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Content snapshot
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Violence
Some
A disappearance and a skeleton; mild violence; the investigation involves land disputes
Language
Barely any
Mild language
Sexual Content
Barely any
Mild content
Substance Use
Barely any
Mild content
Emotional Intensity
Some
The specific way that land ownership in the Southwest intersects with Native sovereignty; Leaphorn's restlessness in retirement and his need to understand what happened
What this book is about
A wealthy rancher named John McDermott disappears from the Navajo reservation area. A year later, a skeleton is found near the iconic rock formation known as Ship Rock. Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn, now retired, investigates independently — unable to leave the mystery alone — while Jim Chee handles the official case. Tony Hillerman's twelfth Leaphorn/Chee novel is the most focused on the specific landscape of the Navajo reservation — Ship Rock dominates the narrative geographically and symbolically — and deals with the economics of land and cattle in the Southwest.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
twelfth Leaphorn/Chee novel by Tony Hillerman; Ship Rock setting; Leaphorn retired
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