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tarasmart's review against another edition
3.0
Tony Hillerman's last book - definitely not his best, but it was an okay way to end his series.
marjorie13's review against another edition
4.0
It was pretty good, Very interesting, although a bit dated... (and predictable)
timwolfe's review against another edition
2.0
Hillerman's last mystery, I wasn't even aware of this until recently, and having loved his characters and mysteries for years, I read it by reflex. Unfortunately, it doesn't add anything to his characters' tales; Chee and Manuelito are barely even present. The mystery is paper thin; about half-way through I'd already worked out pretty much the entire second half and just skimmed the rest to see if there were any surprises. There weren't. There was a greater proportion of Navajo mythology and cosmology included than usual, which is fine, although he usually ties it in to the mystery or characters somehow -- in this case, it was pretty much all irrelevant backdrop.
Alas. Makes me want to go back and read The Dark Wind, or Sacred Clowns, when he was truly in top form.
Alas. Makes me want to go back and read The Dark Wind, or Sacred Clowns, when he was truly in top form.
melspedit's review against another edition
3.0
I am a fan of Hillerman's books. Bittersweet to read his final one.
gruezelda_reads's review against another edition
2.0
I was very disappointed with this book. I love Hillerman and was very excited to have a new one to read... unfortunately, it read more like a contractual obligation book than the Joe Leaphorn/Jim Chee books I've grown so fond of. This whole book could have been condensed to about 20-30 pages and made a much better short story.
(Jan. 2009) Just a sad postscript that this should have been the last Tony Hillerman novel. At least he got Jim and Bernie married. For that, and for the other haunting stories of the Navajo Tribal Police, I remain so grateful.
(Jan. 2009) Just a sad postscript that this should have been the last Tony Hillerman novel. At least he got Jim and Bernie married. For that, and for the other haunting stories of the Navajo Tribal Police, I remain so grateful.
jules_glenn's review against another edition
5.0
Reread this 10 years after 1st read, it was what hooked me into the Leaphorn-Chee series...much richer on a second read because of having read the whole series in order this summer, more context/character interest.
This is one of the better books of the series, with a tight & fast-moving plot that draws pointed comparisons between US policy home & abroad, specifically Indian boarding schools (the model for Canada's residential schools) & the fate of Hmong in Vietnam & Laos during the Vietnam war. Plain reference to these as genocide was sort of a relief, no "hear the other side, let's dance around the term" squishiness.
Anyways it's ultimately a fast & engrossing read, but one with a bit of contextual depth & food for thought.
My only complaint, and it's not a spoiler, but I'd love a follow up on one of the characters whose fate is left a bit undecided at the end. But Hillerman always leaves a few strands hanging with several possible outcomes so I should have expected that!
This is one of the better books of the series, with a tight & fast-moving plot that draws pointed comparisons between US policy home & abroad, specifically Indian boarding schools (the model for Canada's residential schools) & the fate of Hmong in Vietnam & Laos during the Vietnam war. Plain reference to these as genocide was sort of a relief, no "hear the other side, let's dance around the term" squishiness.
Anyways it's ultimately a fast & engrossing read, but one with a bit of contextual depth & food for thought.
My only complaint, and it's not a spoiler, but I'd love a follow up on one of the characters whose fate is left a bit undecided at the end. But Hillerman always leaves a few strands hanging with several possible outcomes so I should have expected that!
lvgiddings's review against another edition
4.0
A crooked ex CIA agent exploiting Hmong in the Golden Triangle during the Vietnam war resurfaces in a series of aliases running malignant ripoff schemes until Leaphorn figures it out and brings justice. And old lady Peshlakai finally gets paid for her stolen pinon sap. A fun story.
bmhafelein78's review against another edition
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Racism and Forced institutionalization
pammyglobs's review against another edition
5.0
I did not realize I was reading the final book written by Tony Hillerman until I looked up the next novel to get from the library and realized his daughter, Anne, wrote it. I have enjoyed this series and what Mr. Hillerman wrote for years about the Navajo culture. I am sure his daughter will do a good job carrying on with the series, but will miss Tony Hillerman’s writing.
p_t_b's review against another edition
2.0
the last couple of these are really a drag. the outline of half a decent story fluffed up with characters covering the same points 3x. i dunno if i'll do the anne hillerman titles but unless (like me) you were using the leaphorn and chee universe to shelter from reality for a few weeks, you can skip this one, or read it really fast while doing something else