The acting police lieutenant of the Navaho Tribal police force is Jim Chee since his mentor Joe Leaphorn recently retired. Jim is currently trying to learn the identity of a recently discovered skeleton found near the summit of a New Mexico peak considered holy by the Indians. It appears that the victim is a deceased white man from an influential family who disappeared over eleven years ago.

When hearing about the skeletal finding, Joe, who unsuccessfully investigated the original disappearance of the white man, reappears on the scene. Initially, Jim is unhappy with the return of his former teacher, but soon he changes his mind when Joe provides him with a clue. Just when it looks to be a simple mountain climbing accident, other incidents occur to complicate the case. Working together, Joe and Jim need to quickly solve whether the original victim was purposely killed and, if so, who did it before anyone else gets hurt.

Tony Hillerman writes about the southwest with a beautiful reverence that makes his ethnic detective stories come alive for readers throughout the country. The Hillerman trademark of an interesting, twist-turning who-done-it serves as a brilliant backdrop to Native American culture struggling to survive in the modern world. What could be better than the already published dozen Navaho Tribal police tales. Simple, another dozen. Keep them coming Mr. Hillerman - not only are they great reading, but readers learn about alternate cultures in an interesting atmosphere.