Book 2 in series. KIRKUS REVIEWTribal divisions cause tensions that result in a car bomb¥or is the motive something closer to home?The world around Navajo Police Officer Bernadette Manuelito is literally rocked while she watches the annual alumni basketball game at local Shiprock High School, and it isn?t because of the talent on the court. When Bernie goes to the parking lot to inspect the apparent sonic boom, she finds that a car has exploded, presumably the result of an improvised device. Though she?s been attending the game while off duty, Bernie kicks into work mode and tries to keep attendees safe while simultaneously investigating. When things settle down and she?s able to return home to her husband, fellow officer Jim Chee, he?s the one who has to work the case. The car?s owner is Aza Palmer, a mediator working on some tensions between the Hopi and Din? tribes out in Tuba City, and Chee serves as an informal bodyguard to Palmer in the midst of the tense talks. Chee can?t wait for the assignment to end because Palmer?s in no mood to be guarded despite being otherwise friendly, and both Chee and Bernie know things will go back to normal once they crack this case. The secret may lie in the failing memory of former Lt. Joe Leaphorn, friend and mentor to both Chee and Bernie and a character whose link to the past could break the case open.The latest from Hillerman (Rock with Wings, 2015, etc.) continues worldbuilding in a tale that will reward long-term readers.

(2015) While trying to get away for a mini-vacation, Chee & Bernie are drawn apart by 2 crises. Bernie's mother has apparently been abandoned by her sister and Chee is recruited to help with another jurisdiction's policing of a film crew. Chee tries to figure out strange occurences on the film location. Bernie has stopped a suspicious man in a car that is later found burned. She is also drawn into a solar power company that is strong arming locals to install equipment. Climax is her and an old man being threatened and tortured by officer of that company. Pretty good story but the split of the married couple complicates the narrative.Publishers Weekly:In her worthy sequel to 2013's Spider Woman's Daughter, Hillerman continues the exploits of the beloved Navajo cops of MWA Grand Master Tony Hillerman (1925?2008). Officer Bernadette Manuelito, Sgt. Jim Chee's wife, makes a routine traffic stop of a speeding car on a New Mexico road that morphs into a mystery when the nervous driver tries to bribe her¥but the only suspicious cargo he has are two boxes of dirt. Meanwhile, Chee takes a security assignment in Monument Valley, where a movie is being filmed, and finds not only a missing person but a newly dug grave. Although Lt. Joe Leaphorn is still greatly handicapped by the injury he suffered in the previous book, his mind is sharp and his insights help both Chee and Manuelito solve some problems. Hillerman uses the southwestern setting as effectively as her late father did while skillfully combining Native American lore with present-day social issues. Agent: Elizabeth Trupin-Pulli, JET Literary Associates. (May)DETAILSReviewed on: 03/02/2015 Release date: 05/05/2015Mass Market Paperbound - 384 pages

Officer Bernadette Manuelito had been sitting in her unit by the side of the road for an hour, watching the last of the twilight fade and the pinpoints of stars appear in the blue-gray sky. In that time she had seen two vehicles, both with the classic yellow and red New Mexico plates with the Zia symbol in the center. The gray Subaru advanced at close to the speed limit, with no signs of driver impairment. The old green Buick cruised along more leisurely, with the windows rolled down and country music flowing into the night air. She knew the car and the driver and she knew he was headed home after a long shift at the Four Corners Power Plant. If he'd a beer or two, his driving didn't show it. After that burst of activity, things slowed down.

I liked the characters in this novel. Just a pleasant read. ( )

Once I was right into mysteries like this, such as the ones written by Tony Hillerman, and with details about Native American life and culture. But this didn't capture me. ( )