Instead of taking the first 20 to 50 pages or so to introduce the characters Grisham takes us right into the action. The scene: a homeless man with a grudge takes an entire law office hostage.
The title character, Michael Brock is a successful young lawyer in DC. He is moving up the career ladder, working long hours to the detriment of his marriage. After the intense first scene he decides to play detective and find out a little bit about this homeless man he calls ’’Mister’’. His investigation leads him to a legal clinic for the homeless. There he meets a large gregarious black man named Mordechai Brown. I really liked this character. Grisham really brings him to life. I liked how he presents him as a big man with an even bigger heart.As I was reading I kept picturing someone like Rosie Grier. Well, back to the story...Brock soon becomes a frequent visitor to this legal clinic and begins to volunteer at a soup kitchen. He starts to reassess his priorities in life. He has so much: a big expensive car, an apartment on the nice side of the city, a wife who is a doctor, and a thriving career. He starts to wonder if maybe all of the long hours he puts in at the office are really worthwhile. He has so much while others have so little. Soon, Mordechai Brown offers him a job. Well, you can guess what happens. He takes the job, and becomes ’’the street lawyer’’.
As he begins his new job he kind of becomes an amateur detective, trying to figure out the connection between Mister and his previous employer. Meanwhile, his wife Claire and him are becoming more and more distant. (surprise surprise). I found the character of Claire to be a little paper thin. Grisham doesn’t give us enough details about her or let us really know her thoughts so I can’t say.
I’m not going to reveal the ending, but I will say that it didn’t surprise me. Dont miss this one