The Widow's Revenge

Charlie Moon #14

by James D. Doss

Even with some of the toughest hombres and nastiest outlaws roaming the Southwest, bestselling author James D. Doss's seven-foot-tall rancher and sometime tribal investigator Charlie Moon does a fair job on the side of the good guys. So it's no surprise that he gets the call when the widow Loyola Montoya starts making a fuss about witches.

Witches?

She swears there's a whole midnight brood lurking in the woods just off her property, mocking her with lewd songs and harassing her with the carcasses of dead animals. When no one takes her seriously—she has been known to cry wolf from time to time—she takes matters into her own hands, with disastrous results. By the time Charlie arrives, it's too late to save her, and while he knows he can't bring her back, that doesn't mean he can't help the widow get her revenge after all.

Told in Doss's whimsical style, The Widow's Revenge is a wonderfully tall tale that requires wide-open spaces and larger-than-life heroes like Charlie Moon to saddle up and make sure that justice is served.

Genres: Mystery, Native American, Westerns, Fiction, Humor

290 pages, Hardcover

First published October 27, 2009

About the author

James D. Doss (1939, Kentucky, -17 May 2012) was a noted American mystery novel author. He was the creator of the popular fictional Ute detective/rancher Charlie Moon, of whom he wrote 17 mystery novels. James "Danny" Doss was born and raised in Kentucky and died in Los Alamos, New Mexico. He was also an electrical engineer who worked on particle accelerators and biomedical technology for the University of California's Los Alamos National Laboratory, while writing his novels. After retirement from Los Alamos National Laboratory, he continued to write his popular novels while living in Taos, New Mexico and Los Alamos, New Mexico.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Doss

Reviews

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don't bother

[Laura Knaapen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Strange story with some terribly dark humor. The widow gets her revenge, but a LOT of innocent people get killed along the way.

[Kaye Dewar · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a real page turner. Charlie get himself into some real trouble and it takes so doing to get ittaken care of.

[Eugene · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had read 9 or 10 of this series before I sort of petered out. Somehow, I’ve found a copy of this 14th outing on my bookshelves and so decided to read it. The first several (few?) I read were pretty well done and quite entertaining. At a certain point, the stories became more and more about Charlie Moon and less about his more interesting aunt, Daisy Pereika, the shaman. And as well, the stories got more theatre of the absurd, or grand guignol, and with somewhat offputting behaviors/tendencies of the “bad guys.” While this book started pretty well and I was hopeful of a better finish, it also veered that way before long.
Here Charlie Moon is contacted by one of aunt Daisy’s elderly friends, who complains of being attacked by witches, and strongly urges Charlie to come rid her of them. While not a believer, Charlie agrees to see her soon; unfortunately, by the time he shows up, she has lost her battle and is dead. Signs, however, point to human evil-doers rather than imaginary. While the police lean toward an accidental death verdict, Charlie digs deeper, and it isn’t long before he finds that now deceased Loyola Montoya had some ground for her fears, even moreso with regard to her friend, the widow Jeppson. Becoming worried about Mrs. Jeppson, Charlie hurries to her and narrowly manages to save her from decidedly human assailants.
This is where things begin to go awry. I’ll leave it to you to decide if you want to read the book, and find out what happens after this point. While the book was somewhat entertaining , it wasn’t a real “grabber” for me, I’ll wait a bit to try another.

[Terry Steinborn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another entertaining entry in the saga of Southern Ute rancher and occasional Tribal Investigator Charlie Moon and his relatives and other associates. It seems that the farther into this series one reads, the more the humorous elements outweigh the elements contributing to the mystery at the heart of the book. This book is no exception, and it appears that Doss has spent considerably more effort adding humor than in advancing the rather far-fetched plot. That plot involves a notorious crime family who have mysteriously targeted the Granite Creek Colorado area for this particular foray into crime. Charlie Moon, following up on the usual mysterious (other-worldly?) clues from his shaman-aunt Daisy Perika, manages to foil the first evil-doings of this Family, which soon escalates, eventually involving even the FBI (and Charlie's ex-girlfriend). The plot stumbles along to it's not-terribly-logical conclusion. The late Jim Doss's humor makes this a very enjoyable and rather quick book to read, although I don't advise starting the series with any of these later volumes.

