The Whistler by John Grisham

Released: October 2016
374 pages

About the Book:

We expect our judges to be honest and wise. Their integrity and impartiality are the bedrock of the entire judicial system. We trust them to ensure fair trials, to protect the rights of all litigants, to punish those who do wrong, and to oversee the orderly and efficient flow of justice.  But what happens when a judge bends the law or takes a bribe? It’s rare, but it happens.  Lacy Stoltz is an investigator for the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct. She is a lawyer, not a cop, and it is her job to respond to complaints dealing with judicial misconduct. After nine years with the Board, she knows that most problems are caused by incompetence, not corruption. But a corruption case eventually crosses her desk. A previously disbarred lawyer is back in business with a new identity. He now goes by the name Greg Myers, and he claims to know of a Florida judge who has stolen more money than all other crooked judges combined. And not just crooked judges in Florida. All judges, from all states, and throughout U.S. history. What’s the source of the ill-gotten gains? It seems the judge was secretly involved with the construction of a large casino on Native American land. The Coast Mafia financed the casino and is now helping itself to a sizable skim of each month’s cash. The judge is getting a cut and looking the other way. It’s a sweet deal: Everyone is making money. But now Greg wants to put a stop to it. His only client is a person who knows the truth and wants to blow the whistle and collect millions under Florida law. Greg files a complaint with the Board on Judicial Conduct, and the case is assigned to Lacy Stoltz, who immediately suspects that this one could be dangerous. Dangerous is one thing. Deadly is something else.

 

Giving It:    🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 (4 stars)

 

This was a complex tale of greed, corruption and those trying to bringing the guilty to justice. Lacy, whose job is to investigate complaints against judges, has been approached by a Greg Myers with what ends up being the most dangerous and biggest case of her career. Due to the nature of the those involved Myers is secretive and is only a messenger. As Lacy and her partner, Hugo, begin their investigation things begin to heat up and they soon realize just how dangerous this case is. There is so much corruption, how can you be sure of who to trust? I was suspicious of everyone. I really liked Lacy and was proud of her to have the guts to continue rather than back down. I also really liked her brother, Gunther, as much as he might have annoyed others he was there for Lacy. The story kept me intrigued, I wanted to know how the guilty parties were going to be brought to justice and if Lacy, Greg and the others involved be safe.