The local Indian band has a problem with their new condo-casino complex. There’s a dead guy. A Cherokee man named Thumps DreadfulWater is a former cop. He’s now working as a photographer in the U.S. northwest. He gets a call to photograph the crime scene from the area’s sheriff. Thumps’ love life gets dragged into it because the sheriff wants to speak to the son of the woman he has a relationship with.
Reluctantly, inevitably, and foreseeing nothing good coming out of it for himself, Thumps is drawn in to unravel the mystery.
Originally titled DreadfulWater Shows Up, the novel DreadfulWater is an uneven murder mystery by author Thomas King (writing as Hartley GoodWeather).
While a good read, there are more than a few places where it drags, often with a sense of repetition as the main character reviews what he knows, goes over previous actions, speculates on what it all might mean, and gets frustrated as he tries to make sense of the clues available.
On the other hand, King has a very straightforward writing style and well-drawn characters, as well as an intriguing mystery. As a consequence of who the characters are, particularly the main one, Thumps DreadfulWater, and partly as a result of where the story is set and what is involved, the book also provides a view of the world as seen through the eyes of the numerous Native American characters, and that makes for a refreshing change from the usual murder mystery.
King is a master of dry humour and uses it here well, often employing it in building character relationships. They feel true. As well, there’s a certain amount of satire employed by King. I think this aspect partly puts the novel at cross purposes: Does it want to be a mystery or social satire?
It manages to be both, at least to an extent. To me, it comes across primarily as a murder mystery flavoured with humour and satire.
Overall, DreadfulWater is a very good mystery novel that only suffers now and again by the sense of dragging, almost as if the story is reorienting itself before deciding where it is going next. On a scale of 1 to 5, I’d give a 3.5 to this book. Or maybe a 4, because I like Thomas King.
January 18, 2018