Dark Angel

Rating:
Summary: One heck of a tale
Review: Ron Baird is an award winning writer who has specialized in environmental writing, Gulf War Syndrome, and fly fishing. Hailing from Boulder, Colorado, he makes the mountains his home and they figure fully in his first mystery.

Aaron Hemingway is an interesting mix. He is a former basketball star, Vietnam vet, and Denver cop who got too close to the evil he was trying to wash out as an undercover narcotics agent. He has a daughter, Cassie, whom he hasn't seen in years and a former wife, who sounds like an intense career marm. He is living in Jack Springs and workers for the local newspaper, run by a woman who is interested in reporting some actual news.

Jack Springs has a diverse population; anything from old miners to cowboys and old hippies, with a few survivalists thrown in for good measure. When a new mine is proposed by a shady company with a bad track record, Aaron finds himself in the middle of the quarrel. One of the local anti-mine activists is murdered and her body is dumped in front of the newspaper office. Someone appears to be stalking Aaron, just as he is reunited with his daughter:

"'Cassie, what are you doing here?' Tears welled up in my eyes and before she could answer, I reached down, swept her into my arms like holding a baby bird to my chest, its heart beating wildly. Or maybe it was my heart. 'Oh Daddy,' she whimpered. Then the dam burst and she cried-huge, breath-robbing sobs as she held me tighter and tighter."

Dark Angel is an extremely well-written novel with tons of beautiful metaphors and a slap-bang plot. Baird's characters are finely wrought, and the action is non-stop. The backdrop is the gorgeous mountains of Colorado, with its diverse population all conspiring against one another. Baird's passages range from utterly beautiful and simple descriptions of nature to nerve-wracking accounts of Aaron going into battle to save his daughter from the bad guys. He has a highly developed socio-political conscience that forms an integral part of this very timely plot about. This is one heck of a tale, and hopefully Mr. Baird has a follow-up that he is presently writing.

Shelley Glodowski
Reviewer