one thing i knew after reading this book , i m oposed to death penalty ....
sam cayhall an old man who spent his last nine and a half year in cage waiting for death ...
his only dream was freedom he wanted to watch the sunrise ; run under the rain like kids ;;;
and when he died he asked his grandson also his lawyer to apologize to all the peole he hurted
i don't know why i sympathize with him may be because he was brave enough to face the death and took charge of all his mistakes or because he is an old man who spent his life in a cage like animals
too many details this is what made the book a little bit boring

A well written book on the the subject of capital punishment. "Can you avenge a murder with the death of the murderer, and that too after lapse of many years?" is the question that was subtly raised throughout the book. From a legal point of view the book had merit as the story unfolds the defects of the methods that used to carry out execution thus showing a cruel side of the justice system. In this light, the book can perhaps seen as advocating for the abolition of capital punishment. However from a fictional point of view, it was much a socio-legal commentary than a story.

The second book by John Grisham I have read. When I was finished I was hooked. In fact, I even began to wish I had studied law.

A great book. I listened to it during my 13 hour drive to Alabama from Oklahoma, and during my entire stay. It was long. It's obvious that the author did a lot of research regarding the conditions of the blacks and their hideous treatment in the 50's and 60's in southern Mississippi. So disturbing. I really liked the main character, Adam. The narrator was amazing. Grisham has a beautiful way of describing the characters and scenery so you feel as if you can actually there in the room with them. s

3.5 stars

Adam Hall is a new lawyer. In Mississippi, Sam Cayhall, a (former) KKK member, is on death row for bombing a building in 1967 where a Jewish lawyer worked; the bomb went off when the lawyer’s 5-year old twin sons were there and both were killed. When Adam learns that Sam is his grandfather (Adam was only 3 when his father left Mississippi and changed all their names so as to not be associated with his own racist KKK father), he decides to head to Mississippi to fight the death sentence against Sam.

This was good, but maybe not quite as good as many of Grisham’s others. I think it was a bit slower. There were sort of two parts to it: the legal case being made and the pro/con death penalty, but also the story of a family with secrets, as Adam and Sam (and Adam and his aunt, Sam’s daughter) get to know each other. I thought about upping my rating just a little bit at the end, but decided I’d stick with how I felt through the majority of the book and go with 3.5 stars “good”.

Grisham has written much better novels. In this book, he seems hellbent on ramming the message home that capital punishment is plain wrong. I didn't need convincing even before reading this book, but found the story to be a little laboured.

This book had nothing into it. I got just over half way and could not finish. I had to go out and rent the movie just to see how it ended. I laughed so hard when I watched the movie, because they had to add things to the movie just to give it substance. The movie was not even that good. I love most all of Grisham's books, but this was a low spot.

I generally was not a John Grisham fan. I had read "Peligan Brief" many years ago and found it too detailed and too boring. This is not the way I felt about this book - so John Grisham, you have earned your way back into my reading library.
The Gas Chamber is being prepared....time is running out - - Will this client be set free? John Grisham takes you through every emotion - - liking this client and even somewhat accepting perhaps of what he did - - to hating this guy and wanting to pull the gas line on him yourself.
I found myself biting my nails as I got near the ending.....I almost felt time was running out for me! In the literature world everyone loves a 'happy' ending...which would mean the guy would get set free and live a forgiving life....but does he? Can you, while reading, come up with a solution as to why this guy should/should not be set free. He freely admist the crime...that is never the question....then what else is there to say? A lot!!! You'll find yourself grabbing every minute you can to read the next paragraph......

Much too long. Formulaic. Lots of "showing". Interesting info on death penalty.

Every now and again I enjoy reading a John Grisham book; they`re easy to read and gripping. This was no different.

I found this 1994 novel somewhat disjointed and lacking the integrity of plot and characters which make most of Grisham’s other works so impactful. All the normal ingredients are there: a contentious social issue (racism, particularly that espoused and practised by the Ku Klux Klan), a sticky legal issue (the death penalty), a disjointed personal development of a young lawyer (working for a big firm but becoming disenchanted), a problematic family background (trying to get a stay of execution for one’s grandfather while trying to extract information from an his unwilling and alcoholic daughter) and a compelling mystery involved in the crime (a bombing which killed innocent victims, and the willingness of the grandfather to be executed without giving up the identity of his co-conspirators who were actually more guilty than him).

Perhaps it was the lack of any significant romantic interest for the young lawyer, which Grisham usually interweaves into his stories, that failed to tie this relatively disparate elements together into a cohesive whole. Or maybe it is the difficult challenge he set himself to try to feel some form of sympathy for a white supremacist and racist while showing the fundamental inhumanity of the death penalty.

A poorly done Grisham novel which is nonetheless an enjoyable and engaging read.

Recommended.

For the second time dealing with hate crimes, with KKK's performance on the Mississippi as the backdrop, the reader now finds a deeper, more detailed Grisham. It is possible to see, in a sincere way, through the eyes of the main characters and put itself at the center of the dilemma of the death penalty.

I know I already said that about The Client, but I must correct myself and say about "The Chamber": Grisham's best book so far.

In two moments, in particular, the book struck me: first, when Eddie's suicide is reported and all the weight he placed under Adam's shoulders ("And hurry, before the girls get home."); and secondly by Sam's taste for Eskimo Pie ice cream, known in Brazil as Eskibon and certainly one of my favorites.