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The Firm: A Novel
Unavailable
The Firm: A Novel
Unavailable
The Firm: A Novel
Audiobook (abridged)2 hours

The Firm: A Novel

Written by John Grisham

Narrated by D.W. Moffett

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

4/5

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Currently unavailable

Currently unavailable

About this audiobook

At the top of his class at Harvard Law, he had his choice of the best in America. He made a deadly mistake. When Mitch McDeere signed on with Bendini, Lambert & Locke of Memphis, he thought he and his beautiful wife, Abby, were on their way. The firm leased him a BMW, paid off his school loans, arranged a mortgage and hired him a decorator. Mitch McDeere should have remembered what his brother Ray—doing fifteen years in a Tennessee jail—already knew. You never get nothing for nothing. Now the FBI has the lowdown on Mitch's firm and needs his help. Mitch is caught between a rock and a hard place, with no choice—if he wants to live.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateJul 4, 2000
ISBN9780553754315
Unavailable
The Firm: A Novel

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Reviews for The Firm

Rating: 3.7582873970007893 out of 5 stars
4/5

2,534 ratings55 reviews

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  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Good. Reading 20+ years it is a bit dated, but that is good too.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Great narrator!
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I read the book. I saw the movie. I believe I've spent enough time with this book. Therefore, I wil end this review now.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Grisham classic...one of the best ever. You won't put this book down. It captures you and you'll struggle to put the book down and go to bed! New Harvard law grad gets an offer too good to be true and he's faced with the decision of his life time. Great characters,now for the movie!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I almost didn't make it past page 22. The descriptions of the law firm recruiting the main character were cringe-worthy but, I suppose, its conditions were the ideal back in the day (if you're a white guy). And while I didn't particularly like any of the characters either, except maybe Tammy Hemphill (was she stolen from the pages of a Mickey Spillane novel?), the story was a good read even if the ending was predictable.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Intriguing to read. I look forward to reading Grisham's latest work.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    [Spoilers] A good kid, new to a firm of accountants and lawyers discovers the association of the firm to a crime family. The slow indoctrination of Mitch (the main protagonist) into a money laundering and tax fraud set-up challenges his ingenuity to cooperate with the FBI while keeping from being silenced by the firm's enforcers. While the plot was predictable, the twists and turns of the story are captivating, making for a compelling read. Grisham's writing at its best.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Obviously great!
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Thought I'd never get to the end of this epic Grisham novel. I think this is one of his earlier efforts and I remember watching the film a long time ago.

    A rookie tax lawyer is head hunted straight from school and offered a dream job with an extremely wealthy company. Star struck, The Firm dazzles him with money, houses, cars....and all the trimmings. It seems too good to be true....The only slight botheration are the plaques of remembrance in one of the offices. The Firm has had a higher than average number of staff deaths....Mitch is faced with the toughest decision of his life. Should he investigate these incidents and risk losing everything, or ask no questions and enjoy the cash!

    This was hard to put down and I finished it in a few days despite its length. There was a little too much detail in places but it was definitely gripping reading. It had less than usual profanity but more lewdness/sexual innuendo than I was comfortable with. The choice that Mitch makes along these lines wasn't resolved satisfactorily in my view although I appreciated the fact that he wasn't able to just forget about what he had done.

    I found it interesting that all of these people are basically chasing money in one form or another and yet none are able to enjoy it because of the circumstances. Even when they get the wealth they are seeking, they want more and it doesn't satisfy or they have to live in constant fear. This is why the Bible tells us For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows. 1 Timothy 6 vs 10.

    Reading this I was reminded again of the meaninglessness of life without God regardless of status, wealth, job security or anything else....

    Recommended for those who enjoy Grisham books. It isn't his best book, but still enjoyable.




