James Grippando Books

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James Grippando is an American novelist that writes legal fiction. Born in Waukegan, Illinois to a family of four children, James was in eighth grade when he decided that he wanted to become a lawyer.

His parents sparked the dream when they took him to see Lincoln’s law office in Springfield. He attended Florida State University where he excelled in his studies. Following his graduation, the author was fortunate enough to secure a position in the US Court of Appeals as a law clerk.

The job allowed James to work on various death penalty cases. He repeated these experiences in his private practice. The author strengthened his resume even further when he became lead counsel in a case that changed the poultry industry, which was worth $15 billion a year.

When he wasn’t fighting battles in court, James Grippando was writing scholarly articles. One of the most interesting occurrences of his life came about when he was mistaken for a peeping Tom and arrested. The incident inspired ‘The Pardon’, the author’s first novel.

For a while, he successfully juggled his legal work and publishing career. But eventually, he left the legal field to become a full-time writer. James’ decision to write fiction was partly driven by the fact that his scholarly work was going unnoticed.

After five years as a practicing attorney, James realized that lawyers and judges had shown little or no interest in his articles. Around that same time, he noticed that the public was engrossed by L.A. Law, a television show. Within that same period, ‘Presumed Innocent’ by Scott Turow was attracting a lot of attention.

This showed James that people had an insatiable desire to read legal fiction written by actual attorneys. This gave him the courage to pursue fiction. It took him four years to complete his first novel.

Because his work kept him busy, James could only write at night and on the weekends. By the time he was done, his manuscript was 250,000 words long. He tried to get it published but no one wanted it.

This should have discouraged James. However, his agent told him that the rejection letters he had received for his manuscript were the most encouraging he had ever seen. This compelled James to keep writing. This time, it took him seven months to finish the manuscript for ‘The Pardon’. Once it was complete, it only took Harper Collins a single weekend to decide that they wanted it.

The publisher was right to take a chance on the novel. It was eventually translated into over twenty languages. Because the author’s stories are so complex, he has to create outlines before he sits down to write. However, these outlines are loose. They detail the major clashes and conflicts. But James leaves more than enough room for his characters to surprise him with their actions.

He doesn’t necessarily know everything before he starts writing. The author does a lot of research for his books. He doesn’t stop at reading. James goes out and finds experts in specific fields to shadow. This allows him to represent their professions with greater authenticity.

James Grippando Awards

The author won the Harper Lee Prize in 2017. He was a finalist for the Benjamin Franklin Award in 2007.

Best James Grippando Books

He is a family man with a wife and three children. James’ best books include:

The Pardon: Jack and Harry are estranged. Harry, now a Governor in Florida, has made the gap between them even wider by allowing a man that his son was defending to die. Jack is convinced that his client was innocent.

But he cannot allow his animosity towards his father to divide them, not at the moment. The pair have become the target of a psychopath. And the only way they will survive is by turning to one another.

Gone Again: Dylan was drunk on the night of his arrest. He said the wrong things. He had no idea that Sashi Burgette had gone missing and his attempts to explain the evidence implicating him in Sashi’s disappearance only made things worse.

Now, Dylan is just days away from his execution. But Sashi’s mother wants Jack to intervene. She thinks Dylan is innocent because Sashi called her. The State attorney doesn’t believe her. Jack must unravel the mystery before an innocent man dies.

When Does The Next James Grippando book come out?

James Grippando doesn't seem to have an upcoming book. Their newest book is Goodbye Girl and was released on January, 9th 2024. It is the newest book in the Jack Swyteck Series.

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