Mountain Echoes

Murphy’s eighth and reportedly penultimate Walker Papers urban fantasy (after Raven Calls) shifts shaman Joanne Walker’s focus from her Celtic roots to her Native American ones. Jo, called back to the Cherokee reservation where she was raised, teams up with her frenemy Sara Isaac to investigate a mysterious howling that only Native Americans can hear. There’s something more than a little discomfiting in the “magical Indian” nature of the setup, but Murphy thankfully moves past it quickly, smartly balancing apocalypse-level supernatural threats with Jo’s emotional turmoil over her past with Sara and her concern over Aiden, the son she gave up for adoption when she was a teenager. Longtime fans will appreciate the return of Jo’s “staid and steady” ex-lover Mike Morrison, and all readers will enjoy the takedown of obstructionist and bureaucratic soldiers and CDC officials. There’s enough backstory to engage newer readers, but returning readers will get the most out of the story. Agent: Jennifer Jackson, Donald Maass Literary Agency. (Mar.)