Talking God

Rating:
Summary: an average Hillerman addition to his great series
Review: Chee and Leaphorn travel to Washington DC in an attempt to uncover mysteries that nag upon their souls. I won't talk very much about the plot. I am sure that if you read other reviews here you will pretty much satisfy your needs in that regards to your content. What I will say is that this novel is pretty much the same as every other Chee/Leaphorn duo in the Hillerman archive. Both of them stumble across something that isn't right, and as they work towards solving their problems, their work gets intertwined. After reading this scenario a dozen times, it becomes a bit tedious. Especially when Hillerman stretches plausibility. This work contains characters and plots that read like a fantastical comic book. The main evildoer is so typical that it is hard to take him seriously.
The only good thing about this book is the personal interactions with Chee, Leaphorn, and Janet Pete (Chee's current love interest). I would have enjoyed this book a lot more if it played up primarily personal dealings with these three characters and others along the way while playing down the tired mystery that sadly overwhelms these pages.


Rating:
Summary: This book accurately depicts geographical Navajoland.
Review: For five years I lived in the area depicted by Mr.Hellerman, and found that his descriptions of the Navajo reservation land were so accurate that, in my mind, I could re-drive dusty roads with his characters. My family could recall every detail of his descriptions and attest to the cultural accuracy of his setting. Although riviting, readers should not evaluate this novel by plot alone. This fictional (?) story existed in a real time and place. This book had a profound effect on me, as it was read aloud to me while I was in a coma! It brought together two of the most profoundly spiritual peek-experiences in my life. What other murder-mystery can boast of producing such meaningful affect?

Rating:
Summary: Don't Start Here (If You've Never Read Hillerman, That Is)
Review: Hillerman has carved out his own niche in the American mystery genre, that of the Southwestern Navajo reservation, and it is one I return to again and again with the confidence of receiving pleasure and edification (Hillerman, not an American Indian himself, nevertheless qualifies as a world class expert on the ways and folklore of these people and he renders them beautifully and cogently for his readers). He is no literary mystery novelist on the order of a James Lee Burke or P.D. James or Joseph Hansen, but he is a more than solid storyteller who creates a world unlike that most of us have ever visited. He has his weaknesses - stilted dialogue and often one dimensional characterizations - but they are more than compensated for by Hillerman's uncanny sense of place and pace.

With that said, let me warn you not to start with TALKING GOD if you have never read Hillerman, first of all because he uproots his famed protagonists Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee from their normal bailiwick and transplants them in Washington, D.C., as they attempt to unravel more than one mystery that all seem to lead back to Indian burial rituals and illegally unearthed remains and conflict with foreign governments. It's a good book, solid and compelling for the most part and it features a truly frightening villain, maybe Hillerman's best bad guy up to that point, but we miss the "Res" and the natural mystery of its landscape and the wonderful way Hillerman makes it come alive.

So wait on this one and start with DANCE HALL OF THE DEAD or THE BLESSING WAY. TALKING GOD will come as a later treat once you have properly acquainted yourself with the mystery and magic of Hillerman's peculiar world.

Rating:
Summary: A good book, but too cruel
Review: I am a great fan of Tony Hillerman's, and I think this book is as well-written as his others. The plotting is good, the characters are well-drawn, and the world he creates seems accurate (I'm a former resident of the DC suburbs). My only problem with the book is that, at times, it becomes too cruel. There's not really any unnecessary violence, or excessive gore. But there are some painful moments.

Even so, it's a Hillerman, which means that it has a solid plot and good character development. Not the best place to start reading the series, perhaps. But worth a look if you like Hillerman.

Rating:
Summary: A good book, but too cruel
Review: I am a great fan of Tony Hillerman's, and I think this book is as well-written as his others. The plotting is good, the characters are well-drawn, and the world he creates seems accurate (I'm a former resident of the DC suburbs). My only problem with the book is that, at times, it becomes too cruel. There's not really any unnecessary violence, or excessive gore. But there are some painful moments.

Even so, it's a Hillerman, which means that it has a solid plot and good character development. Not the best place to start reading the series, perhaps. But worth a look if you like Hillerman.

Rating:
Summary: An interesting mystery
Review: If you are a fan of Lt. Leaphorn and Detective Chee you will enjoy this story. When reading Hillerman's books, I look forward to learning more about the beautiful land and Navajo people. The setting for much of this book is outside of the Navajo reservation. Even so, I enjoyed this book tremendously and, unlike other reviewers, found it to be a fast read. I was captivated by the methodical methods used by the policemen in approaching their investigations. I felt as if I personally knew the main characters as I would a friend or neighbor. I enjoyed following the seperate investigative paths of the policeman and watching the police work entwine to solve the mysteries presented in the book. A good mystery with "puzzles" that require some thought. As an added bonus, the book leaves the reader with moral lessons to ponder.

Rating:
Summary: I've Read Better
Review: In the beginning, it was the type of book that you just didn't feel the need to keep reading because it wasn't really going anywhere, but toward the end it was harder to put down. Just the same, some of Mr. Hillerman's works are better.

Rating:
Summary: Talking G-d Will Leave You Talking
Review: In this, the ninth Joe Leaphorn/Jim Chee mystery, Tony Hillerman moves some of his action outside his favored Navajo nation to the streets and museums of Washington DC. In "Talking God," Hillerman's police duo combine their skills once more for a riveting Hillerman police procedural. Both men are pursuing different crimes, and both end up in the nation's capital in an exciting run. Chee is in Washington to arrest Henry Highhawk, a Smithsonian curator and native American, for plundering the bones of their ancestors; Leaphorn is looking for the identity of a murder victim. As always, Hillerman provides much local color, culture, and socio/economic dynamics of the Navajos, many of whom are grasping quite desperately at maintaining a balance between their history and the present day sets of values. At the same time,"Talking God" is a compelling, gripping read in true Hillerman fashion. ([e-mail])

Rating:
Summary: Leaphorn and Chee triumph again!
Review: In this, the ninth Joe Leaphorn/Jim Chee mystery, Tony Hillerman moves some of his action outside his favored Navajo nation to the streets and museums of Washington DC. In "Talking God," Hillerman's police duo combine their skills once more for a riveting Hillerman police procedural. Both men are pursuing different crimes, and both end up in the nation's capital in an exciting run. Chee is in Washington to arrest Henry Highhawk, a Smithsonian curator and native American, for plundering the bones of their ancestors; Leaphorn is looking for the identity of a murder victim. As always, Hillerman provides much local color, culture, and socio/economic dynamics of the Navajos, many of whom are grasping quite desperately at maintaining a balance between their history and the present day sets of values. At the same time,"Talking God" is a compelling, gripping read in true Hillerman fashion. ([e-mail])

Rating:
Summary: It was a creative plot with some poor writting techniques
Review: It was ok but I liked some of his other books better.