The Fly on the Wall

By Tony Hillerman

Book Overview

Ace reporter John Cotton is a fly on the wall, seeing all, hearing all, and keeping out of sight. But the game changes when he finds his best friend's corpse sprawled on the marble floor of the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0061000280
• Release Date: January 1990
• Publisher: HarperTorch
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 0.43 lbs.
• Dimensions: 6.8" x 0.9" x 4.2"

Customer Reviews

Not the usual suspects...

No Leaphorn or Chee in this one In fact, no Navajo concerns at all. This Hillerman is a political thriller. I discovered this novel rather late, like 25 years late, but wanted to read something by the man who'd given the world such memorable characters as Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee. John Cotton is also memorable as a newspaper reporter who becomes an investigative reporter, in spite of... or because of attempts made against his life. He seems to see himself as a fly on the wall, totally objective, simply observing. And reporting. But his moral compass involves him with a lust for truth. Some fine writing of difficult details, of dirty politics, and ... fly fishing in New Mexico. Lovers of Tony Hillerman's Indian series owe it to their beloved author to read his fine telling of a complicated plot to orchestrate one State's political future. And to remember John Cotton as essentially a white man's Joe Leaphorn.

Why didn't you write more of these, Mr. Hillerman?

The Fly on the Wall reads as wonderfully as any of his Indian series do. I was quite thrilled to read a political thriller--in this day and age of excitement on the political edge. I wish he had considered that when he wrote this book--it certainly fit in. Thanks for a really great read, Mr. Hillerman.

loved it!

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I'm a fan of Hillerman's Jim Chee mysteries, but found this to be as good, if not better, than those. I almost gave up on the book at first -it was so technical it was almost funny- but it was worth sticking with it, because the plot turned out to be one of his most interesting. Unlike some of the Jim Chee stories, whose endings can be somewhat anti-climactic, Fly on the Wall was riveting through the final pages. I imagine this book might not appeal to all of Hillerman's fans, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Not as good as others but good nevertheless

I did finish the book staying up until 1 pm. If you are a fan of Hillerman, then you do want to read this book. The two "chased by the bad guy" scenes in the book, one in Santa Fe and the other in the Capitol, are worth the price of admission. They are pulse quickening and vivid.

Unexpectedly good

Even though I am a Hillerman fan, my expectations were loweredfor this book. I'm mainly interested in his Navajo mysteries. However,I found this book to be well-written and compelling. Definitely worththe read, even though it isn't Hillerman's best.

yay

I am glad to be the first person to review this excellent piece of literature. Hillerman is a master.