Engaging and atmospheric. A recommended purchase for collections where crime and thrillers are popular.

Character driven police procedural with a supernatural edge. The emphasis is on the world building and characters more than the actual crime solving. Best depiction of what it would be Like to talk to and see the dead, especially how terrifying it would be.
Reminds me a lot of the best Scandinavian noir/crime novels with strong female characters

This was an original mystery with Native American influences and the main character being a crime photographer who sees and hears ghosts. The descriptions were fascinating. I wish there had been a little more to the mystery aspect. I would’ve loved a wow moment.

Rita, a young woman from a Navajo tribe in New Mexico works for the Crime Unit of the Albuquerque Police as a forensic photographer. Interspersed with chapters of her life in photography, from a young age, is the story of several deaths being investigated by the police. Rita has photographed the scenes and believes the deaths are murders and connected. Since childhood she has seen ghosts and now the ghosts are the victims of these crimes. What is the connection between the deaths? Are the police involved? Good story.

This was intense and so good. Just hit me the right way.

Told in two stories, her childhood and present day, Rita tells us about seeing her ghosts and her grandmother's desperate need to get the ghosts to leave her alone. Having been called yet again to a crime scene, Rita tries to just take the pictures and get home to sleep, instead she encounters another ghost, this one not willing to leave her alone.

Pulled into a terrible case trying to get answers, this fast paced story keeps you gripped throughout. I could not put this down. It was just a masterpiece of writing.

It was such an informative and different read. And I loved the paranormal mystery aspect. I would definitely recommend to others.

I enjoyed this in general - I liked the central idea very much, the cultural depth was great, but the pacing is very off. The book doesn't really start to move until the 75% mark, which is a real suspense-killer. It felt a lot like it needed a little more editing and polish - on the whole though I absolutely recommend it and will read this author's next book.

This is not quite a thriller, not quite a police procedural, not wholly supernatural, but it is thoroughly enjoyable. I appreciated that the protagonists indigenous heritage was embraces and explored through telling the story of a young forensic photographer called upon to get justice for the victims of a rash of crimes in Albuquerque.

Spoooooky. Yes yes yes. This has what so many thrillers are missing — culture, intrigue, heart. I am so rarely attached to the characters in a plot-heavy novel, and I'm honestly not sure this thriller was really even plot heavy? A lot happened, but I felt we saw a lot more of a character study. How interesting and deserving of all the acclaim it's getting. I had a few bones to pick with some plot points that didn't sit write with me as part of the structure, but I want to read a thousand more books like this.

Rita has always been able to see ghosts. It's a gift that she has hidden from her Navajo family and community. Until one day she is photographing a crime scene as part of her job with the local police department, the ghost of the victim makes her presence known. She wants answers, answers that only Rita can find out. Was she murdered or was it suicide? Will Rita be able to find the truth without risking her own life? It was a thrilling book with beautiful imagery, excellent character development and an on the edge of your seat ride. I'd highly recommend it.

A good procedural crime novel. The mystery was good and the characters were enjoyable. With the addition of ghosts, the book has a horror aspect to it too. I

This was a really fascinating blend of mystery and paranormal with strong characters and an engaging plot. I loved the interactions between Rita and Irma, and thought the exasperation coupled with genuine fear was really well done. More of a character study than a straight up crime novel, I do think that some people may be a little disappointed with the mystery element of the plot, as it was never really in any doubt who the 'bad guy' was. For me however, I really enjoyed the exploration of Rita's life through the photographic elements of the story and overall, thought this was an engrossing and satisfying read.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Wow. Ramona Emerson is my new favorite author! Her writing is gorgeous and I just loved this original plot. Her characters are truly fleshed out and memorable. Can't wait for her next one. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the free copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

This is a debut novel that provides fascinating looks at the Navajo culture and forensic photography. Rita grew up on the Navajo reservation, raised by her grandmother after her mother left. All the women in the family are photographers, with Rita making a career out of it. Since she was a child, Rita has been able to see and talk to dead people. With this unusual background, Rita becomes a forensic photographer, a person who takes photos at crime scenes. After one particularly brutal crime scene that appears to be a suicide, the dead person begins to follow Rita around, demanding that she prove it was not a suicide. The ghost copies Whoopi Goldberg from the movie Ghost, becoming such a problem that Rita cannot sleep and begins to unravel. Other current cases appear to be related and begin to point to crooked cops. The book is well-written, and includes unique subjects and intriguing plot lines. My only complaint, and it is a small one, is that sometimes Rita appears helpless at just the right time in the story to move along the plot, although Rita is NOT helpless. Overall, though, this is an excellent debut for a new author, who, I hope, will continue Rita's story in a sequel. Thanks to NetGalley and Soho Crime for providing an ARC.

Kudos to Emerson for being longlisted for the National Book Award. The nomination of an indigenous thriller is (hopefully) game changing for the publishing industry, literary criticism, and reading at large.

I enjoyed the first half of this book as Rita lives on the Navajo reservation with her beloved grandmother. As the second half of the novel dipped more into the cartel, police procedural, and the last-minute escape from safety to pursue justice, I grew bored and skeptical of Rita’s illogical actions.

Shutter is a murder mystery with a supernatural element to it, centered around forensic photographer Rita Todacheene. Rita has always been able to see ghosts, but hasn’t always been able to filter them, leading her to lose control. The book starts with a particularly gruesome death that Rita is responsible for photographing, which leads to her being haunted by Erma Singleton, the woman who died. And Erma is legit pissed about it, which opens the floodgates on the other ghosts wanting justice. But saying a ghost told you who killed them doesn’t go over so well with police colleagues, and Rita’s beginning to figure out that a cop she doesn’t particularly get along with may be deeply involved not just with Erma’s death, but the cartel and the deaths of other people. Faced with threats from both the living and the dead, Rita’s life is on the line. The photography and Native American elements of this story bring a nice and unique element to a mystery storyline. The story itself alternates back and forth between Rita growing up and her close relationship with her grandmother and the local medicine man and the current time. This can tend to get disorienting because the transitions aren’t always clearly delineated. Rita also has several friends that clearly care about her, but their appearances to demand she go out and party with them feel additionally disruptive to the storyline. I think this is a great start to exploring crime investigation from a different perspective and with the complication of being privy to information Rita can’t share, but still could have used some tightening up and a better flow. A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is a very interesting different book. Mystery, characters . I reviewed this on Edelweiss please look at that review.

DNF. This one didn't capture my attention, and felt too depressing from the beginning for me to keep going.

Shutter is an excellent crime procedural with diversity and ghosts. Ramona Emerson and her main character, Rita Todacheene, are Diné, layering a rich culture to a compelling thriller.
Rita’s grandmother has always told her to ignore the ghosts she sees but, as a crime scene photographer, the ghosts are getting harder to ignore.

Rita’s life is thrown into chaos as ghosts require more and more of her to solve the mystery of their deaths. Once the door is opened to them they begin to wreak havoc on her life.

This novel blends thriller and horror expertly, and I can’t wait to see what Emerson writes next.

This review will also be posted on my Goodreads page. Shutter by Ramona Emerson was great. It didn't go the way I'd expected from reading the description, but it was a really interesting and unique horror novel. Rita is a forensic photographer who has a unique ability. Ramona is haunted- literally- by the ghosts she is able to see. During a recent crime scene investigated, Rita becomes deeply involved after a spirit latches onto her and demands help in finding her killer and releasing the truth. Overall, Emerson's book was very original and I enjoyed the storyline. I will recommend this to my horror loving friends.