a death through their pollution of a small town's water supply and damages of over $40M are awarded. Many other families in the town with dead or dying loved ones are now also planning to sue. The company uses unethical, immoral, but always legal, or borderline legal, methods to get the guilty verdict overturned on appeal. The CEO also uses the situation to manipulate the financial markets to vastly increase his own wealth.

This is a book that Grisham wanted, perhaps even needed, to write. Is it a book that should have been published? The book is almost completely taken up with the mechanics of how the company goes about achieving its aims and could almost be read as an instruction manual on how to buy influence at the highest political and judicial levels of the United States.

The key objective here is to show that the practice of electing judges and other key officials will inevitably lead to political interference at best and corruption at worst. If a judge's election campaign is orchestrated and paid for by a third party, how can that judge be impartial in any proceedings involving that third party? Especially when the involvement in the campaign is kept secret? Corruption in politics and business is taken as a given here. Or, at least, that winning and money are the only things these parts of society think about.

The book moves along at a good pace and is very readable. You can take away the good story, but you are still left with good writing. This is more suited to those looking for a god polemic rather than those looking for a satisfying story.

I used to read Grisham thrillers as soon as they came out. But at about no 10 I stopped because they just stopped being as satisfying as they had been. And "The Appeal" is a good example of that. It was just OK but not really very thrilling. And the end although sadly realistic was a real downer.
So while I think I will try to complete Grisham one day, it will not be a priority.

Pretty good legal thriller, but I wasn't satisfied with the ending.

A good but disturbing book about how the justice system can be bought.

Very cliched plot and characters, simple prose, rather two-dimensional, but oddly compelling.

Complex storyline.

Very good book... captivating from the beginning and with an unexpected ending... I recommend it. (Translated from Spanish)

Bob recommended this. Not great writing but a helluva nasty story of right-wing, conservative groups being manipulated and manipulating elections for the state Supreme Court of Mississippi (and, around the country) for the benefit of the worst of the corporate bad guys (polluters) -- pretending it's for their conservative causes. It is essentially the same scenario of extremely big money paying for, and never letting up, on witch hunts. For example, in very real life, the Mellon Scaife money against Clinton, and the current insanity with Dr. Orly Taitz and Obama's birth certificate.

I'm giving it 2.5-3 stars after some debate--because the ending is very un-Grisham-like in my opinion--though probably accurate to real life. The rating shown may differ depending on whether the site this is on allows half star ratings.

I start all books with an average rating and then add and subtract based on the book itself.

The pluses for this book:
*The Paytons (See below for more explanation)
*The first section kept me entertained. (The second section had some highlights too.)
*Fisk does seem to be a family man with some beliefs that I do admire.

The minuses for this book:
*The second section had parts about the judicial election that dragged for me.
*Fisk gets caught up in the politics-rather than ruling on the law, he rules based on his platform
*The ending



WARNING: Spoilers may follow. Read on at your own discretion.
*****


I liked the Paytons. They seem like a loving husband and wife and dedicated lawyers. They seem to really care about the people they're representing. Maybe that comes from Mrs. Payton growing up there, maybe that comes from something else. I don't know many lawyers who'd be willing to go $400K in hock (and have to declare bankruptcy) just to litigate for a client. I found it kind of ironic that they are what Fisk's campaign team painted Fisk and his family as.

Vintage Grisham would have had Trudeau facing the music at the end. Perhaps that expected ending is why Grisham changed it up. We do get the sense that Fisk is rethinking some of his stances--perhaps he will end up being more like the lady he replaced and trying to do the right thing rather than just blindly ruling based on the platform that got him elected.

I wonder if there's another book out there that tells us what happens. Does Josh recover? And how much? Does Fisk sue, as others are urging him to (or maybe his wife should)?

I'm generally a Grisham fan and this one was ok. It did seem to drag on and on and on and on but the story, in its entirety, was a good one.

This reading will adjust the idea that people with economic resources in life think that everything can be bought, and thus they achieve everything in times of crisis, while people with low resources have to navigate against the tide.

The injustice and economic imbalance are found in this story where a businessman does whatever it takes to maintain the reputation of his company and level out his "good name" as a person.

