14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Lots of Smoke, No Fire, November 29, 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: The Summoning God (The Anasazi Mysteries, Book 2) (Mass Market Paperback)
Intertwining contemporary archaeology with an Anasazi mystery is a good premise. Unfortunately, the authors fail to execute it well.
Repetitious descriptions deaden the writing, making it flat and formulaic. No less than three times, Catkin's black braid is described as a "glistening serpent lying across her back." Too often, moonlight "gilds" or "sheaths" her "upturned nose," "beautiful oval face," and lots of others things. I lost track of how many times yellow cottonwood leaves glinted or glimmered in the autumn sun or swirled somewhere (down paths, on the river, over the kiva edge, etc.) We are reminded ad nauseum of the glints in Dusty's blond beard and hair, of the chin-length black bangs plastered to Browser's face by sweat, of his knee-length war shirt whipping against brush or bushes. Concerning Elder Stone Ghost, "Thin white hair blew around his face as he looked up at Browser." A mere three lines later we read, "Thin white hair blew around [Browser's] uncle's wrinkled face. Sloppy! Where was the editor when the authors needed him/her?
Gestures are recycled until they become tedious. People tuck stray hairs behind their ears or under their hats again and again. Lots of brows draw together lots of times. There is much cupping of coffee cups, sipping of coffee, gripping of war clubs in hard fists, and clasping of capes. The result is unintentionally comic and Chaplin-esque. These characters come across more like marionettes than full-blooded people.
The problems are not merely stylistic. Early on, too much information is thrown at the reader, confusing him/her: a mummy hanging from a rock, copper bells apparently left as bait, a murderous female, a little girl tagging along with her, somebody in a wolf kachina mask, a vicious pack of white-caped warriors, a woman with her eyes gouged out, beheaded bodies in a kiva, the heads in a grove, a necklace that seems important....Whew! The narrative would have been more coherent and the pacing better if these details had been doled out more slowly, one at a time. Easing into a good mystery should be like worming into a ripe apple: the deeper you dig, the darker and juicier it gets.
Sexual tension between Dusty and Maureen is a central conflict in the novel's contemporary portion. However, their unresolved mutual attraction/revulsion soon became frustrating, if not downright annoying. When are these two going to hop in the sack together? Or at least confront their obvious feelings for each other? I know, I know...this fat novel is one in a series of fat novels, and the authors want to keep things simmering. Maybe we'll find out if anything happens between Dusty and Maureen several thousand pages hence. Want to wait that long? I don't.
Hopefully someday somebody will give prehistoric Southwestern peoples the fictional treatment they deserve. But not today....
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14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thrilling, if a bit graphic!, December 18, 2000
This second book in the Ansazi mystery series is as thrlling and exciting as The Visitant. I for one happen to love the mix of old and new story lines that thread through the book. In fact, the murders and even the pehistoric lifestyle and characters are so well written that it didn't feel like I was reading history. The story is probably one of the most violent and graphic of all the Gear's books, but that was what it was really like back then. If you like heart-stopping action and a really well-crafted mystery this is the book for you. Be prepared though to be hooked, as it looks like there are more to come in this series since this book does leave unsettled things as did the last one.
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17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Past and Present, Science and Myth, History and Mystery, July 23, 2000
This second book in the Anasazi Mysteries series continues the expert mixing of past and present, science and myth,excellent archeological, anthropological and historical detail with the myths and mysteries of life in a 13th century Native American pueblo. Contemporary archeologist Dusty Stewart and physical anthropologist Maureen Cole attempt to decipher the evidence of an ancient Anasazi kiva containing scattered charred bones of children and skinned bones of elderly women while Katsina chief, Browser, his female warrior companion, Catkin and his uncle, holy man, Stone Ghost,seek to solve the mystery of the ruthless murders of children and two Matrons of two of the villages. The 13th century Native Americans struggle with ghosts of the dead and the witch Two Hearts while Dusty and Maureen try to come to grips with their own ghosts and their difference in approach to Native American culture. Parallel to these struggles are struggles of the heart and of culture, family and tradition exemplified in the complex relationships between Browser and Catkin;Straighthorn and Redcrop; Dusty and Maureen. There are various kinds of mystery--scientific, relational, religious and real. There is murder and terror and much to excite a "good read." One also comes to "care" for the characters and thus you want to follow their paths to success or defeat. One also has an errie feeling that the cultural disruption, cruelty and the holy wars of the 13th century have frightening parallels to our own time. This tale is one that will delight fans of Kay Scarpetta as well as those of Hillerman while also pleasing those interssted in history, archeology, anthropology and Native American culture. I, for one, look forward to Book 3.
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