Fans of John Grisham’s earlier legal works should be pleased with this thriller set in the complex, greedy world of tort lawyers. You can’t help but like and hate the main character, lawyer J. Clay Carter II as he changes from a low paid but dedicated attorney in the D.C. Public Defender’s office to a high powered, freewheeling and greedy corporate lawyer. When the chance to cash in on 6 settlements for a new drug gone wrong lands in Carter’s lap, he is lured into the jet-setting life of other wealthy attorneys looking for quick settlements. Even though you may not approve of their motives, the tort world is fascinating and a great story. As Carter buys into the lifestyle with a personal jet and home in the Carribbean yet seems unconcerned about settlements for his clients, you want to shake him. But those who rise quickly can fall the same way and the novel ends in a satisfying way.
Lots of subplots, interesting characters and fast paced action keeps you on pins and needles until the end of the story. I think this is a four star book, not quite at the level of his earlier works (The Firm and Pelican Brief) , but a huge improvement over later works such as The Summons and The Brethren.

John Grisham began his writing career with a bang, publishing one great legal thriller after the next, a feat that brought him to the top of the publishing world very quickly. But in the last few years, his legal thrillers have been less than steller. Aside from his sweet, heartwarming A Painted House (which, ironically enough, was not a legal thriller), Grisham’s novels have been on the boring side. Now, he returns with his yearly offering, a fun little novel called The King of Torts, a novel that brings him once step closer to regaining his title of King of the legal thriller.

In the book, we find a young public defendent named Clay, who is given the opportunity to earn 15 million dollars with just a few months’s work. Soon enough, he is thrown into the world of mass litigation, where lawyers sue big corportations with thousands of claims. The millions start pouring in and Clay soon finds himself at the top of his game.

But what goes up must come down, a thing Clay does not seem to know. Halfway through the story, Clay realizes that he’s in way over his head.

In Clay, Grisham creates a character you will both love and hate. His rise to success his fun to watch, but his downfall is much more interesting. It’s the part in between that’s problematic. Because, while Clay is on top, he becomes so obssessed with money and fame that he becomes a character you will despise. It’s hard to like someone who’s complaining about life when they own a yacht, a million dollar house, a penthouse in the south, and their own 45$ million jet. So when his downfall arrives, it’s hard to feel sympathy for Clay.

The story is predictable, yet fun to read. Maybe the book would have been better had Clay been faced with harder, more problematic challenges and situations. As it is now, The King of Torts is a fund read that doesn’t require much involvement from its readers. A good beach novel, but not much more than that.