I recommend it for its interesting parallels to our Latin American reality. (Translated from Spanish)

The author explores the process of electing judges and how that can be manipulated to determine a judicial outcome. Interesting look at the process, but a little too over the top with bad characters and character development.

The protagonist of the book is very clever; he does not want to lose his money. (Translated from Spanish)

As I mentioned, when I read the synopsis of this book, I loved it, and it truly did not disappoint me in the slightest. Of course, I expected a story full of ups and downs and moments of constant tension, but it wasn’t like that; in fact, the story remains quite flat, so to speak. Even so, it kept me quite entertained since more than the appeal and the final verdict, the plot offers numerous situations that, separately, make the story very interesting. Not to mention the characters, as they all have compelling personalities, and as a reader, you always want to know more about them and their lives. ##### SPOILER ALERT #####

I’ve heard bad reviews of this book, and I imagine that’s due to the ending since it is, by no means, a happy ending. What it is, however, is an unexpected and even somewhat tragic ending, so to speak, but in my opinion, it was perfect as I’ve spent a lot of time reading books with happy endings, and it’s nice to read something different that refreshes the mind. I clarify that this is not a story filled with action, but rather a very intelligent and well-planned story, ideal for readers like me who enjoy reflecting on the situations presented and analyzing the facts. I dare say this book is intended for a very specific readership, and perhaps that’s why it has received bad reviews, but I liked it, and I definitely recommend it, and of course, I would read it again. This is my opinion, but as I always say: read the book, judge for yourselves, and leave me your opinion in a comment. You know I’m always eager to read them. (Translated from Spanish)

John Grisham, an author whose brilliant novels I have enjoyed several times. This time, with "The Appeal," I reaffirm my taste for the genre since the work is in line with what the author usually provides. It's a plot almost filled with suspense where the fate of a few unfortunate individuals means nothing to the magnates who buy positions and consciences with their money to manipulate any potential legal ruling against their selfish interests. It reflects the reality behind the dark dealings of corrupt politicians and venal judges. Any resemblance to Colombian reality is purely coincidental. Although the author clarifies at the end that the novel is pure fiction, it seems inspired by the scandals of the "Toga Cartel" in Colombia or those of Odebrecht, which are so prevalent in the current political landscape of South America.
A book to reflect on corruption. Fiction or not, it is an overwhelming reality on a global level. (Translated from Spanish)

Not one of my favorite Grisham books. The beginning premise reminded me of "Erin Brockovich". It was interesting to see how the political game is played and how people are bought. This book really didn't hold my attention and I found it hard to get through it.

A company, with total irresponsibility and impunity, causes the pollution of a city's waters, resulting in most of its inhabitants falling ill with cancer. This company receives a guilty verdict and is obligated to pay more than forty million dollars in damages, but is unwilling to part with a single cent. Buying influence, rigged elections, judge candidates controlled by large companies, all to secure votes in favor of their own interests. A recommended work, it faithfully reflects the reality of legal systems almost everywhere in the world. It demonstrates that, in the end, money can overcome everything. As a reader, I expected a "dream" ending, but this book shows the harsh reality of life. Recommended, especially for those of us who dedicate ourselves to the world of law. (Translated from Spanish)

Novel number 19 by John Grisham is like a sort of "Pelican Brief" at the state level or how the election of a judge influences a court of appeals. In this book, there is a chemical company that loses an important trial at first instance and how it influences the choice of who will decide on the appeal. It is not one of the books I have liked the most by this author; perhaps after reading so many, it is harder for one to be surprised. (Translated from Spanish)

I’m not the biggest fan of John Grisham, and it has been years since I last read anything from him. Reading The Appeal reminded me why I’m not a fan of John Grisham, despite the author’s immense success. For starters, as an author, the best I can say about the skill level of his writing is that he’s a mediocre writer, and that’s being kind. Specifically, I didn’t care for the constant point of view shifts that made it difficult to follow, and the generally sloppy narration. But that is not nearly as bad as the complete lack of believability.

I get that this is a work of fiction. However, it’s fiction that is grounded in reality, yet it’s so outlandish that it’s more fantasy than legal drama. First off, there’s this thing called the EPA, and if Crane Chemical was as egregious as they were made out to be, the EPA would shut them down in about 3.5 seconds. Second, the handling of the stock price of Crane Chemical rising and falling was laughable as a lifelong investor in the stock market. Third, the generic evil corporate titan, Carl Trudeau, could not possibly ever own eighty percent of the stock of a Fortune 500 publicly traded company.

