Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Unavailable
    The Last Juror
    Unavailable
    The Last Juror
    Unavailable
    The Last Juror
    Audiobook (abridged)5 hours

    The Last Juror

    Written by John Grisham

    Narrated by Terrence Mann

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    In 1970, one of Mississippi's more colorful weekly newspapers, The Ford County Times, went bankrupt. To the surprise and dismay of many, ownership was assumed by a 23 year-old college dropout, named Willie Traynor. The future of the paper looked grim until a young mother was brutally raped and murdered by a member of the notorious Padgitt family. Willie Traynor reported all the gruesome details, and his newspaper began to prosper.

    The murderer, Danny Padgitt, was tried before a packed courthouse in Clanton, Mississippi. The trial came to a startling and dramatic end when the defendant threatened revenge against the jurors if they convicted him. Nevertheless, they found him guilty, and he was sentenced to life in prison.

    But in Mississippi in 1970, "life" didn't necessarily mean "life," and nine years later Danny Padgitt managed to get himself paroled. He returned to Ford County, and the retribution began.


    From the Hardcover edition.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateFeb 3, 2004
    ISBN9780739309025
    Unavailable
    The Last Juror

    More audiobooks from John Grisham

    Related to The Last Juror

    Related audiobooks

    Suspense For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      The Good Fight

      Apr 14, 2021

      The Good Fight
      3 min read

    • Article

      Mississippi Journalist Who Chronicled Civil Rights Era Dies At 94

      Mar 28, 2017

      Wilson "Bill" Minor spent nearly 70 years documenting Mississippi's tumultuous political and social transformations. He was writing up until the last few months of his life.

      3 min read

    • Article

      Letters

      Mar 1, 2019

      Letters
      2 min read

    • Article

      Joe Biden Was Right

      Nov 14, 2022

      Joe Biden Was Right
      4 min read

    • Article

      Some Professions Are More Than Professions

      Jul 4, 2018

      This one feels different. And what does it say about this country when one has seen enough mass shootings to become a connoisseur of them? But yes, what happened last week in the newsroom of the Capital Gazette newspaper in Annapolis does feel differ

      2 min read

    • Article

      What Will We Do In A Future Without Newspapers?

      Jul 10, 2019

      The Vindy announced its death about a week before Jeffrey Epstein was arrested. Though the timing was only a coincidence, the juxtaposition speaks volumes about the state of American journalism. Epstein, as you likely know, is the billionaire money m

      2 min read

    • Article

      The Country That Refused To Change

      Jun 26, 2020

      The Country That Refused To Change
      7 min read

    • Article

      Carl Hiaasen: With Or Without Me, Florida Will Always Be Wonderfully, Unrelentingly Weird

      Mar 15, 2021

      Let’s get it over with. This is my last column. I didn’t plan to write about that because there’s actual news to be covered, but my dear friend Dave Barry told me I’d look like a jerk if I didn’t say some sort of goodbye. So here goes. I grew up read

      5 min read

    • Article

      Letters

      Jul 21, 2020

      I’ve only missed a couple of the 21 westerns featured [in the May/June 2020 edition], but couldn’t agree more with the full list. I was particularly happy to see Hell on Wheels and Open Range as 1 and 2. I have watched both, multiple times, and own t

      1 min read

    • Article

      How an Old WHITE GUY Got Woke

      May 25, 2019

      How an Old WHITE GUY Got Woke
      13 min read

    • Article

      It Feels Like 1979 Again

      Jun 25, 2022

      Everything seems to be falling apart. The Russians are occupying a neighboring state. A foreign crisis is causing spikes in the price of oil. Inflation is the worst it’s been in some 40 years. A Democratic president is facing the lowest approval rati

