Sleeping Lady: An Alex Jensen Mystery (An Alex Jensen Alaska Mystery)

Not only does Sue Henry make the Alaskan landscape come alive, but she puts us right into the mind of a grizzly bear. One winds up rooting for the bear...
This time, Ms. Henry has an ending that I literally did not see coming. Wow.
The gruesome discovery of Norm Lewis' missing plane, after six months under water and ice, is only the beginning of Alex Jensen's problems. Rochelle Lewis insists on "helping" the police, as they try to identify the mysterious woman found in the passenger seat and look for Norm, who wasn't in the plane but hasn't been seen since that fateful day. Poachers, stolen planes, a stubborn pilot looking for her pilot husband, and Aklak the grizzly bear all contribute to a trying wilderness trek, as Alex looks for answers.
In each book, one learns a little more about State Trooper Alex Jensen and musher Jessie Arnold, and soon begins to think of them as close friends, instead of fictional characters. But Alaska is the star here. Whether or not you ever plan to visit, you must read these books. Sue Henry will take you to the real Alaska.
Another fine keeper from a truly talented writer. Enjoy it.

I mostly agree with other reviewers - great scenery, adding the bear's point of view was clever, the characters are well-drawn and engaging, the women characters specially are strong and believable, the plot developments interesting, sometimes gripping. But I am extremely surprised nobody mentioned the enormous flaws and inconsistencies. Sue Henry outsmarted herself in trying that last-minute and literally last-page final twist that does not hold water for a second.
Inconsistency Number One: the missing pilot filed a deliberately misleading flight plan, yet everybody looks for him where he actually went. They're all psychic or something? The only reason they don't find him is that his plane is submerged, and a bear got him (I'm not giving anything away, Ms. Henry tells us that in the very first chapter).
Inconsistency Number Two (a big one). We're asked to believe that the bad guys, who are poachers, blow the cover of a federal agent who's infiltrated them, right there in the middle of nowhere, beat her up badly, then when her pilot shows up, just let the two of them leave the camp and fly away, obviously to call the cops on them! They just stand there and watch them leave? Come on, folks, be realistic!! (Even if they're supposed to have shot the plane down, why let them leave at all? Specially as the author makes plain how difficult it actually is to hit a plane in flight with a rifle. Why take the unnecessary risk?)
Inconsistency Number Three: we could have done without that last-minute twist in the plot (apart from the Inconsistency Number Two, it was a pretty good story) because we're asked to believe that the real murderer, knowing exactly where and when to go in the immensity of the Alaskan wilderness, flies in unnoticed and undetected near the poachers' camp, lands, gets out of the plane, takes position to ambush said plane, knowing in advance what the line of flight will be, shoots it down with two rifle shots, reboards the plane and leaves, once again with nobody seeing or hearing anything? When we know the poachers are constantly on their guard? I just don't buy it, and I'm very surprised everybody else seems to have done, and is gushing enthusiastically about the book.
Those glaring flaws are really a pity. Before I got to them, I was very much enjoying the book, and thought I'd buy more of the series. Now I think I'll spend my time and money elsewhere, which is a pity because Alex Jensen and his girlfriend Jessie are very engaging characters. I give the book three stars because of the characters and scenery. On plot alone, I'd have given it 4 stars before I came across the flaws. With those flaws, I'd downgrade the mark to 2 stars, with one added because of the promise (though unfulfilled) of the book.

Anyone who likes mysteries with a twist will go nuts over this one! I sent it to my daughter with a note on the last page to call me when she finished it. I thought maybe I wasn't reading it right, but she agreed with me. I won't say more, I don't want to spoil it for others. A must read! Sue Henry needs to get busy and write faster! Like a trip to Alaska, plus a super story!

First, let me admit to being biased. I recently appeared in Alaska as an author at the Left Coast Crime mystery convention that Sue Henry had a major part in arranging. I also had a room at the Anchorage Hilton with a spectacluar view of the genuine Sleeping Lady. My view of that mountain was nada compared to Sue Henry's Alex Jensen novel SLEEPING LADY. Ms. Henry's scenic descriptions are unequaled in contemporary fiction. She also knows her territory--Alaska--well. By reading these Alex Jensen books, one learns what our last frontier is all about and what one needs to do to survive in that rugged land. The plot twisted and turned to the last page, and I felt the mystery was handled excellently. I am enjoying how Ms. Henry's characters are growing with each book. All in all, SLEEPING LADY is a terrific novel. If you've been to Alaska, as I have, you will love it. If you haven't been to Alaska, you will love it even more (and also add that great state to your travel plans). I encourage everyone to read Sue Henry's SLEEPING LADY.

