Camino Ghosts

This is the most serious of the Camino books, and arguably the best. Lovely Jackson is a memorable character, dignified and stubborn, and her family history, told in substantial flashback chapters, gives the novel depth. Grisham handles the painful history of slavery and its aftermath with restraint and respect.

The second half becomes a classic Grisham courtroom drama, as a determined local lawyer takes on the developer's well-funded team. The legal manoeuvring over historical evidence and property rights is clear and engaging, and the outcome is satisfying. Bruce Cable and Mercer Mann are more in the background this time, as observers and helpers.

The suggestion of a curse on the island adds atmosphere but is not developed into a supernatural plot, which may disappoint some readers. The flashbacks slow the pace, and fans of the lighter earlier books may find the tone surprising. For readers who want a Grisham story with history and heart, it is rewarding. The book also offers an interesting look at how communities remember, or forget, their past, and how the law can struggle to recognise claims that were never written down. Readers who enjoy legal puzzles will find the courtroom chapters especially absorbing. About 304 pages in the Doubleday hardcover.