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Gabriel Du Pre #4
Notches
The gruesome corpse of a young woman is found beside a long Montana highway called the Hi-Line. Her jaw and teeth are missing, and she is impossible to identify. Full of anger and without a clue, Du Pre begins to hunt the countryside for her murderer.
As more dismembered corpses - all young women - are discovered, the small ranching community goes into shock. Madelaine, Du Pre's fierce and wise lover, makes him swear that he will do justice for the victims, whatever it takes. When Madelaine's own daughter goes missing, Du Pre becomes desperate for a clue. He cannot decipher the mysterious messages the Hi-Line Killer places in his murder scenes.
Thinking like a hunter, Du Pre must imagine how a serial killer's mind works - and explore the troubling evidence that there might be two of them.
As more dismembered corpses - all young women - are discovered, the small ranching community goes into shock. Madelaine, Du Pre's fierce and wise lover, makes him swear that he will do justice for the victims, whatever it takes. When Madelaine's own daughter goes missing, Du Pre becomes desperate for a clue. He cannot decipher the mysterious messages the Hi-Line Killer places in his murder scenes.
Thinking like a hunter, Du Pre must imagine how a serial killer's mind works - and explore the troubling evidence that there might be two of them.
196 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 1997
130 people are currently reading
126 people want to read
About the author
Peter Bowen
51 books75 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 - 28 of 28 reviews
September 3, 2022
Du Pré, you are my good Métis man. I know you.”
Du Pré shrugged.
“You make my babies safe,” said Madelaine. “You make everybody’s safe again, Du Pré.”
“I don’t know,” said Du Pré.
“I do,” said Madelaine.
Up in the wilds of Montana there is a lot of big sky and rural territory. That’s where we find Gabriel Du Pré, who spent some time as a cattle inspector but we know him from his talents in getting to the nub of unsolved crimes. (He plays traditional fiddle in his spare time.) "Big family, mine, Du Pré thought. Indian family. These cousins they are from people come down here with my great-great-grandfather, then they go to North Dakota and back up to Canada. Always in the Red River country. I like that country, sings in my bones."
Here we have the discovery of a body of a young girl killed and left for the animals. The death seems to fit with a pattern of girls taken by a single sick killer. Many are runaways never heard of again…until bodies turn up. Du Pré has little interest in this until his steady companion, Madelaine, urges him to get involved. It’s not long before Madelaine’s daughter disappears and the tension ramps up. The FBI becomes involved and a very smart psychologist is added to the team.
I can’t talk to you much,” said Harvey.
“I am going, this murderer, I am going to find him,” said Du Pré.
“Probably,” said Harvey. “Benny won’t. You might.”
“OK,” said Du Pré, “I get him to deputize me?”
“Yup,” said Harvey.
“Then what?” said Du Pré.
“I send Agent Pidgeon to see you.”
“Why?” said Du Pré.
“She’s a specialist in serial killers,” said Harvey.
“She?” said Du Pré.
“Yeah,” said Harvey. “We quit binding their feet, taught ’em how to read, write, things like that. Nothing to be done about it now, we got ’em.”
“How long she been doing this?” said Du Pré.
“Couple years,” said Harvey. “She got her doctorate in psychology and then she joined the FBI. Nice young woman. Beautiful, too. Ambitious. Great knockers. Smart. If she heard me tell you she had great knockers, I’d be jailed for sexual harassment. Lose my job.”
“Why she pick serial killers?” said Du Pré.
“You’d have to ask her,” said Harvey. “I’d be afraid to, myself.”
And she says:
"“I got into this,” she said, “because of a term paper. How many women were killed and dumped and no one ever charged in their murders. Over the last twenty years, there have been thousands. Thousands. I couldn’t believe it.”"
I, definitely, would be one of those “flipping my cookies” if I had to actually see one of these crime scenes. I don’t usually stay for a story about such perversity. But Bowen makes his narrative much broader and it is bawdy and full of local patois and plenty of culture.
