Anne Hillerman’s eighth best seller, The Way of the Bear, is another entry into her Leaphorn, Chee and Manuelito series. Anne never planned on following in the footsteps of Tony Hillerman, her dad, but she continues on in the stewardship of his characters. The main difference? She has taken the minor character of Bernadette Manuelito and made her into a main character.
In this story, the Bear Ears area at the edge of the Navajo Nation is the setting. This area is known for the discovery of fossils that changed the scientific view of how early animals evolved to their changing world. It is also known for evidence of early human habitation. Husband and wife team Jim Chee and Bernie Manuelito view this area from a spiritual Navajo perspective and have made a trip there for spiritual reasons. Chee is also supposed to talk to Chapman Dulles, a scientist, about a donation to the Navajo Nation’s Fallen Officers Memorial. Unfortunately, their trip is sidetracked by violence
Bernie is almost run over on a walk in the area after she discovers that some of the petroglyphs have been defaced. If that’s not enough excitement for her, she has to deliver a baby whose father has just given notice of resignation to his boss, the aforementioned Dulles. Bernie then reports the defaced petroglyphs to Bureau of Land Management Ranger Cassidy Kingsley who is a recent transplant from California and not at all at home in this untamed land.
There are also the problems of missing paleontologist Kyle Johnson and the disappearance of Dulles. An unidentified body is found at the front door of the house where Dulles resides. Mary, the fossilized skull that Dulles had found, is also gone.
The series is still entitled Leaphorn, Chee, and Manuelito, but Leaphorn is increasingly absent from the novels. This time he merits a mention of being in Hawaii. Chee and Manuelito must work and use of all of their experience to figure out all of the ins and outs of this perplexing mystery. Will justice be served? Check it out and see!
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