I have been a John Grisham fan forever, but lately I have noticed a decline in his writing talents. He knows how to spin a plot but his characters are paper thin and he never knows a way to end a novel with impact. His endings are more fizzles than anything else. You reach the end of a story and it is over – plain and simple. And for most times unsatisfying.
Such is the case with CAMINO GHOSTS, my “Writers Wednesday” pick. This is the third book in his “Camino” series so we know a little bit about the main characters by now. Still the new information Grisham delivers about the writer Mercer Mann and the book store owner Bruce Cable is only drips and drabs that fall out of the story.
The most important newcomer in this story is Lovely Jackson, a descendant of slaves who has a story to tell and for Mercer to write. Lovely was one of the last people to live on the mysterious Dark Isle, a small island off the coast of Georgia. She was born there but moved to Camino when she was fifteen. Since all others on the island were dead when she left, she now lays claim to ownership of the island. A company that wants to develop the island as a commercial property claims otherwise.
The best part of the book is when the two claimants face each other in court. Grisham knows how to write courtroom scenes and these are fascinating. However the plot itself just bogs down at times and tarnishes the image of how great Grisham used to be.
CAMINO GHOSTS is enjoyable reading but it is not impressive reading.
