White Sky, Black Ice

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Summary: WHITE SKY, BLACK ICE
Review: There are times when you stumble across a book you weren't looking for, get hooked on the first page, then savor it all the way through, feeling reluctant to finish but unable even to guess the ending. Stan Jones' WHITE SKY, BLACK ICE was this book for me. A mystery set in far-away(for me, a Florida resident) Alaska about strange goings-on in an Inupiaq town and surrounding area, the book fleshed out what it feels like to be a modern day native North American, it understands bug business, even flying a small plane. In keeping with the environment, perhaps, the prose is sparse yet amply descriptive, and the characters are richly imagined - they evoke ways of life and thought I'd like to know more about. I've often started with an author's latest book and worked backwards - it's a challenge to detect the development of an author's skill, albeit in reverse. It will be a treat to follow Stan Jones' development, having read his first book, in the other direction.

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Summary: Review of White Sky, Black Ice
Review: What a pleasant surprise! I read all the Alaska mysteries, and generally find them lacking in depth. Mr. Jones has a wonderful protagonist in Nathan Active. A full- blooded Inupiak native adopted by white people at birth,he returns to his home village as a trooper. He then finds that he fits in neither world, that of his birth mother's native people, or the white one he leaves behind in Anchorage. Soon, he is embroiled in more intrigue than he can handle, as he tries to solve suicides that only he feels are murders. You will think you have the book figured out several times, only to find out you are wrong. Mr. Jones is very good at evoking mood, and making us understand his native Alaska. He lives his character daily.This is an excellent read! Keep them coming, Mr.Jones!