John Enright

Pago Pago Tango is set in American Samoa and introduces the reader to Detective Sergeant Apelu Soifua. The island is small, where every one knows everyone else. Samoan culture and values struggle to survive in the face of onslaughts by palangi (North American culture). Many of the traditional ways have already died, although Apelu can remember them being active when he was a boy, before his father took the family to San Francisco. Soifua is uneasy when he's called to the home of Gordon Trurich, an executive with the Sea King Tuna Company, the second largest employer on the island of American Samoa. Trurich lived in Tafuna Plain, the area preferred by the majority of the Americans who lived there. Stolen from the Trurich home were a videotape recorder, a collection of videotapes, a small amount of cash, everything from a single cabinet to a handgun that was used in a gangland killing. Of course, Trurich neglected to mention the latter item on Soifua's visit, but this odd assortment of stolen items leads him into the dark depths of lies, drugs, secret codes, and murder.

Although the mystery itself isn't terribly demanding or particularly exciting, this debut shows some promise with a good balance between plot and character introduction. What is interesting about this novel is the way the author describes Samoan culture and the reader gets a look at Samoan traditions and past, contrasted with what it has become.… (más)

This novel was seriously great. Some on gr liken it to a tragi-comedy, and I like the sound of this. Especially how things unravel and play out, throughout the novel. Enright had me spellbound to this novel, and I spent the most of this stormy day recuperating, drinking tea, and reading this novel. I’m so glad I picked it up recently!
While there is some sex in this novel, it shouldn’t be too shocking for other readers on gr I’d think. Nothing too much, or anything more exciting than fellatio, lol. And luckily, this novel doesn’t revolve around these characters sex lives, thank goodness.
I highly recommend this novel, and give it 5 stars.… (más)

I first became hooked on John Enright's writing when I read his four-book Jungle Beat mystery series set in American Samoa, so when I stumbled across New Jerusalem News, I didn't hesitate to buy it. At first, I wasn't sure I'd like the story of a professional houseguest because, to me, that's synonymous with "freeloader," but Dominick isn't a freeloader. The illegitimate son of a rich man, he has an independent income and can pay his own way, but the circumstances of his birth seem to have cast him in the role of the outsider looking in.

During the summer, he and two friends enjoyed themselves by Dominick taking on the persona of "Lord Witherspoon" so they could have all the local realtors take them on tours of the mansions that were for sale. It's only when he decides to stay during the offseason that Dominick's life begins to change. An elderly couple, Atticus and Lydia, have a lot to do with that. Atticus and Lydia have two grown daughters, and in an attempt to make everything simpler when they die, they signed over everything to them. One of the daughters lives in London and ignores them. The other lives in Boston and wants to shuffle her parents off to a condo in Florida so she can sell the property and make a fortune.

New Jerusalem News may seem a bit vague in its direction, but so is Dominick. This is a book to savor for its poetic descriptions of land and sea and for its marvelous character studies. Dominick wants to live a life of non-involvement, a life in which he's merely an observer, but reality has fun with him. He can't abandon Atticus and Lydia, and he can't help making friends with Emma and John Starks, two of the locals. And he certainly can't help getting involved when the FBI and Department of Homeland Security decide he's a terrorist. This terrorist plotline has some pointed things to say about those two government agencies, and it really pulls in the reader. Enright had me genuinely concerned about the fate of his characters.

There's another book in the Dominick Chronicles: Some People Talk With God. I look forward to reading it. John Enright has a poet's way with words, and he certainly knows how to tell a story. I'm looking forward to seeing what Dominick does next.… (más)

Pago Pago Tango is set in American Samoa and introduces the reader to Detective Sergeant Apelu Soifua. The island is small, where every one knows everyone else. Samoan culture and values struggle to survive in the face of onslaughts by palangi (North American culture). Many of the traditional ways have already died, although Apelu can remember them being active when he was a boy, before his father took the family to San Francisco. Soifua is uneasy when he's called to the home of Gordon Trurich, an executive with the Sea King Tuna Company, the second largest employer on the island of American Samoa. Trurich lived in Tafuna Plain, the area preferred by the majority of the Americans who lived there. Stolen from the Trurich home were a videotape recorder, a collection of videotapes, a small amount of cash, everything from a single cabinet to a handgun that was used in a gangland killing. Of course, Trurich neglected to mention the latter item on Soifua's visit, but this odd assortment of stolen items leads him into the dark depths of lies, drugs, secret codes, and murder.

Although the mystery itself isn't terribly demanding or particularly exciting, this debut shows some promise with a good balance between plot and character introduction. What is interesting about this novel is the way the author describes Samoan culture and the reader gets a look at Samoan traditions and past, contrasted with what it has become.… (más)