Synopses & Reviews
What did the dead man know?
Jimmy Blacksheep, a Navajo member of the New Mexico National Guard recently returned from Iraq, is killed in what appears to be a carjacking gone wrong. But when Navajo Police Special Investigator Ella Clah receives a mysterious package in the mail, she begins to suspect that Jimmy's death is part of something larger.
Ella finds she must use Navajo lore, not FBI cryptography, to decode Jimmy's message. Tantalizing clues link Jimmy's death to his military service--but what could the medic have seen in Iraq that would make him a target for murder back home?
Ella's personal life seems just as complicated as her case. Her mother, Rose Destea, marries her long-time beau, Herman Cloud. Then the father of Ella's daughter, Dawn, asks for a change in custody arrangements that will reduce Ella to a weekend mother--a much easier fit with her workload but something that will take a terrible toll on her heart.
Review
"The Thurlos' popular series has long brought Navajo culture to life; in
Mourning Dove Ella must face great changes in her life and outsmart a murderer. [The novel also] celebrates the legendary Navajo code talkers of World War II."--
Library Journal
"Special Investigator Ella Clah of the Navajo Tribal Police has murder on her hands and something close to that in her heart."--Kirkus Reviews on Mourning Dove
"An all-around satisfying adventure."--Publishers Weekly on Mourning Dove
"A suspenseful read. Ella is a charismatic, believable protagonist, and her quest to use old Navajo teachings in her everyday life makes her a character that readers will thoroughly enjoy."--Romantic Times BookReviews on Mourning Dove
Synopsis
Struggling with her mother's marriage and her ex's attempts to gain custody of their daughter, Ella Clah investigates the murder of a New Mexico National Guard soldier whose death points to corruption in the victim's unit and the involvement of his police officer brother. By the author of White Thunder. Reprint.
About the Author
Aimée and
David Thurlo are the authors of the Ella Clah series, the Lee Nez series of Navajo vampire mysteries, and the Sister Agatha novels. Their other works include
Plant Them Deep, a novel featuring Rose Destea, the mother of Ella Clah, and
The Spirit Line, a young adult novel.
David was raised on the Navajo Reservation and taught school there until his recent retirement. Aimée, a native of Cuba, has lived in the US for many years. They live in Corrales, New Mexico, and often make appearances at area bookstores.