Loved going back to Camino Island! This is one of my favorite series. Appreciated the topics being highlighted in this book.
Lots of John Grisham followers, this one will not disappoint.

Camino Ghosts by John Grisham is another satisfying entry in the “Camino Island” series by the author. The good news is one does not need to read the others in the series to enjoy this fine novel, as all characters, including those who show up again, are written and presented as if this book was a stand alone. No doubt, if you enjoy this book you will go back to the others.

Camino island is a haven for quite a literary crowd. When a newly married author, looking to write her second book comes upon a self-published work in the local bookstore - that written by the only surviving offspring of a group of slaves who made their home over the years on a nearby Island. Now, with a desire to keep the Island from the hands of a conglomerate who wants to build hotels and a casino, the writing community seeks to get the story retold so that the Island and its history can become preserved.

What Grisham does with his story, is fill it with genres that will grab many a reader. Adding a curse upon the island around what happens when Caucasians venture out to it, as well as the hard to recall history of slaves and their treatment as property, leaves plenty to enjoy. That latter history, told in detail early in the novel, makes me wonder how many readers will continue with what is otherwise a a “summer read,” is worth knowing, not only as a mirror to man’s inhumanity to man, but a necessary backstory element.

Equal parts adventure novel, which reminded me at times of Peter Benchley’s The Deep, as well as courtroom, drama, Camino Ghosts is a satisfying read, that left me wanting to re-read the previous two eateries in this series for book lovers.

Thriller From the start. Lovey Jackson left Dark Isle when she was fifteen. She wrote a book about her ancestors, slaves who li.ved there free and secretively. An environmental lawyer, a writer, a bookstore owner and an intern take on the big developer who wants the Isle..Typical Grisham style prevails throughout. I couldn't put it down.

Lovely Jackson is the last known person still alive, who ever
inhabited a now deserted, and supposedly cursed, island off the coast of FL.
It has been virtually ignored until a mega wealthy land developer sets his
sights on it for a casino and hotel use.
Hearing the story of how the island is being sought by this company, Mercer.
a writer who has reached a lull in her work, visits with Lovely and convinces
her that a lawsuit to establish the island as hers, as the last living descendent, is the only way to stop the development
and also,. that she has a compelling story to tell of the island and its history...
Lovely has always considered the island hers because she was told by her
grandparents that it belonged to them and would be hers.
Mercer decides to work with Lovely and write a book, telling the story of
Lovely and her family and their island roots and to support her in her lawsuits to
have the island listed as hers and to stop the development.
A lot of back and forth between now and then as Lovely tells her story and
while it is interesting reading in parts, I found myself easily distracted and
putting it down more frequently than I usually do when really engrossed in a tale.
No pull in from page one.

Readers return to John Grisham’s Camino Island off the coast of southeast Georgia in his latest novel Camino Ghosts being released on May 28. Bookstore owner Bruce Cable has an idea for writer Mercer Mann’s next book: the history of deserted Dark Isle, an island just north of Camino.

Lovely Jackson is the last living descendant of Dark Isle. When Lovely and her mother are the last inhabitants of the island, the pair moved to The Docks area of Camino. Lovely has already written a self-published book about Dark Isle; excerpts are incorporated into the novel. Bruce knows that Mercer can develop the story further.

Dark Isle’s history is marred by the slave traders who were capturing Africans and bringing them to America and by those who hunted runaway slaves who had found exile on the island. However, the actions of the people of Dark Isle have made outsiders believe the island is cursed: no white man has left the island alive! Stories were told that the occupants of the isle were cannibals. Lovely stands by the curse, and when archeologists want to explore the island, Lovely insists she needs to accompany them to remove the curse.

Going beyond Lovely’s book, Mercer would explore the court battle that is brewing as a resort developer wants to ignore Lovely’s claim that the island is her own as the only survivor in order to develop the island. With Bruce and Mercer’s help along with a lawyer friend of Bruce’s, a court case is filed to decide who owns the title to Dark Isle: Lovely or the state of Florida? The powers that be in Florida have been considering the sale of Dark Isle to the developer.

John Grisham made a name for himself with his very first novel, A Time to Kill (1989), followed by other court procedural novels that made him king of the modern legal thriller. Camino Ghosts is the third book in the Camino Island series.

My review will be posted on Goodreads starting March 28, 2024.

I would like to thank Doubleday, a division of Penguin Random House, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in return for an objective review.

This review is my opinion and my opinion alone. I did receive this book from Netgalley for an honest review.
John Grisham is a wonderful writer. He can make you feel what his characters feel. This story is about Camino Island. This island was inhabited by runaway slaves. They had to defend themselves from the slavers many times, but they would always win.
Lovely Jackson is the final descendant. Her mother and Lovely left the island in 1955. Now a company wants to develop the island. Lovely Jackson is suing stating she is the rightful owner of Camino Island.
This book gives you a realistic view of what so many people from Africa had to endure from capture, to being on the slave ship, to fighting for freedom.

