Author: John Grisham

Title: The Confession

Publisher: Doubleday 

What would you do if an innocent man was about to be executed for a crime he did not commit . . . and you could stop it? Well, maybe you could stop it. But it won't be comfortable, might be dangerous, and could end up destroying your career, standing in the community, and possibly your family? What would you do then?

It's easy enough to take the high moral ground when not actually faced with that decision, but The Confession opens with Reverend Keith Schroder finding that, for him, it's no longer a hypothetical question. The man sitting in his office just confessed to a murder. Another man is days away from being executed for the crime. How far will Keith go to see justice prevail?

John Grisham is an outspoken opponent of the death penalty. (He's also clearly not a fan of Texas, but I'm trying not to hold that against him.) As an argument on the evils of capital punishment, The Confession works very well. As a novel . . . not so much.

As long as we're following Keith, the story moves along quite nicely. Once Grisham starts dragging us through the background of the crime and punishment, the whole thing slows to a crawl. I've read a few witness statements and police reports in my day; much of the ‘law and order' side of the story is recounted in that same style; a dry restatement of the facts. That's great when it comes to legal testimony but I prefer my fiction to have a little more zest.

Another flaw is that, other than Keith's dilemma, the plot is such a cliché. Young white girl disappears from small east Texas town. Corrupt police beat a confession out of innocent black football player. More corruption in legal system assures innocent boy goes to jail. Town divides along racial lines. Victim's grieving mother becomes minor tabloid celebrity. Crusading lawyer takes up the fight. Sleazy TV journalist films a show. And on and on and on for 432 pages (in the hardcover edition). There is a wee bit of drama over whether or not the accused will receive a last-minute reprieve—I'm not telling, you'll have to ask someone else—otherwise, you can see the ending a country mile away.

I was disappointed in The Confession. I have high expectations for Grisham and the cover copy sounded so intriguing. Instead, it was a parade of one caricature after another. The good guys were all noble; the bad ones were bad to the bone. It's a cautionary tale for adults, propaganda thinly disguised as a novel. I must confess: I found the whole thing rather dull.

**This Review First Published 11/9/2010