The First Eagle [Paperback]

Tony Hillerman (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• ASIN: B002WB4OQQ
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (99 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Tony Hillerman was the former president of the Mystery Writers of America and received its Edgar® and Grand Master awards. His other honors include the Center for the American Indian's Ambassador Award, the Silver Spur Award for the best novel set in the West, and the Navajo Tribe's Special Friend Award. He lived with his wife in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A familiar old friend, June 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The First Eagle (Jim Chee Novels) (Mass Market Paperback)

I understand why some of the other reviewers say that this is one of Mr. Hillerman's weaker efforts, however, I disagree with the conclusion that he is coasting. When I first began the book it was like meeting an old friend, all of the familiar likeable characters are there as is the imagery. If they are present in a lesser degree than in earlier works, I think it because Mr. Hillerman is justifiably building on the earlier works. There is no need to re-invent the wheel. The work also shows its quality in the development of even minor characters such as Mac Guiness. He and his trading post have been seen throughout the series but in First Eagle Tony Hillerman has visibly aged each. You can almost see the dust in the trading post and smell the stale whiskey. This "character-aging" is poignant with the current condition of Jim Chee's uncle Hosteen Nicae. Moreover, the plot is chilling and intelligently developed. Tony Hillerman has hit upon a real, significant issue. The medical-scientific discussions were lucid and well thought out. Finally, Jim Chee should definitely dump Janet Peet.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Exploring The Landscape Of Culture, June 21, 2002

By 

Bruce Crocker "agnostictrickster" (Whittier, California United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The First Eagle (Hardcover)

Tony Hillerman novels explore two landscapes - the red rock/AAA Indian Country map landscape and the landscape of intersecting cultures and law enforcement agencies. The First Eagle spends most of its time in the second landscape, and for that reason, it's good police procedural and good but not great Hillerman. Chee is now an Acting Lieutenant and Leaphorn is retired [but still the Legendary Lieutenant Leaphorn in Chee's mind]. Despite the fact that Chee is a cop and Leaphorn is trying out the role of private investigator, our two main characters still solve the crime when they put their heads together. This is a story of agencies - health agencies looking for plague bacteria and hantavirus and law enforcement agencies looking for killers and good press. Differing points of view provide much of the tension in the story [Hopi v. Navajo, Washington v. the rez, Jim Chee v. Janet Pete, the truth v. political gain]. Yells Back Butte is the place where Jim Chee's murder investigation and Joe Leaphorn's missing person case intersect. If you must have lots of red rock in your Hillerman, First Eagle may disappoint you. I enjoyed The First Eagle, but not enough to give it the fifth star. A plea to all mystery reviewers: please don't give away the ending! I read some of the reviews on this site when I was part way through the book and one of the reviews gives away too much information about the killer while stating the reasons for the reviewer's displeasure.

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One to pass the sleepless nights with..., July 25, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The First Eagle (Hardcover)

Okay, so "Eagle" and for that matter "Falling Man" weren't up to the standards set by "Talking God"/"Coytoe Waits," but it's still a fine read. The pages seem to turn themselves and suddenly what started as "only one chapter" has turned into half the book.

The Jim Chee/Joe Leaphorn relationship is in top form, and I believe most people can remember a time when they were the very junior member of a working relationship. It's very easy to be dazzled and intimidated by someone for years. It's also understandible the inevitible dread that Leaphorn brings into Chee's life. Seeing him usually means that Chee messed up somewhere along the line, and nobody likes to be reminded of that.

Being from Shiprock, I love reading about my home. Hillerman's descriptions are dead-on of the land, the terrain and the people. I adored this novel for its sensitive handling of the hauntavirus crisis and the terror it invokes every year. Hilerman knows, understands.

I realize that anglos not native to the four corners area feel an intellectual pride in reading Hilerman. I wish they wouldn't. I don't know how many times people have given me some sort of spiel about how connected they feel to me because they read "Skinwalker". Hilerman's a great writer, granted, but I'm not a character in his book.