Customer Reviews
An interesting story of injustice - By: Mr. G. Moore, 19 Aug 2008 
After a long time of not having picked up a book by John Grisham, an author who probably suffers from overkill, I found this to be a pleasurable - & at the same time, a disturbingly unpleasurable - read. The story centres around Ron Williamson, a former baseball player with a reputation for drinking & womanising: not the most sympathetic character. Yet, Grisham turns out an engaging work of journalism.
My one criticism is that it does seem one-sided, with Grisham carrying out a hatchet job (if you pardon the pun) on many members of the Oklahama police, judiciary, etc for their partin Williamson's wrongful conviction. Grisham is probably right that Ron Williamson is a victim of an horrendous injustice. Unfortunately, we do not know because the book was sourced from those closest to Ron Williamson & the other exhonerated men. The strongest message to come from the book is that the death penalty can hardly be justified. It's a shame that we have to be told thisin the twenty-first century, but it's still a worthwhile read.
A valuable exposé - By: Lance Mitchell, 22 Jul 2008 
By now, there is no excuse for starting to read this book believing that it is written to Grisham's usual formula. This is not a brilliantly written legal thriller. It is an excellent piece of investigative journalism, & it is very clear that John Grisham has invested a huge amount of effort into his investigations.
He tells the true story of several wrongful convictions, concentrating mainly on the central character, Ron Williamson, who spends a considerable proportion of his life on death row &in other detention centres.
Grisham exposes the flawsin the American justice system, which is under constant pressure from the conviction-hungry public who will not allow the truth to standin the way of their passionate pursuit of somebody to blame for any heinous crime, who, whether innocent or guilty, will receive the heavy punishment that such a terrible criminal would deserve. This leads to deliberate, & institutional, incompetence amongst the investigators & the lawyers.
For me, the book is far too long. I think that Grisham could have condensed the results of his rigorous investigations into about half the pages that he has filled. It is clear, from early on, what the outcomes would be. However, it is a valuable exposé, & I hope that US citizens will use it as the basis for successful campaigns against injusticein The Land of the Free.
Innocent but Predictable - By: Tony, 02 Jul 2008 
Not John Grisham's usual but we know the result from the start. All the police are stupid & the accused & Grisham are wonderful.
I did not enjoy this but his next book, Playing for Pizza, was worse!
I loved his earlier books but he's having a problem. Good luck Mr. Grisham. get better!
Sad, but true - By: P. Horrex, 27 Jun 2008 
How could anyone so obviously innocent be found guilty & sentenced to death? If this had happened a century ago I could believe it, but we're talking the 80's here! The state of Oklahoma & the town & prosectutors of Ada should be ashamed. This book will bring you to tears, & is one of the best I have ever read. Buy it, read it, you wont be able to put it down.
The worst John Grisham I have ever read - By: Ed Taylor, 20 Jun 2008 
Ron Williamson was an average state level baseball player who thought he was better than his ability proved he was. He took to drinking, drugs & women & was surprised when as a lonely drinken drifter he returned to his home town & was charged with the rape & murder of a waitress 5 years before. There was sufficient evidence against him & his co-accused to secure a conviction. Was the conviction sound? This book doesn't have the answer. The Mirror said of this book "John Grisham has built his stunning writing career on producing brilliant fast moving utterly believable legal thrillers" He should stick to fiction because he does not have the skill of writing documentary style factual stories. The book is totally unbalanced & provides one man's side of the story - Ron Williamson's. Maybe there was a miscarraige of justice but this book is far too subjective & dismissive of the case against him. The apparent incompetance of the defence lawyers is matched only by John Grisham's own incompetance as a factual author.
