STARRED Book Review: No One Left

Reviewed by Erin Britton

Deception and discrimination threaten life and liberty on a Navajo reservation in this stellar crime thriller. 

James Pinter’s brutal anti-crime odyssey continues as he opens a private investigator business and signs on as a consultant with the Navajo Tribal Police in No One Left, Lisa Boyle’s pacy, atmospheric, and twist-laden follow-up to In the Silence of Decay. 

His life has always been complicated, but James is about discover how much harder things can become when he has to balance protecting those he cares about, pursuing justice for not always reputable people, and uncovering a secret that stretches back to the very core of American values.

Having discovered his talent as an amateur detective during the Linda Morris murder case some months previously, former military policeman turned trucker James Pinter has decided to dedicate himself to law enforcement, but not to the police force. Instead, he and his daughter Molly have settled in a trailer on the Navajo reservation—in no small part influenced by his burgeoning relationship with Kay Benally, sister of the late Linda Morris. 

As it happens, it takes far less time than James expected for the first bodies to drop and the case to link back to Linda Morris’s murder—namely, to her husband, George. 

“Yes, George had been acting a little strange in the wake of Linda’s murder, and yes, he’d probably been hiding something. But no one could have predicted the man would up and leave with his child and then be accused of killing two people.”

The victims this time round seem far removed from daily life on the reservation: Judge Bartholomew Winters and his wife Cathy, both shot to death with a .357 Magnum. “Judge Winters did not feel regret or even fear in those final moments. He felt sorrow. He was the only one left. The only one standing in their way.” There should have been no link between the Winters couple and George, except that he had recently appeared before Judge Winters to petition to be recognized as the legal father of his stepson Adriel.

It’s not clear what happened during the meeting, only that George skipped town straight after it, taking Adriel with him. James considers George to be an unlikely murderer, but there’s definitely something dodgy afoot, and as Kay is in despair about the disappearance of her nephew, he agrees to look into the case.

It soon emerges that James isn’t the only one suspicious about the case against George. Agent Gabriel Sanchez is concerned that evidence has been tampered with and convinced that the Winters’s son, Isaiah, knows more than he’s letting on. It’s lucky that James is not afraid of ruffling a few official feathers.

No One Left is an intricately plotted and action-packed sequel to In the Silence of Decay. As the first book makes clear, life in New Mexico in the late 1970s is far from paradise, especially for the Native American community living on the reservation near Sanostee. Prejudice and discrimination are rife, and there is considerable difficulty integrating tradition with contemporary practices, leading to troubles such as the religious conflict between George and Kay.

Lisa Boyle’s readily apparent research on the life and times of people during this period lends the story a strong sense of authenticity. The environment of the reservation is particularly well evoked, both the physical and geographical conditions and the day-to-day experiences. The fact that James and Molly are now living on the reservation, with Molly attending the local high school, really brings the events of daily life to the fore.

In addition to issues on the personal level, Boyle also brings in wider-scale developments such as the passing of the Indian Child Welfare Act, which is intended to regulate custody proceedings involving Native children and has repercussions for various sections of society. It might be 1979, but the US government’s treatment of the indigenous population still reflects the sins of the past. As Lieutenant Wayne Tully reflects, “he ought to be used to children being taken from the reservation. Hell, it was happening for generations before he was even born. But did a person ever get used to a thing like that?”

Of course, life on the reservation isn’t perfect. There are still widespread problems with alcohol and drugs, and the malevolent Cody family are likely still up to their old tricks, but there is a real sense of community and extended family.

As with In the Silence of Decay, Boyle narrates No One Left from the alternating perspectives of various characters—most notably established characters such as James, Molly, Kay, George, Wayne Tully, and Gabriel Sanchez, but also some of the newcomers—which provides multifaceted insights into people and events from the story, adding to the intrigue and uncertainty. The characters are all well differentiated and realistic, and even when some of them get up to seriously dubious stuff, they remain largely sympathetic.

In particular, James has grown as a character since the first book, showing a more human side in addition to his deductive expertise. He and Molly had only become properly acquainted at the start of In the Silence of Decay, meaning that he had to navigate a complex father–daughter relationship as well as solving a murder. Their relationship has now become more rounded and James takes pains to include Molly in his life, for example, allowing her to play a major role in his new PI business.

James’s other major relationship—aside from his handy friendships with Wayne and Gabriel—is with Kay, which provides a practical explanation for his decision to base his detective agency on the reservation. Although the pair actually spend relatively little time together during No One Left, it’s largely James’s affection for Kay that causes him to agree to looking into George’s case. Moreover, having previously been a disaster in the relationship department, James’s attitude toward Kay is another sign of his character growth: “James liked Kay more than he could remember ever liking a woman.”

The murder mystery at the heart of No One Left—the killings of Bartholomew and Cathy Winters—proves to be even more complex and convoluted than it initially appeared, which gives way for a number of twists and turns as the story progresses. In fact, Boyle divides the deduction into two strands—one pursued by James, Molly, and Gabriel, and the other by Kay and Wayne—meaning that there are secrets, lies, and deceptions galore. 

The story imparts with some keen social commentary and historical insight along with its compelling thriller aspects. It all makes for a rip-roaring and conspiracy-filled crime novel with good characters and even better plot twists and curveballs.  

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