This book can be read out of order but you will then know the resolution of previous mysteries and thrillers. If you are still on the fence about Bowen’s style, I offer the following:
"“You know,” said Du Pré, “trouble with words like that is that if you can pronounce them you think you know what they mean. And if you think that you know what they mean, you think that you know something.” “Jesus,” said Harvey. “You studying philosophy these days?” “No,” said Du Pré. “I am just talking bullshit.”"
and
"He got to Raster Creek’s rest area when the light was rising to full day. He parked the cruiser and went into the john and came back out and he walked slowly back to where little Barbara Morissette had lain, her head stuck in her belly and the flies dancing around the blood and wounds. He took his time. Some guy, walked back here, maybe yesterday, the afternoon. Du Pré got down on his haunches and he looked at the faint print of a bootsole, a hiking boot with five stars up the center of the sole. He counted the ant tracks across the earth. Into the faint depression and on toward whatever it was that the ants were working on. A bombardier beetle had scuttled across. Four and one. He looked over at the anthill twenty feet away. Yah, he thought, maybe twenty-four hours. Less, I think. Yesterday afternoon, late. No dew, no rain. Who are you?"
4*
Du Pré shrugged.
“You make my babies safe,” said Madelaine. “You make everybody’s safe again, Du Pré.”
“I don’t know,” said Du Pré.
“I do,” said Madelaine.
Up in the wilds of Montana there is a lot of big sky and rural territory. That’s where we find Gabriel Du Pré, who spent some time as a cattle inspector but we know him from his talents in getting to the nub of unsolved crimes. (He plays traditional fiddle in his spare time.) "Big family, mine, Du Pré thought. Indian family. These cousins they are from people come down here with my great-great-grandfather, then they go to North Dakota and back up to Canada. Always in the Red River country. I like that country, sings in my bones."
Here we have the discovery of a body of a young girl killed and left for the animals. The death seems to fit with a pattern of girls taken by a single sick killer. Many are runaways never heard of again…until bodies turn up. Du Pré has little interest in this until his steady companion, Madelaine, urges him to get involved. It’s not long before Madelaine’s daughter disappears and the tension ramps up. The FBI becomes involved and a very smart psychologist is added to the team.
I can’t talk to you much,” said Harvey.
“I am going, this murderer, I am going to find him,” said Du Pré.
“Probably,” said Harvey. “Benny won’t. You might.”
“OK,” said Du Pré, “I get him to deputize me?”
“Yup,” said Harvey.
“Then what?” said Du Pré.
“I send Agent Pidgeon to see you.”
“Why?” said Du Pré.
“She’s a specialist in serial killers,” said Harvey.
“She?” said Du Pré.
“Yeah,” said Harvey. “We quit binding their feet, taught ’em how to read, write, things like that. Nothing to be done about it now, we got ’em.”
“How long she been doing this?” said Du Pré.
“Couple years,” said Harvey. “She got her doctorate in psychology and then she joined the FBI. Nice young woman. Beautiful, too. Ambitious. Great knockers. Smart. If she heard me tell you she had great knockers, I’d be jailed for sexual harassment. Lose my job.”
“Why she pick serial killers?” said Du Pré.
“You’d have to ask her,” said Harvey. “I’d be afraid to, myself.”
And she says:
"“I got into this,” she said, “because of a term paper. How many women were killed and dumped and no one ever charged in their murders. Over the last twenty years, there have been thousands. Thousands. I couldn’t believe it.”"
I, definitely, would be one of those “flipping my cookies” if I had to actually see one of these crime scenes. I don’t usually stay for a story about such perversity. But Bowen makes his narrative much broader and it is bawdy and full of local patois and plenty of culture.
This book can be read out of order but you will then know the resolution of previous mysteries and thrillers. If you are still on the fence about Bowen’s style, I offer the following:
"“You know,” said Du Pré, “trouble with words like that is that if you can pronounce them you think you know what they mean. And if you think that you know what they mean, you think that you know something.” “Jesus,” said Harvey. “You studying philosophy these days?” “No,” said Du Pré. “I am just talking bullshit.”"
and
"He got to Raster Creek’s rest area when the light was rising to full day. He parked the cruiser and went into the john and came back out and he walked slowly back to where little Barbara Morissette had lain, her head stuck in her belly and the flies dancing around the blood and wounds. He took his time. Some guy, walked back here, maybe yesterday, the afternoon. Du Pré got down on his haunches and he looked at the faint print of a bootsole, a hiking boot with five stars up the center of the sole. He counted the ant tracks across the earth. Into the faint depression and on toward whatever it was that the ants were working on. A bombardier beetle had scuttled across. Four and one. He looked over at the anthill twenty feet away. Yah, he thought, maybe twenty-four hours. Less, I think. Yesterday afternoon, late. No dew, no rain. Who are you?"
