Death of the River Master

Intelligent story of Texana, who runs a trading post on the Texas-Mexico border, and her husband Clay, the veterinarian. There's water rights, local color, the usual coss-border activities, until Clay is arrested in Mexico for murder. Mexico too frequently administers "justice" on the deep-pockets policy: the larger the bribe the better the chance for winning judgment. Like the entire series engrosing, with a continuing cast of friends, Texana's love of the land. And blessedly she doesn't refer to previous cases either for continuity, or to ruin the mystery if read out of context. Those reading Tony Hillerman and James Doss will be intrigued. For your permanent library.

For several years now, a new range war has erupted in the western states. Despite what is claimed on a certain "reality" television show, fire is not the lifeblood of the tribe. Water is and is the issue in the modern day range war that remains out of most media coverage despite the far-reaching implications.The battle over water supplies now and in the future is causing major problems in the west. Beyond the fact that former deserts now have lush golf resorts, it is a fact that as the population in major cities continues to swell, water is more and more in short supply, Since water crosses political boundaries above and below ground, it is up to nations to work out ways of accommodating the scarce supply.One way of doing this is by treaty such as the one between Mexico and the United States originally enacted in 1944. Under the treaty, Mexico is to release water which would eventually flow into the Rio Grande along the Texas/Mexico border. As those of us living in Texas know, instead, despite the many promises of Mexican President Fox to do so, they haven't released the water. Because of that fact as well as a massive multi year drought, the Rio Grande has become a river in name only. Much of the year it is nothing more than a trickle at best. The drought and treaty is the backdrop for this latest effort from Allana Martin.In this sixth book of the series, it has been six weeks since the death of Commissioner Zanjiv Mehendru who was head of the United States Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission. He had sided with Mexico in the dispute recently angering many of the locals and earning him the derisive name "River Master." In this arid hard scrabble land around Presidio in deep Southwest Texas, his behavior as well as other actions he had undertaken were not met with appreciation and instead for many, made their lives harder as decades of behavior were suddenly against the law overnight. His death in Mexico six weeks ago was considered good riddance by many on this side of the border and still no arrest has been made.That is until shortly after Texana Jones and her husband Clay, long fixtures in the border country, sit down in a restaurant with good friends, Mario and Olivia. Over dinner they discuss life in the border country until their dinner is interrupted by the arrival of several members of the Mexican Police. Clay is arrested and taken away without explanation and soon Texana learns that her mild mannered veterinarian husband has been arrested for the murder of Zanjiv Mehendru.Having lived nearly all her life on the border, Texana knows that the concept of innocence or any other tenets of the United States Legal System do not exist in Mexico. Instead, under their system, the process is automatically stacked against the accused across the board on many different levels. In Clay's case, despite the fact that it can be conclusively proved he was far from the border let alone the murder site at time of death, it doesn't mat

The head of the United States section of the International Boundary and Water Commission Zanjiv Mehendru has made many enemies in America for his decisions favoring Mexico. In Mexico he is regarded, as a hero so when he is murdered, there is a public outcry for the judicales to catch his murderer. When Clay and Texana Jones, the owners of Texana's Trading Post and a veterinary practice go across the Mexican border to the town of Ojinaga to dine with friends at a local restaurant, Clay is arrested.It is only later that Texana learns that her husband is believed to be the killer of Mehendru but when she goes over their records, she has proof that Clay was nowhere near Ojinaga the night the homicide occurred. The magistrate dismisses her evidence preferring that of a prostitute who insists says she saw Clay kill Mehendru. Someone politically high up wants Clay convicted and Texana must find out whom that person is if she ever wants to see her beloved husband back home with her where he belongs.Life on the border is definitely different and La Frontera has a culture and a history different from the rest of both countries. The protagonist must work within a court system that finds a suspect guilty until proven innocent and the only way that she can free her husband is to offer up an alternative suspect. Friends on both sides of the border work together to uncover a conspiracy that is keeping an innocent man incarcerated. Allana Martin has written a culturally colorful amateur sleuth novel.Harriet Klausner