Customer Reviews

Butterfly Lost (Laura Winslow Mysteries)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Butterfly Lost is one of the best and most original mysteries I've read in a long time. I live in southern Arizona during the winter months but I knew little about the Hopi and Navajo reservations other than reading books by Tony Hillerman. But David Cole writes so well about many things. I gained new insight into the tribal land conflicts, resulting from the US government's decision to give Navajo property to Hopis, with families who owned land for generations forced to move away. Laura Winslow is a complex central character, haunted by her past and trying not to repeat it as she tries to regain some sense of her Hopi heritage. I'm impressed that a man can have his main character a believable, compelling woman. Cole has a main plot about missing Hopi girls, but he weaves many fascinating subplots and characters around the main story. Bounty-hunting and theft of sacred Indian artifacts are both talked about in Arizona, but Cole tells the dark sides of these problems. And Cole gets into aspects of computer hacking that are so believable I got new insight into how many people have access to my personal information. I completely enjoyed this book, and look forward to reading more about Laura Winslow.

Through an array of characters and a painted portrait of reservation life in Northern Arizona, "Butterfly Lost" drips with the verisimilitude this reader thirsts for. Take every stereotypical portrayal of both a woman detective and life for the Native Americans of the Southwest and check them at the front cover, because they are not welcome within the pages of "Butterfly Lost." David Cole cuts right to the chase as we follow the introverted Laura Winslow through a week where her life is turned completely upside down.

Cole's grasp of Hopi and Navajo culture add to the depth of this mystery. As a reader you are faced with trying to interpret Navajo and Hopi terms, only to realize about half way through the novel you are completely acclimated to the culture he presents. In the majority of literature today, besides the terrific work of one of Cole's inspirations-Sherman Alexie, we find that the Native American is still represented as either the Tonto stereotype or as the predictable drunk. Cole does not let the hundreds of years of cultural bigotry influence his writing. "Butterfly Lost" gives the reader life on the reservation as Cole sees it today. Life is not financially prosperous for the Navajo or Hopi, and the struggle to hold on to tradition while fighting to compete in turn of the century America is a major theme. Laura Winslow is a symbol of the struggle. Laura's goal is to live apart from her Native American past and prosper in the information age, while living on the outskirts of the reservation. The close proximity of Laura's home and work proves to be a subconscious decision to reconnect with her past. When given the opportunity to begin investigating the disappearance of young Hopi girls, there is no question that Laura Winslow will once again become Kauwanyauma.

I really feel that Cole may be one of the freshest novelist out in years. The dialogue is quick and true. Cole does not wait for the reader as he fires through the unwinding of this mystery and we are forced to keep up. I recommend "Butterfly Lost" for a fast, but thoughtful read, which will leave the reader wanting more.

David Cole breaks with the mold in this fascinating first mystery. It includes a dark, unromantic, and completely unexpected view of the contemporary American Southwest. Where else could you find a central character who is a half-Hopi, Ritalin abusing, computer hacker, living on the run while battling the demons behind her own anxiety disorder. Laura inhabits social, psychological, and geographic borderlands, where the reader learns to appreciate and ponder the ambiguities of Native/non-Native identity, the ties and terrors of personal commitments, and the seedy backstreet life of the US/Mexican border region. The author manages to evoke complex worlds of sense and character with an economy of verbiage, and had me puzzling over the mystery and its personalities at odd moments during the day until I had finished it. Butterfly Lost is also an unusual mystery in that the pieces never all fit back together -- the bodies are not necessarily found and accounted for, there is unfinished business -- this feels disturbingly like reality, rather than a typical work of fiction. I am looking forward to his next book, while bracing for another wild ride.

I have been a avid reader of mysteries for all of my life. I found Butterfly Lost to be very well written keeping my attention rivted from beginning to end. The plot lines are many requiring the reader to pay careful attention, but they are all thoroughly developed. The attention to detail is superb. Eagerly awaiting the next book from this author!