4*
April 15, 2020
Gabriel Du Pré, ... of Montana, a member of the Metis Indian tribe and a fiddler extraordinaire, joins the hunt for a serial killer of young women along the Montana highways. As usual, he has his own ways of going about solving the case, with help from a variety of characters, including his wiser partner, Madeleine.
June 2, 2022
Well written but unsatisfyingly solved - half of the mystery gets thrown away with a deus ex postcard and the other half ends in a deliberate but devastating car crash.... Not as good as some of the others, and the mysticism gets a bit tired.
September 25, 2025
The best Gabriel Du Pré book l've read yet. The victim of a serial killer is discovered about 100 miles from Toussaint and the locals are worried. Then another victim is found just outside town and shit gets stirred up.
March 31, 2019
It's Gabriel Du Pre', it's Montana, and there is a serial killer of young blond girls on the prowl. What more can one ask of this great mystery series. Some of the usual characters are not as prevalent as in past books, but a few new ones are now mentioned. Everyone is trying to find the serial killer who has left a trail of bodies throughout the Upper Midwest. Into the breach comes Gabriel along with his FBI agent friend and a new FBI profiler. Interesting book and a very satisfying conclusion. Sometimes the solution does not always fit into our definition of "morally correct" but by the end the criminal always gets what they are deserving!
September 26, 2012
This instalment in the Gabriel Du Pre series focuses on a serial killer who preys on young women all over the West. When Gabriel's community is threatened, he defies the authorities and tackles the situation in his own way.
July 7, 2021
Dark serial killer murder mystery with disturbing descriptions of the dead
Another wonderful Métis Indian culture drama with accompanying serial killer murder. This time Gabriel Du Pré hunts serial killers with help of a new friend and two FBI agents, but unfortunately, sans his shaman friend, Benetsee. As a crime fiction fan, I liked the mystery, but I was fascinated by the new and different culture; the scarily rugged, rural setting; and the fantastical paranormal touches with shamans, totem animals, dreaming, etc. The murder mystery is satisfying; northwest Montana is marvelously depicted; but it’s the well-developed characters that are the bones of this book. The author introduces several new, different characters—including Young-Man-Who-Has-No-Name, who is an associate or apprentice to Benetsee—the shaman, seer, and medicine man.
Warnings:
1. To readers with queasy stomachs. There disturbing scenes and horrific descriptions of young women’s desecrated bodies.
2. To those with a sense of right and wrong that doesn’t allow for shades of gray. You may wish to skip this book.
3. To readers who dislike NSFW words, irreverent use of gods’ names, and cussed characters in general, read with care.
Another wonderful Métis Indian culture drama with accompanying serial killer murder. This time Gabriel Du Pré hunts serial killers with help of a new friend and two FBI agents, but unfortunately, sans his shaman friend, Benetsee. As a crime fiction fan, I liked the mystery, but I was fascinated by the new and different culture; the scarily rugged, rural setting; and the fantastical paranormal touches with shamans, totem animals, dreaming, etc. The murder mystery is satisfying; northwest Montana is marvelously depicted; but it’s the well-developed characters that are the bones of this book. The author introduces several new, different characters—including Young-Man-Who-Has-No-Name, who is an associate or apprentice to Benetsee—the shaman, seer, and medicine man.
Warnings:
1. To readers with queasy stomachs. There disturbing scenes and horrific descriptions of young women’s desecrated bodies.
