Discusses the history of the southwestern region of the United States from the sixteenth century to the Mexican War, examining the interactions between the Spanish, Indians, and American pioneers.
Separate police investigations become closely related when it becomes clear that Henry Highhawk is wanted by others besides the police and is involved in more than grave robbing.
A noted anthropologist arrives at an Anasazi Indian ruin to dig for clay pots and is terrified by what looms out of the darkness. Weeks later she is reported missing. Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn unearths a bizarre and mystifying series of murders.
Lt. Joe Leaphorn and Officer Jim Chee of the Navajo Tribal Police are united in a murder investigation that leads them into the dark world of Navajo witchcraft.
