From Kirkus Reviews
Albuquerque lawyer Neil Hamel (The Other Side of Death, 1991, etc.) usually finds herself embroiled in environmental issues that erupt into murder. And this time--when the wolf that Juan Sololobo uses as part of his education campaign to reintroduce the endangered species to New Mexico is stealthily removed from its cage--Neil has her hands full: angry ranchers screaming that they'll kill the wolf before it decimates their herds; local trackers eager to pinpoint it for rich, jaded hunters; and a feisty client, Juan, soon accused of reckless endangerment, and more-- since he becomes the prime suspect when federal biologist Bartell, on the trail of the wolf, is murdered. Reconnoitering among some of the most beautiful scenery on the planet, Neil runs afoul of renegade wolf-breeders, drug traffickers, Mexican illegals, and several warring factions--the Wolf Alliance, the Wildlife Commission, etc.--but, with an assist from lover Kid, she scares off the worst of the bunch. Van Gieson's Southwest is breathtaking, and her mission seems to be to make us appreciate it while developing an environmental consciousness. That she succeeds so well is due, in large part, to her nonhectoring, clear prose and her strong, unsentimental heroine. Smart, involving, informative. The author's best to date. --
Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Book Description
It's a 104 degree day in Albuquerque when attorney/sleuth Neil Hamel gets a call asking her to go to southern New Mexico to help a wolf advocate who calls himself Juan Sololobo. Juan, who attracts trouble wherever he goes, is visiting the town of Soledad to give an educational program featuring his timber wolf, Sirius. After someone lets Sirius out of his pen, a federal official is murdered and Juan becomes the prime suspect. As Neil defends him she finds herself immersed in a deadly conflict between ranchers and environmentalists over wolf reintroduction. The Wolf Path is Judith Van Gieson's fourth Neil Hamel mystery. Since it was first published to critical acclaim in 1992, Mexican gray wolves have been reintroduced to the Southwest, and there are now several packs free-ranging in Arizona and New Mexico. Wolf advocate Bobbie Holaday, the founder of Preserve Arizona's Wolves (PAWS), updates this edition with an introduction summarizing the progress that has been made. Van Gieson has published eight mysteries featuring Neil Hamel and five with University of New Mexico librarian Claire Reynier.