The Wolfer

by Loren D. Estleman

As ferocious and ruthless as the wolves he hunts, legendary wolfer Asa North takes on a wolf named Black Jack, which has ravaged countless herds of sheep and cattle

Genres: Westerns

178 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Loren D. Estleman is an American writer of detective and Western fiction. He writes with a manual typewriter.

Estleman is most famous for his novels about P.I. Amos Walker. Other series characters include Old West marshal Page Murdock and hitman Peter Macklin. He has also written a series of novels about the history of crime in Detroit (also the setting of his Walker books.) His non-series works include Bloody Season, a fictional recreation of the gunfight at the O.K. Corral, and several novels and stories featuring Sherlock Holmes.

Series:
* Amos Walker Mystery
* Valentino Mystery
* Detroit Crime Mystery
* Peter Macklin Mystery
* Page Murdock Mystery

Reviews

[Justin Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

The action in this book kept me in the story, and the historical research is incredible. He includes details about the West and that time period that are less than common knowledge. I wish that he would have developed the characters more so I got to know them and their motivations better.

[Ronald Koltnow · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is essentially a 3 1/2 star book, four for content, less for style. In the latter part of the 19th century, when cattlemen paid bounties for wolf skins, the population of wolves decreased dramatically. As Asa North, the wolfer of the title, says: cattle die, and even if its sickness or weather, the wolves get blamed. Wolves are tangible, they can be seen and shot. Consumptive NYC newspaperman R. G. Fulwider comes west to get stories about frontier heroes for Pulitzer's New York World. Deadwood and Wild Bill have fired the imagination of everyone in the east, and Pulitzer wants more of this stuff. Fulwider immediately is enthralled by North, a legendary wolf-hunter, and manages to join him on the hunt for Black Jack, a large, smart predator. Those expecting Moby-Dick with fur will be disappointed. The book is largely about the relationship between the two different men. Set in a wild Idaho, this has great local color and characters. If Estleman's prose goes a bit purple in the final chapters, he is to be forgiven. Wolves, among the most beautiful species in the west, are being reintroduced, after facing near extinction. Estleman provides a reader's note in the end concerning the mass extermination campaign that has been ignored by history books. We owe him a great debt for standing up for our friend Canis Lupus.

[Jeff Dickison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good western as tenderfoot reporter goes west to find a hero to write about to entertain his readers back home. The west is changing and there are few heroes left but he finds a wolfer to follow about and does get his story. He also gets to toughen up and has some scary adventures. Well written with lots of unexpected events make this a winner. Recommended to fans of westerns.

[Paul Parkinson]

Another great job, with some historical seasoning.