Arizona Dreams: A David Mapstone Mystery

by Jon Talton

Book Overview

When a former student turns up in David Mapstone's office, she seems to have the perfect case for this history-professor-turned-deputy: a letter left by her deceased father, confessing to a forty-year-old murder and providing directions to the body. But things are never what they seem in Phoenix, a fast-buck city of newcomers seeking fresh starts from sometimes dark pasts. Just ask David's wife, Deputy Lindsey Faith Mapstone. One morning the start...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1590583183
• ISBN13: 9781590583180
• Release Date: September 2006
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
• Length: 206 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.8" x 8.9"

Customer Reviews

Best Mapstone yet!

"Even-numbered Mapstones don't suck" seems to be the pattern developing with Jon Talton's series. I found the first Mapstone disappointing, the second one quite an improvement, and the third one so-so. But now Talton has hit his stride and produced a thriller that really thrills, and a plot that holds together right up to the climax, tying together the loose ends without those "And now, Mr. Bond, before I kill you, I will explain my whole master plan" set-pieces that spoiled some of the previous novels. Talton is also getting better at breathing life into his characters. Lindsay in particular becomes much more interesting, with revelations about her family and her past that David Mapstone had no inkling of. Sheriff Peralta puts in an appearance, but instead of being the ever-present father figure, he becomes less sympathetic and an impediment to Mapstone's investigation - which makes for a more interesting story. What I really like is that Talton delves more deeply into Phoenix's real-estate-driven and Enron-like economy which is based on lies and denial - the idea that there will always be an infinite supply of cheap real estate and free water, and an endless stream of unskilled workers coming here to happily work minimum-wage McJobs to keep the whole house of cards going. Thanks to the extreme fringe-right politicians who keep getting elected here (the Tom Earley character strikes me as a spot-on depiction of notorious bloviator JD Hayworth), "planning" is a dirty word synonymous with socialism and totalitarianism. And so Phoenix stumbles into the future with no clue how to handle its explosive growth, no political will to make hard but necessary decisions. It's a perfect breeding ground for criminals and scam artists like the ones portrayed in this book. I haven't read the fifth Mapstone yet, but I hope Talton hasn't rested on his laurels but is continuing to do what this novel does: in the entertaining guise of a detective thriller, hold up a mirror to contemporary Phoenix.

Best of the Mapstone series

This is Jon Talton's best yet. His mystery writing credentials are established, and women have always liked his books. With "Arizona Dreams," he uses his knack for intellectual narrative and noir dialogue to introduce a surprising twist about Lindsey's life before she married the history shamus. That thread gives the book an emotional depth that leaves you eager for the next installment.

Keep you in suspense through the whole books!

Reviewed by Irene Watson for Reader View (7/06) Dr. David Mapstone, a Deputy, previously was a history professor and his main purpose now was to write a history book for the Sheriff's department. A former student, Dana, showed up at his office with a letter that her deceased father left with a confessional of a murder he committed 40 years earlier and the location of the grave in the dessert. Because his work didn't involve investigations he suggested the case be turned over to an active Deputy, however, the student insisted that Mapstone conduct the investigation himself. The plot thickens with twists and turns when he and his wife Lindsey, who is also a Deputy, are called by a neighbor to a murder in their neighborhood. While at the murder scene Lindsey spots her half-sister Robin, whom she hasn't seen for many years, in the crowd. Suspicions arise as to why she is at the scene. During the investigation as a result of the letter given to Mapstone by Dana, it is found that the body in the grave was not buried there 40 years ago, but as recent as two weeks. When Mapstone attempts to find Dana, she is nowhere to be found. Suspicions arise as to the validity of the letter as well as who Dana really is. Finally, when she is found, it ends up that she is the wife of a politician that has a grudge against the Sherriff, Mapstone's boss. From there the plot thickens even more so, with every chapter being an unpredictable chain of events that occur. More bodies are found, Dana appears and disappears, Mapstone, and his wife Lindsey gets more involved against the direction of the Sherriff, and ultimately the investigation leads to a corrupt real-estate development called `Arizona Dreams." Jon Talton's expert writing skills keep the reader turning pages. There is no indication or hint of what will happen next, even if it looks predictable, it's not what you would expect the events to be. And, the ending is certainly not one that the reader would anticipate or even figure out in advance. Is this a good read? Yes, definitely!

terrific police procedural

In the Willo Historic District of Phoenix, a neighbor rushes to the home of Mariposa County Sheriff's Department deputy sheriffs Lindsey Mapstone and her spouse retired history professor Dave to bring them to a nearby murder scene. Someone used an ice pick to kill lawyer Alan Cordesman in his home, which happens to be part of the historic tour of the neighborhood. At the crime scene Lindsey introduces her estranged sister Robin to her husband, who until that moment was unaware that his wife even had a sibling. Meanwhile a former student informs David that her late father confessed in a letter that he killed a man four decades ago leaving the body in the desert. Going to the location they find the remains of Harry Bell. However, the victim is only a few weeks dead not the forty years claimed by the letter and David's student has vanished. Soon others are killed with an ice pick. David traces his former student, who turns out never attended any of his classes; instead she is Dana Earley, wife of Maricopa County supervisor Tom Earley, who publicly is criticizing Sheriff Mike Peralta for hiring a history professor to work cold cases when illegal immigration is the pressing issue. ARIZONA DREAMS is a terrific police procedural that contains several delightful spins to keep readers alert to see where Jon Talton's homicidal tour of Phoenix ends up. David is at his best whether he finds a corpse in the DRY HEAT of the desert, drinking a martini with a cold blooded killer, meeting a sister in law he never knew existed, or confronting "Lady Macbeth" and her political hack of a spouse. Using the immigration issue as a political pointmaker adds to a fabulous investigation that will keep the audience fully occupied. Harriet Klausner

I was NOT disappointed!!

This is Jon Talton's fourth book of the David Mapstone Mystery collection that I now have. I was NOT disappointed with this newly released mystery with the "History Shamus", Deputy David Mapstone. A very interesting, enjoyable read with twists and turns til the final surprise ending. Concrete Desert, Camelback Falls, Dry Heat, and now Arizona Dreams. All were great reads. I cannot wait for the next in this series.