The Dark Wind

By: Tony Hillerman

Narrated by: George Guidall

For Sergeant Jim Chee of the Navajo Tribal Police, the case begins when he finds a pair of boots in the rabbit brush beside a wilderness trail. The boots' owner lies nearby, his palms and soles "scalped" in what appears to be a witch's scavenging. The federal investigators tell Chee to mind his own business. But a series of disturbing events draws Chee into a dangerous web of intrigue spun by Navajo sorcery and white greed.

©1992 Tony Hillerman (P)1991 Recorded Books, LLC

Excellent complicated mystery

Even though I guessed the villain well before the end, I really appreciated the way the various story lines interwove. Also, I appreciate the more formal character interactions than we find in other mystery/crime novels these days. I don't need to hear about the emotional life of the characters from potty training to passionate young love in order to understand and solve the mystery being detailed. I sometimes wonder whether all the cultural details are accurate, but I understand that Hillerman was well grounded in those matters, and doubt he'd feel the need to invent much. Such a pleasure. I have the entire series, tough not all are audio, and some of the audios are only available on CD. I hope Audible will eventually produce more of them.

The dark wind

Great book,the way the Navajo thinks about everything as per white people enjoyed the reading by George Guidall

Another great Hillerman mystery

The second Jim Chee mystery is another enjoyable one. George Guidall narrates and is excellent as usual. This is my second time reading the series but I can’t recall any of the details so perhaps I missed this one somehow. It relies a lot on Hopi myth and religion and some of the plot elements surrounding Hopi ceremonies remind me a bit of an earlier novel, but the greater mystery is quite different. Jim Chee is an enjoyable lead character and I appreciated the side characters in his new location, Captain Largo and Cowboy Dashee.

Patience

Tony Hillerman layers his stories and slowly reveals tiny secrets as they emerge for Jim Chee.

Collecting santches and pulling out lessons from his past and those of the clans creates a buffet of secrets and surprises.

Loved listening and learning about the people.

Good story presented well

The view into the southwest is a great backdrop for a good mystery. It's presented well, in a way that doesn't conflict with the setting or the characters