Dead End on the Camino: A Noa Webster Mystery

Rating:
Summary: A Great "Stay up Late" Read
Review: Elyn Aviva's Dead End on the Camino was a welcome vacation from life, and a step into the zany life of protagonist Noa Webster, sprinkled with tantalizing tidbits from Spain's past. One of the things I found wonderful about "Dead End" was its combination of mystery, history, anthropology, and travel. Soon after I started reading it, I realized I wasn't going to get anything done unless I enforced my longstanding reading rationing rule reserved for compelling novels: no reading except before bedtime. Unfortunately, my bedtime just kept getting later and later."

Rating:
Summary: A rollicking read!
Review: I enjoyed this book thoroughly. It was a real page-turner, and I especially enjoyed the uniqueness of her characters and their development. The author keeps us guessing about who the real bad guys are until the very end! As an additional bonus, Ms. Aviva provides us with several important cultural and historical tidbits about northern Spain and the Camino. It was literally a guidebook for the Camino, with mentions of food, wine, hotels, and interesting historical stops along the Camino. Not only am I interested in reading her book Following the Milky Way, but I am feeling more and more compelled to actually do the Camino pilgrimage. Well done!

Rating:
Summary: Great treasure hunt!
Review: Is it possible to create a page-turner mystery beginning in a musty, monestary library and ending in a 15th century Spanish church? Elyn Aviva draws upon her many years of anthropological reseach of the Camino de Santiago del Compostela to dance through the centuries searching for clues in this great treasure hunt/adventure story. As a former university professor, I was allowed my fantasy experience of discovering a wild adventure in the midst of some overlooked, leather tome in a forgotten library! But this is no academic study. The book moves in excitment from the opening pages with death lurking over the shoulder. I would first recommend reading Dr. Aviva's ,Following the Milky Way: A Pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago, for a detailed account of the Camino (which is also a wonderful read of travel adventures.) Have fun with Dead End on the Camino and watch out for those guys in the white robes!

Rating:
Summary: Subliminal education disguised as an enjoyable mystery
Review: Learning the history and legends of the Camino can be a sleep inducing task, but after reading and enjoying this whodonit by Elyn Aviva, complete with dead bodies and beautiful women, I realised that I had painlessly learned a lot about the Camino de Santiago. It has an appeal similar to a Tony Hillerman or James Burke novel, in that the detailed local information of the mystery captures readers who are familiar with the region where the story takes place. I won't give any of the plot away, but if you have ever walked the Camino or looked into walking it, you will not be able to put this down.

Rating:
Summary: A fun addition to the author's "Following the Milky Way."
Review: This was a quick and fun read, with excellent historical info. I would have enjoyed a stronger character development in our heroine, Noa Webster. I learned quite a lot about the Camino and the food in Northern Spain by reading this book. Elyn has a smoothly flowing writing style which I enjoy. Be sure to read her "Following the Milky Way."