Eye of the Wolf [Mass Market Paperback]

Boulder, Colorado author, Margaret Coel calls the wolf a wonderful animal. "It's always two looks ahead," of everybody else, she says. Using the wolf as metaphor, she gets the villain in her mystery novel THE EYE OF THE WOLF at least two looks ahead of both readers and main characters.

The 11th in her series featuring the Boston Irish priest Father John O'Malley and Arapaho lawyer, Vicky Holden as the crime solvers, THE EYE OF THE WOLF takes the reader to the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming. There, traditional enemies, the Arapaho and Shoshone, share the land. Father John serves an Arapaho parish. Vicky works with an Arapaho law firm. The two are close friends.

As EYE OF THE WOLF opens, someone has killed three Shoshone college students on the Bates Battlefield, where in 1874, Shoshone scouts led the United States Cavalry to an Arapaho village. The soldiers slaughtered everyone living there.

Animosity between the Shoshone and Arapaho, two very different peoples with diverse cultures, has smoldered since. Father John fears the worst when he sees the latest bodies at Bates, all posed like dead warriors in old photographs. Someone wants to encourage the hatred. Why? And Who?

He, his parishioners, and the police suspect Frankie Montana. This Arapaho trouble has often fought with Shoshones in bars,. Because he drifts around the reservation drinking and crashing at drug houses, most decent people of both groups despise Frankie.

His mother, Lucille, begs Vicky to become Frankie's lawyer. Lucille believes he's innocent. Because Lucille is a friend, Vicky agrees to take the case. However, she, too, believes Frankie is guilty. He concern is to get him a fair trial.

Frankie asserts he did not commit the crime, but will not talk to Vicky or the police. As he eludes them out of sheer terror of jail, Father John finds a fourth Shoshone victim at Bates.

Looking at the evidence against Frankie, Vicky begins think he may not be the killer. So does Father John, after talking to people in the parish. But, then who is? Can Father John and Vicky find the person, and prove his or her identify to the police?

Or--is the murderer like the wolf--two looks ahead ? Will that give him or her time to kill again? Worse, have Father John and Vicky made a mistake to believe Frankie? Is he really the killer? Will he prove it by shooting one of them?

Their gamble on Frankie brings EYE OF THE WOLF to an end that one one could possibly expect. But the conclusion makes perfect sense, because Margaret Coel writes with understanding of Arapaho and Shoshone history. Through that history, she reveals the killer.

Also through that history, she also makes EYE OF THE WOLF more than just another mystery with an explosive ending. As the story unfolds, she presents two Native American groups that get little attention from novelists. Working closely with people who live on Wind River Reservation, she makes sure her depiction is accurate.

So EYE OF THE WOLF is not something like, or just like a wolf, it IS a wolf--two looks ahead of everybody. Readers will not only enjoy a gripping mystery, but they'll also learn something about other people and their lives.

They'll receive the lesson through rich, well-developed and belleville characters, quirky little subplots, lively dialogue, and solid description of locale.

It is hard to believe that Margaret Coel began her Wind River Reservation series some ten years ago with THE EAGLE CATCHER, which introduced readers to Father John O'Malley and defense attorney Vicky Holden. Each subsequent novel has featured an intriguing mystery as well as a shift in the emotional but platonic relationship between O'Malley and Holden. The latest installment in this series is no exception.

EYE OF THE WOLF begins with a cryptic telephone message that is left for O'Malley on an answering machine. This leads him to the site of a historic battlefield, one that resulted in the slaughter of an Arapaho Indian village by U.S. forces, aided by Shoshone scouts. In modern times Arapahos and Shoshones are somewhat uneasy neighbors on the Wind River Reservation, with their antagonistic history providing a shadowy backdrop, gone but not entirely forgotten.

But past differences are brought to the forefront when O'Malley discovers the bodies of three Shoshones on the old battlefield, positioned to mimic those of the dead killed in the historic battle. Frankie Montana, a chronic client of Holden's, is the primary suspect. Despite Montana's recidivistic tendencies, Holden does not believe he is capable of murder. It eventually becomes clear to Holden and O'Malley that someone is attempting to revive the long-dormant conflict between the Arapahos and Shoshones --- and that Holden has placed herself in terrible danger on behalf of her client.

While Coel has created an extensive backstory contributing to the Wind River Reservation mythos, it is not necessary to read what has transpired before EYE OF THE WOLF. The tension between O'Malley and Holden builds from page to page, as they struggle to protect the innocent --- and each other --- from an unknown malefactor. At the same time, both are protective of O'Malley's priestly vows, even as their emotions practically --- but subtly --- beg for violation.

EYE OF THE WOLF is an excellent introduction to the Wind River Reservation series, while providing a welcome return to the area and its people for longtime followers of the series. Given the longevity of these novels, it is clear that Coel can continue to explore this beautiful, dangerous landscape for as long as she wishes. Recommended.

--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub

Margaret Coel has created an excellent series in which she brings alive the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming and describes the Arapahoe customs in wonderful detail. In this installment, Father O'Malley receives a mysterious phone call which implies that an old grudge between the Arapahoe and Shoshone Indians has been re-ignited, and that dead Indians can be found on an ancient battle ground. When Father O'Malley goes to investigate, he discovers three dead Shoshones whose bodies have been posed to resemble positions reminiscent of old battles. Things heat up when the young Shoshone men vow to gain revenge for the murder of their friends. Vicky Holden, the other main character in the series, has entered into a law partnership with Adam Lone Eagle, and they disagree as to the kinds of cases they should be handling. Vicky wants to defend Frankie Montana, who is a suspect in the murders, and Adam tries to persuade her not to take Frankie as a client. As always, author Coel creates a wonderful setting and characters, and in this book she writes another strong entry in the series.

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