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Gabriel Du Pre #1
Coyote Wind
When a thirty-year-old plane wreck is discovered, French-Indian cattle-brand inspector Gabriel Du Pre takes up his deputy duties to find out why one of the skeletal remains has a bullet hole in its head.
168 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 1994
509 people are currently reading
678 people want to read
About the author
Peter Bowen
49 books72 followersPeter Bowen (b. 1945) is an author best known for mystery novels set in the modern American West. When he was ten, Bowen’s family moved to Bozeman, Montana, where a paper route introduced him to the grizzled old cowboys who frequented a bar called The Oaks. Listening to their stories, some of which stretched back to the 1870s, Bowen found inspiration for his later fiction.
Following time at the University of Michigan and the University of Montana, Bowen published his first novel, Yellowstone Kelly, in 1987. After two more novels featuring the real-life Western hero, Bowen published Coyote Wind (1994), which introduced Gabriel Du Pré, a mixed-race lawman living in fictional Toussaint, Montana. Bowen has written thirteen novels in the series, in which Du Pré gets tangled up in everything from cold-blooded murder to the hunt for rare fossils. Bowen continues to live and write in Livingston, Montana.
Following time at the University of Michigan and the University of Montana, Bowen published his first novel, Yellowstone Kelly, in 1987. After two more novels featuring the real-life Western hero, Bowen published Coyote Wind (1994), which introduced Gabriel Du Pré, a mixed-race lawman living in fictional Toussaint, Montana. Bowen has written thirteen novels in the series, in which Du Pré gets tangled up in everything from cold-blooded murder to the hunt for rare fossils. Bowen continues to live and write in Livingston, Montana.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 147 reviews
May 30, 2019
Published in 1994, this is the novel that introduced Gabriel Du Pre, a fiddle player, brand inspector and part-time deputy sheriff who lives in the fictional town of Toussaint on the eastern plains of Montana. Du Pre is somewhere in his middle forties when we first meet him, a widower with two daughters and a rapidly growing number of grandchildren. Every once in a while, he goes to church and confesses that he's still living in sin with his girlfriend, Madeline, whose husband abandoned her three years earlier. "Good," says the local parish priest before giving Du Pre absolution. Say a "couple Hail Marys. The words are pretty, you'll like them."
Du Pres is a Metis, descended from the French fur trappers who married Native American women in Canada in the nineteenth century. Some Metis later moved south into Montana and when another character asks him early on what sort of an Indian he is, Du Pre says that, fortunately, he's one with just enough French in him that the anthropologists leave him alone.
As the book opens, a ranch hand calls the sheriff's office to report that he's come across a plane wreck high in the Wolf mountains. The sheriff asks Du Pre to check it out and, reluctantly, Du Pre agrees. It turns out that the wreck is over thirty years old. There are a couple of skeletons lying near the wreck, but there's also a spare skull and a few other bones that don't seem to belong with the wreckage.
The discovery sets off an investigation with significant ramifications for a lot of people, and it's up to Du Pre to get it all sorted out, if and when he can, in and around looking at cows' asses, as he puts it, ensuring that their brands are in order before they are shipped off to market. Du Pre is surrounded by a great cast of characters who will endure through most of the long-running series, and Bowen expertly puts them all in a beautifully-rendered setting.
Gabriel Du Pre is one of the most unique characters in all of crime fiction, and the novels in this series are uniformly very good. If you're a fan of crime fiction and haven't tripped to them yet, do yourself a favor and find them. If you can, it's best to read this series in order to follow the development of the characters, all of whom have rich, full lives that continue to evolve as the series progresses.
Du Pres is a Metis, descended from the French fur trappers who married Native American women in Canada in the nineteenth century. Some Metis later moved south into Montana and when another character asks him early on what sort of an Indian he is, Du Pre says that, fortunately, he's one with just enough French in him that the anthropologists leave him alone.
As the book opens, a ranch hand calls the sheriff's office to report that he's come across a plane wreck high in the Wolf mountains. The sheriff asks Du Pre to check it out and, reluctantly, Du Pre agrees. It turns out that the wreck is over thirty years old. There are a couple of skeletons lying near the wreck, but there's also a spare skull and a few other bones that don't seem to belong with the wreckage.
