Land of Echoes

A Cree Black Thriller

By: Daniel Hecht

Narrated by: Anna Fields

Length: 15 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's summary

Nothing in Cree's experience as a Harvard-trained clinical psychologist or as a paranormal investigator has prepared her for Tommy Keeday's case. A talented young Navajo, Tommy has recently been exhibiting bizarre symptoms that his family believes are signs of possession by a chindi, a hostile spirit. As Cree struggles to find answers, she becomes increasingly aware that Tommy and the people who surround him have some deep and disturbing secrets.

The follow-up to City of Masks and Daniel Hecht's latest novel, the second in the Cree Black series is a thrillingly plausible supernatural mystery, a passionate love story, and a thoughtful exploration of Navajo culture and identity in modern America.

Listen to more Cree Black thrillers.

©2004 Daniel Hecht and Christine Klaine

Remarkable Landscape, Characters and Writing

My first trip to NM began with a trip to the top of Sandia Mountain and then an exploration of the remarkable New Mexico landscape. This book follows the same path, but breathed life into the walls of the canyons, the expanse of the dessert and the incredible blue of the sky and pitch black of the night. Hecht is a very talented writer -- his story is well-crafted and the characters he creates are all solid, well-conceived and well-developed in the course of the book. Cree Black is a marvel of intelligence and complexity and yet draws on all one's empathy as she embraces very basic, human questions.

Hecht had to have done a tremendous amount of research to pull together such a believable plot built on the tenets of parapsychology and Native American culture. I'm grateful that it didn't get in the way of the story which is already long at fifteen hours -- every detail chosen builds the story and moves the plot forward. That said, there are some wonderful descriptive passages in the book of the land and the people that bring them all to life that are well worth rereading. The narration was superb. Anna Fields is a remarkable reader who can change her character or the mood as required in an instant.

I highly recommend this book, as well as City of Masks and hope to see more of Cree Black in the future.

What Audiobooks Should Be

Every time I listen to Anna Fields read a book I like her more. She is a thoroughly skilled and educated reader. Her accents are spot-on and she doesn't get irritating when she reads a male part. Clearly she researches quite a bit before taking on a new project.

The story is the second in a series featuring Cree Black, a "psychologist for ghosts," and takes a surprising twist. Instead of doing another haunted house with another tormented ghost, which fans of this sort of thing would gladly have read, Daniel Hecht put Cree somewhere completely different -the Rez- and gave her a completely new problem -a possession. This was a totally original story, gripping and tragic at times, and dare I say even uplifting at others. I am really looking forward to a third book by this author.

So Different from the First, Yet So Good!

Cree Black has fast become a favorite of mine. The first installment was no less than stellar and this one is a completely different and worthy followup.

Edgar and Joyce are more involved here, both adding depth to Cree's character and history. The setting of the book is as much a character as the people in it, as always in this series. The peripheral characters have deep motives and histories of their own, thus making a well woven tale even tighter and more interesting. Excellent mystery. Terrific imagery. Don't pass this one up.

Second time around is even better

Daniel Hecht creates wonderfully real characters. In this novel you are acquainted with the Navaho people. Anna Fields even pronounced some of their words with ease. She gave a different voice to each character and voiced every emotion with aplomb.
This a love story of sorts and features some cruelties of humanity.
This is the second time I've listened to this novel and also City of Masks. And they are both better the second time around.
Hey Daniel where's your new book. We're waiting.

Ugh...

Out of about 20 so far, this was the first book I couldn't finish. Although I found landscape descriptions very interesting, overall it was just too poorly written and predictable. I couldn't handle all the fluff and tired dialogue and shallow characters. Maybe it got better, but finding out wasn't worth it to me.

a girlie book

I'm sorry if this makes me mean and shallow, but I wasn't able to enjoy this book simply for the reason in the title. I think it was well written, and very well performed, and I really did try. But...
So if your a guy, and you get tired of the girl to girl dialog, and girlie description of male characters. Be warned.
I couldn't finish it, and I was listening to it while I was working on firewood. That's when the escape into a story is so great.