Rating: 
Summary: Well written, but not exactly a page turner....
Review: This is my second Grisham book. I read The Testament and liked it well enough. Grisham is a good writer in that he has a formula that he's mastered, but alas, after reading The Brethren the only words that come to my mind were, "and the point was?" The plot could have had a lot more twists and turns. This book is not a must read, but it'll do in a pinch.
Rating: 
Summary: Grisham at his weakest
Review: I've read every Grisham and this is the worst since "The Chamber." If this had been his second novel instead of "The Firm," he'd still be practicing law. This book is pointless, full of holes and has no suspense. Unlike the best of Grisham there's no one to root for. I'll keep reading Grisham but I start waiting for the paperbacks.
Rating:
Summary: Frank Muller Wins This Case!
Review: You might call this a legal brief - a bit less involved than most Grisham fare, but a fun way to pass the time nonetheless. Or *do* the time... The brethren consists of three imprisoned ex-judges in a white-collar institution who concoct an intricate blackmail scheme that preys on wealthy, closeted gay men. Posing as "Ricky," a young, lonely homosexual in rehab, the judges turn out not to be such great judges of character when they end up penpalling with the wrong man.Then there's breezy Congressman Aaron Lake, a political puppet shucking and jiving to the tune of CIA Director, Teddy Maynard. Maynard is grooming Lake for the presidency - once housed at 1600 Pennsylvania, Lake will sit back and let Maynard's CIA run the country. Lake seems perfect: he is relatively young, handsome, well-spoken, is malleable and squeaky clean. Or is he? You see where this is going... so did I, but it was a lot of fun listening to the seemingly unconnected plotlines, trying to guess when the two worlds would collide. This book is deliciously fraught with mud-slinging presidential campaign ads, international intrigue, dirty lawyers on the take, suicide and murder, false love letters, and money... lots and lots of money. Unlike some of Grisham's heavier, more message-laden books (A Time To Kill, or The Rainmaker) The Brethren is written just to entertain. The reader, Frank Muller, does an excellent job. He expertly handles playing several characters without overdoing it; you can tell the difference between the speakers without being distracted by a showboating acting performance. Muller is the winner of several awards for his audio book performances, and it's easy to tell why with this reading. This is not Grisham's best work (I loved The Runaway Jury, and The Firm), nor his weakest (I struggled through The Testament, and The Street Lawyer). It's a steady, sturdy pot-boiling thriller right up till the end. With all the crosses and double-crosses, surprises and gotchas, I expected a big, blockbuster shoot-em up climax. I was disappointed. The Brethren ends not with a bang, but a whimper. It's downright criminal.
Rating:
Summary: A good read for a long flight
Review: I generally like Grisham's books. This was good as well. I was somewhat disapointed in the ending - thought he could have tied it up a little better. There were a few loose ends hanging. If you have never read Grisham before I recommend some of his earlier work first, but if you are getting on a long flight and need something to read, this will make the time go by faster.
Rating:
Summary: The Brethren
Review: A total waste of valuable reading time. Not a likeable character in the whole book, with each acting out a role in a positively outrageous plot. And then the book just ends, with all of these nasty people coming out winners. I wish I had read the amazon.com customer reviews before throwing my money away on this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Suspend your disbelief and enjoy!
Review: Although the premise of the book may be a bit far-fetched, it is still entertaining. Two parallel plots are presented at the beginning. Three judges who have been incarcerated in a minimum security prison are working a scam through a homosexual want ad. At the same time, the head of the CIA is manipulating his anti-war candidate into the White House. For awhile the reader is made to wonder what these plots have in common, but Grisham in his inimitable fashion finally does connect them. His ending is a bit weak, but this book still intrigues and entertains.
Rating:
Summary: superb intrigue - disappointing end
Review: This is a novel which intrigue will get a solid grip on you; at least until the last 10 pages. Throughout the novel the plot was tight, intriguing, and entertaining, keeping you reading and wondering how so-and-so were to get out of such-and-such a mess. But Grisham must have gotten tired toward the end as he leaves the characters in somewhat of a novelistic limbo, each getting off far too easily in my opinion. Nonetheless, this is indeed a good read, despite the ending. Well worth the few hours I spent plowing through it, truly unable to put it down.
Rating:
Summary: Another Enjoyable Read by Grisham
Review: Although this novel wasn't as action-packed and thrilling as many of Grisham's others, it was entertaining nonetheless. Grisham takes the reader through a maze of money laundering and mail fraud. Makes you wonder if a situation like this could ever really happen? It's not completely far-fetched...and that is what makes Grisham's novels so readable. They're believable. You can almost picture yourself in the prison with these scheming judges writing letters to closet gays. Props to Grisham for another goodie.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing fare
Review: Only die hard Grisham fans like me can read through this book. The plot is very weak, the story telling, save for some occasional flashes of Grisham one is used to, is bland and the ending is boring. You can't identify with any of the characters. All are crooked. The pace is excruciatingly slow and the climax is weak. All in all - disappointing fare.
Rating:
Summary: SCRIPT FOR ANOTHER MOVIE
Review: Despite it's imposing length ... this Grisham movie script is a fine read. But the key is not to put it down for longer than a week ... then it becomes a strain to remember who's who.
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