The discovery sets off an investigation with significant ramifications for a lot of people, and it's up to Du Pre to get it all sorted out, if and when he can, in and around looking at cows' asses, as he puts it, ensuring that their brands are in order before they are shipped off to market. Du Pre is surrounded by a great cast of characters who will endure through most of the long-running series, and Bowen expertly puts them all in a beautifully-rendered setting.
Gabriel Du Pre is one of the most unique characters in all of crime fiction, and the novels in this series are uniformly very good. If you're a fan of crime fiction and haven't tripped to them yet, do yourself a favor and find them. If you can, it's best to read this series in order to follow the development of the characters, all of whom have rich, full lives that continue to evolve as the series progresses.
July 10, 2019
An interesting, slice-of-Montana-life story that was mildly marred by the last three pages.
The story is ostensibly a mystery, but the hero is a cattle-inspector, and only part-time deputy, and is the sort of half-hearted deputy that thinks most things will solve themselves without an official hand. It doesn't help that the Sheriff is a committed drunk (as in wholly committed to being drunk).
"How come you didn't put this in an evidence bag?'
'Didn't have any,' said Du Pré. 'Remember, I inspect brands. They don't make evidence bags big enough put a cow in.'
The Sheriff looked at him hard, fuzzed up, trying to come back but too much Canadian hooch on his tongue, just sitting there.
'What about that cowboy found this?'
'Oh, no,' said Du Pré. 'That dummy, he wasn't even born this happened. No.'"
The narrative is told in a fragmented, almost poetic style, with a sort of refrain coming up again and again. It adds to the mood, but does not add to the sense of resolution or to the story for those who like a more clear-cut narrative (as the mom-reader said, "this is weird.")
'Their work made the FAA inspectors direct.
'You Indian?' one said. Not 'Native American.'
'Some,' said Du Pre. 'A lot, really. But Frenchy enough so the anthropologists don't bother us.'
'A blessing,' said the FAA man. 'My sister was married to an anthropologist for a while.'
The FAA men had come in by plane and a helicopter had been chartered from a local cropduster. Du Pre hated helicopters. The fucking things could not possibly fly, or anyway not long enough. Whack whack whack. I ask you.
Du Pre sat by the pilot to point out the way."
There's solid themes here--that I feel might have been ruined by the ending--and an interesting intersection of Native-rancher-rural life. When it interacts with big-city, big-money, it becomes a bit predictable, but enjoyable nonetheless.
The story is ostensibly a mystery, but the hero is a cattle-inspector, and only part-time deputy, and is the sort of half-hearted deputy that thinks most things will solve themselves without an official hand. It doesn't help that the Sheriff is a committed drunk (as in wholly committed to being drunk).
"How come you didn't put this in an evidence bag?'
'Didn't have any,' said Du Pré. 'Remember, I inspect brands. They don't make evidence bags big enough put a cow in.'
The Sheriff looked at him hard, fuzzed up, trying to come back but too much Canadian hooch on his tongue, just sitting there.
'What about that cowboy found this?'
'Oh, no,' said Du Pré. 'That dummy, he wasn't even born this happened. No.'"
The narrative is told in a fragmented, almost poetic style, with a sort of refrain coming up again and again. It adds to the mood, but does not add to the sense of resolution or to the story for those who like a more clear-cut narrative (as the mom-reader said, "this is weird.")
'Their work made the FAA inspectors direct.
'You Indian?' one said. Not 'Native American.'
'Some,' said Du Pre. 'A lot, really. But Frenchy enough so the anthropologists don't bother us.'
'A blessing,' said the FAA man. 'My sister was married to an anthropologist for a while.'
The FAA men had come in by plane and a helicopter had been chartered from a local cropduster. Du Pre hated helicopters. The fucking things could not possibly fly, or anyway not long enough. Whack whack whack. I ask you.
Du Pre sat by the pilot to point out the way."
There's solid themes here--that I feel might have been ruined by the ending--and an interesting intersection of Native-rancher-rural life. When it interacts with big-city, big-money, it becomes a bit predictable, but enjoyable nonetheless.
June 22, 2019
This is a very interesting novel told in a plain-spoken manner by the leading character, Gabriel Du Pré. Du Pré, as everyone seems to call him, was raised in Montana and lives there as a cattle brand inspector. Coyote Wind is a tale from present day Montana that the word “authentic” was intended to describe.