Where else did this novel fall short? I am so tired of the generic, evil, soulless corporate entity. It is so utterly cliché in novels of all stripes. Authors, please get some originality. Carl Trudeau is a pathetic, one dimensional cartoonish character. Grisham clearly has an axe to grind. So much of this novel felt preachy and he would go off on his bully pulpit beating down his positions that he made very clear. The one positive is that I did enjoy the whole race for the state Supreme Court. It was the one bright spot in the novel.

Carl Alves – author of Blood Street

This was a depressing, tedious story that went on too long about a chemical firm's unscrupulous pollution, causing cancer in an entire community. Grisham's apparent intent (spoiler alert) was to frame a situation where big business slid out of its liability for causing death and breaking laws. The real story here was about the egregious election of a supreme court justice.

Here was a great theme that should have formed the story: the idiocy of private donations, untraceable to the big business from whence these arrive, influencing which justice sits on the bench. Instead, we, the Readers, are bogged down for over 2/3rds of the novel with scene setting, all to demonstrate that the current American process to fill judicial positions is thoroughly corrupt. In the final author's note, Grisham admits this fact (that election of judges is a war of finances and competing interests with no focus on qualifications or experience.) Perhaps a timely story for me to reread (2017), reflective of the way the 45th president was elected, huh?

Whilst not quite as good as The Broker it was still a good tale of litigation, seedy campaign finance and greed.

Towards the end you get the feeling how it's going to end however the ending is not quite as expected, which is always nice.

A Mississippi town becomes a "cancer cluster" thanks to irresponsible toxic waste dumping by a chemical company that has since pulled up roots in the area. Several high value law suits are filed by small town lawyers, and the initial verdict is a windfall, with many more cases to follow.

This is a tale of them getting squashed by big money, big industry, and their lobbying dollars.

In orchestrating their success, the chemical company, their egomaniacal owner, and out-of-state political interests combine to rig the appeal from the ground-up, going as far as to arrange the replacement of a potentially sympathetic state supreme court justice with a owned puppet. As he is wont to do, Grisham gives us hope -- the puppet suddenly finds himself in the position of victim when his son suffers brain injury from an ball hit from a metal bat that had been recalled because of safety concerns. But in the end, the puppet masters get what they want, and the reader is just left pissed off that even such a hypothetical situation could conceivably happen. Kudos to Grisham for making it seem so plausible.

Didn't enjoy this book but it does highlight how corruptive the legal system is.

A well written book that keep you changing sides for who you want to see come out on top. It's the mark of a good writer who can engage you into both sides. (Spoiler alert) Not the feel-good fairy tale ending that the author seemed to be setting you up for; that would have been too cliche'; but more like reality so kudos there.

This book made me question my own political leanings and which party I will likely vote for in the future. I don't know if that was Grisham's intention, but it's a very interesting (and a little sad) book.

This was a great read as all of John Grisham's novels are and have been! There were a few there that weren't so great so I stopped reading them and then I recently ran into The Racketeer...and guess what? They are getting back to great! Woo Hoo! I love this author and highly recommend him to anybody who likes lawyer, crime, court and murder books. Like James Patterson (not lawyer, but crime) and Brad Metzer! Both great recommend authors!

This is the first Grisham book I ve read for a while.
Story is a small town law firm sue a big evil empire. They win and are awarded damages. The big evil empire appeal and are very sneaky.
The main part of this story is how the company that was sued is very clever in buying votes and getting their own people elected into the court.
To be honest even though there are alot of characters and its a long process I enjoyed this book . The end was a surprise.

Like all Grisham books, I enjoyed this one: looking forward to getting back to it, and not wanting to stop while reading. This book reminded me of the last few Tom Clancy novels, but with a polar message: Tom Clancy's book represented liberals as unethical scum of the earth, while Grisham's novel thought conservatives were the cause all of our problems. The ending depressed me.

Nasty corporate polluters, struggling lawyers, corrupt judges in the Deep South. Yup, typical Grisham. I liked this one less than usual.