The Testament, by John Grisham

Reviewed by: The Blind Monkey
Saturday, March 27, 1999

Now we all know that a Grisham novel isn’t gonna change the world. As far as legal-eagle thrillers go, Grisham writes pretty puffy stuff. So I’m not here to tell you he can write a practice thriller like Richard North Patterson or Brad Meltzer… but that southern boy sure can turn a tale!

In his latest, The Testament, Grisham takes us on a jolting journey — through the cut-throat litigation of the Washington elite, to the exotic wasteland of the Brazilian swamps, to the quiet beauty of snow-covered Maine. This Monkey especially enjoyed the trip down the dangerous Brazilian Paraguay river, a place that I’ve been hoping to visit for an adventure. Now, you may not know this, but the Monkey has a German roommie that spends most of his time in Brazil, and I’ve been fantasizing about a trip to…

but I digress. Back to the story.

Testament introduces us to Troy Phelan, the 10th richest man in the world. A greedy, eccentric, self-made egotist confined to a wheelchair and (not-so) patiently planning his death. His heirs are circling like vultures, anxiously awaiting their anticipated fortunes and attacking each other in their fight for a bigger piece of the 11 Billion-dollar pie.

But when Troy plummets to his death after hastily signing a surprise handwritten holographic will, the search is on for the single heir of this massive fortune.

Enter our hero: Nate O’Reily. A streetwise high-octane Washington malpractice lawyer fresh out of rehab, nursing his wounds from his second failed marriage, and desperately trying to stay two steps ahead of the IRS. The most pathetic excuse you can imagine for a hero, Nate is sent to the Brazilian jungle to find this mystery woman and fend off the vultures before the rest of the family realizes that they don’t have a dime.

Although his legal maneuvering once again appeals to the lowest common denominator of reader intelligence, I find that this is precisely why I enjoy his novels. You know you can read it in 3 evenings or less, the characters are full of frailty and good-intentions, the plot twists are creative and entertaining, and the setting serves as the primary source of fiction. And with The Testament, Grisham finally ventures outside the sleepy south (I live in Atlanta, I can say these things) to provide a sense of adventure and escape… although he does throw in a touch of New Orleans to keep him from straying too far from his roots.

So if you’re in the mood for an easy and enjoyable read, with one or two surprises waiting in the wings, cast aside your intellectual snobbery and let Grisham entertain once again.

Hardcover – 435 pages (February 2, 1999) Doubleday; ISBN: 0385493800; Dimensions (in inches): 1.60 x 9.58 x 6.65