2. To those with a sense of right and wrong that doesn’t allow for shades of gray. You may wish to skip this book.
3. To readers who dislike NSFW words, irreverent use of gods’ names, and cussed characters in general, read with care.
May 7, 2020
Somebody, or somebodies, has been murdering young women and leaving their bodies in widely scattered remote areas of the western US and Canada, to be found years later, if ever. Because of the lack of identification and the differing jurisdictions, no unified plan has evolved to solve them. Finally there is enough of an outcry over the latest victims that the FBI gets involved and Agents Harvey Wallace, (Blackfeet), and Anna Pigeon, (specialist in serial killers) are sent in. Complicating matters somewhat, recently paroled sex offender Bucky Dassault has reinvented himself as Benjamin Medicine Eagle a new age shaman and in his ongoing quest for fame, puts himself in the mix. There are great new characters – the helpful bank robber, Rolly Challis, the unforgettable Pigeon and Pelon, the young former computer programmer who has become apprentice to Benetsee. The dialogue is as colorful, idiomatic and laconic as ever and the portrait of life among the Metis is totally engaging. The descriptions of the crimes and the victims are vivid and quite disturbing if that sort of thing bothers you.
June 18, 2020
Madeline, Du Pres' significant other, sics him on a pair of serial killers operating independently of one another. Du Pre distributes out his own form of justice in this quick read.
This is the fourth book in Peter Bowen's Du Pre series, also my fourth read of the author, pretty much in order. The action is nonstop and the dialogue is short but succinct in this little novel. I enjoyed this escape read, but could only feel that it seem too easy to track down not only one, but two serial killers that had been on the loose for years. I also felt that a lengthier book might have allowed Bowen to develop the serial killers a little better, but that's not really this author's or series' style.
While reading this I discovered that the author, Peter Bowen died a couple months ago in his beloved Montana. It always hits me fairly strong when an author of mine passes on. Even though I've read only four of his books so far, I plan on reading all 15 of this series and all 4 of the Yellowstone Kelly offerings. Thank you Peter, we'll look for you like Du Pre looks for Benetsee in that "Big Sky Country".
This is the fourth book in Peter Bowen's Du Pre series, also my fourth read of the author, pretty much in order. The action is nonstop and the dialogue is short but succinct in this little novel. I enjoyed this escape read, but could only feel that it seem too easy to track down not only one, but two serial killers that had been on the loose for years. I also felt that a lengthier book might have allowed Bowen to develop the serial killers a little better, but that's not really this author's or series' style.
While reading this I discovered that the author, Peter Bowen died a couple months ago in his beloved Montana. It always hits me fairly strong when an author of mine passes on. Even though I've read only four of his books so far, I plan on reading all 15 of this series and all 4 of the Yellowstone Kelly offerings. Thank you Peter, we'll look for you like Du Pre looks for Benetsee in that "Big Sky Country".
June 10, 2024
So... This is about a serial killer(s). I don't like mysteries featuring serial killers. Read too many of them through the years. Every 20 pages or so a body is discovered. A badly disfigured body. Feels to me it's just a lazy way of building tension ...oft repeated.
In fact, I don't normally get too excited about Peter Bowen's story telling. What i do like, no admire, is his characters starting with Gabriel Du Pre and his Metis clan. It's a different culture, lot of earthy/crude language and rough living. But people who care for each other and despite the bruises find a way to find a lot of joy in living, At the end of the day, it's just bout, drinking, somebody finding a fiddle, and finding someone to dance with. ...and if it gets rowdy? No problem, you can work it out tomorrow.
In fact, I don't normally get too excited about Peter Bowen's story telling. What i do like, no admire, is his characters starting with Gabriel Du Pre and his Metis clan. It's a different culture, lot of earthy/crude language and rough living. But people who care for each other and despite the bruises find a way to find a lot of joy in living, At the end of the day, it's just bout, drinking, somebody finding a fiddle, and finding someone to dance with. ...and if it gets rowdy? No problem, you can work it out tomorrow.
December 15, 2018
An absolutely amazing series
The bodies of young women are turning up at an alarming rate and Gabriel Du Pre knows he will soon be caught up in it. I continue to be awed by this excellent series. As mysteries go, I don’t think I have ever read anything like this series. Anyone who wants to read a mystery that evokes the spirit of Montana and it’s many cultures should pick up this series.
