The Last Warrior

Photojournalist Delaney Carson is running away from the one person she can’t run from—herself. Following losing the love of her life in an explosion in an Iraqi hotel she first sought to forget in a bottle. Coming back step-by-step to herself and her career she accepts a job writing a book about the history and culture of the Navajo Nation. Still running from herself she plows head long into Tribal police investigator Joe Youngblood.

Hurting from the end of his marriage and possible loss of his song, trying to solve a series of crimes he knows are inter-related on his native lands, the last thing Joe wants is Delaney in his life. She represents everything he does not want in his world, a world steeped in his own culture, teachings and beliefs. He is less than pleased that Delaney is staying at one of his grandfather’s houses and even less happy that she plans to spend time with the elder Youngblood. In a nutshell, Joe is in the camp that doesn’t want a non-Navajo writing about their world. When he meets Delaney though, the walls of Joe’s well-constructed life start to come tumbling down.

While out photographing the Navajo lands someone takes a few well-placed shots at Delaney. Relying on her experiences in war zones, she manages to make it back to her car and out of the immediate danger. While she is not one of Joe’s favorite people, he accepts his responsibility as a police officer and goes about the business of insuring she is protected. Three young men have recently been killed, drugs are turning up on the reservation and his former father-in-law, Bruce, shows up to tell him his ex-wife is running away with Joe’s son to parts unknown. Delaney is just one more thing on Joe’s already overloaded plate. Does he really want to stay out of her bed?

THE LAST WARRIOR is multi-published author Kylie Brant’s newest romantic suspense and what a romantic suspense it is! The romance between Joe and Delaney fairly sizzles off the page. There are times when the reader is sure that this is not going to be a happily ever after and it’s not because of their relationship, it’s because of the personal issues the two are dealing with.

Ms. Brant not only thoroughly researched the Navajo culture and history so that she invites readers into their world, she also provides an in depth psychological study into the aftermath of one woman’s experience in war and a man seeking to balance his deeply ingrained beliefs and a job only the most dedicated can do. She takes her readers not only on to the Navajo lands with her well turned words, she takes them there through Delaney’s eyes and ears. When Ms. Brant describes Delaney’s sense of wonder as the sun sets while sitting out behind her house, the reader feels the same sense of awe and beauty. When Joe carries her out of the suddenly too small house one night the reader can see the stars above along with Delaney. With each new person or venue Delaney visits, the reader is given a strong sense feeling they are there and it is the read him or herself that is viewing these things.

In her day job Ms. Brant is a teacher and if the way her stories unfold is in any way a reflection of how she teaches, her students are truly lucky. Interspersed through the story are lessons on the Navajo heritage, bringing each belief alive for the reader. While not a lesson for her readers, we come away with learning something new.

The romance between Joe and Delaney is true to life, one any reader wouldn’t mind having for their own. The suspense has you sitting on the edge of your seat. Who is killing the young men of the tribe? What is hidden in the caves? What is happening to the people crossing the border in the clandestine trips? How are these and Delaney inter-related?

The LAST WARRIOR is highly recommended for your summer reading; Kylie Brant has quickly become an auto-buy for this reviewer.

July 2007