Camino Ghosts: John Grisham

“Camino Ghosts” is John Grisham’s third “Camino” book.

He introduced Bruce Cable, a Florida island book store owner, in a 2017 caper titled “Camino Island.”

Grisham followed in 2020 with “Camino Winds,” which focused again on Bruce Cable and an impending hurricane but not as much on the supporting cast that made “Island” so much fun.

In the newly released “Camino Ghosts,” Bruce Cable is a supporting character while writer Mercer Mann returns from the first book. But she is also a supporting character. Grisham starts the book with Bruce, Mercer and past “Camino” characters as the focus but Lovely Jackson, her attorney and the attorney’s assistant quickly become the main characters.

Lovely is an 80-year-old woman who left nearby Dark Isle when she was 15 with her mother. Dark Isle was founded by freed slaves and inhabited by their descendants until 1955 when Lovely and her mother, the last residents, left the isle.

In 2020, a gambling/resort conglomerate wants to turn Dark Isle into its latest multi-million-dollar getaway. Lovely claims Dark Isle belongs to her and her people.

Bruce knows Lovely through the self-published book she wrote about the history of Dark Isle and its curse. Mercer wants to write a bestseller based on Lovely’s story. And Lovely must go to court to prove Dark Isle belongs to her and her ancestors rather than the State of Florida which is willing to sell it to the conglomerate.

“Camino Ghosts” may place the regular players in the background but that’s OK. Grisham writes the expected summer page-turner and there is always the promise that readers will find more of Bruce Cable and his fun friends in a future “Camino” novel.

Blue Moon: Lee Child

Jack Reacher is wandering America as he is wont to do. Sometimes, he hitchhikes. Sometimes, he takes a Greyhound bus. As always, he only has the clothes on his back and a few bucks, his old passport and a travel toothbrush in his pockets.

That’s just how Reacher rolls.

As long-time readers have come to expect, Reacher finds himself chest deep in trouble. Sometimes, trouble finds him. Sometimes, he seeks trouble out.

In the book “Blue Moon,” Reacher seeks trouble. Well, actually, trouble finds him while he tries performing a good deed. He sees an old man on the Greyhound who seems to be an easy mark after flashing a large amount of cash. When another passenger follows the old man off the bus, Reacher follows them.

Reacher stops the passenger from robbing the old man then really becomes involved in the old man’s plight. He and his wife are parents of a critically ill adult daughter who requires expensive treatments. To help their daughter, the couple borrowed a large sum of money from a mobster, who now demands never-ending interest payments.

Reacher is soon the middle man/catalyst in a gang war between Ukrainian and Albanian gangs. The gangs have no idea what hit them.

This is the last Reacher novel written solely by Lee Child. The last few books, so far, have been written by Lee Child and younger brother Andrew Child.

“Blue Moon” is prime Reacher. Lee Child packs the book with plenty of action, interesting characters and situations and bad guys built just right for Jack Reacher’s indomitable spirit.