The plot involves a mystery that is kicked off by the discovery of a small plane crash that occurred decades previously. There are deaths at that point and in present time that now must be looked into by the local sheriff, and federal authorities. Du Pré is unwillingly involved in this and his attempts to disassociate himself from the investigation are unsuccessful. We learn that his job as a brand inspector has given him insights into human nature and his time in this locale makes him familiar with many events that may be relevant. We come to appreciate his immersion in Métis culture, his religious beliefs, his commitment to his family and friends; and, how he skates on the edge of anger management as he slowly peels back the layers of the underlying story.
I’ve written 79 other reviews this year, and this is the best written novel that I have read in 2019. If you have interest in the locale or in the history of the French and Cree Indian culture that straddles the border between Canada and the USA or, even, competitive fiddle playing, then you should give this book a try. I hope you will be as impressed as I am with Bowen’s way of telling a story and his skill at characterization. I learned a lot about writing while enjoying every chapter in this tale.
My thanks to James Thane for pointing me toward this novel.
The plot involves a mystery that is kicked off by the discovery of a small plane crash that occurred decades previously. There are deaths at that point and in present time that now must be looked into by the local sheriff, and federal authorities. Du Pré is unwillingly involved in this and his attempts to disassociate himself from the investigation are unsuccessful. We learn that his job as a brand inspector has given him insights into human nature and his time in this locale makes him familiar with many events that may be relevant. We come to appreciate his immersion in Métis culture, his religious beliefs, his commitment to his family and friends; and, how he skates on the edge of anger management as he slowly peels back the layers of the underlying story.
I’ve written 79 other reviews this year, and this is the best written novel that I have read in 2019. If you have interest in the locale or in the history of the French and Cree Indian culture that straddles the border between Canada and the USA or, even, competitive fiddle playing, then you should give this book a try. I hope you will be as impressed as I am with Bowen’s way of telling a story and his skill at characterization. I learned a lot about writing while enjoying every chapter in this tale.
My thanks to James Thane for pointing me toward this novel.
May 15, 2013
This is a book about character and place. The murder mystery moves the story forward, but is used mostly to tell us about the character of Gabriel DuPre. In fact, it doesn't really work well as a murder mystery because its solution comes mostly from a deus ex machina in the form of a local quasi-shaman / full time drunkard named Benetsee. DuPre solves the mystery, but only after getting not so subtle hints from Benetsee. Even then it wasn't clear (to me) how DuPre made the logical leap that led him to the solution.
No matter. What counts most in this story is the character of DuPre and "his women": his daughters and his woman friend, Madeleine. DuPre is basically an angry redneck living amongst angry ignorant rednecks. Not a promising start, but DuPre stands above the rest by being smarter and more self-aware and by having the kind of personal code and integrity that you might expect of a John Wayne or Clint Eastwood character. Much is made in the book blurbs and reviews of the novel that DuPre is mixed French-Indian, and it's certainly true that Bowen goes to lengths to make sure we don't forget that: DuPre thinks and talks with a kind of French-Creole rhythm and is constantly musing on the history of both the French voyageurs and the defeats and massacres inflicted on native Americans. Nonetheless, he's basically a shit-kicker like the rest of the people in Toussaint Montana and not a person you'd like to spend any time with; not, that is, if you are the sort of urban college-educated person most likely to have read this book. But his self awareness and intelligence make him an almost likable character.
His younger daughter, Maria, is a 14 year old faux-rebellious honor student who seems to be left home by herself a lot while DuPre spends his nights with Madeleine. Maria is one of the more interesting characters in the novel, but is not a very believable character. I think Bowen tried too hard (or maybe not hard enough) to have her be a smart and basically 'good' girl, but the result is that she's just a little too good to be true.
The story seemed pretty contrived, as though Bowen had made a plot outline, carefully highlighting the main points, and didn't have the time or the energy to fill in the details that would have made it seem like something other than a made-up tale. The elements are: rich decacent family with pseudo-ranch, old plane wreck with one skull too many, useless brain-dead sheriff, local drunkard with supernatural insights, cattle-brand inspector with a fiddle and a creole accent and an attitude. Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
Still, despite its flaws I liked this book a lot. The DuPre character is pretty interesting, as long as you don't have to be in the same room with him.