The bodies of young women are turning up at an alarming rate and Gabriel Du Pre knows he will soon be caught up in it. I continue to be awed by this excellent series. As mysteries go, I don’t think I have ever read anything like this series. Anyone who wants to read a mystery that evokes the spirit of Montana and it’s many cultures should pick up this series.
January 4, 2023
I've yet to be disappointed by one of Bowen's novel
I've yet to be disappointed by one of Peter Bowen's novels and look forward to enjoying the ones I haven't read yet. We'll be cruising later this year and they'll be perfect for my Kindle paperwhite. The plots are different enough to continue reading the series and then, of course, there is the factor of having a protagonist who isn't 30 years old. Yep we're seniors, LOL.
I've yet to be disappointed by one of Peter Bowen's novels and look forward to enjoying the ones I haven't read yet. We'll be cruising later this year and they'll be perfect for my Kindle paperwhite. The plots are different enough to continue reading the series and then, of course, there is the factor of having a protagonist who isn't 30 years old. Yep we're seniors, LOL.
April 11, 2020
I have a hard time with the conversations, and short thoughts. Fantasy where a drunk (how he operates must be on the way to bad liver problems) with the help of others finds the homicidal perpetrators and finds an interesting way of disposing of them.
I might try another of the series, but doubt it.
I might try another of the series, but doubt it.
August 27, 2022
These are the oddest mysteries. No procedural at all - just a suspect then BOOM! you turn the page and they are taken care of. Yet somehow, it's kind of compelling. Like most series, I'm getting to know the characters though new ones get introduced. These are really growing on me.
April 26, 2020
I enjoyed it
January 17, 2021
I was planning to read all in this series, however, Notches had too much gratuitous sex and violence and swearing in it for me. I won't bother with the rest of Bowen's books.
July 28, 2021
a dark book, not what I expected but informatve as expected.
July 17, 2024
Very good book. What an ending!!!
Kenalea Johnson
Kenalea Johnson
December 24, 2024
12 Short but packed full of action and I enjoyed the mystic elements. The plot was a bit of a shock though. The addition of Pigeon was an interesting addition.
September 22, 2025
Not so much a mystery as just a good story told well.
April 3, 2010
PROTAGONIST: Gabriel du Pre
SETTING: Montana
SERIES: #4 of 13
RATING: 3.25
WHY: Much to my surprise, I found that I had missed some books in this series, which is a favorite of mine. It's all about the characters. The plot didn't really hold up all that well. At least 2 men have been killing girls for years and years. Not entirely credible how they were uncovered. Love spending time with du Pre and the supporting cast, but this one was vaguely disappointing, mostly because the secondary characters that I love had very little role in this book.
SETTING: Montana
SERIES: #4 of 13
RATING: 3.25
WHY: Much to my surprise, I found that I had missed some books in this series, which is a favorite of mine. It's all about the characters. The plot didn't really hold up all that well. At least 2 men have been killing girls for years and years. Not entirely credible how they were uncovered. Love spending time with du Pre and the supporting cast, but this one was vaguely disappointing, mostly because the secondary characters that I love had very little role in this book.
October 28, 2011
I've enjoyed the first three books in this series very much, and was anxious to read more. In a general sense this book satisfied my interest in character, setting, and Bowen's style. But the nature of the crime in this one was tough for me and I felt it unbalanced aspects of the book. Too dark, perhaps, for the characters? Perhaps I just had trouble believing these characters would act as they did in such circumstances?
I still believe this is a good series. This just wasn't my favorite installment.
I still believe this is a good series. This just wasn't my favorite installment.
November 28, 2020
Last read 2013.. First read long ago. Re-read November 2020. I used to hear men like DuPre on the streetcorners of my hometown, in the garages, the fishing gear shop. I'm 4th generation French Canadian American and my great grandmother was half Abenaki...probably several others too...I listened to DuPre type music every Sunday morning on the Franco -American radio program. I love this series. Unfortunately, the author died last year just after publishing his last DuPre novel. Sigh. Goo that I love to re-read my favorite stories.
September 23, 2025
A great re-read.
March 31, 2011
2 serial killers dispatched
December 15, 2015
Love this character and the supporting cast. This one graphic.
August 21, 2022
March 2019; August 2022
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews