The Associate

A Novel

By: John Grisham

Narrated by: Erik Singer

Length: 10 hrs and 49 mins

Publisher's Summary

Number one New York Times best seller.

If you thought Mitch McDeere was in trouble in The Firm, wait until you meet Kyle McAvoy, The Associate.

Kyle McAvoy grew up in his father’s small-town law office in York, Pennsylvania. He excelled in college, was elected editor-in-chief of The Yale Law Journal, and his future has limitless potential.

But Kyle has a secret, a dark one, an episode from college that he has tried to forget. The secret, though, falls into the hands of the wrong people, and Kyle is forced to take a job he doesn’t want - even though it’s a job most law students can only dream about.

Three months after leaving Yale, Kyle becomes an associate at the largest law firm in the world, where, in addition to practicing law, he is expected to lie, steal, and take part in a scheme that could send him to prison, if not get him killed.

With an unforgettable cast of characters and villains - from Baxter Tate, a drug-addled trust fund kid and possible rapist, to Dale, a pretty but seemingly quiet former math teacher who shares Kyle’s “cubicle” at the law firm, to two of the most powerful and fiercely competitive defense contractors in the country - and featuring all the twists and turns that have made John Grisham the most popular storyteller in the world, The Associate is vintage Grisham.

©2009 Belfry Holdings, Inc (P)2009 Random House Audio

Good, but not nearly as good as The Firm"

Great beginning - really appreciated the description of the horrid routine of the'big time' law firm associate...
story line/plot is somewhat flat and not particularly complicated - lacks thrilling impending-danger moments
Grisham's endings (as in "The Appeal" also)are beginning to dissappoint an avid fiction reader -
much too realistic and not gratifying!

The Associate

The last few Grisham books all seem to be rushed at the end--like he is trying to finish it to get it to the publisher. As a result, several key issues in the story line are unresolved. It was good until the last few hours--then is was predictable and frustrating.

John Grisham should be ashamed

The plot was a stretch but most of the book was well written and the view of a big time law firm was interesting. The books hums along merrily, building to a climax and then just ends.

To go through all that writing and neglect to write an ending is inexcusable. It felt like a "rip-off." Certainly the worst Grisham book ever and possibly one of the most disappointing audio books ever.

I always thought publishers had editors who helped writers recognize their deficiencies. Guess not. Did anyone read this book before putting it in print? The publisher is equally guilty. They should all be ashamed of themselves.

Save your money.

Great story, ending leaves you wanting

This is a great John Grisham story that is set in the high-paced world of a top Wall Street law firm. Much of the action takes place in Manhattan. I found the story more engrossing than last year's Grisham book, The Appeal (but to be fair, I have a huge personal fascination with Wall Street). Kyle McAvoy is caught up in a situation that seems implausible but is written in a fairly believable manner by Grisham. However, as with so many Grisham novels, the ending fall flat and leaves you wanting. It builds and builds and as you near the end you realize the ending is just going to dissipate like a mist (mainly because you can look and see how much time is left in the recording!). However's Grisham strength is always the story as a whole, and he is not known for his mind-blowing ending like an author such as Harlan Coben. Overall, I definitely recommend this. The change from the small town country lawyer is a nice mix-up of styles. With a better ending I think I could put it among his best, but that aspect places it mid-pack.

....But for the Ending

This book is not as bad as some reviewers would have you believe. I thought this book was much better than some of his more recent books, especially the ones that strayed from the "law theme. This book moves quite fast and I had a hard time putting it down. I though it was a great read, but Grisham does wimp out and the story ends too abruptly. There was plenty of story left to tell. Despite the sudden ending, I am very glad to have read it. The reviewers who gave the book just 1 or 2 stars are overreacting to the ending. Just because you don't like the destination doesn't mean that the journey isn't worth taking.

Where's part II

What is it with Grisham and his endings?
Just when you really get into the story and the characters, the story just ends. I love how Grisham tells a story and builds the character from the ground up.But just when this chartacter was getting in over his head, I started to think ahead to all the directions he could or might take and all the other characters that could or would help him in some way. The story was reaching a high point and I looked down and I was on the last chapter and thought, "there's going to be a part TWO but guess what? Bam! the story ends. It's as if he has a certain number of books to write and he gets tired of the story so he writes a quick ending. Will give serious thought to getting his next book so quick. Will wait till others have reviewed it so as to possibly save myself a credit. I give it 2 stars because its a great Part I

Vintage Grisham

Grisham demonstrates his mastery of the genre, indeed he created it.

In this novel, another take on the "make a deal with the devil" theme, Grisham writes from the inside out, so we get a window on the wide range of ambivalent feelings and situations from the protagonist's point of view.

And, nice to read a Grisham without the southern lawyer story line.

I should have known better

After 1 hour I have given up on this book. It was not worth wasting even that much time. Formulaic and boring.

John leaves us hanging

Initially, I was so excited listening to this book and kept telling my wife how much she would enjoy it. Great plot, interesting characters, good insight into a large law firm. However, it left me hanging at the end -it wasn't finished, the ending left so much unanswered I felt like the author ran into a deadline and gave up writing. Only a few of the minor plot lines were resolved and even if this was deliberate so he has the basis for his next book, "The Partner", I am so upset to have invested 10+ hours of listening for the pathetic ending that I don't think I will buy the next book.
5 stars for the first 10.5 hours
0 stars for the last 20 minutes

Terrible...

This book was a waste of time and money. Did I mention terrible ending? Well, it had a TERRIBLE ending. "Blah, blah, blah" or "they lived happily ever after" would have worked better.