IN THE SILENCE OF DECAY

A Vietnam War veteran trying to leave his past behind finds himself being pulled into a murder investigation in Boyle’s mystery novel.

James Pinter was once a U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division agent involved in investigating the My Lai Massacre. When James left the service, he became a truck driver, hoping to forget the horrors of war. His life takes a turn in 1979, when James becomes the sole caretaker of his estranged 14-year-old daughter, Molly, after her mother overdoses. An even more significant change occurs when Molly discovers the body of Linda Morris near a New Mexico gas station. The investigating state troopers chalk up Linda’s death as yet another Indigenous overdose case. James has doubts, but wants to purge his past as a cop (“this was not his case, he reminded himself again”). Still, he fears that Linda’s son, Adriel, may be in danger, so he heads for the Navajo Reservation, where Linda’s sister, Kay, convinces James to find her sister’s murderer. James quickly must determine the players on the reservation: He doesn’t know what to make of attractive, bullheaded reporter Gloria Fenwick, but tribal officer Wayne Tully becomes his close ally in an off-the-books hunt for Linda’s killer. Linda’s death appears to be tied to a potential disaster caused by a company exploiting tribal resources; James becomes a target himself, as many don’t want the white man looking into Navajo corruption. Boyle has created an intriguing modern hero in James—the re-entry of Molly into his life means that he has to stop running. One of the novel’s most enjoyable storylines charts how the pair grow closer as they investigate together. The strong supporting cast has intriguing secrets to be explored in future books in the Pinter P.I. series. The reservation itself becomes a character as Boyle deftly delves into pressing issues affecting Indigenous people; her narrative is a slow burn, building to a surprising conclusion.

A gripping thriller.