Murder

Beaumont meets Walker in this somewhat disjointed mystery. Beau is at loose ends when his special homicide department is disbanded. A couple of cold cases are linked, and Beau and Walker solve them together. Some of the book rehashes some of what has happened in previous books. Also included are several legends and lore from Native Americans. All in all, it’s quite interesting and suspenseful, but not what readers have to expect from the Beaumont series. ( )

A good gripping story but a bit hard to follow in places. Shifting from third person to first person narrative didn't help but it still did hold my interest. ( )

In March 1970, artifact prospector Amos Warren is found dead in the middle of Soza Canyon, Arizona, shot in the heart. His young protégé and adopted son, “Big Bad” John Lassiter, is tried and convicted for his death—despite the fact that his then girlfriend, Ava Martin, was the one who pulled the trigger and set Lassiter up for the fall. Fast forward to 2015, and Lassiter is now up for parole, but it looks like he will not survive that long if Ava Martin, now Ava Richland, gets her way.

Enter J.P. Beaumont and Brandon Walker, two fictional investigators from the pen of author J.A. Jance who have never met until now, preferring to stay settled in their own separate series. In the newest Jance novel, “Dance of the Bones,” now enjoying a paperback release with an added exclusive novella, the two men become unlikely partners as they investigate what looks like a cold case but is about to get much hotter. Everything gets thrown into the mix—drug smuggling, Native American mythology, archeology, love feuds, criminal justice reform, gun running, and the occasional petulant teenager.

You can read my full review of DANCE OF THE BONES at the Current independent student newspaper website. A reviewer copy of the paperback was provided for free by Harper Collins; no other compensation was offered for this review, nor was a review required to receive the book. ( )

Not a bad story, though the interweaving of the native mythology was a little heavy. ( )