THE CONFESSION by John Grisham
After going off on a tangent, or several tangents for that matter, novelist John Grisham has returned to the locale where he first began. His latest novel THE CONFESSION is a story of law and injustice and of the effort made by a small few to right a legal wrong. It is Grisham at his most intriguing and at his most adept. He weaves this story with the words of a master craftsman and brings back into the fold all those loyal fans that had begun to drift away.
The crime in the story is the finding of guilty of a young man named Donte’ Drumm. He was a teenager living in the town of Sloan, Texas when he was accused of the murder of high school cheerleader Nicole Yarber. The fact she was white and he is black added a racial element to the trial. Even though her body was never found Drumm was found guilty of murder and sentenced to be executed.
Nine years later Drumm’s lawyer, Robbie Flak, has exhausted just about all the appeals he can make. In a few short days, barring a miracle, Drumm will be executed. It will be a miscarriage of justice in Flak’s eyes and will set back much of the progress that has been made in race relations in this area of east Texas
In Kansas a man named Travis Boyette approaches a Lutheran minister and asks for counseling. In their discussion he states that the soon to be executed Donte’ Drumm is innocent of the crime of killing Nicole, and hints that he, Boyette, might have been responsible for her death. The preacher is stunned and at first at a loss as to what he should do. Soon, however, he finds himself on a mission of mercy to Texas – but will he be in time and will he be able to change the minds of those in charge. In short can Donte’ Drumm’s life be saved?
This amazing plot makes for some of the best Grisham reading in years. It is a suspense novel and also a dramatic one. There are several heavy issues to be weighed in this book and Grisham gives full body to them all. He also takes on the death penalty and hammers home his position on that contentious issue.
In building his case against the death penalty Grisham does get a little heavy-handed. Not only are the District Attorney and the Police officers involved in the case corrupt, so are the judges and even the Governor of Texas. You would think there would be someone who would fight against injustice on the prosecuting side but the reader is never made privy to them if they exist.
Still even this one sidedness on the prosecutor’s side doesn’t diminish the impact of Grisham’s story. We are exposed to the nobleness of Donte’ Drumm. Though beaten down by the system he manages to keep his dignity and his faith in himself. His family is also amazingly supportive. It is his and their faith in right eventually being done that makes the story so harrowing. If they have so much faith won’t something have to happen to save him?
John Grisham has been one of America’s favorite authors for some time now. His early books have become minor classics and have been read by millions. THE CONFESSION is his best book in years and it will make one heck of a movie. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to rediscover this great writer. He may have strayed away for a short period of time but now he’s back!
THE CONFESSION is published by Doubleday and Company. It contains 418 pages and sells for $28.95.