Queen of the Night
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Product Description
About the Author
J.A. Jance is the New York Times bestelling author of the J.P Beaumont series, the Joanna Brady series, Edge of Evil, and three stand-alone thrillers. Born in South Dakota and brought up in Bisbee, Arizona, Jance lives with her husband in Seattle, Washington, and Tuscan, Arizona.
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38 reviews
31 of 31 people found the following review helpful
Less a thriller than interesting stories about interesting characters
29 July 2010
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
Although crimes are committed and investigations are conducted in Queen of the Night by J.A. Jance, the book is primarily about its characters -- what happened and is happening to them, the ways they are connected or become connected, how events in one charcter's life parallel those in another's.
The story takes place in Arizona, where Brian Fellows, happy in his roles as father, husband, and cop, follows the trail of a killer while his idol Brandon Walker pursues a new lead in a cold case at the request of a dying friend. Brandon's wife, Diana, seeing ghosts and worrying over her deteriorating health, anticipates her own approaching death while at the beginning her life, Angelina Estalante survives a cold-blooded slaughter only to be labeled a Ghost Girl by relatives who refuse to care for the four-year-old. Dr. Lani Walker, one of the Desert People and Brandon and Diana's adopted daughter, knows what it is like to be rejected by family, but her reluctance to make personal commitments influences her empathy for Angelina. Half-Apache border patrolman Dan Pardee, who rescues Angelina and was orphaned at a young age, knows what it is like to be an outsider, particularly in the land of the Tohono O'odham, the Desert People and cannot cast off his feeling of responsibility for the child.
The murders in the book take second place to the lives of these and other characters. The cold case subplot, in fact, is anti-climactic and not terribly engaging. What is engaging are the sections of the book that focus on the legends and traditions of the Tohono O'odam (Desert People), including that of the Queen of the Night, a cereus that blooms only one night a year.
Although Jance's technique of switching focus among characters can be disconcerting, even at times confusing, their stories are interesting enough to make it worth the effort to keep up with and untangle all of the threads. In the end, it is possible to understand that one of Jance's themes is probably how interconnected we all are. And, if the reader tires of the human element, there is always Bozo, a scene-stealing dog.
The story takes place in Arizona, where Brian Fellows, happy in his roles as father, husband, and cop, follows the trail of a killer while his idol Brandon Walker pursues a new lead in a cold case at the request of a dying friend. Brandon's wife, Diana, seeing ghosts and worrying over her deteriorating health, anticipates her own approaching death while at the beginning her life, Angelina Estalante survives a cold-blooded slaughter only to be labeled a Ghost Girl by relatives who refuse to care for the four-year-old. Dr. Lani Walker, one of the Desert People and Brandon and Diana's adopted daughter, knows what it is like to be rejected by family, but her reluctance to make personal commitments influences her empathy for Angelina. Half-Apache border patrolman Dan Pardee, who rescues Angelina and was orphaned at a young age, knows what it is like to be an outsider, particularly in the land of the Tohono O'odham, the Desert People and cannot cast off his feeling of responsibility for the child.
The murders in the book take second place to the lives of these and other characters. The cold case subplot, in fact, is anti-climactic and not terribly engaging. What is engaging are the sections of the book that focus on the legends and traditions of the Tohono O'odam (Desert People), including that of the Queen of the Night, a cereus that blooms only one night a year.
Although Jance's technique of switching focus among characters can be disconcerting, even at times confusing, their stories are interesting enough to make it worth the effort to keep up with and untangle all of the threads. In the end, it is possible to understand that one of Jance's themes is probably how interconnected we all are. And, if the reader tires of the human element, there is always Bozo, a scene-stealing dog.
