WILD INFERNO
When WILDFIRE erupts on a patchwork of land including the Southern Ute Reservation, Jamaica Wild is sent to find an old Ute man named Grampa Ned, who has vanished. Jamaica risks danger to go after him, but the fire crowns and torches through the area, forcing her to run for her life.
WILD INFERNO
by SANDI AULT
When WILDFIRE erupts on a patchwork of land including the Southern Ute Reservation, Jamaica Wild is sent to find an old Ute man named Grampa Ned, who has vanished. Jamaica risks danger to go after him, but the fire crowns and torches through the area, forcing her to run for her life. As she escapes, Jamaica discovers a firefighter smoldering and wavering on the side of the road. The man, part of a hotshot crew that is trapped in the burn area, sputters a cryptic message to Jamaica before losing consciousness.
Soon, the fire threatens an encampment of Puebloans doing ceremony atop Chimney Rock, celebrating a rare and sacred celestial phenomenon. Among them is Jamaica's medicine teacher, Momma Anna, and her wolf, Mountain. As the fire rages out of control and a stalker makes attempts on her life, Jamaica must work to ensure that the Native Americans and her beloved wolf are safe while she tries to discover what happened to both Grampa Ned and the burning man. What was Grampa Ned doing on the mountain before he was murdered—and why didn’t the burning man stay with his crew? What would make them risk incineration in a WILD INFERNO?
Praise
“Ault smoothly blends a murder mystery plot with Native American lore in this impressive sequel to her debut,
Wild Indigo.”
— Publishers WeeklyBEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR LIST
“Bureau of Land Management agent Jamaica Wild investigates a murder against the backdrop of a raging wildfire on Colorado's Chimney Rock plateau. This edge-of-the-seat sequel to Ault's successful debut, Wild Indigo, demonstrates her skill at weaving together plot lines, complex characters, and lots of suspense.”
— Library Journal BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR LIST
"The vivacious Ault knows whereof she writes in Wild Inferno…Where Ault excels is in developing a suspenseful, action-filled mystery on rugged Southwest terrain."
—New Mexico Magazine
"Set in southern Colorado on and around the southern Ute reservation during a wildfire, this is Colorado writer Ault's second mystery featuring BLM agent Jamaica Wild. The fiery descriptions of the blaze's terrifying power are worth the price of admission, but Ault also keeps the pages turning with Jamaica's investigation into the death of an aging Ute man she tried to save from the fire and her search for the meaning of a badly burned Indian firefighter's exhortation to 'save the grandmother.' As in her first novel, Ault deftly weaves American Indian culture, Jamaica's life with her pet wolf and her BLM job into a mystery with plenty of spark.
Final word: A writer with a flair for the outdoors, Ault deserves a large following."
—Rocky Mountain News
“This second installment in Sandi Ault's new outdoor mystery series comes at you as fast and furious as did her debut, ‘Wild Indigo.’ The mystery deepens with every page. If you enjoy the outdoors, the mysticism of Indian cultures, along with breakneck adventure, Ault's Wild series might just get your heart racing.”
—The Charlotte Observer
"As she did in "Wild Indigo," Ault combines Indian lore with a dandy whodunit, and the result is a fine mystery. Animal lovers will rejoice at the reappearance of Jamaica's pet wolf, Mountain. Ault has another page turner, and readers can anticipate more of Jamaica's adventures."
—Richmond Times Dispatch Online
“Mystery Author has Hot Ticket in “Wild” Series”
—Albuquerque Journal
“Sandi Ault…not only weaves a good yarn, she stands to become another major voice in depicting the heritage of the Native Americans of the southwest. In addition to giving readers an enjoyable mystery, Sandi Ault, like Tony Hillerman and others, is documenting, preserving, and presenting Native American culture and rituals that otherwise would never be known to the majority of her readers, and more importantly, she is preserving them against
future loss.”
—Bo Parker, Cobbledstones Reviews
Like its predecessor, WILD INDIGO, WILD INFERNO has netted STARRED REVIEWS
"The dramatic background-wild fires spreading near Colorado's famed Chimney Rock at the same time Pueblo people are gathering there for an important ceremony-and a smoother blending of plot and Native American lore and rituals make Ault's sequel to her impressive debut (Wild Indigo, 2007) a richer novel than her first.... Readers will share the author's obvious admiration for the skill and bravery of the fire teams (many composed of Native Americans) as they battle fires in such rugged terrain. Ault credibly charts Jamaica's education and indoctrination into the ways of the Pueblo people, leaving her poised for the next phase of her promising career."
— Publishers Weekly STARRED REVIEW
"Following her successful debut, Wild Indigo, Ault sets her second series mystery on the Chimney Rock plateau of the American Southwest's Four Corners area, where a wildfire threatens the Pueblo Indians gathered for a sacred ceremony. For Bureau of Land Management agent Jamaica Wild, everything happens at once. An elderly Ute Indian dies in the fire, one of the Navajo hotshot firefighters is badly burned, and someone is trying to kill Jamaica. She must juggle a murder investigation, her relationship with her less-than-forthcoming boyfriend, her adopted Ute mother, and the ever-present threatening fire. Fans of Nevada Barr and Tony Hillerman will snap this up, but Ault is such a good writer that crime fiction buffs who enjoy a good mystery with plenty of action and great background detail will put this on their hold lists. Highly recommended."
—Library Journal STARRED REVIEW
"...a sensitive look at Native-American culture and a compelling account of the fight to tame ever-increasing wildfires."
— Kirkus Reviews
"Readers will be awed at how firefighters risk their lives to protect civilians..."
— Harriet Klausner's Web Review
"After the recent fires in San Diego, I found this book fascinating. Sandi Ault takes the reader into the makeshift camps of the firefighters and into the fires with them. She demonstrates the dangers and the difficulties in getting needed resources such as air support when multiple fires are burning. Sandi Ault's first book Wild Indigo was well-written and entertaining, but Wild Inferno is more threatening on multiple levels and the characters are better developed and more involved."
— Mysterious Galaxy