The Justice

by James Patterson, Aaron Cooley, Sanaa Lathan

*Length: 2 hrs and 57 mins

Justice Beth Garner just landed the appointment of a lifetime—a seat on the Supreme Court. Now a mysterious company is blackmailing her for her vote on a landmark case.

Caught up in the checkered past of her hero and mentor, Chief Justice Clayton Erlenborn, Beth must cunningly maneuver through a dangerous web of secrets, deception, and cold-blooded murder. Armed with only her moral compass and unflinching nerve, she’s up against a sinister world full of undercover agents, domestic terrorists, and black ops assassins—all of whom want her to comply or die.

With her career and her life on the line, Beth must race to uncover the truth before it’s too late.

From master storyteller James Patterson, The Justice is a fully immersive Audible Original thriller that takes spellbinding action to the highest court in the land.

Genres: Audiobook, Mystery, Thriller, Fiction, Suspense, Crime, Mystery Thriller

3 pages, Audible Audio

Published January 1, 2024

About the author

Official US Site
Official UK Site
JIMMY Patterson Books
ReadKiddoRead

James Patterson is the most popular storyteller of our time and the creator of such unforgettable characters and series as Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Jane Smith, and Maximum Ride. He has coauthored #1 bestselling novels with Bill Clinton, Dolly Parton, and Michael Crichton, as well as collaborated on #1 bestselling nonfiction, including The Idaho Four, Walk in My Combat Boots, and Filthy Rich. Patterson has told the story of his own life in the #1 bestselling autobiography James Patterson by James Patterson. He is the recipient of an Edgar Award, ten Emmy Awards, the Literarian Award from the National Book Foundation, and the National Humanities Medal.

Reviews

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short. To the point. Written by Patterson.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

James Patterson and Aaron Cooley present this great Audible Original piece, a gripping legal thriller that is sure to pique the interest of the listener. Told in a format some might call ‘radio drama’, the story uses a number of voice actors to depict the thrilling tale of a newly appointed Associate Justice to the US Supreme Court and the blackmail scheme that is taking place to ensure a favourable vote. As Justice Beth Garner tries to get to the bottom of things, she learns a great deal about herself along the way. A great story that kept me hooked until the final moment. Patterson and Cooley have shown they make a great collaborative team.

It is all celebrations as Justice Beth Garner is sworn in as the newest Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court, a lifetime job that will allow her to work independently and adjudicate the law. However, she is soon blackmailed about voting a certain way on her first case, one that appears to have others, including the Chief Justice, in the same situation. Justice Garner cannot handle this, relying on the Court’s impartiality, and wants answers.

As Justice Garner makes her way through the lies and deceptions, she is stymied when the Chief Justice urges her to fall prey to the blackmailers and simply let things go. However, she cannot do that and soon learns, with the help of her clerk and some private investigating that there is murder and deception around every bend. With the group upping its threats, Justice Garner can only watch and hope that she can reveal it all before the Court must rule on the case and cement the decision into law.

At the heart of the matter is a mystery liaison the Chief Justice had many years ago with a woman he dearly loved. While Justice Garner cannot speak to the affair, she knows the Chief Justice better than many and cannot stand to see him so torn up. As the pressure mounts, everyone awaits the Court’s decision on the matter and many wonder how Justice Garner will vote on her first Supreme Court case. A chilling story that was both impactful and quick to resolve, exemplifying the authors’ stellar job with this piece.

I always enjoy reading new collaborations with James Patterson, more to see how the second author will fit into the larger Patterson rubric. Aaron Cooley did a wonderful job with this piece whose format serves a listening audience. The story moved quickly and left little time for the listener to gather their thoughts. Rather, it sped along and gained even more momentum as the story amped up its drama. With great characters and a plot that left little to fault, Patterson and Cooley show that they have all the elements for a stunning thriller.

The plot twists kept the story on point and left the listener wanting more. With each chapter something emerged that might not have been predicted. I cannot help but wonder if we will see more collaboration between the authors, as they know how to present a story, with many twists and keeping the momentum steamrolling ahead.

Kudos, Messrs. Patterson and Cooley, for a wonderful legal thriller.

