Camino Island by John Grisham
For years, various people have been telling me to read Grisham. With so many books in my ‘unread’ pile, I never have… until now.
I saw Camino Island in Sainsbury’s for £2.99 (A steal, right?), realised it was about the fictional theft of the precious F Scott Fitzgerald manuscripts and thought ‘What the hell!’ This standalone novel isn’t a typical Grisham story, as it stays away from the legal thrillers he made his name on.
But I really enjoyed it. It’s all about writers, stolen manuscripts, rare books and bookshops. What’s not to like?
Once the Fitzgerald manuscripts are stolen from the Princeton library, a private company seek the help of Mercer Mann – a struggling writer come English teacher. After spending much of her childhood on Camino Island, the company need her to go back and investigate their prime suspect – a successful bookshop owner called Bruce Cable.
The question is, do they have the right man?
The characters are likeable and the novel is fast-paced. I liked the way Grisham – and he’d obviously done his research – describes Bruce Cable’s life as a small bookshop owner. His rare book collection is to die for, trust me!
The lengthy passages in which Cable talks about his First Edition copies of Salinger, Steinbeck, Hemingway, and other literary icons could be deemed boring and unnecessary by some – but I loved it. In fact, I was straight on eBay looking for rare books to add to my collection… (this lasted all of 10 mins when I saw the prices!!!)
Overall, I had fun reading Camino Island and if you’re uber interested in books, literature, and the writing life then I think you will too.
Click here to buy Camino Island by John Grisham.
This is the first John Grisham novel I’ve read. It would be great to hear your thoughts or suggestions on other novels to read. Post a comment below or join in the discussion on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.