text: I wonder if Jance wrote this just to get a movie credit based on her novel. One cannot help but be suspicious of writers who shift gears in their careers and write in a Tom Clancy or John D. Macdonald style just because that's what film-going audiences like. I do not think this is a bad thing, but I, like some of the reviewers here, are so fed up with clich plots that just borrow from i.e., Macdonald's "Cape Fear," or use that tired Native American romanticism that certainly sells the box office tickets through the roof. As for her writing style, she really should stay away from those scenes where character developments have not fully grown. What we're left with are people who are one dimensional like both the Walker parents, Davy, his fiancee, and to some extent, Lani, who just never convinced me that she had the fire of the budding Medicine Woman. Her male voice is very forced machismo that is typical of female writers who are testosterone-challenged. The men in this novel just weren't credible when they spoke. I kept seeing Jance speaking for them. So we're left with a high-concept piece that is still waiting for Hollywood to call and possibly star Penelope Cruz as Lani Walker. What's the Tohono O'otham word for "2 thumbs down?&quot
  