John Grishampublished his first novel in 1989, and while he has become known for his legal thrillers, Grisham’s best books encompass more than just thrilling page turners. Grisham worked as a lawyer and a politician before becoming a writer full-time, and he draws on much of his own experience to craft his fictional tales alongside his knack for mysteries and thrill-rides.
Grisham has published more than 50 books in his career, including crime fiction, non-fiction, juvenile fiction, and volumes of short stories. Several of his books have also been adapted for movies and television over the years. Grisham’s best books are able to balance their thrills with heart and, often, societal issues as well. All of the best Grisham books are page-turners, but can also be stories of emotional catharsis, and ones that often speak to deeper issues.
20Rogue Lawyer (2015)
The Main Character Is One Of Grisham’s Most Unique Lawyers
Because John Grisham has set so many stories in the area of his expertise, sometimes, the lawyers can start to blend together.Many of his lawyer characters feature a lot of the same characteristics, are the same personality type even. That is not the case inRogue Lawyer, which really helps the 2015 novel to standout from all the legal thrillers Grisham has penned over the years.
Rogue Lawyer’scentral character is Sebastian Rudd, who even goes as far as to call himself “not a very good lawyer” in the novel when his methods are questioned. Rudd operates out of a custom-built van because he doesn’t like the pretentiousness of most law offices. He also takes on the clients that no one else wants, defending everyone from corrupt law enforcement officials to possible terrorists. He really believes in the nature of his job, that everyone, no matter what they are accused of, deserves a fair shake.
That alone is enough to make the book interesting, but a police officer’s kidnapped daughter, Rudd’s relationship with his ex, and a look into the grittier aspects of the legal system all make this book worthwhile.
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19A Painted House (2001)
A Well-Crafted Coming-Of-Age Novel
Grisham is best known for his vast catalog of legal thrillers. Legal thrillers, however, are not the only books Grisham writes. He has dabbled in other avenues of fiction, including this more general tale.
Set in the 1950s,A Painted Housefollows a little boy who lives on a cotton farm in Arkansas, the same state where Grisham himself grew up. The little boy finds himself growing up quickly as “hill people” and workers from Mexico are added to the staff at the family farm, immersing him in whole new relationship dynamics he has never seen before.
While the novel is much slower paced than his thrillers are, it is still a well-crafted coming-of-age story for a very young protagonist - he is only seven when the story starts.Those who find page-to-screen adaptations interesting will also want to note the novel was adapted into a movie withLogan Lermanjust two years after it was published.
18Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer (2010)
Grisham Takes On Juvenile Readers
The book series is a hidden gem among Grisham’s grittier novels.
Again, just because John Grisham is known for his legal thrillers for adults does not mean he does not write in other areas. He has been able to use his legal knowledge to write novels for a much younger audience as well. HisTheodore Boonenovels, of which this is the first, are aimed at the 10-13 age group instead.
Theodore Boone is just 13 years old when the novels begin. He has grown up around the legal system and thinks of himself as a lawyer who can help investigate and uphold the law. He gets his chance in a real courtroom in this book, but not as a lawyer - as a witness in a high-profile murder trial.
TheTheodore Boonebooks are great because they make a lot of legalese digestible for kids who might not know all of the technical terms. They also allow kids to see what a difference just one person - even a child - can make in the grand scheme of an investigation.The book series is a hidden gem among Grisham’s grittier novels.
17The Racketeer (2012)
One Of Grisham’s Most Puzzling Novels
For those who have been reading John Grisham’s novels for years (especially by the time this one came out), they likely have a good handle on how the writer usually presents his mysteries. Knowing a writer’s style can make it easier for an experienced reader or fan to figure out the mystery.
WhileThe Racketeeris, like so many Grisham novels, a legal thriller, it is also somewhat of a revenge thriller.The book follows former attorney Malcolm Bannister who finds himself in disgrace. That is because he is serving a 10-year sentence for a crime he did not actually commit. Bannister makes a deal with the FBI to get them the murderer of a judge and his secretary in exchange for his release.
This novel might sound like a straightforward Grisham mystery, but it is anything but.It is the most puzzle-like of his novels, giving the reader one twist after another as they try to put the pieces together themselvesand figure out who the killer really is.
16The Last Juror (2004)
A Series Of Small-Town Murders Speaks To A Larger Story
Grisham has quite a few novels set in small towns and quite a few set in Mississippi. That’s likely due to where he has lived in the past himself.The Last Jurorfeatures both of those ideas.
In a small town in Mississippi in the 1970s, a man is convicted of murder, and he vows revenge on those who put him away. When he is eventually released years later, members of the jury in his trial begin dying. Since he comes from a powerful local family, the town starts to live in the same fear they had leading up to his trial.
