Skeleton Man by
Tony Hillerman
hbk out September 05
Published by Allison Busby
at £18.99
This is about number seventeen in the Leaphorn/Chee series, and any ordinary
writer would be flagging by now. But not Tony Hillerman, Past President of the
Mystery Writers of America, and winner of Edgar and Grand Master awards. This is
as fresh as a daisy.
This time, Joe Leaphorn comes out of retirement to help Jim Chee and his
fiancée, Bernie Manuelito. Chee's cousin, Billy Tuve, is accused of a jewelry store
robbery and homicide on the strength of a diamond the boy has been trying to pawn.
His story of having been given the diamond by an old Native American deep in the
Grand Canyon appears fanciful. Only, it rings a bell with Leaphorn, who has come
across a similar story told by a friend who got his diamond from a drifter, who traded
for it in the same place. The facts draw the officers back to a tragic air crash that
happened in 1956 over the canyon, when bodies rained from the sky. One of those
bodies was that of a diamond dealer called John Clarke, and tracing his remains even
after all this time looks like the only way of proving Billy's story.
The trouble is, other people are looking for the remains of John Clarke,
including his daughter, Joanna Craig, and a bail bond skip tracer called Bradford
Chandler. The odd thing is, Joanna and Chandler's employer are more interested in
John Clarke's arm bone than his diamonds.
Hillerman throws the reader right in at the deep end with the story, relating
Leaphorn's conversation with the other law enforcement officers. Then we backtrack
to see why all these people are doing what they are doing. Funnily enough, for a story
that can be convoluted in places, the trick works, and we are off and running at full
speed. The pace doesn't let up either, speeding us down into the depths of the Grand
Canyon, and the hunt for the shaman who could provide the answers to everything.
Hillerman built his main characters from people he knew – Leaphorn from a
Hutchinson County Texas sheriff and Chee from the idealistic, reckless youngsters he
taught at the University of New Mexico – and it shows. These are fully rounded
people with lives that affect their approach to their job. I'm going to go back and read
the rest of Hillerman's series, because I want to know more about Leaphorn and Chee.
And enjoy some good stories on the way. After reading this latest offering, you will
want to do the same. If you are not a Hillerman addict already.
(
Ian Morson
Author of Falconer books and short listed for 1999 Ellis Peters Historical Crime Dagger)
Skeleton Man by
Tony Hillerman
