Customer Reviews

Cart of Death (A Taos Festival Mystery)

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I was really enthused about this book at the beginning. The combination of Indian and Mexican lore was delightful, and the background of the festivals was fascinating. But it was down hill from there...the characters never really went anywhere and became one-dimensional. The plot deteriorated into some very trite gimmicks--a car chase, a river raft chase, a confession from the guy I figured did it, because the other guy was way too obvious. And the obvious other guy, named "Bottom" was really a bad guy too, he just didn't commit the murder. The last twenty or so pages were painfully slow and predictable, and I found myself wondering what was on my shelf to read next.

"Cart of Death" is a culture-filled mystery novel. The main characters were smart, engaging, and fairly complex (though they didn't grow as people throughout the book). The low level of suspense throughout the story was created by the worry that the missing woman might end up dead if they didn't find her soon and from Christina being somewhat attracted to the new guy in town whom Mac (who's jealous) thinks may be a criminal. While I thought of the murderer as a suspect, I'd say this novel keeps you guessing about "who-done-it" until the end. (In response the the other review, I didn't think that the murderer who confessed was an obvious suspect, and I don't think most people would have positively identified that character as "the murderer" until then.)

The characters were mostly Hispanic, so some Spanish was used. The meaning of the Spanish words were usually obvious from the context, but there was also a glossary in the back. The Hispanic culture & Catholic faith and the upcoming festival provided a rich cultural backdrop to the story. While there were a few references to "he prayed" or "they attended mass," there was no obvious Christian message.

There was no sex. There was a minor amount of cussing and swearing (and that was mainly from one character). Overall, I'd recommend this enjoyable mystery.