Rating: 
Summary: I'll take the long winding road
Review: This was one of the few books I have read in recent years that made an indelible mark on my soul. I was prepared for the usual quick, absorbing but light, read of a typical Grisham novel, but this one is different. It delves into depths of the human heart and psyche in such a personal and universal fashion that everyone who has lived a rich life can relate to it. It is a story of healing and deliverance and ultimate peace, and who isn't looking for that? However, this is no feel-good, pat answer, pop novel. The "gold" is felt from realizing the struggle required from every human on the road to personal discovery and true fulfillment. It also has inspired a new passion for me; traveling. After reading this book, I am suddenly aware of my own desire to seek out the unknown, whether in some far-away exotic locale or just in my own daily life. Sounds extreme? This, in my opinion, is an extreme novel. Extreme in its daring, but authentic quest for ultimate truth and subsequent peace that cannot be found any other way but the long way.
Rating:
Summary: Fast, Funny, And Riveting
Review: The realism, though stylized and delightfully contrived and slightly melodramatic, is palpable. Greed overcomes a pack of very human lawyers and their respective clients, the heirs of a billionaire who executes a will bequeathing them a fortune, then moments later commits suicide on video tape. Immediately the spending begins as the assembly of losers sped their newfound wealth.
Not so fat, there is a twist and turn, and finally, another heir deep in the wetlands of Brazil, an humble missionary, and the protagonist, a fallen attorney, facing tax evasion charges and his own demons with drugs and alcohol, is dispatched to find her.
This he does with great adventure an some truly hilarious narrative. Thereafter, many of the chapters are predictable and the outcome slowly becomes foreseeable, too. It is a slight disappointment, however the fireworks and delightful legal wrangling keep the pages turning.
What is troubling with this novel is some of the glaring errors about litigation and other routine facts that I wonder if are included by editors and not the author who of course, is a lawyer himself. Despite the inaccuracies, this book is a joy to read and quite exciting as well as humorous.
There is at points, a heavy handed religious subplot that gets somewhat maudlin and is also over sanitized as not to, I assume, offend any specific denomination, but it belongs in the story and is palatable in this context.
A good, fast read, well written and extremely entertaining, the author had his groove back!
Rating:
Summary: Great read!
Review: Very fascinating story that was well written. This is a great book!
Rating:
Summary: I was very surprised . . .
Review: I really didn't know anything about this book, so I was expecting the typical John Grisham tale - greedy people with even greedier lawyers and good courtroom drama. Those elements are there in good measure, but the real story takes place deep in Brazil with Nate O'Riley, a burned out, alcoholic lawyer who takes a soul-searching trip through the dangerous waters in the wild Pantanal. Why? To find an American missionary who had suddenly inherited billions of dollars from her late father's estate. Meanwhile, legal proceedings are immediately started by the other children of Troy Phelan to challenge the will. I've always thought of John Grisham as a good writer, but wow, he surprises me here. His story telling of Nate's journey, both physical and spiritual, is written masterfully. The reader is taken along for the ride with Nate and his guides as they try to navigate their way through very isolated rivers in hopes of finding the missionary. It is then through his eventual encounter with Rachel that Nate's life is changed forever.
Back in the States, the courtroom proceedings are classic Grisham - lots of greedy, corrupt characters to keep things juicy. It is an intriguing, thought-provoking story that has now become my favorite John Grisham novel.
Rating:
Summary: Integrity
Review: I have a habit of buying Grisham novels as soon as they come out in paper back. I let this one age a few years because I had reached the saturation point of reading Grisham. This one was all the more pleasant to read after an extended dry spell. Testament tells the story of the disposal of Troy Phelan's billions. His children have been circling like sharks waiting for the blessed day when Troy expires,which he manages to orchestrate with dramatic flair. Troy laughs from his grave watching lawyers predictably labor to carve themselves bigger pieces of the Phelan pie. Much to the surprise of children and lawyers Troy leaves his entire estate to unknown illegitimate daughter Rachel Lane, who works as a missionary to native tribes in the Pantanal district of Brazil. Recently rehabbed Lawyer Nate O'Riley is sent to locate Rachel and read her the will. This trip brings a metamorphic experience to the lawyer. Nate finds Rachel to be a person of such simple integrity with her belief in a higher being that he longs for the same. While I do not rate this as high as some of Grisham others, I found it to be an extremely enjoyable book. I particularly enjoyed the story of Nate's journey to Brazil.
Rating:
Summary: Pleasant Read
Review: To start with, I take issue to annmason1, who wrote the review "Hogie Sandwhich". She obviously has trouble with Grisham and his stories...why read him if you have so many hangups with the man's talent? I also must add that hogies down here in the south must be MUCH different than they are in the pacific northwest, because here in Dixie we pile on the meat.
