Death of the River Master (Texana Jones, 6) [Hardcover]

The battle over water supplies now and in the future is causing major problems in the west. Beyond the fact that former deserts now have lush golf resorts, it is a fact that as the population in major cities continues to swell, water is more and more in short supply, Since water crosses political boundaries above and below ground, it is up to nations to work out ways of accommodating the scarce supply.

One way of doing this is by treaty such as the one between Mexico and the United States originally enacted in 1944. Under the treaty, Mexico is to release water which would eventually flow into the Rio Grande along the Texas/Mexico border. As those of us living in Texas know, instead, despite the many promises of Mexican President Fox to do so, they haven't released the water. Because of that fact as well as a massive multi year drought, the Rio Grande has become a river in name only. Much of the year it is nothing more than a trickle at best. The drought and treaty is the backdrop for this latest effort from Allana Martin.

In this sixth book of the series, it has been six weeks since the death of Commissioner Zanjiv Mehendru who was head of the United States Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission. He had sided with Mexico in the dispute recently angering many of the locals and earning him the derisive name "River Master." In this arid hard scrabble land around Presidio in deep Southwest Texas, his behavior as well as other actions he had undertaken were not met with appreciation and instead for many, made their lives harder as decades of behavior were suddenly against the law overnight. His death in Mexico six weeks ago was considered good riddance by many on this side of the border and still no arrest has been made.

That is until shortly after Texana Jones and her husband Clay, long fixtures in the border country, sit down in a restaurant with good friends, Mario and Olivia. Over dinner they discuss life in the border country until their dinner is interrupted by the arrival of several members of the Mexican Police. Clay is arrested and taken away without explanation and soon Texana learns that her mild mannered veterinarian husband has been arrested for the murder of Zanjiv Mehendru.

Having lived nearly all her life on the border, Texana knows that the concept of innocence or any other tenets of the United States Legal System do not exist in Mexico. Instead, under their system, the process is automatically stacked against the accused across the board on many different levels. In Clay's case, despite the fact that it can be conclusively proved he was far from the border let alone the murder site at time of death, it doesn't matter. Pressure is being brought to make sure that Clay is convicted and sentenced for the crime and proving Clay innocent isn't going to work. Instead, Texana begins to dig into the background of the victim searching for who might have done it while the pressure against her and her husband steadily mounts. Other strange events begin to occur as well which may or may not tie into Clay's problem. One that seems to get worse every day.

This is the sixth novel in the series and while it could be read as a stand alone (more so than earlier ones) I would not recommend doing so. Allana Martin does not write intense thrillers of page turning suspense. Instead, her books are more about the characters and the land of Southwest Texas. Each book, including this one, moves slowly forward as the author paints a deep picture of the region which changes subtly from book to book as the characters evolve. While she is not one to keep the reader glued to his or her seat, she has the ability within a few short paragraphs to transport the author into the whole other world of the border country of Southwest Texas, which she so clearly loves.

Which is precisely why I read her. As a native Texan who had the good fortune to be in that part of the State when I was too young to appreciate it, she has an incredible ability to bring it alive, She gets it and brings her love for the people and the curious blend of Tex-Mex culture alive. Her first book, "Death Of A Healing Woman" brought that imagery alive and every book since has built on that through great writing, ongoing character development, and a unique style all her own. She has quite a legacy at work here and serves as proof that the west and east coast driven bestseller lists often do miss quite a few very good books.

It is only later that Texana learns that her husband is believed to be the killer of Mehendru but when she goes over their records, she has proof that Clay was nowhere near Ojinaga the night the homicide occurred. The magistrate dismisses her evidence preferring that of a prostitute who insists says she saw Clay kill Mehendru. Someone politically high up wants Clay convicted and Texana must find out whom that person is if she ever wants to see her beloved husband back home with her where he belongs.

Life on the border is definitely different and La Frontera has a culture and a history different from the rest of both countries. The protagonist must work within a court system that finds a suspect guilty until proven innocent and the only way that she can free her husband is to offer up an alternative suspect. Friends on both sides of the border work together to uncover a conspiracy that is keeping an innocent man incarcerated. Allana Martin has written a culturally colorful amateur sleuth novel.

Harriet Klausner