No matter. What counts most in this story is the character of DuPre and "his women": his daughters and his woman friend, Madeleine. DuPre is basically an angry redneck living amongst angry ignorant rednecks. Not a promising start, but DuPre stands above the rest by being smarter and more self-aware and by having the kind of personal code and integrity that you might expect of a John Wayne or Clint Eastwood character. Much is made in the book blurbs and reviews of the novel that DuPre is mixed French-Indian, and it's certainly true that Bowen goes to lengths to make sure we don't forget that: DuPre thinks and talks with a kind of French-Creole rhythm and is constantly musing on the history of both the French voyageurs and the defeats and massacres inflicted on native Americans. Nonetheless, he's basically a shit-kicker like the rest of the people in Toussaint Montana and not a person you'd like to spend any time with; not, that is, if you are the sort of urban college-educated person most likely to have read this book. But his self awareness and intelligence make him an almost likable character.
His younger daughter, Maria, is a 14 year old faux-rebellious honor student who seems to be left home by herself a lot while DuPre spends his nights with Madeleine. Maria is one of the more interesting characters in the novel, but is not a very believable character. I think Bowen tried too hard (or maybe not hard enough) to have her be a smart and basically 'good' girl, but the result is that she's just a little too good to be true.
The story seemed pretty contrived, as though Bowen had made a plot outline, carefully highlighting the main points, and didn't have the time or the energy to fill in the details that would have made it seem like something other than a made-up tale. The elements are: rich decacent family with pseudo-ranch, old plane wreck with one skull too many, useless brain-dead sheriff, local drunkard with supernatural insights, cattle-brand inspector with a fiddle and a creole accent and an attitude. Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix well.
Still, despite its flaws I liked this book a lot. The DuPre character is pretty interesting, as long as you don't have to be in the same room with him.
August 17, 2020
It helps if you ever rubbed up against some French Canadians. Most are Quebecois. But some are just Americans who still call themselves French Canadians, from that long line of tough trappers and traders that made the Hudson Bay Company the Apple stock of its day. Helps you follow Gabriel Du Pre, the breed Montana cattle brand inspector of Peter Bowen's delightful novels.
It helps if you've kicked around Montana a bit, slogged through the drifts of a Montana blizzard, and know why you can shoot a Texan there and get let off for it. Helps if you've got a tad of Texan in you too, so you know why a Texan probably could get shot up there in Montana.
Du Pre inspects the cattle brands. For cattle rustler forgeries. And when he finds them he sometimes has to shoot the cattle rustlers before they shoot him. And sometimes Du Pre works out thirty year-old homicides.
I guess you might like these mysteries if you never went further West than the Hudson. But panning placer gold in the tailings of the dry beds of the Red River of the North and knowing how to sit a cattle pony, helps Bowen's stories make perfect sense. You'll feel right at home again, and you'll sip some rye, and spill a pinch of tobacco in thanks for beautiful stories by a brilliant writer.
It helps if you've kicked around Montana a bit, slogged through the drifts of a Montana blizzard, and know why you can shoot a Texan there and get let off for it. Helps if you've got a tad of Texan in you too, so you know why a Texan probably could get shot up there in Montana.
Du Pre inspects the cattle brands. For cattle rustler forgeries. And when he finds them he sometimes has to shoot the cattle rustlers before they shoot him. And sometimes Du Pre works out thirty year-old homicides.
I guess you might like these mysteries if you never went further West than the Hudson. But panning placer gold in the tailings of the dry beds of the Red River of the North and knowing how to sit a cattle pony, helps Bowen's stories make perfect sense. You'll feel right at home again, and you'll sip some rye, and spill a pinch of tobacco in thanks for beautiful stories by a brilliant writer.
February 23, 2021
Very glad I came across this on my GR feed, one of my friends was reading it.
I just took a peak at the first page and suddenly I had finished.
Quietly gritty with a different American perspective.
2015 Peter Bowen speaking at Elk River Books
I just took a peak at the first page and suddenly I had finished.
Quietly gritty with a different American perspective.
2015 Peter Bowen speaking at Elk River Books
October 21, 2018
Found this author from the GoodReads Community-This is book #1 and it is a good fast read. We are introduced to DuPre and his family and life in Montana. I love the history woven into the mystery. I will read more....
February 8, 2013
Montana cattle brand inspector and part time lawman Gabriel Du Pre, a Metis(pronounced Meh-tee, French for mixed blood) is asked to accompany a cowboy who'd claimed to have found a crashed plane in the mountains while hunting. The FAA, not missing any planes, wants proof it's not just some drunken cowboy's fantasies.