And to be honest, southern-boy John Grisham did the same in this book-piled on the meat. I won't go so far as to say this is better, or even in the ballpark, with "The Firm" and "Pelican Brief", but it is on par with "The Client", "The Chamber", and "Runaway Jury".
There are moments in the book, as there are in ANY book, that people will look at as nothing but filler (or bread, as it where, since we are on this sandwhich kick at the moment). But as a whole, the story is well-written, superbly laid out, and flows easily from beginning to end.
If only ALL hogies sandwhiches could say that...
Rating: 
Summary: A tale of greed and finding your feet
Review: I love a book that demands attention on the very first page! Troy, a self-made billionaire, signs his last will and testament while his worthless ex-wives, children, and grandchildren hover like vultures waiting for him to die from his inoperable brain tumor. But Troy lets you in on a huge secret, and his children are not going to like it when they find out. Later, we meet Nate, a skilled court lawyer caught in an endless cycle of work, alcohol, and rehab. He's reached rock-bottom and his personal and professional lives are effectively over. Facing disbarment, and with his tail between his legs, Nate takes on one last case to help Troy's last will and testament "scheme" succeed; a case that will carry him deep into the jungles of Brazil in search of a woman that could very well change his life.
Rating: 
Summary: A Hogie Sandwich
Review: I didn't care for this book. It would have been much more interesting if it were two thirds the size. I mean, we GET IT ALREADY...that's one big SWAMP! But the main problem with The Testament is the weak character of Rachel Lane Porter. Grisham is not a good portrayer of women and he lives up to his standard here. Rachel is a flat, trite, unsympathetic dolt who would rather paddle her own leaky canoe to "help my people" than use 5 billion dollars to HELP her people! I don't get it, why is this shortsighted swampy martyr worth considering as an inspiration to Nate or anybody else? Turning down money that would seriously help lobby for, treat, preserve and protect Brazilian Indians just because,"I didn't earn the money" is a devise a fifth grader wouldn't design for a character. Does Grisham really think the reader will be touched by this nut? Rachel's mysterious hospital visit is a useless devise. What's the point of the secrecy? Who cares? So she can slip into a smelly ward unseen, stroke Nate's head and HEAL HIM, then disappear with no trace...what's the point? If Grisham meant to bestow miraculous powers on "Our Lady of the Swamp", he didn't follow up on it. This weak character reminds me of the equally vague and pointless young female clerk in "A Time to Kill." The personalities are different, but their purpose and character development are equally questionable. Why are they in the plot, why weren't they developed, and why were they dropped abruptly and without the slightest concern one way or the other by the reader? Like I said, Grisham doesn't understand women and employs female characters as disposable accessories to his central themes, never exploring or utilizing them effectively. It is true that Rachel leaves the money for good stuff (by default at her death), but here again,why didn't she leave the will with her lawyer instead of entrust it to a rusty box in the innards of a swamp with a hostile chief to dispense to someone who might or might not ever show up? How dumb can one woman be? So, this book is like a Hogie sandwich...some thin slices of meat- Troy, Sr. and Stafford, but otherwise, too much tasteless bread (the swamp, the church and fixing the basement- what was THAT about?), etc. High carb, time wasting junk food.
Rating:
Summary: Combination of legal thrill with adventure and touch of God
Review: In the testament, John Grisham cleverly combines legal thrill with an adventure into the jungles of Brazil and with an special touch of religious teachings. (How can the title "The Testament" be more appropriate?) Troy Phelan left a holographic will that bewildered his offspring, leaving them with nothing out of the eleven billion. With an exception, Rachel Lane his illegitimate daughter; who is serving as a missionary deep in the jungle of Brazil was given the fortune. Nate - a down-and-out lawyer who has been in and out of rehab several times was tasked with the arduous task and adventure to look for Rachel. This adventure gave him an opportunity to reflect deeply and finally with the help of Rachel found his renewed strength and self. This book probably received a lower rating as the mid-section was filled more with Nate's adventure in the waters of Brazil. There is not much suspense to the books as compared to the others, but the ending came quite as a surprise which nicely concluded the book. If you like an adventure, do pick this title. It's worth a read!
Rating:
Summary: A Pleasant Surprise
Review: After being told by countless people to read John Grisham's work I decided to take them up on the offer. This is the third book that I have read by him and the best so far. I really enjoyed it. In some of his other books (like the Client) the story isn't bad exactly...just reminiscent of a Lifetime Original Movie. After not really caring for my first Grisham book (The Client) I was a little skeptical due to the story as said before and the mass of unecessary legal jargon for the story that was told. I'm glad however that after reading that I read The Rainmaker and now The Testament because both were increasingly better than the previous book in my opinion. Though maybe not the best piece of writing I ever picked up I still give this book 4 stars for what it is. It is a pleasant read that still has some substance and doesn't follow the exact same formula as every other book out there. I would recommend this book to anyone as it is a sincerely good book that is definitely enjoyable w/ good character development and story in one package.
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