If asked whether I was a fan of John Grisham, my best answer would be “sometimes.” I have loved some of his stuff (esp earlier books), but some have been “meh.” Last year’s A Time for Mercy, #3 in the Jake Brigance series, was a big disappointment for me (three stars — I’m an easy grader, what can I say?) Although I had not read The Whistler, featuring Lacy Stolz, I was happy to receive a copy of The Judge’s List (second in what looks like a series featuring Lacy) from Doubleday Books and NetGalley in exchange for this honest review. 

There are references throughout this second book to book #1, but this one stands alone just fine. Three years after the events in the first book, in which Lacy was nearly killed as she worked to investigate a corrupt judge in her role as an investigator for Florida’s Board on Judicial Conduct, Lacy is nearing forty, still single and getting bored with her job. A mysterious woman brings her information about a judge who just might be a serial killer. The woman has investigated/stalked him for twenty years, and has a ton of information that she hopes will convince Lacy that the BJC should  open a murder investigation.

The judge is brilliant, extremely patient, and well aware of the law. Although it seems any of the murders will be impossible to prove, Lacy begins a very creepy adventure looking into the potential case. This one was way better than “meh,” and avoided the resolution letdown of A Time for Mercy. TBH, this one creeped me out, and I was actually eager to finish it so I could relax…four stars.