Starred Review. Having already won an Edgar for his Inspector Shan series (The Skull Mantra, etc.), Pattison makes a strong bid for another with this outstanding mystery set in colonial America. Scottish prisoner Duncan McCallum, indentured to the Ramsey Company, is troubled by a series of mysterious deaths on the ship carrying him to the New World. When McCallum's close friend Adam Munroe and a professor who was to work as a tutor are added to the list of the dead, McCallum, who has extensive medical training, is enlisted by the captain to investigate. The shipboard mysteries remain unresolved when they arrive in New York, and McCallum's quest for the truth leads him to perilous encounters on both sides of the French and Indian War. Pattison's moving characters, intricate plot and masterful evocation of the time, including sensitive depictions of the effects of the European war on Native Americans, set this leagues beyond most historicals and augur well for future entries in this series. (Jan.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Starred Review. Pattison has won numerous awards for his Inspector Shan series (e.g., the Edgar Award-winning The Skull Mantra), set in Tibet. Here, he breaks new ground on the American frontier in 1758. It is a time of high stakes for the French and English monarchs, with warring on every continent. And in North America the Hurons fight against the Mohawks (Iroquois) and the French against the English. No one is safe: death on the frontier is sudden and harsh. Into this world comes Duncan McCallum, chief of his Scottish clan by default, for only his brother and he survived the English depredations. Imprisoned for sheltering an aged relative, McCallum is deported to America. Aboard the ship he is pressed to examine an apparent suicide and uncovers evidence of murder, with more occurring after his arrival in the New World. In the process of identifying the killer, he meets the Iroquois and gains respect for them. The choice of McCallum as detective is a good one: there are many resonances between the life of this highland warrior and the ways of the Iroquois. Recommended for mystery and historical fiction collections. David Keymer, Modesto, CA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information