Book Review: The Exchange by John Grisham

Many of John Grisham’s bestsellers have been made into powerful movies, none more popular than The Firm. The movie ended with Mitch and Abby driving into the proverbial sunset. Did their marriage survive? What about the corrupt Memphis firm of Baldini, Lambert & Locke: did any of their lawyers crawl out from beneath the wreckage? And what about Mitch’s legal career? He did a brilliant job of bringing his firm to justice but at what cost to his life and potential career? Remember, he graduated from Harvard Law, one of the top students in his class—the legal world should have been his oyster. Fear not, The Exchange, a follow-up to The Firm, answers all your questions.

The Exchange is an eerily topical book. Stop reading now if you don’t want spoilers.  

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Fifteen years have gone by since Mitch McDeere took down Baldini, Lambert & Locke. He’s back on top of the world—the legal world at least. Mitch is a New York partner at Scully & Pershing, a world-wide firm of two thousand plus: it “vainly considered itself to be the premier international firm on the planet.” 

Mitch is none too pleased when Willie Backstrom, the partner in charge of the firm’s pro bono arm, strong arms him into going back to Memphis. “There’s a case down south I want you to take a look at.” Mitch immediately asks if the guy is on death row. Yes, he is. Mitch has had no luck in previous attempts to save a death row prisoner, so why bother?

“Because we have to try, Mitch, and I think you’re our best bet.”

 

“I’m still listening.”

 

“Well, he reminds me a lot of you.”

 

“Gee thanks.”

 

“No, seriously. He’s white, your age, and from Dane County, Kentucky.”

 

For a second Mitch couldn’t respond, then managed to say, “Great. We’re probably cousins.”

 

“I don’t think so, but his father worked in the coal mines, same as yours. And both died there.”

 

“My family is off-limits.”

 

“Sorry. You caught a lucky break and had the brains to get out. Tad did not … “

There’s a lot to unpack in this conversation—like how readily the lawyers at Scully & Pershing turn to Mitch when they’re in a tight spot; how much Mitch’s past still impacts his present; how scared he still is that somehow his family could be harmed or affected by his work; and lastly, the realization that luck and happenstance have helped Mitch along the way. On his way home from Memphis, Mitch looks up Lamar, the lawyer who recruited him at Harvard. Mitch and Kay had been good friends with Lamar and Kay. It’s a bittersweet meeting: Lamar is still bitter about the implosion of Baldini et al and delivers a few pithy truths.

Once Mitch is back in Manhattan, memories of Memphis and Lamar fade away. Managing partner Jack Ruch wants to see him. Luca Sandroni, an eminent Italian lawyer, “widely respected throughout Europe and North Africa,” and whose firm is part of Scully, has a favor to ask. Luca’s health is questionable—he wants to speak to Mitch personally. Why? Jack says, “It involves Lannak, the Turkish construction company,” and an outstanding bill that the Libyan government won’t honor. Gaddafi is still in charge. Lannak built a magnificent bridge in the desert, per Gaddafi’s wish, but even the Colonel now realizes it’s useless. Lannak still expects payment—in the order of billions. Mitch is the go-to guy at Scully for thankless, problematic, far-flung assignments—and truth be told, he has a knack for pulling rabbits out of the hat. Mitch thinks to himself that it, “Sounded like another great adventure!” Be careful what you wish for. 

Luca wants Mitch to add his daughter Giovanna, a Scully associate at the London office to the team he takes to Libya; “according to the firm gossip, she was as brilliant and driven as her father.” No problem. Can Mitch get to Libya as soon as possible? Mitch asks if it’s safe. Luca says, “as safe as ever,” and that his security team will keep him safe. The night before the Scully team is to go into the desert, Mitch gets violently ill with a vicious intestinal bug—he ends up hospitalized and very reluctantly, since he’s not able to shift the time of the meeting, sends Giovanna in his stead. She’s kidnapped and her security team is brutally murdered. Their barbaric killings are televised and make horrific viewing on the dark web.

What do Giovanna’s capturers want? Money. One hundred million dollars. Law firms don’t have that kind of money in their vaults, but Mitch never wavers from his mission. He’ll do whatever it takes to bring home one of their own, an associate in the firm of Scully & Pershing, and the daughter of his longtime friend, Luca. A quote from Venezuelan actor Edgar Ramirez encapsulates Mitch’s beliefs.

For me, no ideological or political conviction would justify the sacrifice of a human life. For me, the value of life is absolute, with no concessions. It’s not negotiable.

It could be Mitch speaking. “It’s not negotiable,” to do anything other than get Giovanna home safely. The kidnappers pick Abby to be their point person: they text her the details of their demands. The McDeeres are terrified: Abby is shown pictures of her walking their twin boys Clark and Carter to school, having coffee at her favorite coffee shop and the paranoia she endured in Memphis comes rushing back.  

Gathering one hundred million dollars is no easy task. Mitch’s law firm doesn’t have that kind of cash on hand—the partners are wealthy but not billionaires. They’re also not altruistic. Watching Mitch negotiate with all the parties that have an interest in saving Giovanna’s life is like watching a master chef on television—tossing knives and pots without dropping a one. How can he amass all that money in the short time allotted, while also keeping his family safe? It’s a full circle plot. Where else would nefarious, huge sums of money be massaged and manipulated but the Cayman Islands.  

The Exchange is a brilliantly written nail-biter of a book. What’s next for Mitch and Abby? Let’s not wait another thirty-two years to find out.