The King of Torts

Maybe it’s because I’ve read some “high class” literature now (although I’m still hardly “well-read”), but some of this novel felt shallow and predictable. It was obvious from the minute J Clay Carter II (I still can’t believe what some parents inflict upon their children) started to make astronomical amounts of money that at some point it would all fall apart.

Enthralling, fun and the right thing happens in the end.

It feels like heresy to categorise John Grisham as "fluff", but really...

Another Grisham book ticked off my list. I don't remember having read this one before. The author has blended his usual mix of courtroom drama, rich lawyers and powerful companies in this novel. It will have you hooked until the last page.

I actually preferred this novel to The Street Lawyer which I also read recently. I didn't like the way that Grisham had focused on charity/benevolent work amongst the homeless almost as a selfish pursuit for the young lawyer to find himself. This novel, however, was different--it is totally secular with no real mention of faith/God or anything similar. Sometimes it is better not to try and mix the spiritual with the secular unless you are going to be accurate and ensure you represent the right show more principles.

This novel tells the story of Clay, a young lawyer struggling to make a name for himself at a little known firm. He is approached apparently randomly by a man who promises riches and fame if he follows his instructions to the letter. The requirements seem at first to be ethical and Clay is drawn into the web. He becomes a millionaire and the King of Torts leading mass civil litigation where-ever it exists. But it all seems a little too good to be true.......

The biblical principles in this novel are obvious. The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. The rich man went away sad when Jesus suggested he should give up his wealth. Another man stored up wealth in barns but was called a fool when God took his life and he wasn't prepared to meet his Maker. We are told not to love the world or anything in the world. There are numerous warnings about those who choose money over God. Even from a less religious perspective we know that absolute power corrupts absolutely....

Most people are chasing money in some form or another. The point that this novel makes is that even when one gains more of it than they know what to do with. They will not be happy. It brings out the consequences in terms of friendships, relationships, health and just generally the emptiness of a life focused on temporary things that will be worthless in eternity.

This is a good book for those who believe that if they get that promotion, that new house, that new car or whatever it might be, it will satisfy. It won't.

There is some bad language and violence but nothing graphic. There are sexual inferences and some lude remarks but again not graphic.

What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world yet loses his own soul. show less

I know, I know. I should have grown out of Grisham years ago and I did really but sometimes I forget and think maybe this time he's recaptured that trick he used to suck me into his first book so completely. Alas, with this one, he has not. I did read it to the end but bascially, I knew the plot before I got to page 25. Lawyer is basically good human but gets greedy, feels bad, goes down in flames, gets the girl and learns his lesson.

3769. The King of Torts, by John Grisham (read 16 July 2003) This is the 13th book of Grisham's I've read. This book has all of the things I dislike about Grisham's books. The lawyers are nearly all despicable; the central character shows no moral sense at all, betraying his criminal client to make millions. The picture painted of class action plaintiffs' lawyers is very negative. The book is without a hero, the plot is rickety and inane and the characters unlikeable. And the main character, like most of Grisham's principal characters, quits the practice of law at the end. This is not a good book, but is readable for the sake of seeing how it comes out.

Meh. I was disappointed with this one. I wasn't expecting great literature, but past experience had led me to believe I'd at least get an interesting story with some likable characters. It's the tale of Clay Carter, a public defender who gets an unusual opportunity to file a class action claim against a big company. (I guess that falls under the category of tort law. Hence the title.) Clay is a likable fellow, but makes some bad choices. Very obvious bad choices. But, hey, you have to have some conflict, right? I figured we'd end up with a little redemption, a little turn around. Well, it was little all right. I really should have just reread The Last Juror or The Testament.
--J.

The King of Torts, read by Dennis Boutsikaris, is incredible fun. I read this after reading "Sycamore row", a much deeper and multi-layered novel, and despite the very different, almost light-hearted tone, and the much quicker pace (maybe because of the abridged version), this is another fantastic read. Yes there is not much character development, but I think that was a choice. The plot moves very fast, it has a great rhythm, and you learn about the world of class action torts in the process.
While Sycamore is more about various types of lawyers, but at its core it focuses on the good that a great lawyer can do, King of Torts focuses on the bad that a greedy lawyer can do. Oh, so bad. To society, to innocent people, and to other lawyers. show more And the great protagonist, as always with Grisham, is money: Sycamore is about money and its complex influence on many lives, Torts is about money and the destructive power of greed. Read it, it's a great book. show less

Once again, John Grisham makes the normally dry/tedious genre of legal fiction into an inventive and thrilling read. I was surprised by the amount of insight given to the profession of a tort lawyer. This one will probably divide readers, the whole conspiracy can be kind of unbelievable, but I was completely entertained.