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Readers will be unable to stop turning pages whether electronically or physically
9 Sep 2010
Format:Hardcover
"Queen of the Night" is the latest mystery/suspense thriller by Southwestern/Western sleuth-writer extraordinaire, J. A. Jance. Set in Arizona, with scenes of fear unfolding within the Tohono O'odham Nation's reservation boundaries, "Queen of the Night" stars familiar Dr. Lani Walker, a Tohono O'odham physician and a new character, Dan Pardee, an Apache Iraqi war veteran who has become a Shadow Wolf, an unorthodox Native American Border Patrol group. Along with his canine companion and guard, Bozo, Dan intervenes to rescue a lost child from a terrible multiple murder scene set in the beautiful Arizona desert on the night of the blooming of the Queen of the Night, the night-blooming cereus. The pace never slackens, as more players from different races and official agencies become involved in the investigation of the multiple murders and the wrenching decision regarding the placement of the four-year-old child witness to the murders. Tribal customs, traditions, and history are woven into the story line skillfully, with many inner conflicts surfacing to confuse the hunt for the murderer. The human touch is all, in Jance's narratives. Readers will be unable to stop turning pages whether electronically or physically, as "Queen of the Night" approaches its final resolution, engaging all race, all issues, all senses, all attention. There is a message of interconnectedness, acceptance and human compassion in the mystery novels of J. A. Jance that transcend the genre, taking it to realms beyond pure entertainment.
16 of 19 people found the following review helpful
great extended Walker Family mystery
28 July 2010
Format:Hardcover
In 1959, ASU coed June Lennox travels with Sully from the Tempe, Arizona campus to Southern California for spring break. She never returns to school as she is left dead in the desert.
In 2009 in Tucson, retired Pima County homicide detective Brandon Walker visits his dying pal former Pinal County detective "Geet" Farrell at the hospice; they worked a serial killer case together back in 1975. Geet got Brandon a job with TLC (The Last Chance) entity that works cold cases. Hs current case is the homicide of June Lennox.
At the same time, Brandon's wife Diana Ladd Walker still struggles with "visits" from the dead in her nightmarish past. They are Andrew Carlisle who tried to rape her, her late odious first husband Garrison Ladd III who set her up to be raped, and serial killer Mitch Johnson who kidnapped her adopted daughter Lani. At the same time, Pima County Homicide Detective Brian Fellows and Border Patrol agent Dan Pardee track a killer on the land of the desert people, the Tohono O'odham.
The latest extended Walker Family mystery (see Hour of the Hunter and Kiss of the Dead) is a great entry as J.A. Jance deftly balances her myriad of leads, their cases, the present day culture of the People and the geography. The multiple plots connect by the Walkers and company who diligently work at what they do best. Ms. Jance is at her best with this terrific mystery that blends past and present Tucson, Southern California and the Tohono O'odham Nation into a powerful thriller.
Harriet Klausner
In 2009 in Tucson, retired Pima County homicide detective Brandon Walker visits his dying pal former Pinal County detective "Geet" Farrell at the hospice; they worked a serial killer case together back in 1975. Geet got Brandon a job with TLC (The Last Chance) entity that works cold cases. Hs current case is the homicide of June Lennox.
At the same time, Brandon's wife Diana Ladd Walker still struggles with "visits" from the dead in her nightmarish past. They are Andrew Carlisle who tried to rape her, her late odious first husband Garrison Ladd III who set her up to be raped, and serial killer Mitch Johnson who kidnapped her adopted daughter Lani. At the same time, Pima County Homicide Detective Brian Fellows and Border Patrol agent Dan Pardee track a killer on the land of the desert people, the Tohono O'odham.
The latest extended Walker Family mystery (see Hour of the Hunter and Kiss of the Dead) is a great entry as J.A. Jance deftly balances her myriad of leads, their cases, the present day culture of the People and the geography. The multiple plots connect by the Walkers and company who diligently work at what they do best. Ms. Jance is at her best with this terrific mystery that blends past and present Tucson, Southern California and the Tohono O'odham Nation into a powerful thriller.
Harriet Klausner
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