Winter Counts

I waffled in writing this because I do try to follow the rule of saying something nice, or nothing at all. Then I realized that this doesn’t just apply to the writer, but also his editor. Editor….what were you thinking?!?! Some of the dialogue in this book really needs a clean-up. So much is very 1990’s gangster/cop show. And if you’re going to work so hard to be accurate with Native American/Indian/Indigenous People practices, you should really try and follow that same path throughout the book. Either no research was done to insure accuracy in the description of law enforcement policy/practice or it was simply ignored. The same goes for the gang culture. I felt like a lot of work was done on part of the book, and then the rest was just thrown together from B-movies and anecdotes. The narrator was ok, but nothing to brag about. Can’t recommend this one. The good parts are REALLY good, but they don’t over come the bad.

The description of this novel seemed right up my alley; a noir tinged mystery which takes place on a reservation. Having just finished the great novel “The only good Indian” I thought that I was in for a treat. Boy was I mistaken. The characters are completely uninteresting and spend much of their time Talking about their exploits in high school and even elementary school. My guess is the novelist if not very young is extremely immature as his characters have no interests or life experience Beyond that of a shallow 20-year-old. And the plot is ridiculous. The police, drug dealers and gang members all seem out of the fever dream of a 13-year-old amped up on YA novels. Save your credit and avoid this audiobook.

The narration in WINTER COUNTS (Audible) is very good. The story is middling at best. To call this a “thriller” is charitable, because all of the plot developments are totally guessable, with no surprises. The main character (Virgil, the thug with a heart of gold) is shallowly drawn. All of the characters (mostly Lakotas who dwell on the Rosebud reservation) would be equally at home in a novel that is set in an ordinary small town in the U.S. The prose is adequate, but nothing to savor. The details about reservation life and tribal/federal law ring true, but there aren’t a whole lot of them. The book has little to offer besides the story, which doesn’t really justify the hours invested in listening to an audible book.

I have been waiting to read this book for a while. I purchased it as an audible book. I don’t like the narrator but so far the story itself is OK. I’m learning a lot about native Americans. I wouldn’t label it a thriller so much as a what if. It was interesting. Not as good as I expected. RECOMMENDATION: READ IT.

Great story, fast paced, great setting. We listened to this while truck driving, and while we are fans of Longmire, C.J. Box and David Baldacci, this new author is every bit as thrilling, with fascinating characters and a very satisfying story. We\’re new fans!

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