      7 min read

    • Article

      A Gun In The Closet

      Sep 24, 2019

      A Gun In The Closet
      5 min read

    • Article

      We Now Know

      Jun 29, 2022

      We Now Know
      4 min read

    • Article

      Sullivan’s Travels

      Jul 24, 2018

      Sullivan’s Travels
      4 min read

    • Article

      ’twas Ever Thus

      Sep 25, 2018

      ’twas Ever Thus
      4 min read

    • Article

      A Sadistic Immigration Stunt

      Sep 16, 2022

      A Sadistic Immigration Stunt
      6 min read

    Reviews for The Last Juror

    3.5/5

    1,381 ratings51 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      This book was different than I envisioned it based on the back cover blurb. The blurb talked more about Danny Padgitt swearing to get revenge on those who helped convict him and that life in prison isn't really life in prison, so Padgitt is now out. In reality, that was only a small portion of the book. The book focused more on how Willie Traynor came to Clanton and how he met Callie Ruffin. It details their friendship's development and how it endures. Willie met Callie prior to the trial. She became one of the jurors for Padgitt's trial and the county's first African American juror.
    • 5/5
      Excellent in a true vein of Grisham
    • 4/5
      What can I say about a John Grisham book? There are plot twists and turns and there is a court case involved. Actually, I liked it more than some of his more recent books. The characters were more likeable than some of his other creations.
    • 4/5
      Seems like the 'vintage' Grishams are the best; this was an intriguing plot, albeit perhaps a little far-fetched. The premise that the judicial system in "the Deep South" is deeply corrupt might not be credible, although it is as prone to unscrupulous manipulation as many elected judge and constabulary forces have been shown. The character development was superb. Grisham's smooth writing persuades you to buy into the scenarios. His vintage endings are unpredictable.
    • 4/5
      The Last Juror by John GrishamIn this book we learn about the history of the paper and how putting in controversial obits makes a difference. The new editor also posts a lot of local community news: group meetings, killings, etc.One has been sent to prison for rape and killing a woman. He tells the jurors he will come after them if they find him guilty. They do and after his time he's released. The author really goes into learning about the people, their lifes and all about them.I received this book from National Library Service for my BARD (Braille Audio Reading Device).
    • 4/5
      In 1970, one of Mississippi's newspapers, The Ford County Times, went bankrupt. The ownership was assumed by a twenty-three-year-old college dropout named Willie Traynor. The future of the paper looked grim until a young mother was brutally raped and murdered by a member of the notorious Padgitt family, "Danny". He was tried before a packed courthouse in Clanton and ended when the defendant threatened revenge against the jurors if they convicted him. Nevertheless, they found him guilty, then sentenced him to life in prison, but in Miss. in 1970, "life" didn't necessarily mean "life," and 9 yrs. later gets himself paroled, the retribution begins.
    • 1/5
      Ugh, this book was awful. I am trying to expand my reading into genres other than my romance and sci-fi/fantasy world, and this certainly didn't help. The plot (what there was of one) was interrupted by 200-300 pages of absolutely nothing of interest, and when they finally got back to the interesting part of the story, it was incredibly stupid and anticlimactic. Everything about this book was entirely predictable and honestly, boring. I won't give up on the genre yet, but it's going to take an awful lot to get me to try anything else by the author.
    • 1/5
      Ugh, this book was awful. I am trying to expand my reading into genres other than my romance and sci-fi/fantasy world, and this certainly didn't help. The plot (what there was of one) was interrupted by 200-300 pages of absolutely nothing of interest, and when they finally got back to the interesting part of the story, it was incredibly stupid and anticlimactic. Everything about this book was entirely predictable and honestly, boring. I won't give up on the genre yet, but it's going to take an awful lot to get me to try anything else by the author.
    • 4/5
      Very good. This was a lot different from his typical thriller/mystery. This was much more character-driven than plot driven. Grisham paints a really interesting picture of 1970's rural Mississippi. Very engaging characters and even pacing made this a quick, satisfying read.
    • 4/5
      Small town newpaper reporter, thriller - someone is killing off the jurors in a hung murder trial
    • 4/5
      The Juror
      4 Stars

      Not Grisham's usual style but a wonderful storyline and excellent characterization nonetheless.

