THE JUDGE'S LIST (B PB): John Grisham’s latest breathtaking bestseller

Very good gripping storyline

Expected thrills from Grisham. Racy reading, although the inhuman cruelty of the protagonist seems somewhat exaggerated.

The king of legal thrillers is back with the second book in the Whistler series and this one has been an engrossing read and left me speechless. After the protagonist Lacy Stoltz was introduced in 'The Whistler' in 2016, she has taken up an investigative role at the Board of Judicial Conduct (BJC) for Florida after facing a near-death row during her previous assignment. Her job involves investigating complaints received against judiciary lawyers and judges involved in corrupt practices through whistleblower communication. This time, the complaint begins with an anonymous call from one Margie (an alias), who has gathered circumstantial evidence over a period of 20 years on several murders committed by a sitting circuit judge in Pensacola. The complainant is petrified about any harm coming her way and therefore wants Lacy to keep her identity hidden for as long as possible. Being a circuit judge, Margie firmly believes that he would have enough clout and influence over the state and county police that her name would be divulged putting her life at risk and this is also the reason why she wants Lacy to discreetly investigate for more evidences before the law enforcement agencies can be called upon. Margie's motive behind this grievance is to seek justice for her father's death 20 years back at the hands of judge Ross Bannick. Lacy reluctantly accepts the case, although murders investigations are outside the purview of BJC with an agreement that if their investigation can find merit to Margie's claims within 45 days, the case would be handed over to the police and FBI or it would be dismissed. The first twist in the plot is when a couple of more killings are reported and the modus operandi is found to be similar to the ones Margie had claimed in her dossier. The second ugly turn in the plot is when Judge Ross Banick is tipped off by someone that BJC is secretly investigating him for murders. This jolts Judge Ross's confidence that his acts of gruesome killings over two decades would never come into the light. However, he is smart, manipulative and with technologically advanced resources at his behest, he traces back the origin of the complaint to Margie (real name Jeri Crosby). He is determined to punish all those who have wronged him in his yesteryear's and there would be no stopping even though he might be on the watchlist of BJC's investigative team and FBI. Although what happens next would be anyone's guess, brace yourself for some pacy twists and turns along the way with an ending that was not expected and one that pulled the rugs off my feet. This book can be read as a stand-alone and is downright entertaining. Hoping to see more of Lacy Stoltz in the future works by John Grisham.

A goos story punctuated by Grisham's description of jacking, which is laughable and juvenile - the judge can hack any police department and government body at will - that too by a 'program' which as almost human characteristics. The author needs to either brush up on tech and/or cross-verify with someone who knows tech & computers, or exclude it altogether.Putting all that aside, there's the likeable protagonist Lacy Stoltz, who investigates a murderous, scary judge. Overall an engaging read apart from the hacking cringefest.

JOHN GRISHAM HAS CURVED OUT A LARGE SPACE FOR HIMSELF AS ONE OF THE FINEST PRESENT DAY AMERICAN WRITERS, SPECIALLY ON THRILLERS AND RELATED LEGAL MATTERS. HE IS ABLE TO CAPTURE THE ATTENTION OF THE READER NOT JUST BY TAKING HIM THROUGH UNEEXPECTED TWISTS AND TURNS OF EVENTS BUT ALSO GETTING HIM ABSORBED AS A PARTICIPANT. BUT OCCASIONALLY, HIS STYLE SLACKENS AND THE PLOT BECOMES PREDICTABLE, AS IN THIS CASE .

Typical Grisham style narrative. Gripping. Great storyline. A judge with grudge! And the method to kill without a trace! Enjoyed this!

Absolutely brilliant, very well written. Making a Hero out of a villain is not easy, but done it. Thanks for the pleasure

A sitting judge does not have motives enough to justify so many killings and end up the way he does. Any way a gripping story till the end. The work of the daughter whose father was an unfortunate victim is remarkable.

buen "plot"

This book is very good. Interesting storyline. Great characters. Very well written by the greatest author of crime mysteries. Highly recommend it 👌.

Gostei do livro

John Grisham is pretty much the owner of his own niche of books: the legal thriller. There are many other authors who write this type of book, but it is Grisham who stands at the very top. Almost forty legal thriller novels, over 300 million books in print, etc. From the first one published in 1989, his legal thrillers have gone number one consistently. He's so good as an author, at plotting, at character building, at dialogue, at velocity, etc., he's the master.He most often will take a specific subject, in this latest outing, serial killers who are also sitting judges, research the subject thoroughly, and weave the facts and context and motivations into a story which draws us deeper and deeper with each paragraph. This latest, "The Judge's List," is, in my opinion, one of his best. To be writing at his best after 40 years on the job says a lot about how truly skilled he is.Grisham gives us Lacy Stoltz, an experienced investigator at the Board of Judicial Conduct in Florida, a backwater, sleepy agency which investigates complaints against judges. She gets a cold call from Jeri Crosby, whose father was killed 20 years ago. She has spent those 20 years tracking down her father's killer, and has discovered that the killer has killed at least ten other victims, using the exact same technique: a blunt instrument to the head, and a nylon rope tied around the neck with a unique knot at the end. Crosby believes the killer is a sitting judge; she files a complaint against the judge with Lacy, who is obligated by law to investigate all complaints. Thus, Grisham sets up an intriguing story—Lacy involves the various agencies and instruments of state, local and federal government to investigate and ultimately reveal the judge's crimes. How they unite and work together, how they track the judge, how they almost get killed by the judge, and how they ultimately solve the case, is Grisham at his best.When Grisham has wandered into fields outside the legal thriller neighborhood, such as his sports books and his young adult books, I felt that he was good, but not great. With every one of his legal thrillers, I always felt like I was reading the master. And so it is with "The Judge's List," Grisham at his best, giving us exactly what we want in a legal thriller. Can't wait for his next one.

I pre ordered this book because I'm a collector, but sat on it when it arrived because I thought the 1st Lacy Stoltz book The Whistler was a 6 or 7/10. Finally read it and I'm kicking myself because it is a belter. The synopsis doesn't do it justice. Really fab narrative throughout and not a bad ending in terms of satisfaction. Great read.