  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Very suspenseful, kept my interest up. This book is "a real page turner." Grisham keeps one involved as you are able to experience the characters struggle between fear and moral decisions.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    It's easy to see why this is one of the books that made Grisham an enormously popular writer. The suspense that ratchets up as the main character, a recent law school grad named Mitch, gradually realizes that he and his wife are in a seemingly impossible to escape from trap had me turning the pages as fast as I could to see how it would all end. At first Mitch and his wife think that all of their dreams for wealth and success have come true as he lands a job with a prestigious law firm in Memphis. Sure the hours are crazy but the Firm is so generous with helping it's employees get the house, car, and lifestyle that they've always wanted that Mitch doesn't think a thing about the former associates who have died in mysterious accidents at first. However when the FBI contacts him he begins to realize just how sinister the Firm really is. If anyone hasn't read this classic of the legal suspense genre definitely spend a few hours with this one. Even though some aspects of it are a bit dated--such as how the female characters or portrayed--the time will fly as you'll want to read it as quickly as possible to find out how Mitch could possible escape.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Great fast read lots of twists and turns. Exciting ending.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Enjoyed tremendously!
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Mitch McDeere (whom many may still envision as Tom Cruise, since he played in the role in the movie based on this novel) is a highly intelligent yet monetarily challenged law student finishing up his degree with high honors at Harvard. Holding serious offers from prestigious Chicago and Wall Street law firms for his services, he decides to go ahead and hear the pitch from a smaller law firm in Memphis. What he hears is an offer he cannot believe and cannot refuse. A starting salary significantly higher than he would make elsewhere, promises of large bonuses for passing the bar exam and succeeding on the job, an ascension to partner in as short a time as a decade, a new house with a miniscule mortgage rate, a brand new BMW, and other perks soon have Mitch and his wife Abby settling down in Memphis to enjoy a life of luxury (albeit with hard work on his part). The firm really seems to care about Mitch and his family, wanting happy marriages with several children, to a degree that has Abby a little suspicious. As she should be. This is a great and fairly easy read. Like most Grisham books, you will find yourself hooked to this book from the start. The ending is good, and you may even find yourself re-reading it sometime in the future. You will not be disappointed with this book.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    My favourite John Grisham book. It's got everything a good legal thriller needs and keeps you hooked right until the end. I have re-read this one several times.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    this is a good book with many twists and surprises. this book develops from an ordinary lawyer firm to a complex mob money laundrying business. I think this is a good book and i recomend it to everyone.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I'm a big John Grisham fan, but this book remains my firm favourite. Fast paced, tightly written and full of intrigue once it hooks you in you stay ensnared until the end.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I've always been a John Grisham fan, ever since I read A Time To Kill back in high school. His stories are compelling, fast reads. Who knew lawyers and courtrooms could be so interesting?The Firm is Grisham's second novel, published in 1991. Mitch McDeere, number 3 in his class at Harvard Law, has job offers from all over the country, including one for a small firm in Memphis with Bendini, Lambert, and Locke. The Bendini firm paid off his school loans, leased him a BMW, and arranged the mortgage for his first house. Thinking they'd finally made it, Mitch and his wife celebrated.But strange things are happening at the firm, and when the FBI tries to recruit Mitch to help them take down the firm from the inside, he has to make a deadly choice. Does he stay and risk losing everything, or leave and risk losing his life?Overall, I really liked this book. It had me hooked from the beginning and didn't let up. The plot was intriguing and there were plenty of moments where I was really nervous for the characters and couldn't wait to find out what happened. However, I didn't feel like the climax was as edge-of-my-seat exciting as it should have been. Granted, I wasn't bored, but there didn't seem to be enough drama.My only other issue with the book was that the main character, Mitch, was kind of an asshole. While I still felt bad for his situation and was concerned for his well-being, I was never a big fan of his attitude.However, neither of those criticisms should be a deterrent to reading the book. If you're looking for a fast-paced thriller, I highly recommend The Firm. 4 out of 5 stars.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    I had some trouble wrapping my mind around the premise of this novel, where a young lawyer gets involved with a mobbed-up law firm. Third in in his class at Harvard Law and on law review? He'd spend his first year post-law school as a Supreme Court clerk and then surely move on to some famous, established firm such as Sullivan and Cromwell and would be too tuned into the grapevine, and have too bright a future to go near a firm like the book's Bendini, Lambert, and Locke. And the crookedness of the firm seems to be at too large a scale to have been kept quiet for decades. But then that is what I'd have thought of a scheme and outfit like that of Bernie Madoff.And Grisham gets the details of a new graduate at a top law firm so convincingly, evocatively right. The sweating, nauseating terror as you cram for the bar exam. The crushing 90 hour plus work week of a rookie at a top firm. How giddy and intimidating it can be for a working class kid encountering the plush world of a law firm, seducing you with those golden handcuffs. And the prose style is smooth. It doesn't impress with say the beauty of a literary style like a Margaret Atwood, with lines for the ages. But it's the kind of well-crafted narrative that sucks you in, and hours later you're blinking at the page number amazed you've read hundreds of pages. It's a fast-paced, entertaining thriller.