This book is one that I have read before but not for several years and I felt like circling back around to it for some reason. The Testament is by John Grisham and it tells the story of the last will and testament of Troy Phelan. He is an older gentleman who is a multibillionaire and has six children with three ex-wives who are all hoping for a slice of the pie after he dies. Passing a test to prove his mental competency, set up by his children, he signs a will dividing everything between them. Minutes later he revokes that will and signs a new and completely unknown will before jumping to his death from the window. His attorney, Josh Stafford, reads the new will and is faced with a problem. The will leaves everything to a previously unacknowledged and illegitimate heir named Rachel Lane who is currently serving as a missionary in an extremely remote part of Brazil. Now, Josh has to send another attorney, friend and recovering alcoholic Nate O’Riley, to Brazil in an attempt to find her. At the same time he must work on defending the will in court against the protests lodged by the original six heirs.
Much like Grisham’s other works this is a bit of a legal doozy. I actually know nothing about wills and estates so trying to make sense of what they are discussing in regards to that was rather entertaining for me. It makes me rather glad Grisham does such a good job explaining the parts that were needed for the story. Honestly, I really liked the story but that is mostly because I rather enjoyed watching the misadventures of poor Nate as he works on trying to navigate Brazil and the Pantanal region. It felt like that section was basically a huge case of Murphy’s law, if it can go wrong it will go wrong. I mean honestly just how much trouble can one man have anyway. The story was pretty good though and had a nice cast of characters, in addition to Nate anyway. It did a great job of balancing the legal intricacies with the human element though and showing how the human element influences the legal aspects of the story and vice versa. Definitely makes for a pretty unique feel for the story that I have really only ever seen in Grisham’s work. In terms of plot though I found myself rather amused by the hijinks surrounding some of the lawyers, specifically the ones contesting the will. At the same time it paints a somewhat disturbing picture of our legal system. Either way, it was an enjoyable read and I am happy giving it four out of five stars.
This is an adult thriller, more specifically it is a legal thriller, so if that is a genre that appeals to you then you might consider trying it out. If you are already a fan of John Grisham then you really should consider this one. There is a bit of a tricky spot there at the beginning when Troy Phelan kills himself but otherwise the book isn’t too terribly bad. I would recommend more caution about the legal issues than anything else for this book. Though it could be read by older teens, I would recommend caution as parts of it can be difficult to navigate because of the legal issues. As always, I hope you will consider trying it and feel free to share your thoughts in the comments if you do.