I usually love John Grisham but this was a big disappointment. The main character was boring and the book was slow. Normally I'm hooked after a few chapters in other Grisham novels. It just felt like all Mr. Grisham was after was getting you to understand the horrors of strip mining and the horrific, tragic effects it has on the environments and communities where it happens (which is sad!). I wasn't even into the book until about half way through and then I got mildly interested to see what happened to one of the main characters and how that mystery would be solved. Although the sad thing is it never was solved. The book just ended and I was still wondering about that and a few other mildly interesting cases. Maybe Mr. Grisham is planning a sequel but if one comes out I wouldn't even care to read it and find out. Just boring. Find an article on strip mining to educate yourself and skip the book. Sorry, John! :(