This review from USA Today is a follow on to the New York Times book review of "The Broker" of a few days ago, that is equally impressed with the "Italian Immersion" of the Mystery, in which Italy is every bit as important as is the novel's hero.

Never to my knowledge has any extremely popular writer so incorporated a country into their novel. The book is not only a Suspense Thriller, but equally a Travelogue, instruction in the Cuisine, the History, and the Culture of Italy, but also Italian Language Lessons!

A substantial portion of the dialogue is in Italian, but Grisham doesn't make it tedious or difficult. He provides translations, and while Backman's tutors teach him phrases and vocabulary, the reader also learns.

USA Today
By Carol Memmott
January 12, 2005

The Broker gets high marks for a fresh approach and strong sense of place.

The novel's hero, Washington power broker Joel Backman, is a lucky man. Or is he? Six years into a 20-year stint at a federal prison, he receives a presidential pardon — under certain conditions. The CIA wants to smuggle him out of the country and give him a new identity. What Backman doesn't know is that the CIA wants to use him as bait. They'll leak his location and wait to see who kills him. 

Backman was sentenced to prison after getting caught in a government sting while attempting to broker one of the biggest deals of his life. Pakistani techno-geeks hired him to sell a software system they created that has rendered a highly advanced satellite system useless. The feds want to find out who owns the satellite web, because it's more sophisticated than anything owned by the United States.

And here's where Grisham neatly stalls the novel's hunt-to-kill plot. The first half of the book details Backman's — now Marco Lazzeri — two months in hiding in the Italian cities of Treviso and Bologna. The story takes on a surprisingly languid but satisfying pace. Time seems to slow down as Backman savors the food, language and history of Italy.

One of the novel's perks: Readers get a language lesson. A substantial portion of the dialogue is in Italian, but Grisham doesn't make it tedious or difficult. He provides translations, and while Backman's tutors teach him phrases and vocabulary, the reader also learns.

Grisham explains in his author's note that he adores "all things Italian." The Broker is his proof. He walks us through Bologna's ancient porticoed sidewalks, wide avenues and piazzas. He shows us the city's basilicas, leaning towers, frescoes and marble crypts. We learn the legend surrounding the naked bronze statue of the Roman god Neptune at the 16th-century Fontana del Nettuno.

All may seem quiet during this travelogue, but Grisham keeps Backman just a little nervous. There's a sense of impending doom even as Backman consumes massive portions of tortellini and panino. And as assassins from Israel, Russia, China and Saudi Arabia rush to Italy, a restless, suspicious Backman starts to run.

Grisham's publisher touts The Broker as a suspenseful thriller. Frankly, Backman's run through Europe is evenly paced, no guns are fired, and there are no breathless chase scenes. What you get is a relaxing stay in Italy, modest international intrigue, typical Washington in-fighting and some simple lessons on how to use wireless technology and "smart" phones. Most and best of all, it's Grisham living up to his reputation as a great storyteller.

Readers looking for a non-stop thrill ride won't find it in The Broker. For those ready to relax and settle into an almost sensuous pace, The Broker is benissimo.

23: Languages and published in 26 countries.

100: million-plus Copies sold worldwide.

9: Novels and a screenplay made into movies: The Firm, The Pelican Brief, The Client, A Time to Kill, The Rainmaker, The Chamber, Runaway Jury, Skipping Christmas (adapted into Christmas With the Kranks), A Painted House (TV movie), The Gingerbread Man (screenplay).