Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview
  • The Innocent Man

  • By: John Grisham
  • Narrated by: Craig Wasson
  • Length: 12 hrs and 28 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (230 ratings)

£0.00 for first 30 days

Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

The Innocent Man

By: John Grisham
Narrated by: Craig Wasson
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

John Grisham’s first work of nonfiction, an exploration of small town justice gone terribly awry, is his most extraordinary legal thriller yet.

In the major league draft of 1971, the first player chosen from the State of Oklahoma was Ron Williamson. When he signed with the Oakland A’s, he said goodbye to his hometown of Ada and left to pursue his dreams of big league glory.

Six years later he was back, his dreams broken by a bad arm and bad habits—drinking, drugs, and women. He began to show signs of mental illness. Unable to keep a job, he moved in with his mother and slept twenty hours a day on her sofa.

In 1982, a 21-year-old cocktail waitress in Ada named Debra Sue Carter was raped and murdered, and for five years the police could not solve the crime. For reasons that were never clear, they suspected Ron Williamson and his friend Dennis Fritz. The two were finally arrested in 1987 and charged with capital murder.

With no physical evidence, the prosecution’s case was built on junk science and the testimony of jailhouse snitches and convicts. Dennis Fritz was found guilty and given a life sentence. Ron Williamson was sent to death row.

If you believe that in America you are innocent until proven guilty, this book will shock you. If you believe in the death penalty, this book will disturb you. If you believe the criminal justice system is fair, this book will infuriate you.

©2006 John Grisham (P)2006 Random House, LLC
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2
activate_samplebutton_t1

Listeners also enjoyed...

Girl in the Grave and Other True Crime Stories cover art
Innocent Blood cover art
Wicked Takes the Witness Stand cover art
In Cold Blood cover art
Monster cover art
Helter Skelter cover art
The Stranger Beside Me cover art
Precious Victims cover art
Every Mother's Nightmare cover art
John Wayne Gacy: Defending a Monster cover art
A Killer Among Us cover art
The Devil's Defender cover art
Bone Deep cover art
Anatomy of Innocence cover art
Masters of True Crime cover art
Wrecking Crew cover art

Critic reviews

"Like Truman Capote's In Cold Blood, The Innocent Man brings a novelist's eye to re-creating a complex chain of events and human reaction surrounding a crime and its aftermath. There are plenty of twists and turns in this tale, but the dominant note is one of compassion for the innocent man" ( Sunday Times)

What listeners say about The Innocent Man

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    158
  • 4 Stars
    57
  • 3 Stars
    9
  • 2 Stars
    4
  • 1 Stars
    2
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    152
  • 4 Stars
    35
  • 3 Stars
    10
  • 2 Stars
    4
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    150
  • 4 Stars
    37
  • 3 Stars
    11
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    3

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Craig Wasson Rocks

I’ve enjoyed many John Grisham books over the years, but have found some difficult to pick up, where others have been so good I’ve not wanted to put them down.

This could have been the former had it not been for Craig Wesson’s narration. I first enjoyed his reading on 11.22.63, and he was reason I finished this book. Yes it’s non-fiction but it felt like it meandered and didn’t flow, but the narration brought it to life and elevated the book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding

Well told story based on a true story. Well researched. It had an unexpected ending which did not disappoint

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

How could this happen?

You’ll be screaming this inside your head all through this book. Whether you liked Ron or not, it’s a powerful argument against the death penalty.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. I’m absolutely amazed that this is a true story & how incompetently this case was handled. I thought it was well narrated.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

loved it

brilliant listen to from start to finish actually near brung me to tears at the end a very powerful book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

More details than the Netflix series

I purchased this book after watching the Netflix series of the same name. I cannot believe how there was more stories of corruption to be told in this case. Great read.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

I watched a documentary on the book Which was good the book just set it off shame h2 died poor guy

I thought the book explained everything very wel very informative so sad he died after all he had been through

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Phenomenal

Loved every minute of it and astonished by its content! Grisham is a favourite of mine and I highly recommend anyone read this that has also watched or is aware of the Making of a Murderer series on tv.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fantastic account by John Grisham

This is yet another fantastic book by John Grisham , thoughtful honest and sad tale of injustice .

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

As close to perfect as you'll find.

A truly brilliant, compelling, evocative listen. Highly absorbing and highly recommended. In my opinion, this is what true crime writing should be.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!