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The Pelican Brief: A Novel Kindle Edition
To Darby Shaw it was no more than a legal shot in the dark, a brilliant guess. To the Washington establishment it was political dynamite. Suddenly Darby is witness to a murder—a murder intended for her. Going underground, she finds there is only one person she can trust—an ambitious reporter after a newsbreak hotter than Watergate—to help her piece together the deadly puzzle. Somewhere between the bayous of Louisiana and the White House's inner sanctums, a violent cover-up is being engineered. For someone has read Darby's brief. Someone who will stop at nothing to destroy the evidence of an unthinkable crime.
Don’t miss John Grisham’s new book, THE EXCHANGE: AFTER THE FIRM!
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherAnchor
- Publication dateMarch 9, 2010
- File size5138 KB
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Editorial Reviews
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Review
"Grisham has done it again!"—Chicago Tribune.
"A fast-paced thriller…it's got the unmistakable Grisham style—conspiracy in high places, evil and innocent lawyers, assassins and a plot that will keep you reading into the small hours of the morning."—Cincinnati Post
“Superb drama . . . page-turning escapism at its best.”—New York Law Journal
“A first-class thriller.”—Chattanooga Times Free Press
“There is a propulsiveness to [Grisham’s] narrative that keeps the pages turning briskly.”—People
From the Paperback edition.
From the Inside Flap
From the Hardcover edition.
From the Back Cover
"Grisham has done it again!" -- Chicago Tribune.
"A fast-paced thriller... it's got the unmistakable Grisham style -- conspiracy in high places, evil and innocent lawyers, assassins and a plot that will keep you reading into the small hours of the morning." -- The Cincinnati Post.
About the Author
Grisham is a two-time winner of the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction and was honored with the Library of Congress Creative Achievement Award for Fiction.
When he's not writing, Grisham serves on the board of directors of the Innocence Project and of Centurion Ministries, two national organizations dedicated to exonerating those who have been wrongfully convicted. Much of his fiction explores deep-seated problems in our criminal justice system.
John lives on a farm in central Virginia.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
HE SEEMED INCAPABLE of creating such chaos, but much of what he saw below could be blamed on him. And that was fine. He was ninety-one, paralyzed, strapped in a wheelchair and hooked to oxygen. His second stroke seven years ago had almost finished him off, but Abraham Rosenberg was still alive and even with tubes in his nose his legal stick was bigger than the other eight. He was the only legend remaining on the Court, and the fact that he was still breathing irritated most of the mob below.
He sat in a small wheelchair in an office on the main floor of the Supreme Court Building. His feet touched the edge of the window, and he strained forward as the noise increased. He hated cops, but the sight of them standing in thick, neat lines was somewhat comforting. They stood straight and held ground as the mob of at least fifty thousand screamed for blood.
"Biggest crowd ever!" Rosenberg yelled at the window. He was almost deaf. Jason Kline, his senior law clerk, stood behind him. It was the first Monday in October, the opening day of the new term, and this had become a traditional celebration of the First Amendment. A glorious celebration. Rosenberg was thrilled. To him, freedom of speech meant freedom to riot.
"Are the Indians out there?" he asked loudly.
Jason Kline leaned closer to his right ear. "Yes!"
"With war paint?"
"Yes! In full battle dress."
"Are they dancing?"
"Yes!"
The Indians, the blacks, whites, browns, women, gays, tree lovers, Christians, abortion activists, Aryans, Nazis, atheists, hunters, animal lovers, white supremacists, black supremacists, tax protestors, loggers, farmers--it was a massive sea of protest. And the riot police gripped their black sticks.
"The Indians should love me!"
"I'm sure they do." Kline nodded and smiled at the frail little man with clenched fists. His ideology was simple; government over business, the individual over government, the environment over everything. And the Indians, give them whatever they want.
The heckling, praying, singing, chanting, and screaming grew louder, and the riot police inched closer together. The crowd was larger and rowdier than in recent years. Things were more tense. Violence had become common. Abortion clinics had been bombed. Doctors had been attacked and beaten. One was killed in Pensacola, gagged and bound into the fetal position and burned with acid. Street fights were weekly events. Churches and priests had been abused by militant gays. White supremacists operated from a dozen known, shadowy, paramilitary organizations, and had become bolder in their attacks on blacks, Hispanics, and Asians. Hatred was now America's favorite pastime.
And the Court, of course, was an easy target. Threats, serious ones, against the justices had increased tenfold since 1990. The Supreme Court police had tripled in size. At least two FBI agents were assigned to guard each justice, and another fifty were kept busy investigating threats.
"They hate me, don't they?" he said loudly, staring out the window.
