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The marvelous Hunting Badger is Tony Hillerman's 14th novel featuring Navajo tribal police officers Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee. Here the two cops (who appeared in separate books early on but whose paths now cross routinely) are working two angles of the same case to catch the right-wing militiamen who pulled off a violent heist at an Indian casino. Hillerman serves up plenty of action and enough plot twists to keep readers off balance, leading up to a satisfyingly tense climax in which Leaphorn and Chee stalk a killer in his hideout. But through it all, the cardinal Hillerman virtues are in evidence: economical, pellucid prose; a panoply of Indian-country characters who seem to rise right up off the page; vivid evocations of the Southwest's bleak beauty; and rich insights into Navajo life and culture. (Hillerman once told an interviewer that the highest compliment he'd ever received was many Navajo readers' assumption that he himself is Navajo--he's not.) While first-time readers will find plenty to enjoy in Hunting Badger, it holds special pleasures for longtime fans. There's more and deeper contact between Leaphorn and Chee, and we continue to see further into the prickly Leaphorn's human side (though without fuss or sentimentality). Chee finally begins to get over Janet Pete (it took about six books) and inch toward a new love interest. And in a moving section involving Chee's spiritual teacher Frank Sam Nakai, the shaman provides a key insight into the case. In a world teeming with "sense of place" mysteries--set in Seattle, Alaska, the Arizona desert, or Chicago--it can be a shock to return to Hillerman, who started it all, and realize just how superior he is to the rest of the pack. --Nicholas H. Allison
 Customer Reviews 
A good tale, well told
Rating: 4
Three armed men rod the Ute tribe's gambling casino, and then vanish mysteriously into the desert near the Utah-Arizona border. It looks like an inside job, and the deputy sheriff wounded in the crime looks like he might have been in on it. But when Tribal Police Sergeant Jim Chee and retired detective Joe Leaphorn start investigating, parallels emerge in this case similar to a legandary Ute outlaw. And "helpful" citizens look like they may have some hidden agenda or grudge to settle, and it's up to Chee and Leaphorn to get to the bottom of things and find who's responsible. This is of course complicated by patronizing federal agents, who are simply out of their element in tribal lands.
Hilleman maintains a good story pace, that doesn't move too fast, as with the lifestyle of the four corners, and yet never meanders or drags. He gives us very human, believeable, and nuanced characters. And he keeps us guessing, yet engages us in Chee and Leaphorn's thinking. While first appearences can be decieving, the reader never feels manipulated. It's a very solid work.
OK..not good....but OK
Rating: 3
[..]i have a very different opinion the adults. this is the third hillerman ive read and i was really exited to read this one. I WAS DISAPOINTED!!!! There is not much action as usual(not thats theres always much),its all driving and talking
This book starts where 3 bandits rob a ute casino,kill a cop and fly away in a plane. Jim chee teams up with joe leaphorn and they work together to find these men.One ends up killing himself,the second is a ruthless killer and the last man they actually find.The problem is that the FBI keeps trying to stop the two from solvin the crime.
The worst part of this book is that theres no climax. They kind of catch the badguys then it ends!!!!! I was very disapointed! Tony hillerman usually writes good interesting books but this was not his usual way of writing these books.
Navajo Culture Wrapped in a Four Corners Mystery - And Bad Editing
Rating: 4
Addendum: I initially gave `Hunting Badger' 5 stars, but downgraded it to 4 stars for the following reasons. After I wrote my review I began to wonder why the ratings for this book seemed to be all over the place. A number of reviewers stated that they were Hillerman fans but downgraded `Hunting Badger' because of poor editing. Some of the complaints seemed ill-founded. The story does not tie up all the loose ends - the book's part of a series after all - and sometimes things just do not get neatly wrapped up with all the bad guys in jail and the good guys riding into the sunset.
However, one reviewer asserted that a conversation between Chee and Leaphorn concerning coal mine shafts was essentially repeated thirty pages later as if it was a new topic of conversation for them. That comment bugged me. I used the `search inside this book' feature on Amazon and, lo and behold, there it is on pages 192 and 222, the same basic conversation.
That's inexcusably bad editing. I still rate the book highly because for me Hillerman's tales are as much about the setting and the cultural background as it is about solving a mystery. What follow is my original review.
The Legendary Lieutenant, Joe Leaphorn comes back out of retirement and Jim Chee gets back from vacation just as a tribal casino is robbed of $400K. What is worse, two off-duty cops working as security guards are gunned down. As is their common motif, Leaphorn and Chee are simultaneously working on parallel tracks in ignorance of the other's efforts, but they come together to solve the crime.
Hillerman sets this story in the heart of the Four Corners area, the Big Empty, and by the time I was done I was pining for a trip to the desert canyons. Navajo culture is also interwoven into the fabric of the tale. And Hillerman again creates believable tension between the Navajo and the outside, especially between the tribal police and the FBI.
If you are already a Hillerman, I think you will find this work especially enjoyable.
If you are new to Hillerman, this book may very well make you a fan. Hillerman has written some 18 Navajo mysteries. Leaphorn and Chee first worked together in 'Skinwalkers' (1986) and did so for four more books before taking a break. 'Hunting Badger' (1999) was their first book back together after about 5 or 6 years. Reading this series in sequence is really not much of an issue, but you may want be aware of the background. Several of Hillerman's books were also made into PBS Mystery episode a few years ago.
Highly recommended for fans of the mystery genre.
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