Fiction Review

Blue Turquoise, White Shell
By Virginia Nosky
ISBN-10: 1932695583
Review by Heather Froeschl

Fate has a way of putting us where we are needed and when we pay heed to that urge, beneficial things happen. Fate had a helping hand in Virginia Nosky’s latest novel, “Blue Turquoise, White Shell,” by a sense of karma; the result being, varying degrees of satisfaction with life. The human will though, is a strong adversary to fate. Which will win in the end?

Lily Cabot Chase is the granddaughter of Cabot W.W. Chase. Both became doctors and both feel a sense of honor to fulfill a destiny they aren’t quite sure of. The elder feels responsibility to a fellow soldier who’d died saving his life back in WWII, and young Lily Cabot is asked to spend a year doctoring on a Navajo reservation as a payback for her grandfather putting her through Harvard Medical School. The story centers around the young Cabot and her goal of finding her passion as a doctor on the reservation. She is surprised to discover more than her own passion, but a mutual one between herself and handsome Nicholas Nakai who is running for the seat of a newly mandated US Congressional district. He would be the first Native American Congressman. The battle for votes is intense, but his mind if torn to commanding thoughts of Cabot.

Meanwhile, another story plays out in the same setting. In 1862, Daago, a Navajo headman’s daughter, is destined to be wed to the medicine man’s apprentice of the neighboring tribe. She is apprehensive at first, but knows it is her duty. When she is captured by a slave trader, she becomes determined to eventually escape, no matter what the burden. Captain Nathaniel Cabot is a medical officer for the army who is new to the inhumane treatment of the native people. When he “wins” Daago in a game of poker, he is planning to set her free; however, Daago is desperate and cannot understand what he tells her. She only knows that he wants her and she will use that to her advantage.

Perhaps destiny was set for Cabot and Nicholas back in 1862, or maybe their fate was sealed by their own desires.

Virginia Nosky has a flare for weaving Native American customs into her books. This has a desirable effect, creating a vibrant setting that I just want to dive into. Her treatment of the 1862 portions of the book are spectacular and pulse with life. Her modern Navajo scenes are rich with traditions and the political race demonstrates truth. It is her understanding of human nature that really draws the reader in though. You will see yourself and your loved ones in the characters and know that this is a good read.