Love/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

[Natalie all_books_great_and_small · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to follow

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remaining focused on audiobooks can be hard for me, so I really enjoy full cast narrations like this one, because they keep me interested and entertained. The main character of this book is Beth Garner, a judge who has just been appointed to the Supreme Court. Beth has always prided herself on her integrity, but now someone is trying to blackmail her into voting in a specific way on an upcoming case. When Beth realizes both her career and her life is at stake, she is determined to find out who is behind these threats and stop them before she runs out of time.

At first, I was a little confused about the plot and also had trouble distinguishing between the voices of Beth and another woman in the story. However, the more the story progressed, the more I enjoyed it. I like the format of Beth telling her story to another woman in the present with flashes back to the prior events. The story is suspenseful because you know something bad is going to happen, but you're not sure of the details. There are a couple big twists, and I had fun listening to this fast-paced, shorter story. I would recommend this for thriller fans.

[Star Gater · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dramatization not audiobook. Unexpected pleasurable experience.

I liked the cast of characters, the story and the pace. The ending was too hokey.

Overall, a different way to spend three hours.

I would have given 4 stars if the ending could pass for believable.

[Rochelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed it. Fast paced legal thriller starring Sanaa Latham and Susan Kelechi Watson. Murder and corruption at the highest court in the land, no suspension of disbelief needed here, especially in today’s political climate.

[Aurora · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need to know more about the president in this story and why he was moving like that. The revelations, the shooting, the twists and the turns with some of my favorite people telling the story was all so good!

[The Diva Den Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 James Patterson will never fail you. The suspense and the narrators omg I actually thought I was in a movie listening to this!!!

[Chichi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ll be honest, this book bored me for most of the ride. The pacing felt slow and it didn’t entertain me in the usual sense, but I stuck it out and I’m glad I did. Toward the end, the plot twist genuinely caught me off guard: I would never have guessed Elizabeth was Chief Justice Clayton’s daughter. That reveal alone gave the story a surprising kick.

What stood out most, however, was the underlying message. The Justice highlights how the very system meant to fight corruption often becomes its breeding ground. It shows how far people will go to gain power, and then to keep it. The story also reminded me that our past never truly disappears; someone can always dig it up and use it against us.

One of my biggest takeaways is this: power gained through dubious means will always demand more from us than we’re willing to give. It feels great in the moment, but the price to pay is inevitably painful.

So, while it wasn’t an exciting listen all the way through, it did leave me with valuable reflections.

[🌷🌹 Michelle Magrans-Perez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audible Audio Book

I have just begun reading and listening to psychological thrillers and crime books. This is my first ever JP book. Sure, I’ve seen the Alex Cross movies but never read any books. In true crime and government drama form, this book delivers. The only reason why I gave it 4 stars overall is because of the cussing. I do not like the cussing bombs in books and this one had a lot. Now, I don’t know if JP uses cursing in all his books or not, but that just puts me off and that’s the only reason for the 4 stars.

I think it was a great audible book with twist revelations at just the precise time. I enjoyed the sound effects and different character narrations. Made the book come alive even more.

[Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 rounded down to 3
A nice quick read with quite a lot of action. It’s great that the main protagonist is a US Supreme Court Justice with unimpeachable integrity. And it’s a woman!

Enough characters to create a dynamic storyline and I enjoyed the twists and turns, especially the surprise near the end that caught me off guard. This is a full cast Audible Original and the voice performers were good.

[Lesley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast paced multi cast audio

[Stephanie Gray Brand · Rating 4 out of 5]

WTH did I listen to a movie or book? Storyline was great but could have done without the theatrics. Did have a mouthdrop but I enjoyed this. It was different.

[Gabby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I ate this upppppppp

[Paul Botterill · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. There was organised crime, thrills, intrigue and excitement. Classic James Patterson.

[Sharon M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this one!! This opened my eyes to a world I don't often read or hear about. I really hope this turns into a prequel of more books to come!!

[Mahoghani 23 · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short political story that’s fast paced with characters you wouldn’t trust around your children.

[Niesha MC · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was quick and fun, listen! Loved the immersive listening experience with not only a full cast but sound effects as well. And of course, I was able to figure "it" out.

[Andy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh, nothing special

[April Goble · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not worth the listen! Very political and more of a movie via audible than listening to a book.

