Thomas Perry
feels no compulsion to rattle off one book after another featuring his series
characters. His award-winning books about hitman Michael Schaeffer span nearly
40 years, yet there are only four titles. So too with his books about Jane
Whitefield, a Seneca Native American in upstate New York who helps people in
trouble create new lives and disappear from the old ones. After publishing five
books about Whitefield in five years, starting in 1995, fans had to wait 10
more years to read about her again. The most recent adventure was released six
years after the previous one, a long hiatus for readers anxious to know who Whitefield
is assisting next and how she is doing it.
Whitefield
has acquired a husband since her first outing and he understandably objects to
her occasional disappearances as she sets someone up in a new life. She has all
but given it up when Sara Doughton from Los Angeles finds her. Sara’s boyfriend
killed a man in front of her and she turned states’ evidence to avoid charges.
The boyfriend walked out of the courtroom a free man and looking for Sara. Her
attorney sent her to Whitefield.
Sara is not
as easy to locate as her boyfriend expected and he asks a member of the Russian
mafia for help. The gang leader recognized Whitefield’s modus operandi, as some
of his prospective victims had disappeared over the years with her help. He is
eager to find Whitefield to force her to reveal their new identities and current
addresses. When Whitefield realizes the Russians are after her and not Sara,
she leaves Sara safely situated and takes her pursuers into the wilds of Maine
along the most dangerous part of the Appalachian Trail in a hair-raising chase.
This book has
many facets. The Native American traditions and lore that guide Whitefield’s
thinking and actions are an integral part of the story; fans of Tony
Hillerman’s books will be interested. In addition, the book can be read for
sheer suspense, of which there is an abundance. It can be used as a guide to
survival in the outdoors. And it can be viewed as a practical handbook on how
to disappear.
Whitefield
melds Native American mysticism with cold pragmatism. Her no-nonsense approach
forces Sara into facing her situation clearly and taking steps to deal with it.
Her resourcefulness appears to be bottomless. She is always one step ahead,
even when the situation seems hopeless.
While this is
the ninth Whitefield title, it offers enough backstory that a reader new to the
series will not miss anything important. I liked this one so much that I will
look for earlier books. Highly recommended.
Starred review from Booklist.
·
Publisher: Mysterious Press (November 16, 2021)
·
Language: English
·
Hardcover: 321 pages
·
ISBN-10: 1613162596
·
ISBN-13: 978-1613162590
Aubrey Nye Hamilton ©2022
Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works
on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.
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