Wolf Catcher by Anne Montgomery ~ a Review

by MK French

In 1939, a tomb in Ridge Ruin was uncovered, containing the remains of a man dressed with fine turquoise jewelry and intricate beadwork, surrounded by myriad pots, arrow points, and fine mineral specimens. Wooden swords with handles carved into animal hooves and human hands that the Hopi workers explained identified him as a magician. Kate Butler, a former television reporter, researches the remains, finding different characteristics in his bone structure from those living in the area. Her research takes her into the area as it was nine hundred years before, as well as the modern-day black market for antiquities.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

February 2022; TouchPoint Press; 978-1956851076
ebook, print (372 pages); historical fiction

Montgomery was a journalist and had reported on the Magician. Many of the situations she went through were translated to Kate in the story. The new volcano shattered the life of the people living in the Arizona desert, and forced them to move around and potentially join other villages. Not everyone welcomed such change, and it's definitely something we can see in modern-day people. This is richly imagined in Kaya's story, in that as much as she's a healer, she still feels distant from others in the village. Centuries later, the differences between the Magician from the other people draw Kate's attention to him and pique her interest in researching him. Unfortunately, in the beginning, she comes across as entitled and disrespectful of Hopi wishes.

The current day looting is inherently dangerous. It takes a while before we see the looter of the story, or learn how it can be done so easily. We have insight into the looting with one present-day thread, the investigation is the other present-day thread, and then we have Kaya healing a beaten man with blue eyes. As Kate learns more about how archaeology works, so do we, and we all learn a lot more about the time period and how scholars figured it out. To be honest, I find the looter's thread the most boring. (Which is saying something, given that it's dangerous and there is the final battle to worry about!) I like the past story the best, seeing how the village works, the personalities at play, and the mystery of who Wolf Catcher used to be before he was found. It's an interesting story, and one I enjoyed reading.

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Born and raised in New York City, M.K. French started writing stories when very young, dreaming of different worlds and places to visit. She always had an interest in folklore, fairy tales, and the macabre, which has definitely influenced her work. She currently lives in the Midwest with her husband, three young children, and a golden retriever. 

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