SHUTTER by Ramona Emerson - National Book Award Longlist

This supernatural thriller is an edge of your seat read. I love crime fiction with strong female characters. In Rita Todacheene, a Navajo Indian and forensic photographer, author Emerson has created an emotionally complex character who struggles to resist her secret ability to see the ghosts of the dead. 

Rita’s grandmother, who raised Rita and encouraged her interest in photography, has always been terrified by Rita’s ghostly visions. Navajo’s believe the ghosts of the dead are evil. Her grandmother and the tribe’s medicine man, fear Rita will be overcome by evil if she continues to be open to the ghosts of those who’ve passed.

I was deeply drawn into Rita’s struggles to maintain her life and sanity and to deal with her own feelings and her family’s fears about her supernatural abilities. Rita’s psychological battle with the ghost of Erma, who demands Rita investigate her death, was captivating. The police have labeled Erma’s death an accident but Erma insists she was murdered.

This novel is an original take on the crime thriller genre. The writing is strong and compelling. I highly recommend this book to those of you who love great plots, complex characters, fraught relationships and unique settings.