The Associate by John Grisham is yet another spellbinding legal thriller from the author of numerous other legal thrillers. It focuses on young Kyle McAvoy, a man who is due to graduate from law school in the next few months and trying to decide what to do afterwards. During his last semester he is approached by a man who calls himself Bennie, though that is not his real name. Bennie shows Kyle a video that may implicate Kyle in a crime that would cause him to see serious prison time if the video were ever released to the public. That is not Bennie’s goal though, his goal is to make Kyle spy for him in a very prestigious law firm that will soon be involved in a very large and very secretive lawsuit. Kyle, though reluctant, goes along with Bennie’s plan. At least he makes Bennie think he is while he desperately tries to find a way out without getting himself or anyone else harmed in the process.
I decided to check this book out from the local library because I thought it would be interesting. Mind you, I did have a secondary reason, but I really thought it would be interesting. My secondary reason is quite simple. When I was a kid I came across a list of books, it was titled 500 books every teenager should read. Me being me, I quickly decided I was going to read all of the books on the list. I haven’t finished the list yet as some of the books are harder to find than others but lucky for me The Associate by John Grisham was easy to find once I actually had access to a public library. John Grisham is an author I have read before, numerous times actually, ever since I first read The Client when I was twelve. My mom suggested I read it as she thought I was old enough to understand the content and she did not have to worry about the book being too mature for me. I was familiar with John Grisham going in because of that. In the end it doesn’t really matter as I was thoroughly enthralled with the story of Kyle McAvoy and how he does his absolute best to get out from under the thumb of Bennie. At the same time I was mildly horrified to realize that John Grisham is writing about a young newly graduated lawyer getting blackmailed by someone who more than likely works for our government, all so that the agent can get secretive or classified material about a lawsuit. It really makes me wonder about the secrets and espionage that actually take place in situations like that. On top of that the novel also provides first-hand insight into the horrors of working in a law firm as a newly graduated lawyer. The circumstances and situations Kyle is put into by his law firm, in addition to the standards he is expected to uphold, are just mind-boggling to me. I will say that despite my ability to nit-pick anything and everything to do with the use of language that I am extremely glad I did not go into law like so many of my fellow English or History students did at university. Overall, the book was great, and really well written. I can totally understand why it was on that list and while I may or may not read it again I will definitely never forget the story. I will also probably work on reading my way through the John Grisham section at my local library in the future to find any other gems. This book gets 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Would I recommend this book? Yes, with the caveat that it deals with potentially uncomfortable truths about working in the legal sector that people should be aware of. I am not saying to not read but I am saying that it may be slightly uncomfortable for people. Personally, I was fine with the story but I know that some people like to be aware of anything potentially uncomfortable going in. It was a thriller, but it was a legal thriller. What this means is that there is the typical drama and suspense of a thriller but there is also a less immediate sense of danger than is usually present. I don’t mind that actually as it allowed me to focus on the nuances of the legal system that Kyle was involved with but I am also aware that it may not be for everyone. If you are the kind of person that enjoys thrillers than you would probably like this work. Same thing if you are the kind of person who enjoys spy novels or espionage stories as, in many ways, this story is quite similar to those types of works. One thing to keep in mind is that there is little direct violence of threat of violence present in the text. It is there but it is not a huge element of the text. I will warn people before reading this that the crime Kyle is accused of is rape and he tries a lot of different things to justify that concept in his mind. This does not mean that I agree with Kyle’s thought process but only that I want to make sure that people are aware that the concept is present in case anyone might have trouble with it. It in no way detracts from the text though as it only provides more subtle nuances to who is the good guy or the bad guy in the text and what is right or wrong. Either way, the story was great and I would definitely recommend it if asked.