It's not and it's not a recent crash either. Every piece of metal is rusted and bones are scattered all over. Du Pre finds a skull with a bullet still rattling around in the brain case. Eventually three skulls are found, the one with the bullet much less weathered than the other two.
The plane went down in 1959 and it had only a rancher and his wife aboard. Who was the third man and when had he ended up at the site?
The area belonged to a rich family, outsiders who'd arrived in the mid-sixties, a beaten down bunch with only two survivors, a brother and sister. Another sister had died and a brother had simply disappeared twenty-five years ago. His was the third skull.
The surviving brother, Gabe, who Du Pre had met and liked hires him to find out who killed his brother. The trail leads our part time lawman up into Canada and brings up old secrets from his own family.
An interesting character is Gabriel Du Pre, well different from any I have read. Liked this book.
It's not and it's not a recent crash either. Every piece of metal is rusted and bones are scattered all over. Du Pre finds a skull with a bullet still rattling around in the brain case. Eventually three skulls are found, the one with the bullet much less weathered than the other two.
The plane went down in 1959 and it had only a rancher and his wife aboard. Who was the third man and when had he ended up at the site?
The area belonged to a rich family, outsiders who'd arrived in the mid-sixties, a beaten down bunch with only two survivors, a brother and sister. Another sister had died and a brother had simply disappeared twenty-five years ago. His was the third skull.
The surviving brother, Gabe, who Du Pre had met and liked hires him to find out who killed his brother. The trail leads our part time lawman up into Canada and brings up old secrets from his own family.
An interesting character is Gabriel Du Pre, well different from any I have read. Liked this book.
April 3, 2023
I received a discounted 99 electronic copy of this salty western from the author Peter Bowen and publisher OpenRoadMedia. Thank you all for sharing your hard work with me. I have read this novel of my own volition, and the review reflects my honest opinion of this work. I am pleased to recommend Peter Bowen to friends and family. He writes in the true voice of the old west, in words that sing.
I wish my father (1915-1989) had known the works of Peter Bowen. He appreciated the salt-of-the-earth and down-to-basic lives of the survivors of the old west that in parts of the southwestern US still exist in small isolated communities. I, in my time, adored every word, and could not even take a break until the last page was done. Coyote Wind is the first in a long series featuring Gabriel Du Pre, a series I am so glad to have found!
Reviewed on October 9, 2022, at Goodreads and AmazonSmile. Reviewed on November 15, 2022, at Barnes&Noble, BookBub, Kobo, and GooglePlay.
I wish my father (1915-1989) had known the works of Peter Bowen. He appreciated the salt-of-the-earth and down-to-basic lives of the survivors of the old west that in parts of the southwestern US still exist in small isolated communities. I, in my time, adored every word, and could not even take a break until the last page was done. Coyote Wind is the first in a long series featuring Gabriel Du Pre, a series I am so glad to have found!
Reviewed on October 9, 2022, at Goodreads and AmazonSmile. Reviewed on November 15, 2022, at Barnes&Noble, BookBub, Kobo, and GooglePlay.
August 31, 2012
I love to read mysteries and I have read many of them, many. As a result I rarely use adjectives like, fresh, new, unique, etc., when reviewing a book. The genre is steeped in tradition and haunted (in a good way) by the likes of Doyle, Christie, Carr, Chandler, Rendell and many others. As a result, many good writers and some not so good, follow in the foot steps of those who wrote before them. I'm not complaining, in fact, it's interesting to mentally trace the pedigree of new detectives.
As good as it is (for a mystery lover), it's not often you run into a truly unique character, a different mindset, a different approach, a unique style. Well for me ...this book had all that.
As good as it is (for a mystery lover), it's not often you run into a truly unique character, a different mindset, a different approach, a unique style. Well for me ...this book had all that.
August 6, 2013
Very enjoyable little western. I like Peter Bowen's writing style.
August 8, 2025
Gabriel Du Prè is a cattle brand inspector and part time deputy, a widower with 2 daughters and 5 grandchildren in Toussaint Montana. There's an interesting cast of characters.
The Sheriff sends him to follow up on a report of a crashed airplane. The plane has been there for over 30 years and contains 2 skeletons and a spare skull.
Du Prè claims to be no detective, but it eats at him and he ends up investigating.
An intriguing story, and not your typical mystery type.
