The Confession discussion

Honestly, what was the point of reading until the end? The one good character in the book died an innocent man, and barely a few hours later everything was revealed. There was absolutely nothing to look forward to after that I reckon.

exactly,i too have the same mutual feeling regarding the death of that character,but still i was keeping my fingers across till the end to see if the author has some thing more to offer, but unfortunately he didn't, the only draw back of this book i guess,

I think it's totally brilliant. In order to make the case the author was arguing, he had to kill Dante, and the point of the book had to be bigger than Dante. One of my favorite Grisham novels to date.

It was like total buzzkill for me really. I understand the point he was trying to make, but it wasn't even the spectacular ending it could've been. It was almost like the bubble had burst and Grisham was just trying to make the best of the remnants of the story.

well miss Alia, on this we disagree. Are you a die-hard Grisham reader? I've only just begun. Started with the Appeal, then Street Lawyer (amazing!) and then Confession, but I have my own confession, I went to a local thrift store and bought nearly every Grisham book ever written for a half-dollar each. I'll be Grishaming for the next few years. Still, I love it when an author is more committed to what's right for the story and what's true to the characters than he/she is to pleasing the reader. As a reader, it makes me enjoy it all the more. Same with ambiguous endings, I know it's torture but I LOVE them!

Funny that you bought the books in a thrift store, I wonder why they were there to begin with. Oh snap!

While I was hoping things would be revealed before Donte died, or that he was offered a stay, I think Donte had to die. This book was about more than one death row character/person. This book is about the concept of the government having the right to kill its people overall.

I was so upset once Donte died. I really thought that he would be saved and someone would come to their senses before he was murdered by the state. It's so frustrating that there are people who may be in jail right now for life or death, with less than stellar evidence against them. It was so hard to think that someone lost their life because of a couple of lies. In conclusion, I was definately deflated once Donte died.

I was disheartened by the ending however something within me was telling me Donte would not be saved in time. I think it was a brilliant way to end the story. Even though it is tough to swallow. This is REAL life stuff. There are no knights in shining armors rushing in to save innocent folks that have been convicted and placed on death row. Many innocents lives have been lost. Everyday you read about how DNA evidence freed someone that was imprisoned for 30 years. By ending the book the way he did John Grisham drives home a very important point that should not be lost on any reader. We were drawn in by Donte's character. Our hearts were with him. And we lost him because of a broken criminal justice system. One where guilty folks go free and innocent people pay the ultimate price. Casey Anthony is a perfect recent example of a true court room spectacle that played out on national television. We bought into the "Tot Mom" dehumanizing of Casey and we wanted Justice for the precious daughter that had her life taken way too early. Then she walks and everyone is in a rage. This is REAL life. This is how our justice system operates. It's not perfect by any means. It makes us think twice about the death penalty and reasonable doubt and circumstantial evidence. What standard do we need to convict or acquit? Reasonable doubt. Means so much and something different to everyone looking from their own point of view and preexisting prejudices and preferences and propensity to judge based on these elements rather than facts or lack thereof. As REAL as it gets.

REAL is great for non-fiction, but that is not why one reads fiction.
I have read every Grisham novel and of late he seems to desire to set us all straight on how screwed up the system is, well gee we already know that. Read Innocent Man for great Grisham non-fiction...but come on let the good guy win once in awhile, even if it has to be in a fantasy world of fiction.

Letting him live would have been so cliche. Grisham wanted you to feel something and have it stay with you. He succeeded. :-)

I agree, if Donte had survived, the book would have been too contrived and typical. I like the fact that Donte had to die. Additionally, "letting the good guy win" all the time has actually wreaked a lot of havoc in some otherwise good stories. Sometimes characters we like and care about have to die (in this case) to make the story impactful.

I will admit that I was so frustrated and angry at this novel that i think i threw it across the room at one point. But then I had to see it through to the end. Dante's death actually shed a tear. Let me stress: A SINGLE tear.

I did. But I think his death is necessary. It made the point of the theme, 'capital punishment'. Also, If Donte survived, I wouldn't be thinking about this book after.

I felt really bad when he died,I thought he was going to be released.

I was disappointed, but thought it ended okay...not my favorite Grisham.

It reminded me of the movie: The Life of David Gale. A much better story on abolition of the death penalty.

Joseph wrote: "I think it's totally brilliant. In order to make the case the author was arguing, he had to kill Dante, and the point of the book had to be bigger than Dante. One of my favorite Grisham novels to d..."

Totally agree. As sad as his death was.

I read The Confession by John Grisham in 2 days. It is an awesome novel and it will certainly keep you late at night make you turn the pages one by one. This is one hell of an unputdownable novel which I have read this year.

