The Tale Teller

by Anne Hillerman

Many years ago I read Tony Hillerman’s mysteries, eagerly awaiting the publication of each new one. Then after a hiatus, I rediscovered the Navajo world I had been missing—Shiprock, the Rez, and officers Leaphorn, Chee, and Manuelito. This time the storyline has been picked up by Anne Hillerman, Tony’s daughter. With eight books to her credit, four of which continue the plot lines established by her father, Anne Hillerman is a formidable successor to her father. 

The Tale Teller weaves a plot as complicated as any mystery I have read, using the same main characters Hillerman fans have come to love. The Navajo culture is portrayed accurately including some basic Navajo words to enhance the Native ambiance in the story. The setting is the Four Corners region of the Southwest in all its dusty, gritty heat of July. The characters have just enough predictability to cause readers to smile and nod, but not so much that there are no surprises. In fact, the plot provides so many of those that your head will be spinning trying to keep up.

Lieutenant Leaphorn is hired to discover what happened to some missing donations to the Navajo museum. Bernie and Chee help solve a murder. Sorting out truths from deceptions is never easy, and it certainly isn’t in this mystery with a surprise ending.

I would like to extend my thanks to netgalley.com and to HarperCollins Publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 5/5

Category: Mystery, Police Procedural

Publication:   April 9, 2019—HarperCollins

Memorable Lines:

“My philosophy is when someone says something sweet to me, I believe it. It balances those times someone said something mean and I believed that.”

“They aren’t teaching cursive writing much anymore. My daughter just prints and types. But she’s learning to speak Navajo in class and that’s more important. You can’t expect the schools to do everything.”

Leaphorn knew what it was like to miss someone, how the numbness of shock fades into profound, bone-deep loneliness.