Entering a different court: John Grisham pens a basketball thriller

New thriller novel 'Sooley' follows the familiar John Grisham playbook – short chapters, plenty of foreshadowing, and a rapid-fire prose. Photo: Handout

When you’ve written 35 novels and are working on a streak of 43 consecutive No. 1 New York Times bestsellers, you can write abut whatever you want. That’s probably the simplest way to explain why John Grisham’s latest is a basketball story and doesn’t feature a single courtroom scene.

It’s not the first sports book for Grisham, of course, but it’s the first set in the big-time world of college hoops.