Stargazer

Officer Bernadette Manuelito spends an ordinary day serving a bench warrant, clearing cattle off a road and coming across a crime scene. Then a request arrives that pulls her somewhere else. Maya, her former roommate, has gone missing, and Maya's brother asks Bernie to learn what became of her.

The two women lost touch years ago, after Maya's addiction wore down the friendship. Bernie traces Maya's movements and discovers that she confessed to killing her estranged husband, a prominent astronomer. The details of the confession do not fit the facts, so Bernie starts looking at the case herself.

What she learns about the astronomer's work sends her to a remote spot on the Navajo Nation, where a calculating killer is waiting. This is a mystery set on Navajo land, and the Navajo heroes of the night sky run through it.

Her husband, Jim Chee, is now her acting boss, and he is sure she is walking into danger. Their disagreement opens a rift between them.

Chee has his own decision to make, since he has taken on responsibilities he never wanted and has to settle what comes next for him. Their mentor Joe Leaphorn is also searching the past for direction. Whether his counsel can reach both of them, and whether Bernie can find the truth about Maya, is what the book turns on.