Exposure by Ramona Emerson

 

The plot:  Rita Todacheene is a forensic photographer with the Albuquerque police department. She can also see the ghosts of murder victims. And since her last case, when she almost died, the ghosts won't leave her alone. It's making her sick. She heads to her grandmother's house in Tohatchi hoping to find some healing on the Navajo reservation. But she gets drawn back into a murder investigation in Gallup, where a detective suspects that a serial killer is stalking and killing indigent Native Americans.

My thoughts:  I loved Emerson's first novel about Rita Todacheene; Shutter was a magical mix of Navajo myth and culture, mystery, suspense and ghostly hauntings. Rita is a fascinating character. This novel picks up where Shutter left off. It's more character-driven, with chapters alternating between Rita with all her current struggles and the serial killer's own story, which was more sad than creepy/scary. It also focuses on the plight of Native Americans in places like Gallup. It's both heartbreaking and enraging. This was a different mystery than what I was expecting, but it's a compelling read and I continue to be a fan of Rita Todacheene.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

Shutter by Ramona Emerson

 

The plot:  Rita Todacheene is Navajo. She was raised by her grandmother on the reservation, and grew up loving photography; she also grew up seeing ghosts. Too bad her supernatural gift is taboo in Navajo society. As an adult, Rita now works in Albuquerque, New Mexico, as a forensic photographer. She photographs crime scenes, and her gift sometimes helps her see clues the police miss. Though she tries very hard not to let any of the ghosts around her know that she can see them. It doesn't always work. And her latest case just brought a very angry ghost into her life, one who was murdered and who is determined to make Rita find her killers. 

My thoughts:  What a spellbinding read! Rita is such an interesting character. I loved how the author interweaves her childhood and all her first ghostly experiences with her present day life. The well-drawn New Mexico backdrop along with Rita's detailed camera skills ground the novel and give it a real sense of authenticity, which contrasts nicely with all the supernatural elements. And Emerson does an excellent job of creating tension and suspense. I was drawn into Rita's life, and her job, and the mystery surrounding the angry ghost. I really hope Emerson is planning on writing a sequel.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Happy Reading!

House Made of Dawn by N. Scott Momaday

This Pulitzer Prize-winning novel was first published in 1968. It's centered around Abel, a young Native American who returns to New Mexico from serving in the war in 1945. But he is no longer the young man he once was. 

"Abel walked into the canyon. His return to town had been a failure, for all his looking forward. He had tried in the days that followed to speak to his grandfather, but he could not say the things he wanted; he had tried to pray, to sing, to enter into the old rhythm of the tongue, but he was no longer attuned to it."

Things get worse. In 1952 he ends up in Los Angeles, just out of prison, still lost, and still drinking too much. 

Momaday's writing is very descriptive and poetic, though not always straightforward. There are jumps in time and narrative voice that I found confusing in places; there's also a dream-like, surreal quality to his slowly unfolding narrative that I didn't love. It made it hard to connect to Abel. In fact, over half of the novel isn't even told from his point of view. The author gives the reader glimpses from his past, and one memory from his time in the war, and a few scenes with him in Los Angeles, but the biggest part of his story is related by his roommate, Ben. It's a unique way to tell a story but one that didn't quite work for me. 

Abel's story is very sad, and I had a lot of sympathy for him. And I thought this novel was interesting. But I didn't love it. Still, I'm not sorry I read it. Especially because it counts as my "Classic by a BIPOC Author" for Karen's Back to the Classics Challenge. 

Happy Reading!

For a much better review of this book, check out Kathy's at Reading Matters; she's the one who first made me aware of this classic novel.