Yes, I was snookered by the ending of this book. Never saw it coming. And I liked the fact that I didnt.
Norm Lewis is missing and a woman is found shot dead in his plane bogged down in water. His wife, Alex Jensen and a few others plod into the wilderness after their plane is grounded in an effort to find Norm and instead, find trouble in several forms.
The opening chapter is marvelous. After being to Alaska and seeing a few grizzlies in the wild, you never want to see any animal become extinct. They work on instinct and have no intention of going after us unless we are in their way.
What a book! An exciting read. The ending is cheating but what the heck! I like to be snookered once in a while...in a good way. On to the next. :D

Pilot Norm Lewis' plane is found crashed in the Alaska wilderness with a woman's body in it. His wife is upset and confused as to what happened to Norm and why the woman's body is in the plane. State trooper Alex Jensen goes to the site to try to solve the mystery. Sue Henry again gives the reader beautiful word pictures of Alaska and spins a mystery with a curious twist at the end. She also narrates part of the story from the vantage point of a male grizzly who has a significant part in the story. This is another good addition to this series, but is not as gripping as the first two books, "Murder on the Iditerod Trail" and "Termination Dust".

I was absolutely captivated with the descriptive writing Sue Henry did in this book and reading it is the closest possible thing to actually being on the scenes she describes. Few writers even begin to compare with Sue Henry in this regard. Having said this, there are aspects to this story that bother me. Why would Norm Lewis file a flight-plan and instead of following it, ignore it completely? Why would Rochelle, (six inches shorter than her brother Ed,) burden her "otherwise slim frame" with a 9 pound Weatherby .375 rifle that has approximately 50 pounds of recoil? How could a bullet from such an extremely powerful rifle simply bury itself (and stay put) in an upper leg bone (femur) when fired across a short distance? Why no ballistics follow-up on that bullet in the bone? And really....did Rochelle just keep those two brass shell casings as mementos or perhaps to reinforce those warm, precious moments of reminiscence about Norm? They would most likely never have been considered evidence, so why drop them in the lake? End of story about Norm Lewis, I guess. Oh well, he lived a good life and he apparently was a good man. His widow really does feel sorry for how he met his end and that is nice. Makes me feel good all over again. I like happy endings in books like this. By the way, what ever happened to those notes Norm left beneath the floor of the shack on Lake Hood? Is there another story coming with this in it? Does Alex finally figure it all out? (Does Chelle finally get herself a smaller, less powerful rifle? One she can more easily manage?) Come on! Don't keep us all waiting!

I have just read this book-- long after most of the other reviews. It was very good, kept me guessing-- strong characters. But that ending!!! Hello and help!! I took it to mean she shot the plane down but not her husband? If he was shot twice but one shot went into the woman on the plane that is too many bullets. I was guessing that she shot it down but the poachers finished the job-- especially with their trick of pushing the bear at the helpless Norm with a plane. I am reading the series in order so really enjoyed the first 2 books. This one as well, right up to the ending and then? too many unanswered questions.

This bookstore with multi-names does ship fast. That means a lot to many of us and I appreciate it but their downfall is the condition rating of their books. This is the 2nd paperback I've ordered and received from this group of bookstores (Green Earth, Sierra Nevada etc. out of Auburn WA) which was in poor condition. This "Sleeping Lady" paperback was rated as "Used-Good". It's not "Good" but dirty (I'll need to wipe the cover down and the back), has black marker pen lines on all book edges for some reason and some pages were hugely folded on the inside. Front cover edges are worn. As a seller myself I would have rated this "Used-Acceptable" or given it to the Goodwill. While the price was right, sellers who don't rate their books in a fair way don't end up with happy customers.

It kept you guessing right until the very end. Was Chelle guilty of anything?