The Eagle Catcher

In Margaret Coel's The Eagle Catcher, the first installment in the Wind River Reservation serial mystery series, if you're a fan of Tony and Anne Hillerman's novels, you would enjoy this series. It all started when Father John O'Malley had found Harvey Castle's dead body inside of his tipi. That's when he alerted the BIA and the tribal police about his findings. They start looking for answers and pinpoint the blame to his nephew Anthony, who had a heated argument with him before his murder. Father John called Vicky Holden, who was half-Arapaho and half-Caucasian, to represent him. While the police believe they have found the man, both Vicky and Father John think otherwise and dug a little bit deeper into Harvey's office to look for answers. Along the way, they point their fingers to other suspects which included Ned Cooley, who's running for governor of Wyoming, and Jasper Owens, a wealthy oilman. The closer they get to know the truth, the more things take a drastic turn when Father John gets assaulted and Vicky gets abducted by the suspect. Together, they would learn the real history behind the motive in a gripping life-and-death showdown that would leave you at the edge of your seat.

This was a great introduction to the Wind River Reservation mystery series. We get to learn more about the Arapahos and how they were treated in the past--and even in the present. I did care about Father John and how he helped his parishioners on the reservation. I also cared about Vicky who gave up so much after a difficult marriage to be her own person. I loved how the scenic settings came to life from the reservation and outside of city limits for each location. This would have you hooked with nonstop drama, action, intense intrigue, and plenty of mystery to make you ask who in the end.

Will you be there to find the Eagle Catcher today?

The Spider's Web

In Margaret Coel's Wind River Reservation mystery series, all of her novels have a twist and something different--it deals with Native American cultures and customs. That's what makes it unique. In this story, we're into a tangled web of deception and heartbreak. We learn how the Native Americans feels about the white people, even now to this day, and how they live in the reservation to this day. I loved the setting of Wyoming and the Wind River Reservation itself. Very intricate in nature. We're really get caught up into Vicky Holden's life, when she takes on a new client, and learns about her hardened life. We learn about the family and her co-workers, who have their own dramas. I felt shock and awe and assorted sets of emotions, when she's stuck on this case, which has a twisted ending. Good drama, excellent suspense.