• The Summons

  • By: John Grisham
  • Narrated by: Michael Beck
  • Length: 8 hrs and 47 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (2,041 ratings)

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The Summons  By  cover art

The Summons

By: John Grisham
Narrated by: Michael Beck
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Publisher's summary

Ray Atlee is a professor of law at the University of Virginia. He's 43, newly single, and still enduring the aftershocks of a surprise divorce. He has a younger brother, Forrest, who redefines the notion of a family's black sheep.

And he has a father, a very sick old man who lives alone in the ancestral home in Clanton, Mississippi. He is known to all as Judge Atlee, a beloved and powerful official who has towered over local law and politics for 40 years. No longer on the bench, the Judge has withdrawn to the Atlee mansion and become a recluse. With the end in sight, Judge Atlee issues a summons for both sons to return home to Clanton, to discuss the details of his estate. It is typed by the Judge himself, on his handsome old stationery, and gives the date and time for Ray and Forrest to appear in his study.

Ray reluctantly heads south, to his hometown, to the place where he grew up, which he prefers now to avoid. But the family meeting does not take place. The Judge dies too soon, and in doing so leaves behind a shocking secret known only to Ray.

And perhaps someone else.

©2002 Belfry Holdings, Inc. (P)2002 Random House, Inc., Random House Audio, a Division of Random House, Inc.

What listeners say about The Summons

Average customer ratings
Overall
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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

Uninteresting

John Grisham is not writing the exciting, interesting books he once did. I gave him one more chance this time & was again disappointed.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Suspense

I don't understand why so many people have given this book bad ratings. I thought it was excellent. It's a well-written story, full of suspense. I think maybe it would have been better received if it weren't written by Grisham, whose readers probably have different expectations of what his books should be like.

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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Slow and Tedious

I found The Summons to be slow, unremarkable, wordy. It may be good for you but not for me.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

Only if you really can't find anything else.......

Really slow, really boring, very uncomplicated plot, uninteresting characters. Really not his best.......

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

there are better grishom novels

I found the book to be slow and uneventful, I didn't really care about the characters. This is definately not one of the better Grishom novels.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

The Summons

What can I say...John is a great writer. His books draw you in and keep you there.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Grishim at his Best

Until the very end this book has you guessing.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Not A Big Fan !

I have experienced many Grisham books and was diappointed in The Summons. I found the story long and uneventful, I just wanted it to be over so I could start on a new "good" book. Unfortunately I feel Mr. Grisham has lapsed into a formula that no longer fulfills my entertainment requirements.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

The Summons

Well written and an easy book for listening pleasure.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

It tastes like Grisham

Great read (listen)! Another great legal mystery with dysfunctional familial relationships. Grisham weaves a great story and ends with an open ending.

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