A reader may justifiably expect this book to be set in the American west, but this work, a two-novel combination, begins with the French neoclassical painter Jacques-Louis David and and the French Revolution. The modern-day mystery is set in Yellowstone National Park, where seasonal ranger and retired Fort Worth cop Clarence Johnson discovers a corpse as an unplanned part of his tour of park history. It connects him with Park Service Police Investigator Allison Nance and DEA Agent LaFleur, and after some struggle to get his creds recognized, Johnson joins the investigation. LaFleur is convinced that this death is drug related and does everything to make the evidence fit his theory. Johnson is pretty sure it is not and works to persuade Nance to be open minded. Nance’s specialty is art history; the painter Thomas Moran is said to have much to do with Yellowstone being the first National Park, and art as evidence crops up often in this case. Chapters alternate between the past and the present, with an artifact of French royalty at the center of intrigue in both time frames. While it is somewhat unusual to have so much time spent in the past, it is necessary here to set the stage. The interpretation of the artistic clues is a bit stretched, but essential to the conclusion. This could be an interesting series, and I hope to see further adventures of Nance and Johnson, along with Tripod, his three-legged rescue dog.
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