The Testament
by John Grisham
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Book Summary Information
Author: John GrishamEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 1999-02-02
ISBN: 0385493800
Number of pages: 448
Publisher: Doubleday
Book Reviews of The Testament
Book Review: A well crafted mosaic delivering a heart-felt message, mystery and a fast-paced riveting read all in one
Summary: 5 Stars
The book carries the reader up an uphill ramp of excitement with no time wasted. The book opens with strong momentum in scene one. We meet the billionaire who has no will to live and a strong will to carry out a meticulous plan to take down his dysfunctional and fragmented family in his last hours to live. The malicious punch has everything to do with a will which covers an eleven billion dollar fortune. The family is led to believe that everthing is going to be divided. In the expiring seconds the billionaire's will is re-written and an unbenounced illegitimate child in the Brazilian woods is named soul heir to the estate. The story glides along at a riveting speed when a recovering alcoholic is brought in and tasked to hunt down the missionary through a maze of alligators, two seater planes, waters dense in alligators and anacondas and disease infested locales. What he ends up learning along the way is a very delightful and surprising message. John Grisham pilots this one very tactfully to the very end. Very seldom do I read a book where I cannot find anything negative to say about it. The visibility in Grisham's writing style lends itself to the fast pace of the tale. The story comes together like a fine wine with an equally delightful aftertaste.
Summary of The Testament
Troy Phelan is a self-made billionaire, one of the richest men in the United States. He is also eccentric, reclusive, confined to a wheelchair, and looking for a way to die. His heirs, to no one's surprise--especially Troy's--are circling like vultures.Nate O'Riley is a high-octane Washington litigator who's lived too hard, too fast, for too long. His second marriage in a shambles, and he is emerging from his fourth stay in rehab armed with little more than his fragile sobriety, good intentions, and resilient sense of humor. Returning to the real world is always difficult, but this time it's going to be murder.
Rachel Lane is a young woman who chose to give her life to God, who walked away from the modern world with all its strivings and trappings and encumbrances, and went to live and work with a primitive tribe of Indians in the deepest jungles of Brazil.
In a story that mixes legal suspense with a remarkable adventure, their lives are forever altered by the startling secret of The Testament.
Troy Phelan, a 78-year-old eccentric and the 10th-richest man in America, is about to read his last will and testament, divvying up an estate worth $11 billion. Phelan's three ex-wives, their grasping spawn, a legion of lawyers, several psychiatrists, and a plethora of sound technicians wait breathlessly, all eyes glued to digital monitors as they watch the old man read his verdict. But Phelan shocks everyone with a bizarre, last-gasp attempt to redistribute the spoils, setting in motion a legal morality tale of a contested will, sin, and redemption.
Our hero, Nate O'Riley--a washed-up, alcoholic litigator with two ruined marriages in his wake and the IRS on his tail--is dispatched to the Brazilian wetlands in search of a mysterious heir named in the will. After a harrowing trip upriver to a remote settlement in the Pantanal, he encounters Rachel Lane, a pure-hearted missionary living with an indigenous tribe and carrying out "God's work." Rachel's grave dedication and kindness impress the jaded lawyer, so much that a nasty bout of dengue fever leads him to a vision that could change his life.
Back in the States, the legal proceedings drag on and Grisham has a high time with Phelan's money-hungry descendents, a regrettable bunch who squandered millions, married strippers, got druggy, and befriended the Mob. The youngest son, Ramble, is a multi-pierced, tattoo-covered malcontent with big dreams for his rock band, the Demon Monkeys. Will Nate get straight with Rachel's aid? Do the greedy heirs get theirs? What's the real legacy of a lifetime's work? The Testament is classic Grisham: a down-and-out lawyer, a lot of money, an action-packed pursuit, and the highest issues at stake. It's not just about great characters; it's about the question of what character is. --Rebekah Warren
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