The Indian Sign

At least one review has called Les Roberts a 'hard-boiled' writer. Not so! "The Indian Sign" is a mystery of intricate structure, and overtones of Greek tragedy...with traditional elements from the tragic hero/stoic Indian grandfather to the chorus of whining women who populate the novel and comment mournfully on the action. And it all rests upon the human shoulders of Milan, the flawed detective whose very human-ness moves the action to the surprising ending.

"The Indian Sign" was the second Milan Jacovich novel by Les Roberts that I have read. I really like the character, as well as Roberts' writing style. Milan has two cases in this novel. He is working for Armand Treush, owner of TroyToy, who is suspicious that his accountant might be a corporate spy. His other case comes to him by circumstance. He notices an old Native American sitting all day on a bench outside his apartment in the frigid February cold. When he hears that the old man has been murdered, he goes to the police and identifies the man as the one he had seen. He then gets a visit from Eddie Ettawageshik, who is the grandson of the old man, Joseph Ettawageshik. Eddie tells Milan that his grandfather was in Cleveland looking for his great-grandson, Andrew Takalo, a baby who had been kidnapped from his home in Cross Village, Michigan. Milan agrees to help Eddie locate his nephew. This book is an excellent addition to the series and is highly recommended.

One of the best Milan Jacovich adventures yet, this one raises disturbing ethical questions for the Slovenian private investigator that the wily Roberts leaves for the readers to answer. From the first glimpse of the elderly Joseph Ettiwagishek sitting stoically in full tribal regalia on a park bench in a northern Ohio snowstorm to the exciting shootout at an upscale Cleveland shopping center, the images in this book are haunting. And though Jacovich's separate cases--the murder of the old Indian and the possible espionage in a local toy company--might seem disconnected, they are not at all; they both deal with issues that affect children. An exciting and thought-provoking addition to one of the best series around.

Roberts always fascinates me with his ability to make Milan hard-boiled and intelligent at the same time. As this series goes on, Milan is becoming more and more mature and culpable for his actions and the actions of others as well. I have personal knowledge of the Slovenian Community and although he is a transplanted Clevelander, Roberts has made good use of his resources here to project a very believeable character. The moral dilemmas he presented in THE INDIAN SIGN still have me uncomfortable and undecided after 8 months. Roberts is becoming more confident in his success with this series as he writes each book and relies not so much on the shoot 'em up and punch 'em out as he does on making Milan Jacovich a very believeable character. And if anyone knows anything about characters, it's Roberts.

This is a superb ex-cop turned private eye mystery, meeting all three criteria for excellence: ATMOSPHERE--The reader can feel the shivery, wet February of Cleveland; inhale the sweet-smelling ethnic restaurants; sense the almost tangible atmosphere of the city. Without the proper ambience, even the best mystery would fall flat. CHARACTERS--The detective and all he meets are well-drawn and believlable. I never doubted for a second. PLOT--There are two distinct plots, actually, that eventually merge with a common theme. The ending is no great surprise, alas, but it works well enough and shouldn't be considered a negative.To this fine mix, Les Roberts has added the spice of uncertainty on the part of his hero. Is he doing the right thing, and will he ever know if he did the right thing? That's what transforms this whodunit into fine literature. Most mystery novels simply never question the morality of it all.