John Grisham’s novels are a delight. After you’ve read a few, you know the good guys are going to win in the end. You know the convoluted American legal system will eventually provide at least some justice. Grisham’s quest for decency and reform plays out through high action drama rather than through earnest didactic writing. He sneaks his message in rather than preaching it. THE BOYS FROM BILOXI describes the deep problems in the American criminal justice system through history, unforgettable characters and a thoroughly believable plot.
THE BOYS FROM BILOXI is a plea for reform. It is set in Mississippi where the District Attorneys are elected. Candidates have to raise money to pay for electioneering, an invitation for corruption. Mississippi has the death penalty where people can be on death row for decades while the convoluted appeals drag on. Biloxi, Mississippi, is particularly mired in legal battles because prostitution and gambling are illegal, but everywhere. Drugs come in from neighbouring Mexico and corruption is a way of life.
Grisham has taken all these dark elements and crafted a saga covering 40 years. The sons of two immigrant families are best mates in school in the 1960s. One joins his family’s mafia business. The other becomes the district prosecutor. A showdown is inevitable. The prosecutor is determined to clean up Biloxi. The mobsters are determined to stop him. Grisham’s trademark twist and turns and legal wrangles are fascinating reading. A lawyer, raised and trained in Mississippi, Grisham knows what he writes about.
When he is not writing, Grisham serves on the Board of Directors of the Innocence Project dedicated to exonerating those who have been wrongly convicted.
Published in by Hodder & Stoughton (Hachette Australia, in Australia), 2022
ISBN: 978 1 399 70275 2
Hardback, paperback and eBook
Review by Carol Dance
