Book Reviews of The Eagle Catcher (John O'Malley, Bk 1)

OK, but too cliche, imo. Noble Indians, and bad, land/oil/money-grubbing whites.

Smart mystery, great set-up book for rest of series. Characters are well drawn.

Very gripping! This is a great mystery. The main character is a Catholic priest on an Arapaho Indian Reservation in Wyoming.

"The Eagle Catcher" is a stunning debut that made me want to read all the novels in Margaret Coel's mystery series set among the Arapahos on Wyoming's Wind River Reservation.

Father John O'Malley, head of the reservation's Jesuit mission, discovers his friend, tribal chairman Harvey Castle, stabbed to death in his tipi. The evidence points to Harvey's nephew, Anthony, as the killer, but Father John does not believe the young man capable of murder. He joins forces with Vicky Holden, an Arapaho attorney, to clear Anthony's name.

Before long, they find some answers in the tragic past of the Arapaho people, who, defeated and driven from their homes, arrived at the reservation only to be preyed upon by opportunistic white settlers. While writing an Arapaho history, Harvey Castle stumbled on evidence of an old crime so heinous, someone would kill to keep it hidden.

The mystery is compelling and the resolution satisfying, but what really makes this novel shine is its wonderful characters, depiction of Arapaho life and well-drawn Wyoming setting.

Despite the plethora of trite/cliche painful sentences in the first half, I kept going and in the end I enjoyed it. I want to keep going with the series.

The Eagle Catcher by Margaret Coel is a Native American Detective novel but with a little difference. A white priest and a Native American lawyer are the main characters and together they help solve a murder on a Native American (Arapahos) Reservation.
The story is a routine murder investigation but is made interesting by the characterizations . For example, a priest recovering from a drinking problem is sent to the Reservation for , as a quote from the book states, “ He hadn’t intended to stay at St. Francis Mission long. The assignment had come while he was still in treatment at Grace House. He had figured he’d be there long enough to take his lumps, be duly humbled, as only the Jesuits could humble one of their own . “ Then he becomes a sleuth in a murder . The other characters in the book are just as interesting as well as the insights into Arapaho culture.
If you enjoy the mysteries of Hillerman and Doss you might find this a refreshing difference.

This is an interesting, well writen view of the Arapaho people with many interesting bits of information about the native American life today as well as centuries ago. The writer weaves many twists and turns into the story to keep your attention. it is a hard book to put down.

This is a well written story. Keeps you on the edge until the end.

This is a great series!

Mystery set on the Arapaho Wind River Reservation. Lead characters Father John O'Malley (Jesuit priest assigned to a mission near the reservation) and Vicky Holden, an Arapaho attorney, continue through the series; their friendship and working relationship is intriguing. The series was highly recommended by Tony Hillerman and Earlene Fowler, which persuaded me to try it. I will soon read a more recent book in the series to see if I like the way the author's writing, characters, and setting have developed. Based on just this first book, I can't strongly recommend it.

Very good writing.

great series - features protagonists who must battle their own demons in order to solve the mysteries

A very good Arapaho mystery featuring Vicky Holden and Father O'Malley.*****

This series is dynamite. Intruding on the world between white man and Indian, murder finds its way and leaves Father John O'Malley head paster of the mission church and Vicky Holden, the "Indian Lawyer Lady" to root out the killer.

A Father John O'Malley/Vicky Holden mystery - Margaret Coel writes an engrossing murder mystery and at the same time teaches about Arapaho history and customs. This is a thoroughly enjoyable read.

From the bookcover: "On the windswept plains of Wyoming's Wind River Reservation, Arapahos have gathered for the Ethete powwow. It is a sacred time to reaffirm the balance and harmony in life. But these feelings of unity quickly give way to fear when tribal chairman Harvey Castle is found murdered in his tipi - and the eveidence points to his own nephew's guilt. Father John O'Malley, head pastor of the nearby St. Francis Mission, does not believe the young man is a killer. In his quest for the truth, O'Malley gets a rare glimpse into the Arapho life few outsiders ever see - and into a crime fewer could imagine..."