Search - The Brethren

The premise here was enormously fun: three aging, disgraced judges serving time in a minimum security federal prison concoct a mail scam to extort money from unsuspecting victims. Their little scheme is succeeding quite well, slowly building enough money to give them hope that perhaps there is life after prison. When it turns out that one of the victims of the mail scam is the front-runner in the upcoming presidential election, things get very interesting and suddenly the three inmates realize they have far more power than they thought.

You'll be hooked within the first chapter. Grisham has a great sense of humor and it shows in this book, both in the characters and in the dialog.

I was never a Grisham fan, but this made me become one! Loved the book, loved the ending!

John Grisham is a master storyteller. This book is a romp in prison. Three corrupt judges, doing time, dream up a brilliant extortion scam. This book will have you rolling in the floor laughing at times. But these good old boys are deadly serious as they discover the perfect victim! A very entertaining book! There are quite a few surprises here. You will be grinning or gasping with each chapter. If you haven't read this one yet, don't wait any longer!

I have read everything written by John Grisham but could not finish this book. It did not hold my interest long enough to really get into it for long, and I found myself having to re-read portions to get back into it when I picked it up again. Not much going on there for me.

Probably one of Grisham's most far-out-there books that I've read. Completely different story than usual. Three convicted Judges in jail pulling off schemes...Definitely worth the read.

They call themselves the Brethren: three disgraced former judges doing time in a Florida federal prison. One was sent up for tax evasion. Another, for skimming bingo profits. And the third, for a career-ending druken joyride. Meeting daily in the prison law library, taking exercise walks in their boxer shorts, these judges-turned felons can reminisce about old court cases, dispense a little jailhouse justice, and contemplate where their lives went wrong.

Or they can use their time in prison to get very rich - very fast.

From Publishers Weekly
Only a few megaselling authors of popular fiction deviate dramatically from formula--most notably Stephen King but recently Grisham, too. He's serializing a literary novel, A Painted House, in the Oxford American; his last thriller (The Testament) emphasized spirituality as intensely as suspense; and his deeply absorbing new novel dispenses with a staple not only of his own work but of most commercial fiction: the hero. The novel does feature three antiheroes of a sort, the brethren of the title, judges serving time in a federal prison in Florida for white-collar offenses. They're a hard bunch to root for, though, as their main activity behind bars is running a blackmail scheme in which they bait, hook and squeeze wealthy, closeted gay men through a magazine ad supposedly placed by "Ricky," a young incarcerated gay looking for companionship. Then there's the two-bit alcoholic attorney who's abetting them by running their mail and depositing their dirty profits in an overseas bank. Scarcely more appealing is the big fish the trio snare, Congressman Anthony Lake, who meanwhile is busy selling his lifelong integrity when the director of the CIA offers to lever him into the White House in exchange for a doubling of federal defense spending upon Lake's inauguration. The expertly orchestrated and very complex plot follows these evildoers through their illicit enterprises, devoting considerable attention to the CIA's staging of Lake's presidential campaign and even more to that agency's potentially lethal pursuit of the brethren once it learns that the three are threatening to out candidate Lake. Every personage in this novel lies, cheats, steals and/or kills, and while Grisham's fans may miss the stalwart lawyer-heroes and David vs. Goliath slant of his earlier work, all will be captivated by this clever thriller that presents as crisp a cast as he's yet devised, and as grippingly sardonic yet bitingly moral a scenario as he's ever imagined. Agent, David Gernert. 2.8 million first printing. (Feb. 1)

This book takes place in a prison. Who is in control? Was a great read and very interesting.

This book was very entertaining. I have read many of John Grisham's books and this is one of my favorites.

Typical Grisham. It was a better than average read but not a book I'll read again. Formulaic but still entertaining thriller about crooked judges.

Interesting book. Took me awhile to get into it. It's a good, light read. To me, not what I expect from John Grisham.

#1 New York Times Bestseller, a tale of 3 disgraced former judges doing time in a Florida federal prison. Very entertaining novel!

meh. john grisham was better when he was hungry and thoughtful. i find his recent work to be dull, slow-moving, uninventive and preachy.

Three disgraced former judges doing time, despense a little jailhouse justice and get very rich.

Good book.

i'm not the biggest grishman fan - i like his hits (the firm, runaway jury), and am ambivalent about his misses (the gingerbread man)...this fell somewhere in between for me.

Good book.