Don't Think Twice

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

The elements of a potentially strong mystery--a character with a troubled past, a puzzling murder and shady business dealings--are present in Johnson's debut, but the novel, although beautifully written, fails to generate sufficient suspense. Paul, who lives in Minnesota near the Chippewa reservation where he grew up, is struggling to keep the resort he owns from going under. His marriage to Gwen is also on the brink of collapse, owing to the death of their son, and Paul, full of pride and anger, is a walking time bomb. After his friend Al is found dead, apparently a suicide, Paul begins to suspect that the shooting death was no accident and starts to scrutinize it in an investigation that parallels his personal struggles. As he unravels the complex circumstances of Al's death, Paul commences to put his own life back together. He spends much of the novel in an angry, narcissistic haze, however; and since the story is narrated from his point of view, the other characters, including his wife, seem remote. This may have been Johnson's intent, but even so, narrative force is sacrificed to Paul's self-absorbed behavior. Many details--how Paul is keeping the resort financially afloat, for example--are missing from the story, and too many important plot elements are simply handed to Paul (in one scene, a woman, unprompted, unravels much of the mystery for him). The solution, then, is unrelated to his efforts. Johnson offers a memorably deep-hued portrait of a desperate character on the brink of self-destruction, but those looking for a pulsating mystery won't find one here. (June) Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Paul Two Persons lost his son last November, and now his marriage is crumbling. His business--a resort lodge near the Chippewa reservation where Paul grew up--is floundering thanks to a series of minor catastrophes and some bad loans Paul made to his friend Al. When Al turns up dead, Paul is catapulted into a game of reservation politics and deadly deal making. Johnson (The Snake Game, LJ 9/15/90) has written a book that manages to make the wide, airy spaces of the land of a thousand lakes feel claustrophobic with tension. It would be facile to compare the story to Tony Hillerman's work because of the Native American protagonists, but that would not be appropriate. Nevada Barr is a better fit; like her, Johnson gives the reader a brilliant sense of place even as the plot tightens a noose of anxiety. Recommended for larger mystery/suspense collections.--Alicia Graybill, Lincoln City Libs., NE

Daniel Woodrell

The plot is...a perennial: the forces of commerce and development versus those who retain a native conservatism born of sacred connections to the land....One of the many strengths of the novel is the Chippewa lore that is integral to Paul's conception of himself, his region and the events taking place around him....Don't Think Twice is by turns wily, sad, violent, somber and hopeful.
— The New York Times Book Review

Kirkus Reviews

An audacious debut about a decent, troubled man struggling first to escape, and then to confront, the sinister forces consuming his life. It takes considerable skill to write a novel about a rather self-destructive protagonist and keep the reader's sympathy. Johnson does so, though, with great assurance. As the story begins, Paul is a man caught between the need both to deal with and to flee from his grief. The struggle makes him angry, defensive and duplicitous. A member of the Chippewa tribe, he owns a fishing lodge in northwest Minnesota, close to the reservation. He is still quietly mourning the death of his son Bobby in a hunting accident the previous year. The loss of their only child has left Paul and his wife Gwen stranded in a seemingly impenetrable silence. He's terse with his guests, short-tempered with his few friends, and seemingly scornful of much of the local Chippewa community whom, he believes, resent his independence. Worse, he's likely to lose the lodge to the local bank if he can't find considerable money, fast. His best friend from the reservation, Al, a raffish charmer, has disappeared, owing Paul a great deal of money. Al turns up dead, apparently having committed suicide. But did he? A sly local sheriff, and his own suspicions, drive Paul to investigate. A fire at the lodge and a confrontation in the woods gradually lead Paul to the discovery of a horrific conspiracy that throws an even grimmer light on his young son's death. Johnson deftly mixes the components of a thriller with a complex character study, and Paul is a difficult, tormented figure, but also a compelling one. The language, while terse, is exact and vigorous, and the author's portrait of theembattled Chippewa is vivid and convincing as they struggle to hold on to some semblance of control over their lives and of the somber beauty of their land. A violent but moving conclusion suggests a hard-earned redemption for Paul–in an original, wonderfully assured, and powerful work. (Author tour)