Rating: 
Summary: I Don't Believe It
Review: While this book does a great job of brining certain characters to life, specifically Robbie Feaver and Evon Miller, I found a great deal of the key plot elements to be completely unbelievable. Unfortunately, I can't say too much without giving too much away.I also found it a little disconcerting that the novel was narrarated in the first person, but did very little to develop the character of the first person narrarator.
Rating: 
Summary: Exquisite character study; sometimes difficult in audio
Review: Scott Turow does what some may consider to be the impossible: paint a personal injury lawyer, warts and all, as a sympathetic, even heroic character. The lawyer, Robbie Feaver, is a chronic liar of apparently sociopathic proportions. From our moral high ground, we may move to quickly dismiss him, but Turow deftly and subtly peels away layer after layer to show us the nobility at the core of Robbie's soul. Other characters are also well developed in the yarn, but Feaver is a masterpiece. The plot is of moderate complexity, especially for readers (such as myself) who do not have legal fiction flowing in their veins. For us, there is a lot of educational value here. Details about how FBI undercover operations are handled administratively are especially enlightening. This novel reeks of diligent research. This unabridged audio version is read by smoky-voiced Ken Howard, whose New Yorkish accent is perfect for the cynical Feaver character. Other characters are executed with varying verisimilitude, and in general the reading is a good one. The action does bog down occasionally, and it's easy to zone out while listening and miss something important.
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Summary: Is Evon Miller Really Mormon?
Review: Robbie Feaver is a corrupt young lawyer in Turow's fictional Kindle County, and he is drawn by the authorities into a sting against some dishonest judges. His FBI minder is Evon Miller (not her real name.) Part of her cover story is that she is a Mormon, so she ostentatiously refuses to use coffee, tea, and alcohol in public. It turns out that in her real life Evon doesn't consider herself a Mormon although her father was and she was raised as one as a child. (Turow writes that in her private life she has as consolations "her church and her choir"--whether this is in fact an LDS church Turow never makes clear.) It turns out that Evon struggles with homosexuality, as well as self-doubt and lonliness. She could be dismissed as just another fashionably lesbian character in a best-selling novel, but Turow manages with great empathy to make her into an individual, not a sterotype. She is quite a moving character. Her Mormonness is not depicted with much depth, however. Turow equates Mormonism exclusively with sexual and social repression--at times, it seems she might as well have grown up Amish. "Personal Injuries" is a terrific novel, perhaps his best since "Presumed Innocent." It can be read on several levels: Feaver could be Gatsby and George Mason, the narrator, could be Nick. Or it could be read as caustic commentary on the political scandals of the Clinton years. Feaver is Bill Clinton, the likable but amoral rogue, and Stan Sennett, the ruthless prosecutor, is Ken Starr (the action begins in Fall 1992, the time of Clinton's election.) It is intricately plotted as usual by Turow, with some dandy surprises. And it turns into a heroic love story, with the putative lowlife Feaver cleansed by the refiner's fire of adversity. Not just a legal thriller like those of the lame John Grisham, it is a serious novel about people trying to transform themselves and change their lives. And although Evon Miller is a fine, touching creation, she isn't a very convincing Mormon.
Rating:
Summary: great writing, characters, and plot weaker on plot turns
Review: This is a terrific character study with a strong, captivating plot. It is also thought provoking in terms of the prosecutorial amorality of the criminal justice system. My only disappointment was that it did not have the plot twists and shocks that are found in typical mysteries or other legal thrillers --including several of Mr. Turow's other works.
Rating:
Summary: Primo
Review: This is another book that, based on less than glowing reviews, I held off reading 'til now. I am so sorry I didn't get it hot off the press! The main character, Robbie Feaver, is a high-rolling Personal Injury lawyer with a roving eye and ego to match, a Mercedes, lovely home, and terminally ill wife whom he loves dearly. All of Robbie's success comes to a screeching halt when the IRS and U. S. Attorney come down hard on him for bribing judges. Of course, it's the judges the Government really wants, and Robbie has no choice but to become their confidential informant. The U. S. Attorney running the case is as ruthless as they come, perfectly willing to spend enormous sums of money and force his star witness into increasingly dangerous situations to secure the evidence to get his convictions. ......................Similarly, when it looks like he can't get any more deeply into trouble, he does. Yet, he is a supremely sympathetic character and I found myself rooting for him all the way, wanting him to find a way out of the hole he'd dug himself into and turn his life around. This was a complex story with very real, multi-layered, empathetic characters and an all around wonderful read.
Rating: 
Summary: Audio Cassette by Ken Howard is Awful
Review: I like to listen to books on the way to work and this one is a real sleeper. I struggled to stay focused on the plot and characters as the monotone Howard read the words... I ended up rewinding the cassette too often to understand the plot and characters and understand just who was speaking. Don't waste your time on this one.
Rating:
Summary: A sympathetic portrayal of human failings
Review: Turow's work here shows an impressive maturity in portraying the ostensibly shallow Robbie Feaver as a complex character. We're introduced to a classic slickmeister lawyer who we ultimately come to know as a multilayered and sympathetic human being. Fine writing set against the background of an involving legal sting operation! I think it's Turow's best.
Rating:
Summary: Thank you, Scott Turow!
Review: Scott Turow has been my favorite writer of legal thrillers ever since Presumed Innocent--in fact, no one else even comes close. After reading Personal Injuries, I'm forced to question whether he isn't my favorite contemporary writer, period. He's got it all: superb characterization, intricate plotting, whiplash suspense, and exploration of complex moral issues. With each of Turow's new novels, I've been afraid that I'll finally be disappointed. It hasn't happened yet. Once more, I'm fascinated by the diverse responses of Amazon readers. Have we really all read the same book? Boring? Personal Injuries was thought-provoking, deeply moving, and utterly enthralling.
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Summary: An excellent novel from one of the masters os Legal Thriller
Review: First, I don't know how to review a book that you can't describe with simple words. Scott Turow is one of those rare authors that knows how to handle the craft of writing perfectly well. More than just a good plot, Scott Turow's legal thrillers books have very well developed characters. All of his characteres are completely flawless. But not to the meaning that they are perfect human beings - much to the contrary, what's interesting is that the good people are not that good and that the bad have often more to be discovered about than you think they have - , but that his characters invariably are deep people. They have self-wish and complex ideas and thoughts. That's what makes Scott Turow's characters differents of the #1 legal thriller author John Grisham - and I still wonder why he is so famous, since his books are nothing more than caricatures and books outlines or wanna-be-books. The sum of good plot and wonderful characters couldn't result in anything different than an excellent book. And that's what Scott writes: excellent and entertaining books that you read and feel satisfied and glad for having done it. I'd highly recommend another wonderful legal thriller author: Lisa Scottoline. Her books are just amazing. Marco Aurelio
Rating:
Summary: Kindle County Jurisprudence
Review: An excellent story, written in descriptive dialogue and educative phrases from the point of view of George Mason, Robbie Feaver's attorney. Feaver was caught getting favorable judgements in personal injury cases and is asked to "wear a wire" in lieu of prosecution, to catch the corrupt judges, especially the ringleader, Brendan Tuohey. This book took a while to read, slower than most, but the writing was so concise and full of meaning that slower speed was required for me to savor it. Feaver was an indeliably drawn character, complex, charming, humorous, clever and intelligent. The F.B.I. agent assigned to him, Evon Miller, has her own secrets and the interplay between Feaver and Miller was priceless. This was an honest effort that really displays Turow's skill as a novelist. I now plan on reading Laws of Our Fathers which got mixed reviews like this book.
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