The Racketeer

By: John Grisham

Narrated by: JD Jackson

Length: 12 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

Given the importance of what they do, and the controversies that often surround them, and the violent people they sometimes confront, it is remarkable that in the history of this country only four active federal judges have been murdered.

Judge Raymond Fawcett has just become number five.

Who is the Racketeer? And what does he have to do with the judge’s untimely demise? His name, for the moment, is Malcolm Bannister. Job status? Former attorney. Current residence? The Federal Prison Camp near Frostburg, Maryland.

On paper, Malcolm’s situation isn’t looking too good these days, but he’s got an ace up his sleeve. He knows who killed Judge Fawcett, and he knows why. The judge’s body was found in his remote lakeside cabin. There was no forced entry, no struggle, just two dead bodies: Judge Fawcett and his young secretary. And one large, state-of-the-art, extremely secure safe, opened and emptied.

What was in the safe? The FBI would love to know. And Malcolm Bannister would love to tell them. But everything has a price—especially information as explosive as the sequence of events that led to Judge Fawcett’s death. And the Racketeer wasn’t born yesterday....

Nothing is as it seems and everything’s fair game in this wickedly clever new novel from John Grisham, the undisputed master of the legal thriller.

©2012 Belfry Holdings, Inc. (P)2012 Random House Audio

meh

it was alright. I got pulled in at the beginning, then lost interest, although I finished it!

Not My Favorite. . .

I'm a huge Grisholm fan. That said, I downloaded this book as soon as it was available. I liked that you never really knew what was going to happen. That was fun. What I didn't like was the endless preaching about how BAD the government is. If I want a lecture on that, I can just watch the evening news! It was also hard to tell who the good guys were. It was an OK book, but not Grisholm's best by far. Just my opinion. . .

Another John Grisham mystery

Loved the intrigue. Kept me guessing till the end. Every character well developed and surprising. Will read more of his.

Grabbed My Attention From Beginning To End!

What made the experience of listening to The Racketeer the most enjoyable?

It is a well written easy to understand story read by a great narrator. I had not heard J. D. Jackson read before. From the start he had a very clear and strong voice that took command of the story as if it was indeed his very own experience.

What did you like best about this story?

The story is written as a first person narrative. Thus it was easy to follow along. Too often Books are written with too many characters and too many scene changes. This makes for a lot of confusion in the beginning of many books.

What does J.D. Jackson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

As I stated above, he has a strong articulate voice that gives strength to the main character. The story is very well written and J.D. Jackson elevates it and the listener thinks that he is indeed the actual main character.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

No.

Any additional comments?

A great story with a great finish. You won't regret selecting this book.

Loved the book

What did you love best about The Racketeer?

At first I thought the voice of JD was too slow, but then I loved it. I enjoyed the twists in the book and was kept wondering until the end as to what ta hell was going on. :) read it..

Good story, boring reader

Delivery was painstakingly slow, unexciting, and monotonous. It was difficult to stick with it, I nearly gave up several times; it was truly one of those sunk cost scenarios.

Glad I listened

I haven't read/listened to a Grisham novel is a while and I'm glad I did. Good story that kept me guessing, very good character development and satisfying conclusion. J.D. Jackson nailed the performance.

A sloppy Grisham Thriller...

Would you try another book from John Grisham and/or J.D. Jackson?

Of course -- I ALWAYS buy Grisham's books...

What could John Grisham have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

He could have had his book edited by a competent editor...

It STILL drives me NUTS that the MATH didn't work out with the selling of the gold bars -- either he sold 100 for $122,000 or 50 for half that...

NOT 50 for $122,000 TOTAL at $1,220 an ounce...

This was brought up again at the END of the book -- and the SAME mistake was made...

I cannot OVERLOOK errors like this and I've STOPPED reading other author's books for MUCH less...

Come on Grisham -- Don't put out SLOPPY work anymore...

Grisham is Back!

So glad I downloaded this. I just couldn't put it down once I got started. Just when I thought I had it figured out, there were twists and turns that made it so well worth the listen. The last few Grisham's were good just not great. The Racketeer is great!! J.D. Jackson will be on my favorite reader list - he did a superb job.

Okay story....slow in the middle....okay ending

It's still Grisham, so the writing is very good, but the story lacked action or suspense.
There was a long slow middle that really didn't seem to have a lot to do with the story.
Then when we get answers, they seem to hurry though them.
Would not recommend to read, but okay to listen to.