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The Summons

By John Grisham

(85)

| Paperback | 9780375431975

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Book Description



Ray Atlee is a professor of law at the University of Virginia. He's forty-three, newly single, and still enduring the aftershocks of a surprise divorce. He has a younger brother, Forrest, who redefines the notion of a family's black sheep.

And he has a father, a very sick old mContinue



Ray Atlee is a professor of law at the University of Virginia. He's forty-three, newly single, and still enduring the aftershocks of a surprise divorce. He has a younger brother, Forrest, who redefines the notion of a family's black sheep.

And he has a father, a very sick old man who lives alone in the ancestral home in Clanton, Mississippi. He is known to all as Judge Atlee, a beloved and powerful official who has towered over local law and politics for forty years. No longer on the bench, the Judge has withdrawn to the Atlee mansion and become a recluse.

With the end in sight, Judge Atlee issues a summons for both sons to return home to Clanton, to discuss the details of his estate. It is typed by the Judge himself, on his handsome old stationery, and gives the date and time for Ray and Forrest to appear in his study.

Ray reluctantly heads south, to his hometown, to the place where he grew up, which he prefers now to avoid. But the family meeting does not take place. The Judge dies too soon, and in doing so leaves behind a shocking secret known only to Ray.

And perhaps someone else.


From the Hardcover edition.

Critics

  • TheBookHaven.net - The Summons - John Grisham

    Click the pic to buy the book. Support this site! Get all your books by clicking on this Amazon link. The Summons marks John Grisham's return to the wonderful world of law after a brief nostalgic stint in A Painted House . The summons in question is ... (read full critics)

    thebookhaven published on Fri, 10 Sep 2010

  • The Summons

    The Summons marks John Grisham's return to the wonderful world of law after a brief nostalgic stint in A Painted House . The summons in question is not a legal document. The honorable and terminally ill Judge Reuben Atlee asked his semi-estranged son ... (read full critics)

    thebookhaven published on Thu, 2 Sep 2010

2 Reviews

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  • Small town America

    Grisham returns to writing about lawyers and courts with this book. The story revolves around Ray Atlee who is a lecturer at a law college. His old father is a former councellor and very famous in his town. Now in his last days he sends a summons to his two sons Ray and Forrest. Forrest is a gone ca ... (continue)

    Grisham returns to writing about lawyers and courts with this book. The story revolves around Ray Atlee who is a lecturer at a law college. His old father is a former councellor and very famous in his town. Now in his last days he sends a summons to his two sons Ray and Forrest. Forrest is a gone case who is always either on drugs or in a detoxification centre. When the sons turn up they find their father dead. And soon Ray discovers 3 million dollars in the house! The rest of the story is how he tries to find the source of the money and escapes the goons trying to get it.

    As in many of his books Grisham sets up a great opening for the book. After the first few pages I just couldn't put it down and finished the book. Most of the story is set in small town America, and Grisham's writing reminded me of R K Narayan's Malgudi stories. But, the plot in this book is a little lame and is a letdown if you've read Grisham's other books. But, I liked it for the scenes and experiences of small town America presented.

    Is this helpful?

    Ashwin Nanjappa said on Jun 26, 2007 | Add your feedback

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9780375431975 Paperback $22.00 $18.81 bn.com
$22.00 $17.15 The Book Depository
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