      Grisham has captured the essence of the small town and its inhabitants. There were moments where I found myself laughing out loud at the antics despite the serious nature of the plot.
    • 5/5
      I have read probably a half dozen Grisham novels over the years. This one struck me as much more people-centered: less about the law and more about the people. It was a pleasant read, not to say a pleasant story. (No story about murder can be called pleasant).
    • 4/5
      A good story, but if you read it try to disregard the title, which is misleading.
    • 4/5
      kept me reading to end, some funny parts, sometimes I get bored and start another book but not with is one.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book. it keps me going and never left me being bored
    • 4/5
      A Great Small Town Story of truth and justice I thought this story of the little Southern town; its small town newspaper owner and its citizens was just a super read. I enjoyed the world of Willie as he became more known by the folks of this Mississippi hamlet. Mr. Crisham did an excellent jobe of developing his character in such a way that I couldn't help but read page after page wondering what adventure he would stumble into. Without hesitation I would recommend this book to all my friends.
    • 3/5
      Quite a good story with a reasonable ending.
    • 4/5
      A Small Town Story of truth and justice. In my opinion, this story of the little Southern town with its small town newspaper owner and its citizens was just a super read. I enjoyed the world of Willie as he became more known by the folks of this Mississippi hamlet. Mr. Crisham did an excellent jobe of developing his character in such a way that I couldn't help but read page after page wondering what adventure he would stumble into.Without hesitation I would recommend this book to all my friends.
    • 4/5
      A solid story from John Grisham with an easy, enjoyable pace. Although its billed as an action adventure--who's killing the jury?--this is more of a character study set in a small southern town circa 1970. Young Willy Trainer becomes the owner of a newspaper that coverages everything from the obits to the garden club meetings to an infamous murder trial. Along the way, we meet all the local eccentrics, all whom Grisham creates to perfection. The main event is the murder trial of a young widow killed by a member of the local drug-dealing, bad-guy family. After conviction, there is a threat against the jurors who participated in the trial. 10 years later, some of those jurors start dying. I am a Grisham fan. I like his gentle, predictable characters. The good guy always win, most often walking away into a tropical paradise with a boatload of money. In my mind, that is always a suitable ending.
    • 2/5
      Not his usual standard, very slow with a mild twist at the end. Not gripping at all.
    • 5/5
      I loved this book! I haven't read a Grisham book in years, but picked up an audio version free so figured I'd give it a try. This is not the typical attorney-thriller, but a languid tale about the life of the young publisher of a weekly newspaper in small-town Mississippi during the 1970's. There is no mystery per se, but the book centers on the trial of a member of a controlling, reclusive, ne'er-do-well family, and its aftermath. The publisher also befriends the mother of a large family of African-Americans, all of whom have become professors in different universities throughout the country, and his tales of the food and love shared are delectable on their own. I definitely recommend listening to the audio version, as the reader adds immeasurably to the experience. I believe Grisham has written two other books set in this town, and I'll definitely be seeking them out.
    • 2/5
      It's weird, but during this book I suffered through various feelings of like and dislike. When I started reading it, I actually liked it quite a lot, but then it sort of seemed to drag on. The inside flap of The Last Juror states that it's about how Danny Padgitt murdered a woman and while he was on the stand, threatened to harm the jury if they convicted him. But really only about the first 50 pages and the last 100 pages actually dealt with the trial and Padgitt's threat. My main gripe with this is that it deviated so much from what it seemed the actual book was about. When I started reading this, I thought that it would be suspenseful with this sort of agonizing tension starting from the trial to Danny Padgitt's threat to the picking of the jurors one by one, but it wasn't like that. Another thing that annoyed me was the actual ending. It seemed very anticlimatic and it seemed like it came out of left field. I found myself thinking "That's very, very implausible" and also "How would no one know?." The ending was also very abrupt. I guess some of the book was interesting and I did care about some of the characters. It was also nice how he had characters from A Time To Kill appear briefly in The Last Juror. Although, I really didn't think Lucien Wilbanks was such a bastard in A Time to Kill, but I thoroughly disliked him in this one. I've only read one other Grisham book and that was A Time To Kill. That one was fabulous. This one...not so much. I'm still planning on picking up some of his other books (especially since I own like six others) and am hoping the brilliance that was behind A Time to Kill, shines brighter on one of the others.
