The Dark Wind

Recently I read THE SHAPE SHIFTER by Tony Hillerman and was disappointed by the overall shoddiness of the writing and story. It just wasn't what I had come to expect from, arguably, one of the best writers to come along in recent years. So I went back and read THE DARK WIND. I suppose I wanted to see whether my expectations had become unfairly high or if there really was an appreciable difference between one of Hillerman's early novels and his latest. What I discovered was absolutely striking. Here in THE DARK WIND was the detail, the thought, the word-smithing excellence and the professionalism that made Hillerman a sensation. Here were the various single threads of plotline that seem, at first, to be so disconnected and unrelated but that, in the hands of the master, are then woven into the fabric of a splendid story. I rediscovered that THE DARK WIND is what I have come to expect from a Hillerman tale and its characteristics are to be found in many of Hillerman's most esteemed works. Here are the allusions to Navajo culture, with its simplicity, charm and mysticism, interspersed with the trappings of the modern world as Jim Chee comes face to face with mystery, murder and witchery. Here were the colors, scenery and the splendor that Hillerman invariably sets as the backdrop to his stories. Here was the literary integrity that I have missed in Hillerman's more recent offerings. If you've just read THE SHAPE SHIFTER and have determined to take an indefinite break from Tony Hillerman, think again and pick up one of his earlier stories. You might want to do what I did and reread THE DARK WIND! THE HORSEMAN

Hillerman does it once more with "The Dark Wind." An upright boot on a out-of-the-way trail leads to the discovery of a dead man, a man with the skin removed from his hands and feet. It is the beginning of a religeous period and they leave the body undisclosed. A windmill is vandilized and an airplane crashes in a remote area of the desert, Jim Chee sees it happen. Althought he is warned to not get involved, Jim works through the mystery tying the events together with his quiet plodding. "The Dark Wind", another winner for Tony Hillerman, will not disappoint avid Hillerman fans.Beverly J Scott author of "Righteous Revenge" and "Ruth Fever." Reviewer for Intriguing Authors and Their Books at http://www.funeralassociates.com/authors.htm

Jim Chee witnesses a mysterious plane crash on a makeshift desert runway on the lonely Navajo reservation in Arizona. A body shows up near a Hopi village with the hands and feet skinned. A windmill is vandalized by persons unknown. Storm clouds herald a violent end to a drought that parches the high desert country. Thus, Hillerman sets the scene for his story, the fifth in the Navajo Detectives series and the second with Sergeant Jim Chee of the Navajo Tribal Police as the main character. "Dark Wind" weaves into the story the religious ceremonies of the gentle Hopi Indians and the antipathy between village Hopi and sheep-herding Navajo. The story is overlaid by the natural splendor of the country and Chee's knowledge of his people and land are crucial to resolving the mystery, while the Federals - the FBI and the DEA - thrash around ineffectively Hillerman has professed to be a little uncomfortable with his creation, Jim Chee, a young man with a stubborn, rebellious streak, one foot in the Navajo world and the other in the White man's. Chee demonstrates those characteristics in "Dark Wind" and is less likeable as a character than in other books in the series. "Dark Wind" is a good tale -- but not the best of the series -- with a lot of intriguing insights into Hopi and Navajo folkways and philosophy. If you like the wide-open spaces of the American west, you'll like Tony Hillerman's books. Smallchief

Tony Hillerman wrote another winner in The Dark Wind! The mystery unfolds in an exciting manner that keeps the reader on the edge of his or her seat. Hillerman's excellent descriptions of the southwest places you directly in the beautiful land, and his feel for the cultures of the Hopi and Navajo bring to life the people of this region. The story brings the reader to the conflicting lives of drug runners, DEA agents, thieves, the practioners of the Hopi religion, and white people living with the Hopi and Navajo. Jim Chee as the main character struggles with these conflicts as he tries to solve concurrent mysterys involving murders and missing drug shipments as well as seemingly petty thefts. Constantly in danger, Chee unravels the connections as he dodges those who would do him harm.On a personal note - I have been reading the Hillerman mysterys in the order they were written and have enjoyed the development of Hillerman as an author. Each tale becomes more exciting and suspenseful. It is a very fun way to read Hillerman and I would recommend to anyone to read the books in this manner.

So far, The Dark Wind is the only one of Tony Hillerman's novels to make it to the big screen, and while the movie is good, the book is even better. Jim Chee of the Navajo Tribal Police is up against drug runners and running into too many dead bodies in this murder mystery set on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona. Set against the back drop of the land dispute between the Hopi and Navajo, The Dark Wind explores Indian cultures and values as the mystery unfolds. And for the first time in Hillerman's series of Navajo murder mysteries, the reader meets Hopi police officer, Deputy "Cowboy" Dashee, the perfect foil for Jim Chee. This is one of Hillerman's best!