The Sheriff sends him to follow up on a report of a crashed airplane. The plane has been there for over 30 years and contains 2 skeletons and a spare skull.
Du Prè claims to be no detective, but it eats at him and he ends up investigating.
An intriguing story, and not your typical mystery type.
August 19, 2018
Excellent narrator made it outstanding.
October 20, 2018
Highly enjoyable and fast read. At first I had to get used to the narrators style of talking, but after about 3 very short chapters you pick up the style of semi-French, Semi-Native American and this book just flies by. Story of a part-time deputy whose real job is checking cattle to make sure that no illegal cows/cows with changed brands are sold. But he also gets involved in this mystery after he is led to the site of an old plane crash, and once there he also discovers the head of a man who had been found years ago without his head and never identified. Really like this as the first of a series book. We learn a lot about Gabriel DuPre` and the women of his life - his daughters and girlfriend - and a lot of background into his family. I know that I am probably not doing justice with this review, but I am not one to give away a lot of the details of a book, and here we follow DuPre` as he attempts to solve these long ago mysteries. The trail leads him close to home and is a very well done first novel in the Montana Mysteries series.
June 11, 2012
Peter Bowen is not an award winning writer, but in this series he has captured the essence of Metis life in north central Montana. These are a self-aware people who really exist, and Gabriel Du Pre represents the best and worst of them. Plus, he plays fiddle, a central aspect of Metis culture.
I was introduced to the series by the leader of my Sweat Lodge at a time when I was just beginning to explore my Metis heritage. I strongly identify myself as "mixed-blood" now, but the journey was often confusing. When I read a Du Pre novel, I felt reassured, and I am very grateful for the timing of that experience. Like an invisible person might be.
I was introduced to the series by the leader of my Sweat Lodge at a time when I was just beginning to explore my Metis heritage. I strongly identify myself as "mixed-blood" now, but the journey was often confusing. When I read a Du Pre novel, I felt reassured, and I am very grateful for the timing of that experience. Like an invisible person might be.
August 20, 2022
Great mystery, interesting characters, wonderful humor. Highly recommended. Audible Audiobook
January 2020
August 2022
January 2020
August 2022
October 27, 2021
Not much of a mystery. Dialect challenging. Typos--can't tell because the writing style is sometimes chaotic. Politics horrible.
But Du Pre? Solid gold. Very intriguing. I'll read the next book in the series just for him.
But Du Pre? Solid gold. Very intriguing. I'll read the next book in the series just for him.
February 16, 2020
(2 1/2). How cool a guy is Gabriel Du Pre? The answer is very. It feels like he could be Virgil Flowers great grandfather or something. He has that slighted but enduring feel with great common sense instincts and a fun supporting staff. The story here is pretty weak but Gabriel is a star. I will be interested to read the next installment in this series. Good stuff.
July 12, 2022
Gabriel Du Pre, addressed by his last name by all, says of his job, “I am a simple cow-ass expert. I check to see them cows branded outside,”. He is also a widower with teenage daughters whom the local law calls for help when they're short-handed. It is in this capacity that Du Pre looks into a discovered plane crash.
The crash is decades old but seems to have one more skull than there are bodies. Du Pre follows up these findings on a rich odd man's property.
Du Pre is a gem, different from any character I know, a man with a unique voice, down-to-earth values, and curious child-rearing philosophy. The mystery comes in unpredictable ways. I found these two odd components thoroughly enjoyable. The highest four stars and I will be back soon.
The crash is decades old but seems to have one more skull than there are bodies. Du Pre follows up these findings on a rich odd man's property.
Du Pre is a gem, different from any character I know, a man with a unique voice, down-to-earth values, and curious child-rearing philosophy. The mystery comes in unpredictable ways. I found these two odd components thoroughly enjoyable. The highest four stars and I will be back soon.
September 25, 2021
1 star. This was just bad. I struggled through to the end as I don't like to DNF - plus I thought there had to be something good here as it's part of a series.
February 22, 2021
Reminds me of the Craig Johnson Walt Longmire books. If you like Western reads, you'll like this
April 18, 2020
Disclaimer: Peter Bowen, who died last week, was an old friend of my father's, and I spent some time around him back in the 70s. We sang, drank, and laughed. His hunting Labrador Retriever fathered a litter with my show-class Lab and had some really fine pups who were beautiful and brilliant bird dogs. But I never had gotten around to reading any of his books, though I see them on shelves in libraries all the time. I figured this was a good time to try one, and this one - the first in his Du Pre series - had gotten some appealing reviews.
