Young and ambitious lawyer, Mitch McDeer discovers that the too-good-to-be-true firm that he is working for is actually a front for the mafia. Mitch must make a choice to stick with the “good life” or risk it all to help the FBI bring down the firm and the mafia.

Introduction

The Firm was Grisham’s first majorly recognized novel, and it became a film starring Tom Cruise. I picked it up, because, over the years, I have become a very big John Grisham fan. His newest book, The Exchange is a sequel to The Firm. Since I never read The Firm, I wanted to give it a read before going through The Exchange.

Rating

5 out of 10 – As a relative latecomer to Grisham, I was surprised by just how different The Firm felt than some of his other novels. It’s definitely an early novel. It’s grittier and not quite as well put together. It’s still good, but I’m not sure if I had started with The Firm, if I would have kept reading Grisham. It’s entertaining, but it’s not his best work by a long shot.

Genre

Legal Thriller

Setting

1980’s / 1990’s Memphis TN and the Caymen Islands

Summary

[taken from GoodReads.com]

At the top of his class at Harvard Law, Mitch McDeere had his choice of the best firms in America. He made a deadly mistake.
 
For a young lawyer on the make, it was an offer Mitch McDeere couldn’t turn down. A position at a law firm where the bucks, billable hours, and benefits are over the top. It’s a dream job for an up-and-comer—if he can overlook the uneasy feeling he gets at the office. Then an FBI investigation into the firm’s connections to the Mafia plunges the straight and narrow attorney into a nightmare of terror and intrigue. With no choice but to pit his wits, ethics, and legal skills against the firm’s deadly secrets—if he hopes to stay alive…

Conclusion

In conclusion, I’m glad I read it, and I’ll be posting on The Exchange soon. However, one thing that intrigued me [spoiler alert] was the handling of Mitch’s infidelity. In the book, the reader thinks, ever so briefly that Mitch is going to come clean, right at the end of the story. But he denies (“deny, deny, deny”), and he and Abby are left to their island make-up.

Interestingly enough, the movie has Mitch coming clean early on. I think I like that better (and it will be interesting to see if Grisham gives a hat tip to this in The Exchange.