Bruce Cable and Mercer Mann are two of the Camino Series main characters. They return in book 3 along with the previous group of Camino Island residents. Bruce Cable always has his ear to the ground and is familiar with all the stories/legends in the area. When a big corporation tries to build a casino on a deserted island, Bruce calls in the troops to fend off the builders. Again, John Grisham writes a great novel, although not quite as exciting as his others. This could be a stand-alone book but I really think that the reader will get the most out of reading them in order. Read the first, then the second--they just feed the fire.
Thank you to NetGalley and Doubleday for the complimentary digital ARC. I was most honored to be an early reader. This opinion is all mine.

In this third book on Camino Island, Mercer and Bruce become involved with an 80 year old local woman, Lovely Jackson. When word gets out that developers want to build out Dark Island, a place where former slaves lived but it now deserted, they decide to fight, boosted by Lovely’s written history of the island and several interesting characters, the fight to preserve the island begins. Clever and entertaining.

For the many, many readers who have enjoyed the first two books in this series, you are in for a treat. And, even if you haven't read the first two, this definitely can stand alone. Mercer is back, married now, and so is Bruce Cable. And both are as dedicated to social justice causes as ever before. Here, they learn of a very elderly Black woman, Lovely, who claims to own a nearby island. Unfortunately, greedy and unscrupulous developers want to transform it into "Panther Cay" and fill it with condos and casinos. The island was a refuge for former slaves, and is said to be haunted. Mercer and Bruce want to help Lovely tell her story, and stop the development of her island. As you can imagine, it is not going to be easy. I truly look forward to recommending this title, as John Grisham has worked more of his magic!

Thank you Doubleday Books and NetGalley for this ARC, Well here we are back at Camino Island with the eccentric gang! After Mercer’s wedding Bruce slips her some reading material on her honeymoon. A tale involving Dark Island off the coast is ready to become another casino resort and there is someone none too happy……..Lovely Jackson. The island is her ancestral home where generations of slaves have escaped to to live freely over the last centuries. Since there is no official ownership how can the island be saved? Going thru history, curses and a fierce pride we see how a group comes together to fight and try to bring down a Goliath corporation. I enjoy the Camino series specifically for the fact of Grishams great writing without legalities and courtroom drama. A little sad I had to trudge thru a court case in parts but the story is interesting enough to keep me going.

This is the third book in the Camino Island series by John Grisham. Mercer Mann is back on the island at the beginning of the book where she is getting married to Thomas. Bruce Cable, the bookstore owner, gives Mercer a small book to read on her honeymoon. That book was written by Lovely Jackson and describes her ancestors that began on Dark Isle. Dark Isle is a small island not far from Camino Island and is about to be developed by resort builders. Dark Isle is currently uninhabited but Lovely Jackson says her ancestors are all buried there. She holds claim that it is her island, since she is the last person to have lived there and her story of how the island was a refuge for escaped slaves from Africa grabs everyone’s attention. Mercer decides it will make a great book and she begins writing while getting to know Lovely, the lawyer trying to help her and everyone else involved. The developers take her to court to fight over who owns the land - who will come out on top? It was a very interesting story and moved along well. The characters were well written and you could picture the scenes in the courtroom and the visits to the island like you were seeing them yourself. I give this book 4 stars out of 5.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. The book is set to be published May 28, 2024.

Camino Ghosts is a wonderful addition to the Camino series. This great novel starts with the trials and tribulations of black slaves forced onto a boat sailing from Africa to America. The boat sinks off the coast of Florida and a precious few make it to a small island. Those who did survive, managed to create a life without much, but what the Island could provide for them. A curse was put upon the Island called Nalla’s Curse where no white man or woman would ever survive a visit to the Island assuring that the slaves remained safe from any outsiders. Years and years pass and the only two people left on the Island are 15 year old Lovely Jackson and her mother. They have been advised to leave the Island as they are barely surviving. They do, and head to Camino Island to try and live a better life.

The Island remains isolated for many years, until Panther Cay, a hugh development company tries to buy the Island for condo’s, water front homes and a big casino. Lovely Jackson claims ownership of Dark Isle since she is the last survivor of the Island.. The characters are very well written, and the story will keep you very invested to see what comes next. Don’t miss this next book in an already great series.

Thank you to NetGalley, The Author John Grisham and The Publisher Double Day Books for allowing me to read this great novel for my Honest Review.

The third book in the Camino Island series is terrific! Beginning with the history of a small island off the coast of Florida that is inhabited by escaped slaves, the story then jumps into the present with the island being threatned by development. A cast of characters including Miss Lovey Jackson, Bruce Cable (the owner of the local bookstore) and Mercer Mann (an author and English Professor) all come together to tell the story of the island. This is one of those books that you can't put down until you finish it! Being a former bookseller, I appreciated the parts about the bookstore (i.e. booking author events, etc.) To Mr. Grisham, keep this series going!!

John Grisham continues the story of Camino Island Back Bay Books is a lot of the setting of this new book. All of the characters are back and everyone is pulled into the story of Lovely and who owns Dark Isle. Also some insight is given to the writing, publishing and promoting of books. This will be a great summer read!

