Customer Reviews

Killing Raven

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

 

 

Margaret Coel hits all the right notes in the latest book about Arapaho attorney Vicky Holden and the Wind River Reservation's priest, Father John. The discovery of a dead body at Double Dives brings Father John into an investigation, just as his friend Vicky is offered a job at the Indian reservation's gambling casino. Vicky has her doubts about the casino job, but she is convinced by Adam Lone Eagle, the other attorney at the casino that it would be beneficial to her people. Vicky has been barely making ends meet in her law practice, so she agrees to join Adam. As she learns more about the operation, Vicky becomes suspicious about the legality of some of its practices. The human side of gambling problems is revealed when one of Father John's employees becomes enmeshed in gambling debts. The delicate balancing act of Vicky and Father John's relationship is again addressed in this book, and the possibility of a new romance for Vicky causes them to face some issues that they have chosen to ignore in the past. The beautiful background of the Wyoming reservation, the well-defined characters, and the tightly-woven plot are all typical of this series.

A new casino brings friction and prosperity to the Arapahos on the sun-baked Wind River Reservation in Coel's ninth Vicky Holden and Father John O'Malley mystery.

When a white man is discovered in a shallow grave on Indian land, Fr. O'Malley worries it has something to do with the "rangers" protesting the casino, largely through intimidation. Meanwhile attorney Vicky, barely making ends meet, has been asked to do some legal work for her tribe's casino. On an elder's advice she takes the job, along with his suspicion that tribal overseers are lining their pockets illegally.

The atmosphere of menace grows as Vicky noses into places she's not wanted and O'Malley wonders what the disappearance of an Indian casino dealer has to do with the murder victim. Coel dovetails their separate investigations nicely, bringing the pair together and fanning the flames of a friendship they can't afford to nurture. The plot explores the temptations of gambling, the crime it attracts, and the dilemma it presents to impoverished Indian tribes before building to a nail-biting, over-the-top climax. The Great Plains country and modern reservation life are particularly well done in this established and thoughtful series.

The Wind River Reservation is home to Arapaho lawyer Vicky Holden but her law practice is not getting her enough clients to stay in business. When Adam Lone Eagle asks her to come work with him at the newly opened Great Plans Casino, she asks the advice of two elders whom she trusts. They tell her that it would be a good idea to have an extra pair of eyes inside the casino to make sure it is being managed properly.

From almost the first day she starts working at the casino, she has a feeling that the head of the commission overseeing job hiring is placing people he knows in positions they are not qualified to handle for a kickback but she has no proof. As she delves into the records to get the evidence she needs, Vicky finds proof that Lodestar Enterprises which is running the Casino is committing even worse crimes, but her snooping almost gets her killed. Her friend Father John O'Malley rushes to the rescue but may prove too late.

KILLING RAVEN is a fascinating who-done-it but it is also a manifesto about all the evils that seem to accompany legalized gambling. The author gets a little too preachy on the subject but it is a sure bet that readers will overlook that small flaw due to the exciting and fast-paced story line. Margaret Coel gives the audience a sense of what it is like living on a reservation and why some people can never leave the land they call home.

Harriet Klausner