"Yes, some of them do," Kline answered with amusement.
Rosenberg liked to hear that. He smiled and inhaled deeply. Eighty percent of the death threats were aimed at him.
"See any of those signs?" he asked. He was nearly blind.
"Quite a few."
"What do they say?"
"The usual. Death to Rosenberg. Retire Rosenberg. Cut Off the Oxygen."
"They've been waving those same damned signs for years. Why don't they get some new ones?"
The clerk did not answer. Abe should've retired years ago, but they would carry him out one day on a stretcher. His three law clerks did most of the research, but Rosenberg insisted on writing his own opinions. He did so with a heavy felt-tip marker and his words were scrawled across a white legal pad, much like a first-grader learning to write. Slow work, but with a lifetime appointment, who cared about time? The clerks proofed his opinions, and rarely found mistakes.
Rosenberg chuckled. "We oughta feed Runyan to the Indians." The Chief Justice was John Runyan, a tough conservative appointed by a Republican and hated by the Indians and most other minorities. Seven of the nine had been appointed by Republican Presidents. For fifteen years Rosenberg had been waiting for a Democrat in the White House. He wanted to quit, needed to quit, but he could not stomach the idea of a right-wing Runyan type taking his beloved seat.
He could wait. He could sit here in his wheelchair and breathe oxygen and protect the Indians, the blacks, the women, the poor, the handicapped, and the environment until he was a hundred and five. And not a single person in the world could do a damned thing about it, unless they killed him. And that wouldn't be such a bad idea either.
The great man's head nodded, then wobbled and rested on his shoulder. He was asleep again. Kline quietly stepped away, and returned to his research in the library. He would return in half an hour to check the oxygen and give Abe his pills.
THE OFFICE of the Chief Justice is on the main floor, and is larger and more ornate than the other eight. The outer office is used for small receptions and formal gatherings, and the inner office is where the Chief works.
The door to the inner office was closed, and the room was filled with the Chief, his three law clerks, the captain of the Supreme Court police, three FBI agents, and K. O. Lewis, deputy director, FBI. The mood was serious, and a serious effort was under way to ignore the noise from the streets below. It was difficult. The Chief and Lewis discussed the latest series of death threats, and everyone else just listened. The clerks took notes.
In the past sixty days, the Bureau had logged over two hundred threats, a new record. There was the usual assortment of "Bomb the Court!" threats, but many came with specifics--like names, cases, and issues.
Runyan made no effort to hide his anxiety. Working from a confidential FBI summary, he read the names of individuals and groups suspected of threats. The Klan, the Aryans, the Nazis, the Palestinians, the black separatists, the pro-lifers, the homophobics. Even the IRA. Everyone, it seemed, but the Rotarians and the Boy Scouts. A Middle East group backed by the Iranians had threatened blood on American soil in retaliation for the deaths of two justice ministers in Tehran. There was absolutely no evidence the murders were linked to the U.S. A new domestic terrorist unit of recent fame known as the Underground Army had killed a federal trial judge in Texas with a car bomb. No arrests had been made, but the UA claimed responsibility. It was also the prime suspect in a dozen bombings of ACLU offices, but its work was very clean.
"What about these Puerto Rican terrorists?" Runyan asked without looking up.
"Lightweights. We're not worried," K. O. Lewis answered casually. "They've been threatening for twenty years."
"Well, maybe it's time they did something. The climate is right, don't you think?"
"Forget the Puerto Ricans, Chief." Runyan liked to be called Chief. Not Chief Justice, nor Mr. Chief Justice. Just Chief. "They're just threatening because everyone else is."
"Very funny," the Chief said without smiling. "Very funny. I'd hate for some group to be left out." Runyan threw the summary on his desk and rubbed his temples. "Let's talk about security." He closed his eyes.
K. O. Lewis laid his copy of the summary on the Chief's desk. "Well, the Director thinks we should place four agents with each Justice, at least for the next ninety days. We'll use limousines with escorts to and from work, and the Supreme Court police will provide backup and secure this building."
"What about travel?"
"It's not a good idea, at least for now. The Director thinks the justices should remain in the D.C. area until the end of the year."
"Are you crazy? Is he crazy? If I asked my brethren to follow that request they would all leave town tonight and travel for the next month. That's absurd." Runyan frowned at his law clerks, who shook their heads in disgust. Truly absurd.
Lewis was unmoved. This was expected. "As you wish. Just a suggestion."
"A foolish suggestion."
"The Director did not expect your cooperation on that one. He would, however, expect to be notified in advance of all travel plans so that we can arrange security."
"You mean, you plan to escort each Justice each time he leaves the city?"