This third installment of Grisham’s Camino Island series finds author Mercer Mann, friend of bookshop owner Bruce Cable, stumped when trying to come up with an idea for her next book. Bruce introduces her to a small nonfiction piece written by 80 year old local resident, Lovely Jackson. Lovely, the descendent of slaves who settled on Dark Island off the coast of Camino Island, has resided on the bigger island since 1955, leaving the smaller one uninhabited. Yet, as the last inhabitant, she claims Dark Island is hers and when a big, unscrupulous corporation wants to develop Dark Island including putting a Casino on it, Bruce facilitates her fight for the home of her ancestors.

Grisham is a talented story teller and this book does not disappoint. A quick, compelling read, Lovely is a captivating character. Grisham does an excellent job of capturing the development frenzy that is Florida…the greed of the corporations, the questionable practices of the politicians, the disregard for the environment, the highway sprawl of businesses. He also acknowledges how the electorate can be so easily manipulated.

The history of the difference between the British and Spanish owned colonies as relates to slavery is fascinating. When you read Lovely’s account of the realities of the slave trade, you can’t help but wonder, as did Mercer, how our forebears could have tolerated such cruel treatment of those who were kidnapped and enslaved.

This does work as a standalone, although reading the first two in the series gives a broader background of the repeating characters and provides context for some of the references made in this book to action that took place in prior ones.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #DoubledayBooks for the DRC

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Mercer is looking fir sn idea fir hw next book. Whe she us told about Camino Island,she is hooked. This book drew me in from the very first page.

Camino Ghosts is about Lovely Jackson, a descendant of slaves, and her fight to keep the island where her ancestors are buried, from casino developers. Writer, Mercer, is composing a nonfiction book about Lovely's history, while the trial to declare the state's right to ownership of the island goes on.

This is a sweet story, and written in Grisham's excellent style. Though it's the third in the series, I did not feel at all lost, not having read the previous two. I was intrigued learning about the history of the island, and how developers were looking more to make a buck than preserve and respect the past. I was quite satisfied with the ending, though I found it a little predictable.

Thanks to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review Camino Ghosts.

Many thanks to NetGalley for this ARC.

The story is compelling and timely.
Lovely Jackson is a descendant of African slaves, brought to the US but shipwrecked on a mostly uninhabited island off the coast of Florida in the mid-1700s. It had literally become a haven for slaves, freed and escaped. Over the generations they had made the island their home, ever watchful of any ships to come claim the escaped “property”. Family stories to,d of curse placed on the island by Nalla, Lovely’s gre at grandmother 6 times over, so that no white person could visit the island without meeting a violent end. By the mid-1950s only Lovely and her mother were left, so they moved to shore and lived simply through the ages. But a huge developer from Miami has their eyes on the island, known as Dark Island, to build a casino and all the chaos ( and corruption) that goes with that. It is now that Ms Lovely, 80 years old, steps forward to make her claim as the owner of the island.
The erasure of black cemeteries is nothing new, though still horrific, and these stories of corporate greed continue in current news, certainly here in Florida we have several areas that were developed corporately over the graves of Black people,as recently as last century. It is horrific and shameful. The book recounts these indignities in a specific manner, with court proceedings and laws that have been on the books for centuries, written by and for the benefit of white male landowners.
This has been a very interesting and compelling read.

My thanks to author John Grisham, the publisher Doubleday Books, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an ARC of this book. I attest my review is my own original and unbiased work.

Camino Ghosts takes us back to Florida, and returning characters bookstore owner Bruce Cable, author Mercer Mann and her new husband Thomas for a new story that is probably the best in the series, if you consider this as a series. The plot is rather simple. Mercer Mann is in need of a new book project. Bruce introduces her to a self-published book written years ago by Camino resident Lovely Jackson, an elderly African American woman who wrote about growing up on Dark Isle, a small island adjacent to Camino Island that was inhabited by escaped slaves. Mercer is intrigued by Lovely's story, and wants to write a nonfiction book about Dark Isle.

But Dark Isle has also attracted the attention of a corporate developer, who wants to buy the uninhabited island and create an enormous playground with hotels, shops, attractions, and the largest casino near Atlanta Georgia. Lovely left the island with her mother in 1955 when they were the last two inhabitants. An unknown number of enslaved Africans are buried on Dark Isle, setting up a legal battled between a little old Black lady who claims ownership (but has no deed or title) and a mega corporation eager to buy her out and make millions.

Camino Ghosts is a book within a book. We learn about Lovely's ancestors, the main one being a woman named Nalla, who escaped a sinking slave ship with a handful of other women that ended up on Dark Isle and never left. This is not a murder mystery per se but still compelling reading. Lovely Jackson is the primary character in the novel, relegating the other characters to supporting cast members.

The story is well written and moves quickly. There are some dramatic elements that add to the tension. It is very well done and in my opinion a much better story than Camino Winds, the previous visit to the island. Camino Ghosts will make for a good vacation read this summer,

Trademark Grisham ... a gifted storyteller who's adept at engaging and entertaining his readers.
Characters are richly drawn and come alive on the page, adding to the reading experience.
So glad to have another installment of the Camino Island series!
And interesting, compelling historical fiction component.

With great thanks to NetGalley & Doubleday Books for this e-ARC.