Iain’s Reviews > The Dark Wind > Status Update

Moving fast now. But, how did Chee expect to pursue someone who had a large head start and beat him to the getaway vehicle... when they both have to follow more or less the same path down from a mesa in a rainstorm? The conclusion of this is feeling very form over function: a lot of interesting vibes and atmosphere, but the details are hand-waved over.

Exciting and all, but utterly predictable. Every answer is exactly what it seemed to be long ago. The motive, the setup, just as it seemed. This is becoming unfortunately common in these books: the feeling that they're written for a younger audience, so I don't get to be surprised by the twists. And I love the Hopi mesa setting, but the reason for getting the action there feels so contrived and unexplained.

What did I miss? The size of the LEAP from learning the meeting time, wondering why it waited a day (there's actually an answer for this in the call that set it up), and realizing who's behind it, to absolute confidence the timing has to do with the Hopi religious calendar, and that the villain will profane a sacred ceremony just to have a cool and tricky meeting location... this book's been good, but this breaks it.

This is going a little off the rails maybe. Some of what I suspected early on is coming to light. Of course someone randomly being a magician is foreshadowing. Is he setting up for a hit to avenge his son? Did he kill Musket, because he led the son down a bad path? I don't like how casual Chee gets with the under-the-table info he gets; he needs to leave people's names out of his reports when he's working quietly.

If Chee thinks the feds drove up the wash and only stopped briefly at tributaries, how would their tracks not be visible when he went to track the hidden vehicle? Does he *not* truly think they did that then? He knows they didn't, and that's the point? He knows they're the ones who did the hiding maybe? And again, is Cowboy Dashee involved?

For the second book in a row, what is with Chee and driving into dangerous remote areas and leaving all his weapons locked in his truck! Only to encounter danger and have to worry about how to safely get back to the truck! After everything he went through being hunted in the last book, he still sleeps out in the desert with his pistol locked in the glove box? I sure wouldn't.

So the lawyer is one of the bad guys. The trading post magician makes me suspicious: why is he a magician, what does that represent as far as his role in this? Is Cowboy involved in some way too, since he's featured so heavily and presented as such a friend?

So... the DEA is behind it then? Maybe I'm getting ahead of things due to the way the last book seemed to force answers on us early and pretend like it wasn't, but it sure seems like we're being setup for a reveal that the feds are behind the goings-on to cover up some covert scheme.