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed this book, which was my first ever John Grisham novel. The setting was enticing and the storyline kept me wanting to read until the end. I now plan to read more John Grisham novels.
    • 4/5
      A good legal thriller, but not really up to par with Grishams best work. Wonderful job on creating a detailed atmosphere for the town it takes place in, as well as the characters that inhabit it, but there was more focus on that rather than the action and suspense that most Grisham novels have.
    • 1/5
      This is the first Grisham book I've ever read, and it is really not a court drama, despite the implications of the title. In 1970, 23-year-old Willie Traynor moves to the small city of Clanton, Mississippi, and buys the local newspaper, which has recently gone bankrupt. Soon after this, a local woman is raped and murdered by Danny Padgitt, son of the "redneck mafia" that is the Padgitt family. The story vaguely meanders around the trial and subsequent fallout over the next several years, but mostly it's about Willie's life in Clanton and the people he meets. There are a lot of scenes and even minor characters thrown in just for color. The ending was mostly predictable, with the only major "twist" feeling like it had been plucked from thin air. It wasn't a bad book - the characters were definitely believable and often entertaining - but from the very beginning I wondered how Grisham would manage to find enough plot to fill the 350 pages. Unfortunately, he really didn't. In the end, if you enjoy reading about smalltown Southern life, you'll like this. If you're looking for an action-packed legal thriller, you probably want to look elsewhere.
    • 4/5
      It took me a little while to get into the story. The pace is slow for a reason, it fits the times and location -- Mississippi in the 70s.
    • 4/5
      It had been a while since I last picked up a John Grisham novel and "The Last Juror" was not at all what I expected it to be. Set in the 1970s in Clanton Mississippi, John Grisham tells the story of a college drop-out, who just took over the small county newspaper and ends up getting involved in a messy rape case. At times the novel seemed more like a collection of anecdotes and episodes about life as a local newspaper publisher in rural Mississippi, but it remains interesting and engaging nonetheless. I would definitely recommend it!
    • 4/5
      Oh, I've missed John's legal thrillers, and this one was a dandy. Not thefrenetic pace that the last couple have had, but a very good readnonetheless. In this novel, Grisham goes back to Clanton, Mississippi forhis setting, the same small town that was the center of the action in "ATime To Kill." This book spans about 10 years of time from the 1970s to the1980s. It's told from the point of view of a man named Willie Traynor whobuys the local weekly newspaper and runs it. There's an family of outlawsnamed Padgitt who own an island and run the shady side of life aroundnorthern Mississippi with an iron fist. They own politicians and electedlaw enforcement to the point where nothing ever happens to them. They runtheir bootlegging and drug business and pretty much mind their own businessand are simply a fact of life for the folks in Clanton until one of them, ayoung violent hooligan named Danny, comes off the island and brutally rapesand murders a single mother in front of her small children. It's anironclad case and something has to be done about it, so it goes to trial.The jury finds him guilty but spares his life and gives him two lifesentences. But, in Mississippi, life isn't really life, and he's paroledafter only 8 years. And shortly after his release, the threat he made tothe jury in the courtroom ("If you send me up, I'll kill every last one ofyou!") appears to be carried out. The vast majority of this book movesalong at the leisurely pace of life in the Deep South, and it's a wonderfulstudy of small town life. When the plot sneaks up on you, it starts to movealong quite well.I enjoyed this book a bunch. I'd give it a 4.
    • 1/5
      Disappointing. Thriller? Not at all. Suspense? No. Portrayal of the newspaper business in Mississippi in the 1970s, mildly interesting as that, but flying under false pretenses as a Grisham.
    • 4/5
      This was a cut above Grisham's usually predictable novels.