Customer Reviews

Death and the Language of Happiness

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Cecil Younger is a alcoholic P.I. in Sitka,Alaska.He tries not to drink. He is under the care of a psychiatrist and lives with a roommate who is mentally challenged. His girlfriend has moved in and together they care for Todd, the roommate and Bob the young nephew with a missing hand. A 97 yr. old man is accused of murder and ask Cecil for help. Cecil frequently seeks guidance from the ravens and gets inspiration from the eagles;he loves the wilderness of Alaska. His investigation takes him from Sitka to Dutch Harbor and then to Washington state. He has to take Todd with him to Seattle which presents a set of unique circumstances. Eventually the mystery gets solved and a historical event from 1919 in Centralia,Wa plays a major role in the present day events. The wilderness of Alaska, the wildlife, the rain, the sea and the mountains all are vividly described. This is an outstanding novel of emotions and confusion, of desires and despair.

In this book Cecil Younger is hired by a 97-year old man to kill someone. He takes the case, intending to discover who was responsible for the killing of a single mother, Angela Ramirez. Along the way he travels from southeast Alaska to Centralia, Washington and learns about a massacre there in 1919 involving the American Legion and the Wobblies.

I've enjoyed the Cecil Younger series, but cringe at some of the violence. In this book I liked the problem of him taking his mentally challenged roommate with him to Centralia while investigating Angela Ramirez's murder. I especially liked learning the story of the Veteran's Day violence back in 1919. It was very interesting. Because of this story from history this book is my favorite in the series.

John describes the lifestyle of SE Alaska very well. I live near John and his books are easy for me to relate to. His writing is full of humor and humility. The main character "Cecil," is a modern day, somewhat incompetent, gumshoe detective. He as real as life and he takes the lumps and dissapointments with stride. The people who know Cecil personally respect him for his character and forgive his flaws, sometimes. If you want to get an idea of what its like to live in this part of Alaska, read all of John Straleys' books - a fine mix of fiction and reality.

Alaskan private investigator Cecil Younger desperately needs a cash infusion. When he receives a conference call from his attorney Dickie Stein and his psychiatrist Dr. Trout informing him that another client of theirs has offered a lot of money to kill someone, it is hard for Cecil to say no. As difficult as it is to reject the offer, Cecil knows that murder does not look good on the resume of a private investigator. Still, curiosity drives him to meet the would be criminal, ninety-seven year old William Flynn. ...... William is a bit disoriented on recent events, especially what has occurred in the past eight days yet he remembers very little detail about incidents that occurred eight decades ago. This much is known. Angela Ramirez has been killed with the weapon found in Flynn's nursing home room. William wants Cecil to kill the man he thinks is the culprit. Dickie and Trout decide to hire Cecil to investigate the case in an effort to prove their client is innocent. As Cecil tracks a suspect, he finds more than he bargained for when he agreed to take on this case. ....... John Straley is a superb storyteller who maximizes his Alaskan setting and the colorful native characters that make up the state. The step back in history to 1919 Alaska comes across with ease, dexterity, and fits brilliantly into the overall story. Though the who-done-it seems obvious, that knowledge seems to add to the tale. DEATH AND THE LANGUAGE OF HAPPINESS is a fabulously shining Northern Light. ........Harriet Klausner