THE SHAMAN'S BONES

Third in a much praised series (The Shaman Laughs, 1995, etc.), set in the canyons, mesas, small towns, and tribal reservations of the Southwest. Daisy Perika, an aged shaman and aunt of Ute Reservation policeman Charlie Moon, has had a vision of evil to come—and it's not long before Charlie and Scott Parris, chief of Colorado's Granite Creek police, have teamed up again to solve the grisly murder of Mary Frank, her body found near the City Limits Motel in Wyoming. Mary's husband Provo is the obvious suspect, having driven away from the motel with Sarah, their five- year-old daughter and then soon after leaving the girl with Moon's Aunt Daisy, also related to Provo. It later develops that Provo had stolen an object of great value from Blue Cup, another elderly shaman—a recluse now seeking to recover his lost treasure, aided by deaf acolyte Noah Dancing Crow. The body count begins to climb with the death of Wyoming patrolman Harry MacFie, and complications escalate with an investigation into the Pynk Garter Saloon, next to the motel, and its proprietor Lizzie Pynk. There will be more deaths before the not-so-long-ago roots of the mayhem are revealed. Sporadic action interspersed with the prayers and dire prophecies of the shamans; long, lyrical passages on weather and scenery; and details of meals wolfed down by Charlie Moon and others. For some readers, a fascinating look at a rich, fading culture; for others, an indigestible hodge-podge with far too many disparate ingredients.