[Kendra ♡ Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this one!! i loved Audible originals productions it feels like im listening to a movie

[Joey (theboywho_reads) · Rating 2 out of 5]

While the voice acting and sound design was great to listen to, the story itself was just meh. The plot was nothing new, and I wasn’t that surprised with the twist. Oh well, at least this give me another book read for the year 😂.

[Lchiofolo · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story readers had little to no difference in voice, so it was hard to know who was speaking. While the loose ends cleaned up a bit at the end, what might could have been an exciting plot twist was just abrupt and clumsy. Did Patterson just need to finish this book by a deadline?

[Robin Sizemore-Stewart · Rating 1 out of 5]

Audiobook was just not engaging at all. The telling of the story was choppy and fairly predictable.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

This audiobook isn't that bad however at times I got lost with the back and forth with the characters. Not a bad story though.

[Darinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fast-paced legal thriller. Quick story. Entertaining.

[Regis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Performances were great, but the story was predictable, and did not capture my attention.

[Perm Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ This is my personal 5 star rating system because I’m too lazy to write a review for every book.

5 stars -> OMFG. I couldn’t stop listening. I was engaged from beginning to end. The story & narrator was amazing. I 100% recommend this book & author. I was able to clearly follow each and every character.

4 stars -> It was pretty good. I would’ve rated 5 stars, But either the ending was lacking, I struggled to keep up with characters, or the story didn’t keep me fully engaged. The narrator was pretty good as well. I’m on the fence about recommending this book, It could go either way.

3 Stars -> It was boring at times & I missed chunks of the story. I most likely struggled to keep up with character developments. The only way I would recommend this book is if it was part of a series. The narrator was most likely average or just couldn’t fix a mediocre book.

2 Stars -> It was pretty horrible. I used it as background noise because I hadn’t had a chance to search for another book. The book either had a bad narrator, The character development was non existent, or the story was hot garbage. I would not recommend this book.

1 Star -> The absolute only reason I listened to this book was because i had no time to search for another one & I needed background noise. It was 1 step up from listening to the radio. I wouldn’t recommend this book to my worst enemy. Everything about this book was terrible. This is only recommended for people on death row and have absolutely nothing else to read.

[Bluebelle-the-Inquisitive (Catherine) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an enjoyable enough experience. There are some pieces of predictability and some that I found less so. At just under 3 hours long, it is listenable in a single sitting if you so desire. I found the characters likable but there are some you are not to supposed to like. I just think this is a nice way to spend some of an afternoon while cozy gaming.

This is a full cast production, it really brings the story to life, and everyone seems well suited to their roles. Sanaa Lathan does a good job as Elizabeth Garner, I got the impression that she was stressed and slightly confused at times. Marcella Lentz-Pope is fantastic in her framing role, she does well to push the story forward and speak for the reader while using inflection and presentation that is placid enough (maybe?) to maintain her almost neutral role in the story. Susan Kelechi Watson does brilliantly to present Maggie with her dichotomic sides.

For those interested, I'm going to list some of the cast here.
• Sanaa Lathan as Elizabeth Garner
• Susan Kelechi Watson as Maggie Porter
• David Rasche as Clayton Erlenlorne
• Cynthia Addai-Robinson as Lorelei Cashman
• Luke Tennie as Marcus
• Tony Plana as Agent Aug
• Christa Scott-Reed as Mrs. Erlenborne
• Marcella Lentz-Pope as Ghost Writer

[Oliver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another reason that this platform needs a half star rating system as I’d say this is a solid 3.7/5 stars.
James Patterson has always been a master of writing for any intended audience in any genre, which is something I’ve admired about his writing since I was in high school. Even with The Justice not being in his typical format, being styled as a radio drama rather than a standard novel, his unique tone and writer’s voice still manages to come through.
While having a social media company positioned as the “villain” of the book can come off as very boomer-ish at times, and could have been laughably bad if handled by a less skilled author, Patterson does an excellent job of making the people involved rather complex, which makes it feel a little more plausible.
There are some cliche character types here and there, and some that could have used more time to develop, but they do feel very grounded in reality for the most part, which helps keep listeners invested in the story.
The audio production is very good overall and, while the score could have been a bit better, the voice cast absolutely nails their respective roles, helping to give more depth and personality to the characters.
Since it’s included with Audible Plus I’d recommend it to anyone who is interested in crime procedurals or political thrillers and who has a subscription to the service.