MyShelf.com
By Kim Malo
Leaden Skies is
Ann Parker's third
novel to feature
saloonkeeper Inez
Stannert in the
1880s silver boom
town of Leadville,
Colorado. Now that
might sound like
enough trouble
for any woman,
but Inez has never
had any problem
finding a lot more.
This
time troubles
come from
a mixture
of her own
actions
and circumstances
beyond her
control.
Former President
and Civil
War hero
General
Ulysses
S. Grant
has arrived
in town,
bringing
an entourage
with agendas
of their
own and
bringing
to prominence
the different
agendas
of some
of Leadville's
populace.
More personally,
this means
Inez has
the expense
of stocking
up on quantities
of the General's
reportedly
favorite
tipple,
just in
case he
should visit,
while her
lover, Reverend
Sands, has
taken the
opportunity
of needing
a companion
to various
planned
events to
force Inez's
hand in
making their
relationship
more public.
Which also
means addressing
her current
marital
status,
a year after
her husband
Mark disappeared.
That
disappearance
left Inez
and Abe
as partners
in the saloon,
since Mark
had always
treated
them as
full partners.
Problem
is there's
nothing
official
on paper
recognizing
that partnership,
meaning
the saloon
still technically
belongs
wholly to
Mark, or
if he's
dead, to
their son.
With Inez
being female
and Abe
a black
man, that's
not exactly
the basis
for future
security.
Trying to
give herself
the security
of something
truly her
own, Inez
gets into
a silent
partnership
with a local
madam that
just keeps
involving
her deeper
and deeper
in the trouble
all over
town. Trouble
that only
begins with
the murder
of one of
the working
girls at
Frisco Flo's "Parlor
House" and
having the
never friendly
eye of "The
Hatchet, " Leadville's
policeman
and collector
of fines,
fees and
taxes, fixed
on Inez
as a result,
just looking
for an excuse.
There
are surprisingly
few historical
mysteries
set in the
American
West. This
is a highly
enjoyable
series,
full of
detail about
its unusual
setting,
with an
unconventional
heroine
to go with
interesting
stories
filled with
people you
care about
to help
fill that
void. Ann
Parker has
a straightforward,
easy reading
style, with
this book
noticeably
more tightly
written
than the
prior, to
show that
she also
works hard
at her craft.
Recommended.
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