The Little Death

Rating:
Summary: How did he do it?
Review: A few minor problems. First, Nava uses a few words that very few people will understand...unless they know law. Second, when Rios is asked to identify a body at the morgue, the police take him--but then he drives home on his own. Third, pulled out all of the plot twists possible...but since this is his first book, I think I can be patient with that. What saves this novel is that Nava's villain seems pulled out of thin air, but he convinces us. So, I cannot wait to read the other books in the series.

Rating:
Summary: Nava Rules
Review: Michael Nava became one of my favorite authors with this book. He tells a tight twisted mystery that leaves one guessing "whodunnit?" until the very end. Besides being a prolific mystery writer, Nava infuses his stories with a real world mentality that is absent from many other authors (but hey I love escapism as much as the next person!). The reader wanting to grow with Henry Rios (Nava's main character) needs to start here and read the other books in this series. You will come to love Henry for his battles, both personal and public, and become emotionally attached to the character when he sometimes loses. A dynamic book taht makes all of us ask the question "Why?" of the world around us.

Rating:
Summary: Good Job
Review: Perhaps Nava's greatest accomplishment in this novel is that he makes his main character, attorney Henry Rios, compelling and so utterly human. We read as Henry endures personal and professional troubles and you actually root for him. The fact that he is gay is irrelevant; Henry could be anybody. Being gay is a part of him, but it doesn't define him, and maybe that's the best lesson anyone will take away from this novel.

The book does read as if it's a first novel. Though Nava delivers an excellent characterization of Henry, other characters are not so similarly defined. Bad guys abound in this work, and at times can be confusing. Further, it's hard to believe that Henry would risk his professional career and personal sanity because a friend of his, albeit a new lover, was murdered. Henry seems to have fallen in love very quickly with Hugh Paris, the object of his affection and the murder than beings to flesh out the plot. As thoughtful and steadfast as Henry is, this seems out of character. Maybe that's the point. Love makes you question everything.

Rating:
Summary: Instantly grows on the reader
Review: The Little Death, originally published in 1986, was the first of seven Henry Rios mysteries. The final episode, published in 2001, is entitled Rag and Bone. This series has earned Michael Nava four Lambda Literary Awards, and comparisons to some of the great writers, such as Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. Nava says he began writing The Little Death while working at the Palo Alto, California jail when he was studying for his bar exams.

Henry Rios probably earns less than one-half of what he could earn in private industry as a public defender. He is gay, is an excellent lawyer, and is used to dealing with minor offenses until Hugh Paris is picked up as an alleged drunk. The police find two PCP cigarettes on Hugh, and he resists arrest. Henry was sent down from felony trials to arraignments, which means his boss thought he was burned out and needed a rest after his last murder trial. But Henry's life is about to change drastically once again when a nocturnal visit from Hugh Paris exposes Henry to love; loss; and deception:

"The elegant body was as white as marble. I could see a dark blue vein running up the length of his arm, and a jagged red mark just beneath his armpit where the needle went in. There were bruises on his chest. His head rested on a kind of pillow. Death had robbed his face of its seductive animation but I recognized him."

The Little Death is an exquisitely written dark little mystery that will pull at the reader's heartstrings. Henry Rios is smart, determined, and instantly grows on the reader as the kind of hero who is in keeping with today's world. Michael Nava keeps his story subtle and intelligent, and it is a joy to read. He is indeed within the ranks of the characters and plot geniuses who wrote in the first half of the twentieth century. He obviously deserves to be recognized as the great writer he is.

Henry Rios is someone the reader wants to know a lot more about. Michael Nava's craftsmanship is an English major's delight. Justice would be served if Mr. Nava's name appeared on the best seller's list. He has much to teach.

Shelley J. Glodowski, Reviewer