Through this novel, Grisham raises serious question regarding death penalty that we don't have any right to sentence someone for death penalty rather give them life imprisonment.

I really wished Grisham could have kept the boy (Donte Drumm) alive and let the story end on a happy note but just like his previous novel The Chamber, he does the contrary what the readers anticipated for.
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The Confession is my first Grisham novel, I doubt it would be my last one. First I have to tell, I hate novels with too happy ending, I would feel utterly cheated of my time and emotions.

With that said, I cried like a newborn baby when Donte died. But I feel that the novel became a great deal more realistic along with Donte's death. The whole thing felt so real, thus so much more powerful.

I'm glad I found Grisham, another great author who can tell a story without compromising. A truly great writer shouldn't be afraid to kill the hero for the sake of the storytelling. (And yes, I'm a George R.R. Martin fan).

Agreed. Felt horrible when Dante died. But then if it had been a tidy ending, with the governor (of Texas, no less) granting a stay, we wouldn't be hauted by this story. If Dante hadn't died, the bow-wrapped package would have given us a judicial system that always works perfectly well and a world with no racism.

For me, the ending was sad but necessary to bring home Grisham's point -- he is obviously anti-death penalty. I, too, loved Innocent Man - more insight from the author as to his views on what's wrong with the American justice system. Both books are thought provoking and were real page-turners for me.

I know it was hard to take but it made the book/story even more 'realistic'. Life can be hard and terrible things happen. It most certainly is a thought provoking story. Those who are for or against the death penalty could all think twice when reading this book. It certainly has points of tension. I just finished "The Litigators". I got it from the publisher for a BzzAgent campaign. It is good too, in a different way.

I thought the book was great. Yes I was disappointed when Donte died but sometimes there isn't a "they lived happily ever after ending."

I was definitely deflated (and infuriated) when Donte was executed. This book evoked more emotion from me than most. It also made me rethink my position regarding the death penalty. I'm 30 years old and since I've been old enough to have an opinion, I've been pro death penalty. Grisham made me re-evaluate my beliefs and after researching the subject further, I am now against the death penalty. But I DO wish they would make prisons less comfortable (especially for the worst of the worst).

If Donte would have gotten the last-minute miracle, the point of the book would have been lost. The point being, that there are more innocent Donte's caught in the legal system than we will ever know.

Jeremy wrote: "I was definitely deflated (and infuriated) when Donte was executed. This book evoked more emotion from me than most. It also made me rethink my position regarding the death penalty. I'm 30 years ol..."

I agree that jails should be less comfortable. I never gave much thought before as to whether or I was pro-death penalty. But I'm definitely not pro death penalty anymore. I really think that death is the easy way out for people who have committed heinous crimes. They don't have to be burdened with it. Death is a great escape for people who are insane.

I felt very manipulated...Be aware that this tale is told in a biased manner, by someone totally against the death penalty. The injustices in the legal system against the accused are detailed. The victim's family & friends are shown as mindless 'rats' following the pied piper of the legal system. In particular, the mother is depicted as a clownish publicity seeker, using her daughter's death as a venue for being in the limelight. The police, prosecutor, judges, appellate court and elected officials are mainly shown as egotistical buffoons uninterested in the truth, and simply motivated by furthering their careers. Ninety-five percent of the book was focused on the accused, while the crime victim was relegated to the back burner--Grisham conveniently skimmed the horrific violence she endured. Christians, in general, were criticized, unless they were black and/or liberal. Grisham could have done 'justice' to BOTH points of view, but he 'cheaped out'---His tale is as equally biased as those of the judicial process he derides---Hypocrisy at its core! ...That being said, NONE of us should applaud the death penalty. At the very least, the process should be reviewed and fullproof safeguards should be put in place before another execution is even contemplated--justice compels it!

I was deflated when Donte died, but I get it. There was a bigger issue and Donte's death was an integral part of the argument. Personally I really liked Keith a lot. He reminded me of a minister who played an important role in my life.

Kyle ( Rebel Leader) wrote: "The book The Executioner's Song by Norman Mailer gave me great insight into the American justice system, and the death penalty. All the more disturbing because this is a true story--that of Gary Gi..."

I so agree. "The Executioner's Song" was very troubling on so many levels. I was in high school when the saga was playing out, but it was 35 years later that I read the book. Gilmore was a horrible person with very few redeeming qualities. I wanted him to suffer. However, I am and always have been anti-death penalty. Gilmore's story didn't change that.

You're supposed to feel deflated. The system is flawed, and good lawyers fail to save the lives of innocent people all the time. Something very similar to this story just happened in Alabama within the last year.

