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DEAD SOUL
by James D. Doss
St. Martin's Minotaur, September 2003
352 pages
$24.95
ISBN: 0312317441


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

Billy Smoke, a member of the Ute tribe and chauffeur for powerful U.S. Senator Patch Davidson, is bludgeoned to death in a dark parking lot behind the restaurant where his boss is having dinner. The Senator is also attacked, his knees shattered, leaving him permanently disabled and dependent on an electric cart for mobility.

The tribal chairman is not satisfied with the results of the FBI's investigation, and he asks Charlie Moon, full-time rancher and part-time tribal investigator, to look into the tribe member's death. Charlie's Columbine Ranch borders the Senator's property and the chairman hopes that neighborliness will induce the Senator to provide more information to Charlie than his written statement to the FBI contained. Charlie makes a few inquiries but is unable to uncover any motive for Billy's murder.

Four months later, allegations of a leak in the Senator's organization lead him to try to persuade Charlie to act as his liaison with the FBI. Charlie somewhat reluctantly agrees to help his neighbor, partly because he suspects that the leak may be related to the attacks. When the new airport terminal explodes under mysterious circumstances, the case really catches Charlie's attention.

There are plenty of suspects. A suitably scruffy motorcycle gang invades Charlie's ranch looking for trouble. The mysterious Ms. James, an aide to the Senator, draws his romantic interest, but she may be attempting to distract him from digging deeper into the crime. Henry Buford, Davidson's ranch manager, befriends Charlie but harbors a secret anguish. A troubled, arrogant nephew who insists on living in a ramshackle shack on the edge of the property, far from his uncle's scrutiny, can be up to no good.

The arid mountains of southern Colorado come vividly to life in this entertaining story. Doss has crafted a book filled with quirky, memorable characters. The wry Charlie Moon is a man you want on your side when the chips are down, and his shaman aunt provides the perfect counterpoint in this story of betrayal where the scales of justice are tipped from all sides by forces struggling for political advantage.

Readers who enjoy books by Tony Hillerman and Margaret Coel will like James D. Doss. His series is an underrated entry in the Native American sub-genre.

Reviewed by Carroll Johnson, September 2003

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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