Customer Reviews

Dance for the Dead: A Jane Whitefield Novel

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The first three Jane Whitefield books are the classiest alternative to Tony Hillerman's "Navajo mysteries." Nobody is more fun to read about than Jane Whitefield. She's clever, she's beautiful, she's seriously dangerous to bad guys.

Like that Holmes guy, she's been so popular that Perry tried unsuccessfully to get shet of her for three novels. And maybe she will "rise from the dead" once more. Meantime, there are three good novels (*Vanishing Act,* *Dance for the Dead*, *Shadow Woman*) and two better-than-average-but-kind-of-half-hearted ones (*Face-Changers,* *Blood Money*). In each of the last three books, Jane promises her husband that she will stop now. Perry's done two novels since *Blood Money*, and it looks like Jane's last retirement took. What a shame.

In *Dance for the Dead*, the action begins on page one, and by page five Jane has fought her way through a gauntlet and five or six key people are dead. From this dazzling start, it's a wild ride of switched identities, super-killers, and Jane's mysto/techno woodlore that brings us, breathless, to a celebration on the Seneca rez. On the way we meet a woman we learn to love almost as much as we do Jane.

Wow. Read this book.

Jane Whitefield comes to us a fully developed character as only Kate Shugak of the Dana Stabenow has before. The action starts (explodes?) from page 1. I was settled to read a chapter or 2 before bed as is my wont but ended up putting this book down at the back cover just in time to shower for work. I read incessantly and have rarely found a book of this caliber and unlike so many other authors, the series maintains the standard. Looking forward to the new one Jan 2000!!!

This is book two of the delightful Jane Whitefield series. She's an attractive, 32 year old Indian who runs her own private "witness protection" program. Thomas Perry brings us a smart, capable protagonist whom bad guys simply should not mess with. Great fun. There is a feeling of ominous dread creeping in at the end of the book, though. It appears that Jane may be on the road to matrimony (which she does, I gather, in the next novel in the series). I really, really do not like this idea.

Fans of this series should note that Perry wrote several excellent thrillers before starting his Jane Whitefield books. They are well worth reading.

A no-nonsense, no-frills, and fast-paced read. Jane Whitefield is a native American Houdini on a life mission to save others. Her escapes from danger are clever and provide the reader (or listener) a sort of "how to" on avoiding detection, capture and/or death. This is not the usual who-dunnit or action thriller. The native American thread woven through it is fascinating and Jane is a remarkable and unique heroine. There isn't a dull moment. After listening to the audiobook version, I immediatelly went out and bought the first book featuring Jane: "Vanishing Act." It was equally compelling. If there was a negative about "Dance for the Dead," it was the audiobook reader, Lindsay Crouse. Her monotone reading became, well, monotonous. But the author's story overcame her flat recitation.

This was the first "Jane" book I've read and while I enjoyed it and will read others, I was very disappointed in the ending - not to give it away (so stop reading here if you haven't read it) but how does Barraclough go from knowing EVERYTHING Jane does early on (the highway scene) to being stupid enough to be trapped in an abandoned warehouse with Jane? Not believeable for me, and disappointing.

I'm not a big fan of mystery/suspense novels, but one dull Sunday afternoon I saw this book sitting on my parents' coffee table, and began flipping through it. The concept hooked me almost at once -- there's something enormously appealing about Jane Whitefield and her endless supply of ingenuity as she helps people create new identities. I read my way through the series and strongly recommend the books to anyone. Sure, Jane's clever escapes and rescues occasionally stretch credulity, but that's part of the fun of reading fiction. I like it when the good guys win, thanks.

I would love to read more about Jane sometime -- it would be interesting to see how she would cope with the increased security of post-September 11th America.

There aren't very many authors who write about a woman protagonist that actually has brains, guts and a strong will. Thomas Perry is one author that does. I love reading this series just to see what tricks Jane has up her sleeve. If you haven't read them go, buy and enjoy! They will not let you down.

I have read all of Thomas Perry's books. He is a great author! He manages to combine huge amounts of action and suspense with literate writing and well-developed, sensitive and interesting characters. "Dance for the Dead" is about Jane Whitfield, my favorite Thomas Perry character. Jane is a Seneca Indian who grew up near Niagara Falls, and the book is loaded with Indian history. Jane saves people by giving them a new identity and helping them to hide from whatever trouble they are in. This puts her in a lot of danger and provides plenty of opportunity to meet interesting people. Since her life is so dangerous, she keeps a very low profile and doesn't have much of a social life. In this book, she begins a romance with a doctor from her hometown who she has known for a long time, but thankfully this series really sticks to the action and adventure, and never veers too far into romance territory. As other reviewers have noted, it makes me really happy to find a male author who chose to write about such a take-charge, capable woman. I would recommend this whole series to anyone who likes well-written action adventure.

Jane Whitefield, in her guise as a guide for people who must disappear is filled with exciting new material. It's the most original offering in mystery books in many years. The author understands strong, gutsy women, yet presents them without any loss to their femininity. Wealth of detail about ways to disappear, humanity, love, strength and courage. To do all this within the framework of a story that keeps one's emotions on a perpetual roller coaster, in this well plotted and delicious story is proof of author Thomas Perry's skill at his craft.

Taut, hypnotic, cunning, provocative and one of the best books I've read in a long time. Raises mysteries to new heights. A pleasant change from the fluff offered up these days!

All the Jane books are FABULOUS. Jane gives me hope that I won't have to continue seeing woman heroines who rely on the male hero.My advice to you is collect them all. I hope he continues to give Jane adventures. After the first one I bought the rest in hardcover because I couldn't wait for the paperback.