"Yes, Chief. That's our plan."
"Won't work. These people are not accustomed to being baby-sat."
"Yes sir. And they're not accustomed to being stalked either. We're just trying to protect you and your honorable brethren, sir. Of course, no one says we have to do anything. I think, sir, that you called us. We can leave, if you wish."
Runyan rocked forward in his chair and attacked a paper clip, prying the curves out of it and trying to make it perfectly straight. "What about around here?"
Lewis sighed and almost smiled. "We're not worried about this building, Chief. It's an easy place to secure. We don't expect trouble here."
"Then where?"
Lewis nodded at a window. The noise was louder. "Out there somewhere. The streets are full of idiots and maniacs and zealots."
"And they all hate us."
"Evidently. Listen, Chief, we're very concerned about Justice Rosenberg. He still refuses to allow our men inside his home; makes them sit in a car in the street all night. He will allow his favorite Supreme Court officer--what's his name? Ferguson--to sit by the back door, outside, but only ...
From AudioFile
Product details
- ASIN : B003B02O0U
- Publisher : Anchor; Reprint edition (March 9, 2010)
- Publication date : March 9, 2010
- Language : English
- File size : 5138 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Sticky notes : On Kindle Scribe
- Print length : 434 pages
- Best Sellers Rank: #65,264 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #392 in Legal Thrillers (Kindle Store)
- #468 in Conspiracy Thrillers (Kindle Store)
- #616 in Women's Adventure Fiction (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
John Grisham is the author of forty-seven consecutive #1 bestsellers, which have been translated into nearly fifty languages. His recent books include The Boys From Biloxi, The Judge's List, Sooley, and his third Jake Brigance novel, A Time for Mercy, which is being developed by HBO as a limited series.
Grisham is a two-time winner of the Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction and was honored with the Library of Congress Creative Achievement Award for Fiction.
When he's not writing, Grisham serves on the board of directors of the Innocence Project and of Centurion Ministries, two national organizations dedicated to exonerating those who have been wrongfully convicted. Much of his fiction explores deep-seated problems in our criminal justice system.
John lives on a farm in central Virginia.
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Top reviews from the United States
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I loved this book so much I've purchased some of Grishams' books and plan on buying everything else he's written up to this point. I'm anxious to read them all.
That said, I was less impressed by Grisham's thrillers, such as the Pelican Brief (or the Broker). The text is still sharp and to the point. The plot's rhythm is well kept. Yet, something is missing. For example, I found that some of the events involving Darby were unrealistic. Really, what are the chances that a normal legal student could escape the most professional gunmen of the world and many tens of investigators chasing her?! It gives you the feeling that it is too good to be true, so you shouldn't worry as the main heroine will surely make it to the final line.
Must admit that I considered quiting reading several times, but I'm glad I didn't. The final part which involves the process of producing the mind blowing news article, was excellent and reminded me of the great Grisham.
So let's delve into Darby Shaw. She's awesome! For starters, I like her name, "Darby". I've never heard it before but it works so well. Like I said, she's smart...exceptionally smart in fact, and that's always a huge plus with me. The fact that she soon finds herself in peril because of what she knows or might know and is consequently in fear for her life makes her human, and that again is a plus for me. Her dialogue is also witty and worth listening to. We need more female protagonists like her out there.
The reporter, Gray Grantham, was good too, though Darby wins. He was smart for sure, but he never showed himself as being as smart as her. I'm absolutely thankful that he wasn't made out to be her hero or knight in shining armor. These two actually work together to expose the conspiracy at hand and I enjoyed every bit of the ride.
My main problem, apart from this audio book being abridged, is the villain. I'm completely fine with there being an unseen menace for the protagonists to deal with, but this villain, Victor Mattiece, appears once and only briefly. I'd have liked it better if he never appeared in the book and was only talked about as was the case most of the time. His brief appearance without any encores was just too out-of-place for me. Also, there was a hint of romance in the book, which I could have done without.
This book serves as an exception to my dislike of conspiracies where the questions become "how high does this go? and "who can you trust?" I see way too much of that in all of today's media. But this book was done well enough that it barely crosses into the exceptions column, despite all the government-rooted evil depicted in its pages. Go out and read it. Enjoy.
Top reviews from other countries
Now the Pelican Brief is, we know, a John Grisham novel and so it should be no surprise that it takes a young law student to finally puts the pieces together.
There are lots of things at play here beyond the standard ‘good versus evil’ shtick. Money, power, corruption and greed are prominent, but all combine to make this a highly enjoyable read.
As far as I know, I have read every book several time, the pelican brief stands out as his best work.