I liked it. It took me a few chapters (but they're short) to tune my ear to the voice, but once I did, I rolled with it. Idiosyncratic, free-wheeling, thoughts and speech tumbled together. Peter was a good songwriter too, and spent a lot of hours sitting in bars, listening to conversations grumbling, muttering, guffawing, ebbing and flowing, and he's assembled that feeling here in a raw musical composition. He hadn't mastered plotting - the plot is almost afterthought, with a not-very-credible solution. I'll see if he got better at that. But the language, the imagery, the characters - down and outers, people saddled with pain and addictions yet sustained by the kindness and generosity of neighbors - and the splendid Montana landscapes that Bowen knew and loved make this a much better-than-average way to spend a few hours. Grateful for Hoopla through my local library to make these accessible while the "real world" is locked down!
I liked it. It took me a few chapters (but they're short) to tune my ear to the voice, but once I did, I rolled with it. Idiosyncratic, free-wheeling, thoughts and speech tumbled together. Peter was a good songwriter too, and spent a lot of hours sitting in bars, listening to conversations grumbling, muttering, guffawing, ebbing and flowing, and he's assembled that feeling here in a raw musical composition. He hadn't mastered plotting - the plot is almost afterthought, with a not-very-credible solution. I'll see if he got better at that. But the language, the imagery, the characters - down and outers, people saddled with pain and addictions yet sustained by the kindness and generosity of neighbors - and the splendid Montana landscapes that Bowen knew and loved make this a much better-than-average way to spend a few hours. Grateful for Hoopla through my local library to make these accessible while the "real world" is locked down!
April 30, 2019
I started this series out of order and read #3, and this book seems very different in it's voice, tone and mood. "Coyote Wind" is an interesting short novel, that probably should have been longer. The author does a nice job of laying the groundwork for this story and the series. The characters were well developed for such a quick read. Du Pre himself, was a sympathetic and fascinating hero. I was not aware of the Metis people and their history was intriguing. The dialogue was appealing to me and its simple wisdom.
However, a little past half way, it seems, he was in a hurry to finish. Maybe the book should have been called "Mystery, No Mystery," in the vain of a title of a later book of this same series. The actual mystery part of this story seems underdeveloped, even if there was no mystery at all to Du Pre. . The whole plane crash scenario could have been quite interesting, despite being a red herring. But it's never explained, not even a little. So this reads a lot like a short story, and not just because of the length. Though it takes place over a significant period of time, it is not elaborate and limited in scope. I enjoyed it, and think many readers will also, but I can't say it really pulled me in.
However, a little past half way, it seems, he was in a hurry to finish. Maybe the book should have been called "Mystery, No Mystery," in the vain of a title of a later book of this same series. The actual mystery part of this story seems underdeveloped, even if there was no mystery at all to Du Pre. . The whole plane crash scenario could have been quite interesting, despite being a red herring. But it's never explained, not even a little. So this reads a lot like a short story, and not just because of the length. Though it takes place over a significant period of time, it is not elaborate and limited in scope. I enjoyed it, and think many readers will also, but I can't say it really pulled me in.
March 1, 2021
Gabriel Du Pre is a cattle brand inspector and the sheriff uses him on occasion. He is asked to look into an old plane that is found in the hills and discovers 3 skeletons inside. One of the skeletal heads has a gunshot hole in it and it is found to be the long lost brother of a rich man nearby. The rich man wants to know what happened to his brother.
The story talks a lot about the normal life of Gabriel in the portion of Montana where he lives. He is descended from French/Indians and is Catholic and goes to mass but also believes in some of the old traditional spiritual things. He has 2 daughters, one is married with several children, and the other is 14 and he is constantly trying to figure out what to do with her. He talks about his past in spurts and his dealings with other people. He is an outstanding fiddler and plays and wins many competitions. His life is pretty simple except for the question of how the rich man's brother died. His wife died 10 years prior and he has a girlfriend who has her own set of children and he tries to deal with all of this.
He has an interesting way of handling the law and what he believes. He talks to himself a lot and helps out others when he can. Interesting start to the series.