[Judith Trail · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlie Moon might have been spending too much time on the Columbine, enjoying the scenery, his cattle and the solitude that he enjoys when he is not thinking about getting a wife. When he stumbles into a crime, and acting with great intuitive genius, foils an attempted murder of a shop owner, killing two of the bad guys, he sets off a firestorm. A really crazy crime family decides that it has to deal with Charlie and his family, which means Daisy Perika and their adopted niece, Sarah. Of course, Scott Parris is involved, and an old FBI flame, and things are looking pretty bleak. Thank goodness that Daisy still has her visions and that she still has the raging energy to intervene to save everyone, especially that incorrigible Charlie Moon. These stories are told with a sly humor, deadpan understatement or exaggeration and the spicy temper of Daisy to keep things interesting. These novels never disappoint!

[Cynthia Nichols · Rating 1 out of 5]

I started writhing with dislike of the writing almost immediately - so much that I could only get a few pages into it. Peeked ahead a bit and nope, the writing did not change; it wasn't a ploy. I had thought that just maybe the author had deliberately started the book off in a voice that was a perfect imitation of a 9th grader using a thesaurus to bulk out the word count in their essay. As I only wasted about 5 minutes on this book, I guess I can't really complain too much. Moving right along...

[Jaclyn Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was passed this book from my Grandma. I have not read anything else from this author. This wasn't a page turner for me. Took me a bit to get through it. Very fragmented story and points of view switching.

[Marna Whitney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still liking this author. A bit too many dead bodies in this one but justice is served in the end.

[JulieAnn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This entire series is compelling and takes place in my state of Colorado. My favorite part, the Four Corners. I would reccomend any of them, and there are plenty. Thanks, Mr. Doss.

[Robert Lariviere · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read in an entertainig seies.

[Chick Marks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining

[Roger · Rating 5 out of 5]

good read and series

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This installment of Doss' highly-entertaining Charlie Moon mysteries pits the lanky Ute against his most ruthless foes yet: a criminal gang with no qualms about using horrific violence to achieve its ends. When Charlie inadvertently foils their plans, they set their sights on him as the next target. Will Charlie and his loved ones survive? Or will this be lights out for a Columbine Ranch resident?

'Revenge' has all the trademark features that make all the Moon books such a delight to read – Daisy's amusingly bad attitude paired with her mystic streak, the lovelorn Sarah Frank pining away over the oblivious detective, and plenty of engaging banter between Moon and his pals. As usual, the nameless narrator is pretty much a character in and of itself. Doss doesn't just tell a story, he spins a yarn, and it's really quite enjoyable at that. Now, in this installment, he does indulge himself a little bit and we're treated to several lengthy dream sequences via a snoozing Scott Parris. For those more interested in the actual meat of the story, this might be a turnoff. However I felt it was in keeping with the "narrator" character's sense of whimsy and enjoyed it.

The book manages another feat in that it's a weird mix of super-creepy and tragic, yet still keeping the humorous angle alive. It's an odd combination, but compelling.

Overall, a great read.

[Suzanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable

Yes, I am reading this late.
The characters are true to themselves. Aunt Perika does not reek as much havoc as usual but does enough to keep the plot boiling.
The gentlemen have their own problems to deal with. "Scot Pariss" suffering from Angina, being a real man does not go to a doctor. So we faithful readers worry that he will keel over before the bad guys are slowed down. Our favorite " injun " keeps himself busy while seeming to take life very seriously and busy. He has his ranch chores (a new horse barn is a normal chore ;-) ) as well as becoming involved in the Cannibal Murders.
All of these activities including enough gun play make for a very enjoyable read.
Thanks, Mr. Doss

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

When a friend of Ute Shaman Daisy Perika complains that her little holding is infested by witches, she calls Daisy's nephew Charlie Moon for help. The ex-lawman rancher arrives too late to help her, but he's determined to find the group that killed her. As he learns more from his former girlfriend, a top FBI agent, he realizes that he's dealing with a dangerous, determined bunch of criminals. As usual, Aunt Daisy and the lovelorn orphan who lives with her help and hinder Charlie, as does his best friend, local police chief Scott Parris.

