Publisher's Weekly Review
Having already won an Edgar for his Inspector Shan series (The Skull Mantra, etc.), Pattison makes a strong bid for another with this outstanding mystery set in colonial America. Scottish prisoner Duncan McCallum, indentured to the Ramsey Company, is troubled by a series of mysterious deaths on the ship carrying him to the New World. When McCallum's close friend Adam Munroe and a professor who was to work as a tutor are added to the list of the dead, McCallum, who has extensive medical training, is enlisted by the captain to investigate. The shipboard mysteries remain unresolved when they arrive in New York, and McCallum's quest for the truth leads him to perilous encounters on both sides of the French and Indian War. Pattison's moving characters, intricate plot and masterful evocation of the time, including sensitive depictions of the effects of the European war on Native Americans, set this leagues beyond most historicals and augur well for future entries in this series. (Jan.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus Review
A hapless Scottish hero caught in the middle of the bloody French and Indian Wars unravels an intricate murder plot. Unfairly imprisoned in 1759 as an indentured servant on a British convict ship approaching the New World, young Duncan McCallum goes from depression to deathly despair upon the death of Adam Monroe, his only close friend on board. Adam's is only the latest of a spate of murders or suicides aboard the ship. The tense atmosphere is further exacerbated by the odd appearance of a nearly drowned young woman named Flora. Others consider her a Pandora, but Duncan finds himself drawn to the eerily fragile beauty. Because he's had a couple of years of medical school, Duncan is enlisted by crusty Lieutenant Woolford to probe the unexpected deaths even as he's haunted by the dying Adam's prescient words about conspiracy. The shipmates are sucked into the maelstrom of the ongoing colonial wars, where murky allegiances add another layer of danger and the "savages" have spawned a menacing mythology. As Duncan makes more discoveries (and finds unexpected romance with a fellow Scot, spirited Sarah), Woolford reluctantly reveals additional keys to the nefarious mystery's solution. The densely plotted historical adventure from Edgar-winning Pattison (Prayer of the Dragon, 2007, etc.) provides just enough whodunit to keep the hero and the reader on the frontier trail. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Library Journal Review
Pattison has won numerous awards for his Inspector Shan series (e.g., the Edgar Award-winning The Skull Mantra), set in Tibet. Here, he breaks new ground on the American frontier in 1758. It is a time of high stakes for the French and English monarchs, with warring on every continent. And in North America the Hurons fight against the Mohawks (Iroquois) and the French against the English. No one is safe: death on the frontier is sudden and harsh. Into this world comes Duncan McCallum, chief of his Scottish clan by default, for only his brother and he survived the English depredations. Imprisoned for sheltering an aged relative, McCallum is deported to America. Aboard the ship he is pressed to examine an apparent suicide and uncovers evidence of murder, with more occurring after his arrival in the New World. In the process of identifying the killer, he meets the Iroquois and gains respect for them. The choice of McCallum as detective is a good one: there are many resonances between the life of this highland warrior and the ways of the Iroquois. Recommended for mystery and historical fiction collections.-David Keymer, Modesto, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.