The story talks a lot about the normal life of Gabriel in the portion of Montana where he lives. He is descended from French/Indians and is Catholic and goes to mass but also believes in some of the old traditional spiritual things. He has 2 daughters, one is married with several children, and the other is 14 and he is constantly trying to figure out what to do with her. He talks about his past in spurts and his dealings with other people. He is an outstanding fiddler and plays and wins many competitions. His life is pretty simple except for the question of how the rich man's brother died. His wife died 10 years prior and he has a girlfriend who has her own set of children and he tries to deal with all of this.
He has an interesting way of handling the law and what he believes. He talks to himself a lot and helps out others when he can. Interesting start to the series.
March 22, 2012
Du Pre is not a man of his times, he is a man of his place. As such I think he would be more at home in the red hat of the wanderers three hundred years ago, or on the back of a horse a hundred years ago. But in today's world he is just a little lost. But in all times he could be no where else but in the big sky country. His love for his family, "his women who take care of him" whether he wants them to or not is the thread that binds the stories together. I enjoyed the book very much, I've read it a couple of times, but I always found the patois a little hard. Reading it through Audible really brought it home. The reader really caught the tone and the speech patterns just right.
January 26, 2014
I borrowed this audiobook from the library, only on the basis of the Coyote in the title. I have a unique understanding of Coyote, but that is another story.
I very much liked this story, as read by Christopher Lane. I love the characters. Gabriel Du Pré, Madelaine, Benetsee, Bart, Maria, Jaquelaine, all her kids.
Du Pré is a cattle inspector, fiddler, and now, thanks to Benetsee, a reluctant detective.
Oh heck. I suck at reviews. I just really fell in love with the characters and the Métis way, as portrayed by Bowen. This is the first book in a very delightful series. I recommend all of them.
I very much liked this story, as read by Christopher Lane. I love the characters. Gabriel Du Pré, Madelaine, Benetsee, Bart, Maria, Jaquelaine, all her kids.
Du Pré is a cattle inspector, fiddler, and now, thanks to Benetsee, a reluctant detective.
Oh heck. I suck at reviews. I just really fell in love with the characters and the Métis way, as portrayed by Bowen. This is the first book in a very delightful series. I recommend all of them.
November 4, 2018
The absolutely most amazing character.
I have been a reader for 66 of my 69 years. In all that time I have never met a character like Gabriel du Pre. A Metis (French and Cree Indian), Mr Du Pre makes his living inspecting cattle brands from the local ranches. He is also a part-time law enforcement officer. He is called to check an old plane wreck found in the Montana mountains. The story goes into orbit from there. An absolutely fascinating cast of characters set in the Big Sky country. You will come to know and love them. You better believe I will buy and enjoy the rest of the series.
I have been a reader for 66 of my 69 years. In all that time I have never met a character like Gabriel du Pre. A Metis (French and Cree Indian), Mr Du Pre makes his living inspecting cattle brands from the local ranches. He is also a part-time law enforcement officer. He is called to check an old plane wreck found in the Montana mountains. The story goes into orbit from there. An absolutely fascinating cast of characters set in the Big Sky country. You will come to know and love them. You better believe I will buy and enjoy the rest of the series.
September 1, 2009
This is the first book in a murder mystery series about Gabriel Du Pre , a mixed blood French Indian, cattle brand inspector, who sometimes moonlights as a detective in Montana. If you like Tony Hillerman , you will enjoy this unusual character who struggles with his traditional beliefs and living in the wide open spaces
of Montana. The setting gives you a feel of the local history and people who inhabit the wild west.
of Montana. The setting gives you a feel of the local history and people who inhabit the wild west.
August 27, 2025
Absolutely delightful!!!! Shared it with Dan and made him homesick! He grew up in Montana about 60 miles from the "story" area. And being a French Canadian just added to it. I love Du Pre, and his women. I am also very happy that my crazy mom recommended this series.
2025... Reading this for a second time. Still lovely!
2025... Reading this for a second time. Still lovely!
July 13, 2019
Interesting first book in an old series . Hero is Gabrial Du Pres , a cow brand inspector or as he calls it
a ' cow ass man ' . He gets involved in a murder investigation that is 20 years dead . It is quite an interesting intro to a long series based in Montana in the mid 1990s . I'm going to read book #2 to see if I want to pursue more .
a ' cow ass man ' . He gets involved in a murder investigation that is 20 years dead . It is quite an interesting intro to a long series based in Montana in the mid 1990s . I'm going to read book #2 to see if I want to pursue more .
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