[Douglas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! What a wonderfully witty tale of part-time tribal investigator and full-time cattle rancher, Charlie Moon, his best buddy, Police Chief Scott Parris and the three main women in his life; the irascible Ute Shaman, his Aunt Daisy, the starry eyed teenage Sarah Frank and the steely eyed Special Agent McTeague. The Charlie Moon series gets better with each tale. It is just like sitting around a pinion fire listening to a great story teller telling his tall tale. What a great laugh and a great mystery.

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Charlie Moon mysteries are humorous Westerns with a twist of the supernatural. Charlie Moon,a Ute Indian,his best friend Scott Parris,spunky Aunt Daisy and the various women who idolize Charlie Moon inhabit this novel. A technique of Doss' which makes his characters come alive as well as adding humor to story is that of including his characters thoughts after their spoken words.The reader chuckles as s/he recognizes the truth of the characters thoughts verus what the character is willing to say aloud.

[Kit Potter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty strange. Lots of Aunt Daisy. It's great to see the author bring in the aspect that a premonition/"vision" can be misinterpreted by the receiver!

[Kitty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tribal investigator Charlie Moon gets a call from a widow friend about witches consorting on her land. He agrees to drive down the next day to check it out. When he gets there, she's dead. Accident or murder? Then a series of bad happenings occur in the area. Our Charlie Moon is not going to let this continue.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fun book. This murder mystery book dealing with Native Americans was written in an engaging, tongue-in-cheek style. The murders were a little grisly, but it was swallowed up in the humorous approach. As long as you don't mind a little mysticism--ghosts who communicate with the local deputy to help him solve the murder--it's a good clean mystery novel.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a fun thriller set in Arizona/Utah somewhat reminiscent of Tony Hillerman's books though not such high quality. Doss jerked the reader around a lot, but I really enjoyed this light reading. I had trouble sometimes distinguishing what was really happening from what someone was visioning.

[Arlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlie Moon is called by the widow, Loyola Montoya. She says that there are witches that are bothering her. They have killed her nanny goat. Then she overhears them making plans for some mischief in Granite Creek.
It is only the start of a nightmare for Charlie and his friends: Scott Parris, the local police chief; Aunt Daisy, the Ute shaman; and Sarah Frank, the lovelorn teenager.

[Joan Husmann · Rating 1 out of 5]

I haven't read a book in this series for a while. I probably won't again. This was way too cutesy for my tastes, with a meandering plot. What was the point of Scott Parris's dreams? Also, the simpering Sarah is just annoying, and the visit from the librarian goes nowhere. Even Daisy Perilka was relegated to a minor role. In television parlance, this series has jumped the shark.

[Abilene Gray]

If you like to follow a character through his/her years of growth and change, James Doss gives us Charlie Moon, a former Ute tribal lawman and his shaman grandmother Daisy in the wonderfully described southwest settings of northern New Mexico and Colorado.

[Cat. · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a weird book! I love this series, but this one was terribly odd: the style is rather jokey, almost silly, vernacular while the story itself is about cannibals and serial murders. And ghosts, of course. After all, Aunt Daisy sees spirits everywhere.

[Serena · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the characters, and their world and hope I get the chance to read the story again and/or to read more within the series.

My Rating System:
* couldn't finish, ** wouldn't recommend, *** would recommend, **** would read again, ***** have read again.

[Nancy Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The last few Charlie Moon stories got a bit mixed up but I think this one was the next to the last as having already read the last one this foreshadows much in it. This is a great tale all to itself with all the players accounted for. Excellent!

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sometimes I read a book, and I just don't like it. The writing is fine. The story is interesting. Some of the characters are compelling. But those factors don't add up to a book I like. This is one of those books.

[Jeannine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another enjoyable Charlie Moon romp. That Aunt Daisy! She's a real pill!