Romantic Times
Enemy Way is an intriguing, absorbing book that tells a dynamite story. Ella Clah is a strong, fascinating character, unique in mystery fiction. The Thurlos, using their own experience, paint a fascinating, realistic picture of life on today’s reservations. This book is a treat for mystery fans, and for those who love and are fascinated by accurate portrayals of today’s Native Americans.
Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly
Once again, tradition is clashing with the forces of change on the Navajo reservation where former FBI agent Ella Clah (Bad Medicine, 1997, etc.) is a special investigator. Violent confrontations between two rival gangs, the Many Devils and the North Siders, are increasing. Gang members may or may not be responsible for the brutal death of Lisa Aspass, a teacher. Some among the Dineh, or The People, as the Navajo refer to themselves, blame Anglo influences for splitting them into traditionalists and progressives. A traditionalist vigilante group known as the Fierce Ones targets the gangs, while an Anglo group, The Brotherhood, contracts Ella's death. Both groups are Ella's old enemies, yet her real adversaries may be "skinwalkers," Navajo witches with whom Ella and her brother Clifford have dealt in the past. The savage pace of murder and gang violence is exacerbated when Ella's mother is injured by a twice-convicted drunk driver. In a world out of balance, Ella strives to find the harmony between work and family, tradition and modernity. She herself remains an intriguing bundle of contrasts. (Sept.)
Kirkus Reviews
Enemy Way ( Aug. 14; 352 pp.; 0-312-85520-6): An upsurge of gang violence on Ella Clah's Navajo reservation is the background for a suspicious accident that nearly kills her mother and a violent attack that leaves her friend Wilson Joe's fianc‚'s dead. Trust Ella (Bad Medicine, 1997, etc.) to find the pattern behind the crimes, and the Thurlos to stuff their tale to bursting with still more mayhem.