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    Mitch McDerre accepts a position with a law firm in Mobile that specializes in tax law. Shortly after starting his job, he learns that two of the newer associates have been killed when boating in Grand Cayman.When he passes the bar exam, an FBI agent approaches him and tells him that everything isn't as it looks in the firm. The company is owned by the mob and a number of the larger clients have been evading their taxes with the help of the firm's attorneys. He also tells Mitch that his home, car and office are bugged and that he's being followed.Mitch hires a private detective to investigate the death of the two emlpoyees who recently died and two others who also died in unusual circumstances. The investigator gives Mitch the info he wanted but then the investigator is murdered.We follow Mitch's life as he changes from an ambitious employee to a man in fear of his career and his life. Mitch wonders if the FBI will be able to get him out of this situation and what the risk would be for him and his wife.This is a well plotted novel. The reader is drawn to Mitch's dilemma and can visualize something like this really happening as we hope for a successful conclusion.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    Reasonable not one of Grishams best reads. I found the ending a bit of a let down.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    One of Grisham's Best!This book was one of the first John Grisham novel that I read. I enjoyed it then and I enjoyed it the second time around. The story follows the life of Mitch McDeere a young lawyer right out of Harvard. Mitch decides to go to work at a large firm in Memphis, Tennessee. He believes that this law firm is a very prestigious firm, however about midway in the story he finds out that many of his colleagues are dying in strange circumstances and that the firm is a pretty shady outfit. The FBI is involved for they are always asking Mitch about the firm and its connection to the Mafia. Eventually, Mitch decides that he has got to stop workimg for this firm. But, that turns out to be not so easy. Once you read this book you find that the characters are well developed and the plot is excellent. The book is better than the movie, although I didn't think the movie was that bad. Its a great read. Highly recommend.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Mitch get caught up with crooked law firm.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    A young lawyer is recruited by a major lawfirm and exploited and manipulated. One of the best books I have ever read.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    I really enjoyed this book. I read it much faster than I would normally read a 490-page book. It was very gripping and the characters and the action made me want to keep reading. I can see why this book was so popular when it was first published. As the book subtitle: One man's job of his dreams soon becomes his worst nightmare. Top reading and highly recommended.
  • Rating: 2 out of 5 stars
    2/5
    I read The Firm at the instigation of a younger sister who sped through it at a pace unusual for her. She promised me that it was a gripping story that I would really enjoy. I had been planning to try the famous John Grisham eventually, and had laid in a store of his paperbacks to await my whim. Well, the whim came last week and so I picked up this book. My feelings about it are mixed.Mitch McDeere, a recent graduate of Harvard Law School, is a brilliant young man who was third in his class. He and his wife Abby have had a thin time of it in law school, but all that is about to change once Mitch chooses among the fat job offers he's been handed. The best offer by far is from the quiet little tax firm in Memphis, where everything seems too good to be true. (Hint: when a job offer seems too good to be true, there is probably a reason for it.) Mitch and Abby soon learn that their very lives are in danger, and no one can be trusted.On one level, I did enjoy this book. It's ominous right from the start and the tension builds nicely. (Though I will say that it never took over my life the way certain non-thrillers *coughJaneEyrecough* have; I put it down at some tense moments in the story during the three days it took to read it, and was never tempted to stay up into the wee hours to finish it.) I can see why it would be a bestseller, though it's no masterpiece from a literary standpoint. The world of elite lawyers is well portrayed.But I never really felt invested in the characters. There was just something about them that kept me at arms' length. Mitch's adultery bothered me for several reasons. As a moralist I wanted him to confess it to his wife, and commit to change (even though the adultery was a one-shot deal, the thoughts and habits leading up to it were not). And from a literary standpoint, Grisham really failed to explore the ongoing tension Mitch feels by keeping that secret bottled up inside. Does he ever confess to Abby, or does he continue to hide the truth from her for the rest of their lives? I know why Grisham includes that episode — to show how the firm controlled its young lawyers partly by blackmail — but after it happened and Mitch has his initial guilt about it, it drops out of the story completely. And that just doesn't make sense to me. Another thing I didn't really care for was how Grisham constantly describes Mitch and Abby having sex as them "trying to kill each other." Why must good sex be violent and crazy (and apparently nightly)? And why must our hero and heroine possess perfect, sculpted, model-like bodies in addition to all their other perfections? That aspect of the story reads like juvenile wish fulfillment on the part of Grisham... or worse, for us his readers, who are being served such an unsubtle dish. So, I read a Grisham book. Will I read another? Mmmm, probably eventually. I like to break out of my normal reading habits occasionally and read something different from my usual fare. Grisham's fans can tell me if I started with a good one or if there is another title of his that they would recommend. Overall, this story didn't really deliver on all its promises of taut, thrilling entertainment, but I certainly found it readable and enjoyed the view into the complicated world of tax lawyers.
  • Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
    3/5
    I should not have read this so soon after The Client. They have way too much in common, not the least of which being the incessant repetition of the phrase, "the mob never forgets." That said, it's still an okay legal thriller. Not great, but it helped the commute go by.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    One of my favourite Grisham books - an excellent, gripping thriller.Back Cover Blurb:Mitch qualified at Harvard, third in his class, and is sought by law firms all over America. The one that gets him is small, but well-respected, and pays him beyond his wildest dreams. But then the nightmares begin - secret files, bugs in the bedroom, colleagues' mysterious deaths and mob money.
  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    This is Grisham's second novel, and his first blockbuster. As a result, succeeding novels in the same genre begin to repeat themselves and become stale. They are, however, very similar, both in style and in quality (with the exception of some of his most recent works). The first that you read will likely be your favorite. This was my first, hence the five star rating.
  • Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
    4/5
    The Grisham books are an entertaining read, but they're not exactly thought provoking.