The point was not for you to come away thinking "well, at least there is some way to make sure that innocent people don't get executed." The point is for you to realize no matter how smart and powerful the people working on the side of the angels are, the only way to save innocent people from execution is to do away with the death penalty.

Donte's death was very hard to take.

Once you've read a few John Grisham novels, you know that he's not necessarily going to save the guy on death row. His point is clearly that it's nearly impossible to do this. He creates a chase scenario with the defence lawyer running here and there making appeals and racing against a deadline. In doing this he takes a stand against the death penalty. And there is another point. Through Dante's death,other characters evolve or grow in some way. The obvious character being the minister. He may use a formula to write, but I'm a fan.

John Grisham writes like reality...the good people don't always have everything turn out okay and the bad people sometimes seem to catch all of the breaks. Honestly, if I could always predict how Grisham will make his books end, I would not enjoy his books nearly as much.

So true!

Yeah. I didn't like that part either, but it had to be I guess in order for the story to be credible. I was really bummed though!!!

I thought it was more realistic than if he had lived. There have been several cases where an innocent man was executed. The whole theme of the book was the evils of Capitol punishment,so to have it any other way wouldn't have gotten the point across.

After Donte's execution, when his mother was changing his clothes, I realized that tears were running down my face. I always cry at movies, but this is the first time I cried while reading a book.

Debbie wrote: "After Donte's execution, when his mother was changing his clothes, I realized that tears were running down my face. I always cry at movies, but this is the first time I cried while reading a book."

I did too. But it's not the first time for me. I bawled and bawled every time I read Love Story before and after seeing the movie.

That just broke my heart. I could not believe that he would let Donte be executed and then to cut into my heart by the section wher his mother cleans him up and dresses him for the last time...It was hard to keep the pages of the book from getting wet....It truely made me think about how I view things

I am so happy I went through the comments in this discussion. I was completely distraught after Donte died. May I reveal here that I even cursed Grisham!! (Sorry, m a fan but m also human!)
But the various explanantions and consolations offered here made me feel better, and have in a way enriched me. I realise now how to get into a story and to also be able to view it from a vantage point.
Thanks guys!!

Would be interested in hearing thoughts regarding the last paragraph of the book. Why do you think he ended the book this way?

Jeff wrote: "Letting him live would have been so cliche. Grisham wanted you to feel something and have it stay with you. He succeeded. :-)"

I don't know, I thought letting him die was cliche. Like he had a lesson to teach me rather than a story to tell me. "The Chamber" was much better, I thought.

deflated,angry. I think maybe the point was to feel something. before Donte dies you're hopeful that they might just be in time to save an innocent man. Following the whole procedure of trying to get a stay for the execution. and then the court house is closed?!

I was angry and disappointed.

MadauG wrote: "deflated,angry. I think maybe the point was to feel something. before Donte dies you're hopeful that they might just be in time to save an innocent man. Following the whole procedure of trying to g..."

I felt the same way too! But I just could not put it down. Somehow, strangely I still wanted to know more.

Layla wrote: "MadauG wrote: "deflated,angry. I think maybe the point was to feel something. before Donte dies you're hopeful that they might just be in time to save an innocent man. Following the whole procedure..."

I kept reading as well. I wanted to see (read) it through. That Donte gets justice and that they carry out his last wish.

After Dante died it was pretty boring and there was no character that you could really root for. As the characters remaining all were kind of annoying.for example:

Keith-A bit annoying at times and acts like he's better than others just because he's a pastor.

Robbie Flak-He was heroic in a sense but there was just something about him I didn't like.

Drew Kerber- sounded like just a thug that was given a badge and gun and had no experience as a police officer. He did make a great villainous character though.

Paul Koffee-In a sense was an accomplice to Kerber, pretty boring character.

Travis Boyette-Intriguing character because you never really know what he is going to do. However you can't root for him because he is a murderer.

So pretty much without Dante there was really no point in reading the rest of the book seeing as there wasn't really any heroic characters that I didn't find annoying. It was a great book, but John Grisham could have told the story in half as many pages as he did and after Dante died that should've been the end.

I was. I was hoping against hope that he would be saved in just the nick of time.

I Felt like i got stabbed when he died. i mean it brought back the reality of life that innocent people do die.. i cried!

this is one of grisham's novel that i got very much affected. being from a third world country, i can relate to the sad ending of donte drumm's life... accused of something he didn't do. there are so many donte's here in our country. incarcerated for petty crimes, whereas those who laundered taxpayer's money are still free and living the life of the rich and famous... how sad :(