John Grisham’s thrilling action/adventure novel, about a man who discovers his father’s dark secret after finding him dead.
The lead protagonist is Ray Atlee, a law professor, who moved away from his home town in order to escape his father’s everlasting legacy as a judge there. However, Ray receives a letter from his father asking him to come back home, in order to settle his estate, due to his increasingly poor health. Once Ray arrives, he finds his father dead on the couch, seemingly from an overdose of morphine. After this discovery, Ray makes another when he finds over three million dollars hidden in a chest of drawers in his father’s home.
Managing to hide it from the visitors and mourners, Ray attempts to keep the cash locked away until he can find out how his father accumulated it, a journey which leads him into danger, as someone else knows about the fortune.
A very good example of how Grisham’s writing can instantly engage the reader, The Summons entertains throughout, offering a simple story with plenty of action and revelation, whilst giving some great character development. Unlike many of Grisham’s novels, the lead character is not the only interesting one here, Ray’s alcoholic brother plays an important part, as does Ray’s lawyer and the Judge’s ex-wife. This expanse of character narratives widens the appeal of The Summons, and elevates it beyond some of Grisham’s lesser novels.
Not in the same league as heavy hitters like The Firm, or A Time To Kill, The Summons does rank high on Grisham’s extended list of books, moving through a thrilling plot with seamless continuity and portraying some excellently sculpted characters along the way.
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