In the short space of two novels, I have come to be a fan of the Charlie Henry mysteries. Do they stand as great literature? No, but they don’t have to be, nor does everything in print have to be. They are simply wonderful stories that are very well told. I might describe them as old-school Hardy Boys novels --- my highest compliment --- grown up and dressed up in modern clothes but with a fine coating of grit and groan.

Veteran husband-and-wife writing team David and Aimee Thurlo have set this series in the streets of Albuquerque and peopled it with a couple of ex-Special Ops veterans --- Charlie Henry and Gordon Sweeney --- and have created a believable bromance involving two friends with a penchant for attracting trouble. This second and latest installment in the series, following THE PAWNBROKER, is a quick and enjoyable read.

"One can tell that the Thurlos seem to be having fun with their characters --- and their readers --- during GRAVE CONSEQUENCES. However, that observation is made with the knowledge that Aimee passed away prior to its publication."

Charlie and Gordon jointly own a pawn shop, which gives the Thurlos an opportunity to interject quirky and dangerous characters into the mix of their books at will. Things jump off quickly in GRAVE CONSEQUENCES over a turquoise necklace. The item has been pawned off by a young Navajo woman named Lola; the next day, a man purporting to be her boyfriend tries to pawn it back, without a ticket but with plenty of money. He is rebuffed, and everything but hilarity ensues when he returns later with friends and firepower, attempting to obtain the necklace by force. Things never stop moving forward at that point. It develops that the necklace is a one-of-a-kind item created by a Navajo silversmith whose work is highly prized and who, interestingly enough, had been murdered a few weeks before. Worse, the necklace had been buried with the dead man; someone not only robbed his grave but also desecrated his body, one of the worst taboos possible in Navajo culture.

Charlie and Gordon suddenly have a number of angry people after them, and the entire matter also intersects with Henry’s brother Alfred, a tribal policeman whose career is circling the drain and who is making an attempt to salvage things by working undercover to nab the grave robbers. That Charlie and his brother are kind of/sort of estranged makes for an interesting subplot, though not so much as to cause it to get in the way of the character development and action that propel this fine novel from beginning to end.

While Charlie and Gordon are in the crosshairs of a seemingly ever-increasing gang of thugs, their primary concern is for Lola, who seems to have gone missing and may also be an intended target of the bad guys. Charlie and Gordon get some assistance in their quest to protect Lola from a somewhat unexpected source, and as the sides line up, one anticipates that things won’t be resolved without at least one high-velocity street fight.

One can tell that the Thurlos seem to be having fun with their characters --- and their readers --- during GRAVE CONSEQUENCES. However, that observation is made with the knowledge that Aimee passed away prior to its publication. Following a heartfelt dedication that is worth the price of admission all by itself, David indicates in his Acknowledgements that their work will carry on. Fans of mystery and action fiction would be blessed.