REGIONAL BOOKS: “Shatter the Night,” “Arches Enemy” and more
“Shatter the Night” by Emily Littlejohn (Minotaur Books)
Detective Gemma Monroe and her boyfriend, Brody, are taking their year-old daughter trick-ortreating when a car bomb explodes, killing a retired judge who happens to be an old family friend. Gemma puts aside her wedding planning and vows to solve the murder, with the aid of long-time partner Finn Nowlin. They’re helped by fire investigator Olivia Ramirez, a new member of the Gemma Monroe Mystery cast.
The story by local author Emily Littlejohn is set in Cedar Valley, a fictional Colorado mountain town, which has turned out to be a murderous place in three previous Gemma Monroe novels. The detectives, of course, have no idea who is behind the killing. They’re even more confused when a guard is shot to death during a bank robbery and they suspect the two deaths are somehow connected. If there is a copycat at work, then the whole town is in danger, especially the leading citizens who are attending an opening at the local playhouse, where the detectives believe the killer will strike next.
Just before his death, the judge gave Gemma gruesome hate mail he had received, letters that Gemma links to a serial killer who is incarcerated. He becomes a primary suspect, and Gemma has a chilling encounter with him. She also wonders about Olivia, who is a former military explosive expert with violent tendencies. Then Gemma discovers a connection to a series of murders that took place 70 years earlier.
This is a nicely crafted mystery and a hard one to figure out ahead of time.
“American Dirt,” by Jeanine Cummins (Flatiron Books)
In the midst of America’s divisive debate over immigration, “American Dirt” sweeps aside the numbers and costs, the hysteria of the border wall, and gives a human face to what immigration is all about. The book is a powerful story of the struggle of a Mexican mother who knows that reaching the United States is the only way she can survive.
Lydia is an Acapulco bookstore owner married to a crusading journalist who dares to take on Javier, the head of a new cartel, Los Jardineros. Javier, it turns out, is Lydia’s favorite customer, a soulmate who talks to her for hours about books. In retaliation for the article, Lydia’s family is hit by a cartel death squad. Sixteen people are killed. Only Lydia and her 8year-old son, Luca, survive by hiding in a shower stall.
Lydia escapes to Mexico City, hoping to connect with a distant relative in Denver. But without proof of citizenship, they can’t fly to the United States. Buses are out of the question. Her only option is to make the nearly 2,000-mile trip on the migration trail — and that is a brutal journey. A priest warns her that one in three makes it, that everyone will be robbed and most of the women raped. For Lydia, the only other choice is to be tortured and murdered by Javier.
“America Dirt” is a story of humanity. Lydia’s aguish and her determination are starkly real. The people she meets along the way are compassionate: women who hand out food to the migrants, a doctor who provides medical care, and especially the two sisters who join them,
Soledad and Rebeca. Soledad was raped by a cartel member in Honduras and passed around to his friends. When the man demands Soledad bring him her sister, the two girls head for the U.S. Though teenagers, they are more knowledgeable about riding the Beast, the train that goes north, and join forces with Lydia and Luca.
The Beast is aptly named. Climbing on and off the top of the train is dangerous, but even worse are the men who prey on the migrants, raping, robbing and killing. The sisters are raped repeatedly. Lydia pays the ransom for Luca and herself, then the boy demands she spend the rest of their money to buy the sisters, who will otherwise be sold into prostitution.
The whole migrant story is here in “American Dirt” — the despair, the determination, the hardships. It is a powerful story. No matter how you feel about the immigration issue, you will understand why so many are desperate to reach our country.
“Arches Enemy,” by Scott Graham (Torrey House)
Arches is the setting for Durango author Scott Graham’s latest National Park Service Mystery.
Archaeologist Chuck
Bender, his wife and two stepdaughters are staying in a campground at Arches when one of the park’s fragile arches collapses, killing a young woman named Megan. Chuck blames fracking equipment, but is it really responsible? Why was Megan running across the arch when it crumbled? Chuck discovers that Megan is an associate of a Moab seer, who just happens to be his estranged mother, a real piece of work. Then there is the park supervisor. He hired Chuck to survey a hidden cave with spectacular ancient drawings, but the man has his secrets. There are a homeless man who lives in the park and a group of octogenarians camped in expensive motor homes, who don’t quite fit.
Was Megan murdered or was her death an unfortunate accident? Chuck must solve that mystery while juggling work and family. Of course, he figures it all out, but you probably won’t until the ending.
“Wyoming,” by J.P. Gritton (Tin House Books)
Shelley Cooper is not very likeable. He steals equipment from his boss. He blows up a truck and lets everyone believe his best friend did it. He agrees to transport a load of drugs from Colorado to Texas for his brother and subconsciously hopes to screw it up. His sisterin-law has a terminal disease that causes her to shake. Shelley calls her Bojangles.
Yet there is something appealing about Shelly — his quirkiness, his off-beat sense of humor, the honesty with himself that sometimes shines through.
Things aren’t going well for Shelley, who has just lost his job. So he agrees to transport 50 pounds of dope for his brother. This is the 1980s, when things could go really wrong for the brother if he’s caught, because he’s a felon.
The sale goes well. It’s going home that’s the problem. Shelley’s angry that he’s being paid only $2,500 to deliver $50,000 worth of pot. He makes a series of bad decisions that put him at odds with everybody he knows.
“Wyoming” is the story of a self-destructive antihero, a guy you may not admire but can’t help rooting for.