Laura possesses real skill with computers, and the descriptions of her hacking are fascinating. Her complex past, along with her search for her husband and daughter, help the reader understand her more bizarre behaviors. I admired the way she was able to rein in her dependence on Ritalin--it was difficult to read about her continual pill-popping and the effects that the meds had on her. I've already finished the next book, and I'm looking forward to more.

David Cole's Butterfly Lost is an interesting, very well-written, novel about how the main character, Laura Winslow, navigates the vagaries of where life on and off the 'Rez' meet. A half-Hopi cyber hacker, Winslow uses a combination of modern computer skills and knowledge of ancient traditions to track the disappearance of a Hopi teenage girl. David Cole's use of rich and authentic detail weaves an intricate web of deception and intrigue that is enhanced with each succeeding chapter. Butterfly Lost captures and holds the attention of the reader through the last page. I highly recommend the book to anyone who enjoys a good mystery of any stripe. It is an especially good find for those who like novels about the southwest and Native American culture. I look forward to reading David Cole's next book, The Killing Maze.

David Cole has done the nearly impossible with this book, given the insular nature of the Hopi people and their culture. As one who was married and adopted into that culture, I know how difficult it is to enter that world. But Cole has gone one better--he has combined the ancient with the modern, in a mesmerizing tale.

Most Hopis wouldn't know what to do with this pill popping, bed hopping heroine--and she knows that herself, a touch which lends poignancy to the proceedings. She's the lost butterfly, trying desperately to find her own path, and solve a deadly, disturbing mystery.

Cole kept me guessing, and plunged me into a macabre world with vivid imagery, and fascinating turns of event. You've never seen these characters before--not a cliche in sight. They shocked and intrigued me repeatedly, and soon, I didn't care if I found out whodunit or not--I just wanted to keep "watching" these people!

I can't say what Native American readers will think about all this--I learned, as a critic for two newspapers, never to try. But for me, it was some thrill ride!

One of my proudest moments as a mystery writer came at Tucson's Left Coast Crime mystery convention when I was given the honor of introducing David Cole to the mystery community. He was a member of the author panel I was moderating, and his debut mystery, BUTTERFLY LOST, had just been published. BUTTERFLY LOST features Laura Winslow--a Ritalin-abusing, cyper-hacking, half-Hopi--protagonist. BUTTERFLY LOST is a remarkable book because, at least to this reader, David Cole gets everything right. His work with Native American groups has provided him with the thorough cultural knowledge he presents in his book. Laura's computer expertise is completely convincing. David Cole knows well of what he writes. His plot is fast-paced and complex. He knows the Southwestern turf well. I cannot remember reading a more impressive debut novel. David Cole is an amazing talent.

This is a wonderful, often amazingly well written book. Laura Winslow moves through many colorful worlds that I knew nothing about. The plot doesn't just plod relentlessly from A to B (like Hollywood action movies), but has many subplots and very different and unusual characters. I thought I'd read enough books about serial killers, but David Cole writes about missing girls from traditional Hopi villages, and the usual mystery novel concepts of "police" and "crime" just don't result here in perfect solutions. Also, Laura's computer-hacking and bounty-hunting experiences are vivid. I didn't know how much personal information was available on the Internet, and how easily a hacker could get to and use that information. I've never been to a rodeo, but Cole makes bullriding so terrifyingly alive that I got excited at the thought of visiting a rodeo. My husband and I ride Harleys and follow Nascar racing, so rodeo excitement sounds like a natural for us. The best part of the book is Cole's exploration of what it's like to be part Indian and wanting to stay on the reservation after leaving for big-city life. I've always enjoyed Tony Hillerman's Walk in Beauty style, but Cole adds a gritty dimension to the poverty of reservation life. I can't wait to read the next book in this series.

David Cole's style is ambitious and unique -- first person from the point of view of a Hopi woman cyber bounty hunter. The plot is high energy, full of twists and hairpin turns, accented with plenty of juicy local flavor -- everything from ancient Hopi beliefs, to life on the Rez, to rodeo. A wonderful read that delights the senses, challenges the intellect, and satisfies at the end!