This novel, despite being published in 2004, feels like vintage Grisham. Though the murder mysteries are at the center of the story, they speak to a larger narrative about small towns and the families who have roots and power in them for decades.Many Grisham fans will argue that his ‘90s novels are his best, but this is one instance of his 2000’s novels living up to the hype.
15Camino Island (2017)
Grisham Goes Full Criminal Mystery
This is the first of a series of novels set just off the coast of Florida on an island that features a picturesque resort and a whole lot of crime.Utilizing this particular location gives Grisham the great juxtaposition of beautiful atmosphere and ugly crimes, and it’s something he does well in other books as well, since he has several more novels set in sunny Florida.
Camino Island, and the three sequels to it, are a change of pace for Grisham. While they are still mysteries, they are more straight-up mysteries than they are legal thrillers like nearly all of Grisham’s books that come before them.
Here, the mystery involves the heist of a rare F. Scott Fitzgerald manuscript that winds up in the hands of a rare book dealer on Camino Island. A struggling writer is then asked to get close to the book dealer in order to learn more about the stolen pages.The mystery is a much lighter read than many of Grisham’s other mysteries, and that makes it a breath of fresh air.
14The Whistler (2016)
A Lot Of Moving Parts Come Together Flawlessly
The Whistlerhas a lot of pieces that make up its larger mystery. There is money laundering by a mafia group, a fictional Native American tribal group’s casino providing the groundwork for criminal activity, a whistleblower working for a corrupt judge, and a Florida investigator whose life is put in danger as it all comes together.It sounds like too many pieces to put together a satisfying picture, but it all works.
Grisham’sThe Whistlersees a member of the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct get a tip about a corrupt judge being linked to the “Coastal Mafia.” her investigation takes a dangerous turn when nefarious people learn about her work and put a hit out on her.This is one Grisham mystery that maintains a fast pace and will keep the reader turning those pages.
A TV series based onThe Whistlerwas in development in 2021 but has yet to be produced.
13The Street Lawyer (1998)
A Legal Thriller With An Exploration Of Social Justice
One of the great hallmarks of Grisham’s legal fiction is that the stories all have real-world implications. Sure, some of the more conspiracy-heavy books might seem far-fetched, butoften, his stories pull from ideas concerning issues in the real American legal system.The Street Lawyerdoes that as well.
Here, a lawyer is taken hostage by an unhoused man. While the unhoused man dies during the incident, the lawyer’s life and career are changed. He begins to see how the system is not built equally for those who might not have a stable home, and he leaves his higher-profile job to work for an advocate for the unhoused instead.
While the story might seem like nothing more than a wake-up call for the main lawyer, Grisham still has plenty of twists and turns within the novel to keep his readers interested.A new twist or conflict pops up every time one is resolved.
The Innocent Man
Cast
The Innocent Man is a six-part documentary series released in 2018, based on John Grisham’s non-fiction book. It explores two 1980s murders in Ada, Oklahoma, and the ensuing controversial events, shedding light on issues within the criminal justice system.
Several of John Grisham’s fictional stories feature characters who are wrongfully convicted of a crime. The idea of someone trying to prove their innocence from behind bars makes for a compelling fictional story, but it is also a reality for a lot of people.
Grisham has always been committed, as a lawyer and a writer, to people getting a fair trial and of evidence being used even after a conviction to prove the truth. That is why he is involved inThe Innocence Project, and it is why he wrote this non-fiction book.
The book marks Grisham’s first non-fiction book, though not his last. Initially, he wanted to be a writer to entertain, not inform, but the idea of innocent people behind bars is clearly something that has meant a lot to him to rectify. The book explains the story of Ronald ‘Ron’ Keith Williams, wrongly convicted of rape and murder in the ‘80s, only to be exonerated by DNA evidence 11 years later.
The book inspired a six-part docuseries on Netflix which helps to spotlightlesser-known true crime cases.
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11The Judge’s List (2021)
A Rare Sequel Outshines The Original
Grisham has a handful of novels that center around the same protagonists, but he never seems to return to the same characters for long.The Judge’s Listallows him to do that as the sequel toThe Whistler, returning the writer and his readers to Florida as Lacy Stoltz again investigates a corrupt judge with her investigation putting her life in danger.
The reason this one outranks the first novel is because of the relationship between Lacy and the antagonist, Judge Ross Bannick, this time around.There is a real cat-and-mouse dynamicto them because Bannick is such a powerful man who is clearly connected to several unsolved murders.
Fans of Grisham’s newer character will also be glad to note that Lacy’s story is very much left open-ended, so it is entirely possible he could revisit Lacy with another mystery.
