RIP John Grisham
No John Grisham isn’t dead – but he might as well be.
Years and years ago, a John Grisham novel was what really got me into reading. At that point all I read was Enid Blyton books and Archie comics.
I remember my dad giving me Grishams “The Client” to read, and I absolutely loved it. I remember then going to the movies to watch the movie based on the book the same day I finished reading it. I remember really fond memories of that day, as it was the first time I’d read a book then seen it on the big screen in action.
I quickly read every other John Grisham novel, and became a huge fan of his. I could actually tell you where I read each book for the first time. The Firm, for example. I remember reading that book on a Saturday evening while eating Chips & Curry Sauce. I stayed up all night till 8am to finish it. I went to sleep, then woke up around 5pm and went to the Abronhill Shopping Center, where I rented the movie, and also bought myself more Chips & Curry Sauce.
I go back and read that book at least once a year, and every time I get a huge craving for chips & curry sauce.
Unfortunately, John Grishams books have changed recently. Gone are the “thriller” parts to them, or stories that you can really relate to, or just can’t stop reading. Now every Grisham book quite honestly is a chore to get to.
His last good book was The King of Torts, which ironically was probably his best book. Just an amazing story that went at such a rapid pace.
Since then, things have gone downhill yet I have continued to purchase them and read them.
Bleachers: Just terrible.
The Last Juror: Average at best. Very bland for the most part.
The Broker: I don’t remember this one too well so will have to go back and read it. But one thing the early Grisham novels were – was memorable.
Playing for Pizza: Lame.
The Appeal: Nauseating as all hell. It felt like Grisham had a political opinion to tell and decided to write a book about it.
The Associate: NOTHING FUCKING HAPPENED IN THIS. It just keeps building and then just fizzles out.
Finally, The Confession. I bought this on the day it came out, and started it a few days ago. I had to push myself through to the end. It was just dull as dishwater, and yet another book where you felt it was just propaganda for Grishams opinion on something. Just a boring boring book, all the characters are bland.
So with that, it’s time to take John Grisham off my “must buy” author list. Sorry John – but you’ve lost it.
For those curious, here’s my “must-buy” list – where I will have novels pre-ordered the second they are announced from any of these authors:
- Joseph Finder
- Lee Child
- Linwood Barclay
- Vince Flynn
- Irvine Welsh
- James Patterson(Womens Murder Club, Alex Cross only)
I’ve got a list of new authors to try, and I am going to start with Ben Coes, a new author highly recommended by Vince Flynn. His book is Power Down.
Also I convinced my wife to start reading Joseph Finder. She was finding Company Man slow for awhile then absolutely fucking loved it. Seriously Finder is the man and his stories are amazing. I just hope the creation of a repeating character like Nick Heller doesn’t hurt his future books, but I think it might.