Customer Reviews
Innocent but Predictable - By: Tony, 02 Jul 2008 
Not John Grisham's usual but we know the result from the start. All the police are stupid & the accused & Grisham are wonderful.
I did not enjoy this but his next book, Playing for Pizza, was worse!
I loved his earlier books but he's having a problem. Good luck Mr. Grisham. get better!
Sad, but true - By: P. Horrex, 27 Jun 2008 
How could anyone so obviously innocent be found guilty & sentenced to death? If this had happened a century ago I could believe it, but we're talking the 80's here! The state of Oklahoma & the town & prosectutors of Ada should be ashamed. This book will bring you to tears, & is one of the best I have ever read. Buy it, read it, you wont be able to put it down.
The worst John Grisham I have ever read - By: Ed Taylor, 20 Jun 2008 
Ron Williamson was an average state level baseballl player who thought he was better than his ability proved he was. He took to drinking, drugs & women & was surprised when as a lonely drinken drifter he returned to his home town & was charged with the rape & murder of a waitress 5 years before. There was sufficient evidence against him & his co-accused to secure a conviction. Was the conviction sound? This book doesn't have the answer. The Mirror said of this book "John Grisham has built his stunning writing career on producing brilliant fast moving utterly believable legal thrillers" He should stick to fiction because he does not have the skill of writing documentary style factual stories. The book is totallly unbalanced & provides one man's side of the story - Ron Williamson's. Maybe there was a miscarraige of justice but this book is far too subjective & dismissive of the case against him. The apparent incompetance of the defence lawyers is matched only by John Grisham's own incompetance as a factual author.
Tough going - By: P. Butler, 01 May 2008 I'm going to side with the majority on this one, & sum up The Innocent Man as tough going & ultimately disapointing.
The outing of a lazy & corrupt law & judicial system is a noble cause that offers some interesting insight, but the prose is laborious & at times makes for tortous reading.
I stuck with it because I wanted to give Grisham the benefit of the doubt - his other works warrant that honour - but I could quite easily have shelved this one with a good chunk left unread.
It isn't classic Grisham that we alll know & love - it was never going to be given the real-life subject matter - but you still expect a great deal better.
passion play - By: monlibu, 18 Apr 2008 
First let's applaud Grisham for using his stature & name to devote considerable energy to write some wrongs in the American criminal justice system. Even more so as his first foray into non fiction some 18 stories later.
As a Grisham virgin, perhaps that's what was so attractive about The Innocent Man but herein lies the ultimate dilemma. It is undoubtedly a fascinating story of misjustice, mostly well told & vivid with a conclusion that is emotional & sobering. There's the simple smalll town American life trod alll over with prejudice,fear & dogma, mixed with the volatile machinations of quick fix retribution law enforcers. And that's just Grisham fighting the endemic misjustice that has haunted the death penaltly.
Williamson & Fritz's lazy convictions at the heart of this book give Grisham his hook to launch a mini tyrade. It does the trick as ultimately it will prompt you into at least a glance at the real case archives on the internet & the real lives of real people still living this nightmare.
So back to the dilemma with this book. Mass market equals mass awareness but doubtless some disappointed Grisham fans. Despite the cover quote it doesn't have the feel of a legal thriller. You could argue it feels like any basic trawl from any basic hack looking for a break, littering the discount book shop bargain bins. Yes it is better than that but often Grisham adopts such a basic approach & language to make you wonder. It's also marred by a clear & too personal agenda to discredit the prosecutors at any cost. A little more objectivism would have helped the cause.
A worthy cause no doubt but it will surprise & disappoint the Grisham fans in equal measure.
