“The Partner” by John Grisham – Robbery From the Beyond

The Partner by John Grisham (Book cover)
I've reviewed a few of Grisham's works before, like his classic The Firm and one of his best-selling novels, The Racketeer. I’ll be honest in saying that I may have given the author a bit more praise than he deserves; many people see him as being to books what Hollywood is to movies.

What do I mean by that? Well, while his books are always full of action and have a relatively intriguing story, many of them lack originality and deeper meaning. However, that is not to say that it’s a bad thing… after all, we all need this kind of entertainment from time to time.

Today, I’m going to go into The Partner, what I believe to be one of Grisham’s best novels on the originality and intrigue front. To give you an idea of what it’s about, what follows is a brief overview of the story.

Patrick Lanigan literally had it all: a great job, a loving wife, and a beautiful new daughter… his future couldn’t be brighter if thousand suns chose to shine on it. However, as is always with interesting stories, things take a drastic turn for the worse when Patrick gets into a car accident, during which he apparently becomes trapped in his own car and burns to death.

They buried nothing but his ashes, and as they did so, Patrick watched on… not from the Heavens, but from a short distance away. Not long after the burial a huge sum of money is stolen from the offshore accounts of the company Patrick used to work for, after which ensues a wild chase.

However, when Patrick is finally found, he is living a very quiet and modest life on the streets of Brazil, with the stolen money nowhere to be found. For starters, I’ll have to admit that I’ve always liked mysteries which don’t make much sense, at least in the first place.

Right off the bat, in Grisham’s The Partner there are a few instances of that.

For example, how did Patrick manage to survive so well when he was described as burning in the car? Could it be a twin? A vision? A dream? All pre-planned? Who knows…

Also, when Patrick is found in Brazil living under the name Danilo Silva, where did all his money go? Did he spend it? Did he ever actually have it? Does the book’s title come into play and Patrick actually has a partner he can trust as much as himself? Rest assured, many more questions such as these pop up, and in classic Grisham fashion, you’ll be getting complete closure.

The Partner by John Grisham (Book cover)
All in all, if you’re a fan of Grisham’s works during the 90s, or a fan of him at all as a matter of fact, then I definitely recommend that you look into The Partner one of his most highly-acclaimed and popular novels.


John Grisham (Author)

John Grisham


Personal site

John Grisham is an American lawyer, politician and author whose works have always been largely centered around the legal world.

Many of his novels have been adapted into films, including The Firm, The Rainmaker and A Time to Kill. In 2005, he was the recipient of the Peggy V. Helmerich Distinguished Author Award.

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