Shoot the Moon

Book on CD read by Kathe Mazur

In 1972 the citizens of DeClare, Oklahoma were shocked by a brutal crime. Gaylene Harjo’s body was found in her trailer with multiple stab wounds, and her baby, Nicky Jack, was missing. Nicky Jack’s body was never found, though the sheriff dug up most of the land around the presumed killer’s home after finding the infant’s torn and bloody pajamas nearby. Nearly thirty years later, a tall man comes to town and claims to be the missing Nicky Jack. His reappearance stuns the populace, challenges long-held assumptions, and angers the sheriff who doesn’t like to have his crime-solving ability questioned.

Letts has crafted a fine mystery here. Originally intending only to meet the mother who gave birth show more to him and find out why she gave him up, Mark’s discovery that she died only leads to more questions. How did Mark Albright (a/k/a Nicodemus Jack Harjo) wind up adopted by a California couple? Who was his father? Who killed his mother? As he begins to dig for answers he is helped by his aunt, Teeve Harjo, his cousin Ivy, and a tenacious reporter turned true-crime author with an axe to grind. Along the way he finds love and has to make some decisions about how he’ll live the rest of his life and the man he’ll be.

This is the third book by Billie Letts that I’ve read, and I’ve enjoyed them all. She has a way with dialogue and dialect that really brings her characters to life. Even the minor characters are fully drawn and interesting. Her plotting is pretty good, as well – keeping the reader turning pages and busy trying to figure out the truth behind all those efforts to conceal and derail. And while I did guess the real culprit before Letts revealed the answer … I was only a page or so ahead of the characters as they uncovered the truth.

I have one tiny quibble … a doctor explaining the injury to a shooting victim states: ”Fortunately, it’s a through-and-through, didn’t involve bone, artery or nerve. Even missed muscle.” Huh? How can a bullet go through someone’s leg and involve absolutely NOTHING? (Note: Sorry for obsessing, but this just jumped off the page at me. I work for surgeons in a Level 1 Trauma unit, and I’ve read more than one report about gunshot wounds. A “through-and-through” should at least involve muscle – otherwise it’s just a grazing wound.)

Kathe Mazur does a fine job of the audio, although her voice is a little high-pitched for many of the male characters. Still, I enjoyed her performance. I admit that I stopped listening and read the text at about 2/3 of the way through the book. Not because there was anything wrong with Mazur’s reading, but because I wanted to get the book finished for a challenge. That experience really showed that it is really Billie Letts’s words that bring the novel to life. show less

I found this to be a very light read where good is good and bad is bad and never shall they blend in complex characters. Story moved along well, but this isn't one that will stay with me.

I picked this book up at a flea market. I'd never heard of the author or the book, but the synopsis sounded interesting, so I grabbed it. I'm glad I did. I really enjoyed this. Its not super action packed, but instead moves at a steady pace. The writing and cast of interesting and likable characters are enough to keep you flipping the pages. I'm a sucker for small town settings and this one didn't disappoint.

Shoot The Moon by Billie Letts
4.5 stars

From the Book:
a tale of a small Oklahoma town and the mystery that has haunted its residents for years.

In 1972, windswept DeClare, Oklahoma, was consumed by the murder of a young mother, Gaylene Harjo, and the disappearance of her baby, Nicky Jack. When the child's pajama bottoms were discovered on the banks of Willow Creek, everyone feared that he, too, had been killed, although his body was never found.

Nearly thirty years later, Nicky Jack mysteriously returns to DeClare, shocking the town and stirring up long-buried memories. But what he discovers about the night he vanished is more astonishing than he or anyone could have imagine. Piece by piece, what emerges is a story of dashed hopes, show more desperate love, and a secret that still cries out for justice...and redemption.

My Views:
Those who've read other books by Billy Letts will recognize the familiar Oklahoma territory as well as the well-polished dialogue and heart-warming humor in this part murder mystery, part romance, part humorous study of human nature. It was an enjoyable story of a small town.... a murder.... and a missing child The author created a cast of interesting characters that you wanted to get to know more about. The only thing that I could have done without was the "love story" that came across as not only unbelievable but unnecessary. Otherwise it was an excellent read. show less

The third book by one of the favorite authors. Part love story, part spy/detective novel. Setting is in Billie's home state of Oklahoma. A young man comes to find his biological family in DeClare, Ok. after finding out he is adopted. Both of his adoptive parents are dead and he comes to Ok to find out his mother was murdered when he was an infant. In fact, they thought he was dead too. The story follows his search with a cousin by this side. Billie has a way of bringing in characters that you would find in any family, with their normal, typical weaknesses and foibles.

Questions about the long-unsolved murder of a young woman in a small Oklahoma town are revived when a man appears, claiming to be the baby boy who disappeared from his mother's murder scene.

Letts does a good job when she's concentrating on Mark Albright's / Nicky Jack Harjo's search for his past and for the mother he never knew, and populates her story with a colorful cast of well-drawn characters. The resolution of the mystery is less well handled, with a whirlwind seven-page denouement to a 300-page setup, all (okay, most) plot noodles tucked neatly away and an unlikely romance rushed to what feels like an obligatory happy ending.

Not a bad read, but nothing outstanding, either.

A great story: Nick, seeking his birth mother, brings to light the hidden secrets of a rural community and finds a sense of belonging. For me, a bonus was the thread of the relationship of Carrie (a minor character) with her Down Syndrome son.
The novel develops in present time action interspersed with diary entries from Nick's mother, which led me on wondering when she would reveal the truth of what happened. One part that didn't fit well was how Nick could up & leave his successful Vet business to make this trip, how long it took for him to call the office & let them know where he was.