Frank H. (perryfran) reviewed on 4/26/2025 + 1257 more book reviews

I checked this book out from the library because it is partly the basis for the current season of Dark Winds that I have been watching and enjoying on AMC. I have only read a handful of this great series but the more I read, the more I want to continue with them. The Sinister Pig was another good one in the Leaphorn and Chee series which takes place in the Navajo Nation in the American Southwest. This is a later book in the series: Leaphorn is retired, Jim Chee is a sergeant with the Navaho Tribal Police and Bernadette Manuelito has moved on to a position with the Border Patrol in the boot heel of New Mexico. The novel starts out with the murder of a well-dressed man who was found partly buried in a remote area of the Apache Reservation. Chee is put on the case but it soon gets taken over by the FBI. Meanwhile, in southern New Mexico, Manuelito stumbles upon some construction at the Tuttle ranch when she follows a truck and trailer that could have been carrying illegals. She takes some photos of the operation which raises some eyebrows by the ranch owner and her boss at the Border Patrol. So what has she stumbled onto and how is it related to the murder of the man 200 miles north of there? Turns out her life is in danger and because her friend and roommate is alarmed she calls Leaphorn to see what he thinks. Leaphorn uses his skills and love of old maps to come to a reason for what may be happening at the ranch. But will it be in time to save Bernie?

This one had some really well-developed characters including the owner of the Tuttle Ranch and his pilot who seemed to have a hidden agenda. Chee is also showing his feelings for Bernie and hopes to convince her to give up her Border Patrol job. And of course Leaphorn is the backbone of the story. I really enjoyed this one and even though it was a basis for part of the Dark Winds series, it was altered quite a bit for TV. I'm sure I'll be reading more of these.

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