Dear Great Book Guru,  With the Winter Break coming up, I am looking for a good book or two to have on hand. I really like an intelligent, fast moving mystery but one with a social message.  Any thoughts? 

Presidents’ Week Eager Reader

Dear  Eager Reader,  John Grisham’s latest bestseller THE WHISTLER is a wonderful choice for winter’s waning months. Known as an immensely talented writer of thrillers, Grisham is also a social critic of much note. In this novel he takes on corrupt judges, whistle-blowing, Indian casinos, capital punishment, and organized crime.  The main character Lacy Stoltz is an investigator for the Florida Board on Judicial Conduct. She and her partner Hugo Hatch, a former Florida State football star, are contacted by a previously disbarred , charismatic attorney Randy Mix who has information on…. as he says:  “the most corrupt judge in American history,” Claire McDover, a local justice with a very extensive collection of condos, jewels, and gold coins. Before the story ends, Lacy is confronted with grave mortal and moral dangers. Adding to the suspense, neither she nor the reader knows the identity or motivation of the “whistler,” until almost the end of the novel.   The complex laws that govern Native American lands and the Panhandle terrain add a rich subplot to this fast moving thriller.  Highly recommended!

If you have  time over the next week, check out this very insightful look at our political system: