Customer Reviews

Red Sky Lament (A John Ray Horn Thriller)

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Red is often a color associated with anger, passion, and represents fire as well as, at one time, communism. A lament is a cry of sorrow or grief. Red Sky Lament is a fitting title for a novel wrought with all of those characteristics.

During the late 1940's and into the 1950's, J. Parnell Thomas, chairman of the House Un-American Activities Committee opened an investigation into the Hollywood Motion Picture Industry, searching out people who were associated with the Communist Party or showed signs of communist sympathies. Hearings were held condemning Hollywood personalities, ruining their lives and careers with little regard for truth and justice. It was a witch-hunt of sorts, and unless a person subscribed to the popular beliefs at the time, that person could easily be labeled as a communist sympathizer and an outcast.

It is in this environment, with the looming danger of a brush fire that could change course with a shift in the winds and the unsettling threat of the upcoming hearings, that Edward Wright's novel is set. When screenwriter Owen Bruder is accused of being a communist, Maggie O'Dare turns to her old lover, the former cowboy actor and ex-felon John Ray Horn. Despite his misgivings and doubts about the screenwriter, John Ray agrees to take on the case to uncover the identity of the person who lied about Owen Bruder's communist affiliation. As betrayal gives way to murder and the lives of his friends are threatened, John Ray's determination to get to the truth only grows stronger.

There could not be a more perfect main character for a novel like this. John Ray Horn is a man of his time, loyal, a cowboy who will stand up to his convictions and for those he loves, and a man of decent character. He isn't without his flaws, however. His temper and jealously sometimes get in his way. His lack of interest in politics allows a glimpse into just how uncertain things were during that time period, with the strong sense of patriotism but also a sense of fairness, which seemed to get lost in the fear of communism, however real or imagined.

Edward Wright has taken a piece of American history and made it his own in Red Sky Lament. The novel is well researched and captures the heart of the controversy, including the patriotism, the bigotry and the fear of the era. He adeptly weaves fact with fiction, bringing the story to life. The reader is transported to Los Angeles of the 1940's from the very first pages and the characters were well drawn. Red Sky Lament is a mystery novel worth reading whether you are new to the series or a continuing fan.

Trust me, this was a very interesting story.

Set in the 1940-50's America, Red Sky Lament takes place in Hollywood, the hotbed of the "Red" scare, where people were "naming names" about fellow workers in the entertainment industry.

Senator "Parnell" is the book's truth seeker--aided by overzealous helpers and people who advanced or protected themselves by giving up others.

Politics and murder cross paths, way too often. All the while a California-style fire is in the hills...heading this way--just like the threat of communism--thus the Red Sky Lament.

John Ray Horn is a former cowboy star (now unemployed because has been in prison); his movie sidekick and friend is Mad Crow; and friend Maggie O'Dare is queen of the serials (short movie reels before the main movie).

Laura Lee Paisley is the radio gossip star who drops names on her show that can make or breaks career. These days she's dropping names of people suspected of being Communists or at least sympathizers.

Maggie asks Horn to investigate why her father, Owen Bruder, was murdered. Did it have anything to do with the fact that his name was just announced on Paisley's radio show?

While investigating Bruder's murder, John Ray Horn knew..."somebody wanted him dead and had the means to do it." That about says it all. Horn also, "repeated the name as if it were a piece of food he was trying to dislodge from his teeth."

Who killed Owen, and was it political, or something else? The who and the why are the essence of the book.

This is a real "noir" book, set among that era of blacklists, and long-gone names of Roy Rogers and Gene Autry and other movie trivia are sprinkled among the characters, and even song writer, man of the people, Woody Guthrie appears to sing and comment on the situation.

Not only did the writer give us a good story, he had a lot of very good lines. Being published in England, the American reader has to overlook the different use of punctuation.

Armchair Interviews says: You can feel the fear that maybe "today's the day my name" will be given.

This engrossing novel expertly recreates the time and place in which its characters battle for their integrity against the commie-hunters of J. Parnell Thomas' nefarious committee. Along with this atmospheric treat, we get a well-realized murder mystery that has its own interest. It's hard to imagine that the U.S. was once so paranoid about communism as to fall for the machinations of red-baiters like Thomas and Joe McCarthy. But then a look at current religious conflicts suggests that times haven't changed much.

This novel represents another wonderful entry in the John Ray Horn series by Wright. The setting is again Tinseltown and the time frame is America int eh 40's when it was embroiled in the "Commie Hunt" looking for all "reds" who might be disloyal to American "beliefs."

As the novel opens, there is a drought going on in California and fires are threatening to burn parts of LA to the ground. John Ray is asked to help a man who is accused by the House Un-American Activities Commission of being a communist and potential black list candidate. In that backdrop we find out more about John Ray Horn, who is not so much against the idea of hunting down the alleged communists as he is against some of the communist hunters, who in so doing become no better than the communists or communist sympathizers.

Wright again evokes the LA of old and captures a time and place in a great mystery that transcends the genre. A must for all readers and lovers of mystery.

John Ray Horn is a former cowboy star, an ex-con and has no interest in politics. There are wildfires in the hills and the House on Un-American Activities is impacting the lives of those around him. Maggie, O'Dare, John's friend and former lover, asks for his help to uncover the person behind accusations that her father, talented screenwriter Owen Bruder, is a Communist. John's hesitation at becoming involved ends when Owen is murdered.

Wright has chillingly evokes this period of history. His mix of fictional and real characters, convey the fear, distrust and bigotry of the people involved. Wright creates interesting characters and relationships, but the mystery almost gets lost in the history. It's there, and there is even some decent suspense, but I felt myself getting through the story rather than unreservedly enjoying it. This may not be my favorite book of Wright's, but even still, it won't be my last.

I've read and enjoyed all of Edward Wright's John Ray Horn books, but I haven't outright loved any of them until now. _Red Sky Lament_ finally delivers on the promise that Wright has shown in previous books. This is the riveting mystery steeped in period detail that I've been looking for and is one of the best books I've read in some months. John Ray is a former star of cowboy serials who now works as a debt collector and performer of odd jobs for his former Indian partner from the serials, Joseph Mad Crow. It is the early days of the "red scare" in Hollywood and people are nervous about what may or may not happen in the days and weeks to come. When screenwriter Owen Bruder is "named" as a Communist, his daughter, and Horn's friend, Maggie O'Dare, asks John Ray for his help in uncovering the person who might have done this. When Bruder is subsequently murdered, the case becomes even more complicated.

This was an engrossing read, peopled by characters who come to life and live and breathe on the page. The camaraderie between Horn and his friend Joseph his great and has kept this series vibrant. The period details are just right and the mystery is a good one, with just enough threat and menace to keep the pages turning. Wright also throws a cameo appearance by none other than a well-realized Woody Guthrie into the mix. All in all, a very fine novel that has me looking forward to the next in this series.

This is the third of the John Ray Horn novels-about an ex-cowboy actor in postwar LA who does some investigating from time to time. This series is atmospheric, fast paced and well written. If you are a fan of the movie "L.A. Confidential", you would LOVE this series.