It's hard for me to give John Grisham anything less than four stars on a book review. I have loved his writing since I picked up his first novel, A TIME TO KILL. I vacillated between two stars and three stars for THE RECKONING, not because Grisham is any less engaging in this novel, but because the subject matter was difficult for me personally. In the end, I could not give Grisham anything less than three stars, because he is simply an amazing author.
I found the "upside down plot" of this story to be especially intriguing. It was, in part, what kept me eagerly reading the next chapter. The book begins with Peter Banning, a small town war hero, making a cold, calculated decision to kill the local Methodist preacher, an act which not only adversely affects his own family and the family of the victim, but also the small, close-knit community in which they live. Pete will not reveal his motive for this premeditated murder even to his attorney, Russel Wilbanks. The reader is intentionally given some clues as to the motive early in the story but the author is careful to leave enough doubt so that the reader remains engaged.
The second part of the book steps backwards in time, and goes into great detail about Pete's military service in the Philippines during World War II. The author vividly describes the Bataan Death March, the brutality of the enemy soldiers, and the cruel suffering inflicted upon American soldiers. This portion of the book also discuses guerilla warfare and gives detailed descriptions of battle scenes. For individuals who are interested in the history of World War II, this portion of the book will be extremely interesting. I found it interesting but very disturbing, as violence is a trigger for me. I think the detailed war violence needs to be mentioned so that others who have difficulty reading such explicit detail can be forewarned. I probably would not have picked up this book to read if I had paid attention to this detail prior to starting the book.
I can also see how the portrayal of the black servants in this book set in the south prior to desegregation, as well as some of the book's plot details might be hurtful and distasteful to some readers. I do think Grisham does a decent job of approaching the reality of the racial tensions of the era with sensitivity, but I can understand how these details might be hurtful and I feel they need to be mentioned as well.
The third part keeps the reader hanging on for the details until the very end where there is a major plot twist, but Grisham does a masterful job of pulling all three segments of the book together.
The book is brilliantly written, as are all of Grisham's books in my opinion, but I would consider the story itself along the lines of a Shakespearean tragedy. Overall, the ending left me very sad, but I will give John Grisham bonus points for weaving William Faulkner into the plot as a minor character. Touche'