Rating: 
Summary: Decent, but definitely far from great
Review: With The Summons, Grisham is back with his traditional lawyer-based genre -- at least tangentially with judges and lawyers making up some of the main characters. A professor at the University of Virginia Law School and son of a legendary judge from a small town in Mississippi is summoned by his dying father to return to his hometown for a discussion of his last wishes. He arrives to find his father had already died and unexpectedly left behind three million dollars in cash. While the law and the courts provide a backdrop for the story, the professions of the characters are not necessarily essential to the story. In reality, this is a novel about life in the small-town South, strained family relationships, battles with drug and alcohol abuse, greed, and the intoxicating effect of large sums of money. Although plodding at times, the story is generally good enough to lead the reader to keep going. It is, however, not nearly as good as some of the vintage legal thrillers done by Grisham early in his career. Don't expect greatness with this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Very Disappointing
Review: I am a big Grisham fan, so looked forward to his new book. I did finish it, but mostly because I had nothing else to read. There are no appealing characters in this novel - not much suspense. I didn't really care who came out ahead.... Don't bother. His earlier books are much better.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointment
Review: I couldn't believe how this book ended. I like "A Painted House" and hoped to have a similar reponse to this book...a slow beginning, middle I became interested and intrigued...but when I got to the last chapter I couldn't believe it...I felt cheated...what a cheap way to end the story---or was it to set up a sequel? I won't buy it. Terribly disappointed...
Rating: 
Summary: Stinky Summons
Review: What a predictable book!
The "Ghost Writer" for this novel needs to be fired!
Don't waste your money!
Rating:
Summary: Good summer lightweight reading
Review: I found this book to be an enjoyable, summer lightweight read. It doesn't have a "save the world" plot with James Bond-sized villains, but it was fun to read. I don't know what people expect from Grisham; people seem to think that an author's name is the same as a brand name, and you will always get exactly the same experience. Still, save your money and buy the paperback. Great reading for up at the cabin, etc., where its slow pace will be appreciated.
Rating:
Summary: LOST MY FIRST AND LAST CHAPTER
Review: I HAVE ALL OF GRISHAMS BOOKS EVEN THE PAINTED HOUSE AND SKIPPNG X-MAS, THIS STARTING WITH ANOTHER BOOK AND ENDING WITH ANOTHER BOOK, LOST ME, I WAS SO DISAPOINTED, I RUSHED TO BUY THIS BOOK THINKING HE HAD GOTTEN BACK IN TO THE GROVE OF WRITING, BUT I GUESS NOT. GET TOGETHER JOHN,PLEASE
Rating: 
Summary: One of His Best
Review: I have read every Grisham book, and rate this among the best. I couldn't put it down, and spent an entire Saturday, much to my wife's chagrin, reading it till I finished. Perhaps I am a bit biased in that I am a University of Virginia graduate (1960) and was familiar with the narrative's parts that took place in Charlottesville, and am also very familiar with the people, places, food, and mores of the parts of Mississippi he describes vividly. The plot was captivating, and contrary to some of the other reviewers, I thought the ending was one of poetic justice, and just about perfect.
Rating:
Summary: Don't waste your time
Review: I'm sorry, but this was one of the worst books I've ever read. Usually I like John Grisham books, and I was looking forward to reading this when it came out. The story was slow, nothing really happened, and the ending is so predictable that you want to ask for your money back. This could've been a good book, but the plot never developed.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointed
Review: Contrived ending. Would give this book 0 stars, but limited by system. Story did not hold together. I am a Grisham fan and may not ever read any new stories by him. Has he run out of stories? Now only doing it for the money?
Rating:
Summary: Grisham is slipping
Review: For fans of John Grisham' books the Firm and other early books, this is a MAJOR let down. The story drags on and on and it seems like it will never end. The only redeeming grace is the ending, but even that is weak by early Grisham standards.
I hope Mr Grisham gets back to his early style, if not, I am not reading any more.
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