Camino Winds
The Ultimate Murder Mystery from the Greatest Thriller Writer Alive
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3.8 • 158 Ratings
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Is a Perfect Storm the Perfect Time for a Murder?
When Hurricane Leo threatens Florida's Camino Island, the Governor is quick to issue an evacuation order. Most residents flee but a small group of diehards decide to ride it out. Amongst them is Bruce Cable, proprietor of Bay Books in downtown Santa Rosa.
The hurricane is devastating: homes and condos are levelled, hotels and storefronts ruined, streets flooded, and a dozen people are killed. One of the victims is Nelson Kerr, a friend of Bruce's who wrote timely political thrillers. But evidence suggests that the storm wasn't the cause of Nelson's death - he had received several mysterious blows to the head.
Who would want Nelson dead? The local police are overwhelmed with the aftermath of the storm and in no condition to handle the case. Bruce begins to wonder if the shady characters in Nelson's novels were more fact than fiction. And somewhere on Nelson's computer is the manuscript of his new novel - could the key to the case be right there, in black and white? Bruce starts to look into it and what he finds between the lines is more shocking than any of Nelson's plot twists - and far more dangerous.
Gripping, compelling and pacy, this exceptional thriller from international bestseller John Grisham is the perfect escapist read this summer.
*** COMING SOON - CAMINO GHOSTS: PRE-ORDER NOW! ***
Praise for Camino Winds:
'In American icon John Grisham's new novel, Camino Winds, an odd assortment of mystery and crime authors, some of them felons themselves, discover one of their colleagues has been murdered during the fury of a massive hurricane-the perfect crime scene' Delia Owens, author of Where the Crawdads Sing
'The Camino Island series, featuring trouble-prone bookseller Bruce Cable, is a perfect escapist mix of detective action, insider riffs on the literary world - and even a little romance' Mail on Sunday
'Camino Winds has all the usual Grisham hallmarks - a pacy plot and tension-filled scenes' Independent
'Another compelling read from Grisham, and will satisfy old fans and please new readers alike' Press Association
'The novel has enough plot twists to keep you engaged' The Herald
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The murder of popular thriller writer Nelson Kerr during a hurricane drives bestseller Grisham's exciting follow-up to 2017's Camino Island. In the hurricane's aftermath, the Camino Island police are too preoccupied to handle the case competently, so Nelson's bookseller friend, Bruce Cable, the endearing though roguish leader of the Florida resort island's literary society, and his pals ex-con crime writer J. Andrew Cobb and bookstore intern Nick Sutton obtain permission from Nelson's relatives to investigate. The discovery of Nelson's unpublished final novel, concerning Medicare fraud, conceivably holds the key to his death. Believing the manuscript is fact posing as fiction, Bruce retains the services of a dodgy security firm to infiltrate nursing homes. This effort leads to more murders, a cover-up, and a massive FBI operation to bring the book's villains to justice. Grisham peoples the intriguing, elaborate plot with a winsome ensemble of distinguished authors and booklovers. Readers will hope to return soon to this appealing vacation hot spot.
Customer Reviews
Island in the rain
3.5 stars
Author
American lawyer turned behemoth of the bestseller market, his name synonymous with the modern legal thriller. 35 adult novels, 7 children's legal thrillers (that only became a thing thanks to Mr G), assorted short fiction and non-fiction. There are 11 feature film adaptations of his books, and 3 television series. By this stage of his career, he probably knows a lot more writers and publishers than he does lawyers, which might explain Camino Island (2017), a thriller involving writers and a successful Florida rare book dealer, Bruce Cable. This is the continuing adventures of Brucie, three years down the track.
Plot
Having weathered the first hurricane to hit Camino Island is living memory, which was a biggie, our hero along with an ex-con novelist and a college senior who spends summer at his grandparents house on the island discover the body of one of their mates, you guessed it, another novelist (an ex-lawyer too). The cops presume he was clobbered by debris in the big blow (serves him right for going out in it). The kid, who is a fanatical reader of crime novels, reckons he was clobbered by a seven iron because that happened in a Scott Turow novel once. The vic had form at exposing high level malfeasance and writing about it. He'd just finished a new novel. Could someone have wanted to silence him? Lacking faith in the authorities, the rag-tag investigators investigate. Cue twists, turns, contract killers, and crooked nursing home operators ripping off Medicare and Medicaid.
Writing
No one writes fiction that is easier to read than Mr Grisham. His style is so polished, you're half way through before you know it. His plotting is good too. He never seems to strain credulity even when he does. Sadly, endings are not his forte. He ties this one up by dumping everything in the lap of the FBI, which does a good, if ponderous, job of making sure justice has been served.
Bottom line
This is not Mr G's finest work, but escapist fare doesn't come much better. Whether we'll see any more Camino Island books is moot. I lost count of how many times the protagonist here told us he was getting sick of the island. Mr Grisham has never been one for writing series either, although he does have a "Time To Kill" sequel due to come out later this year.
Camino Winds
Not up standard. Repetitive.