Skinwalkers [Paperback]

Tony Hillerman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1987

Three shotgun blasts explode into the trailer of Officer Jim Chee of the Navajo Tribal Police. But Chee survives to join partner Lt. Joe Leaphorn in a frightening investigation that takes them into a dark world of ritual, witchcraft, and blood—all tied to the elusive and evil "skinwalker." Brimming with Navajo lore and sizzling suspense, Skinwalkers brings Chee and Leaphorn, Hillerman's bestselling detective team, together for the first time.

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Vibrant with the spirit of the Navajo people of the Southwest, Hillerman's new story is a spellbinder, like his Edgar Winner Dance Hall of the Dead and other praised novels. Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee of the tribal police work together here, trying to solve crimes that resist logic. There are no clues to three homicides or to the attempted murder of Chee. Leaphorn thinks a "skinwalker," or witch, could have attacked the victims, all adherents of shamanism, as they are otherwise unrelated. The skinwalkers represent a schism between witchcraft and the traditional Navajo Way. A second attempt on Chee bolsters Leaphorn's suspicion since Chee is an aspiring shaman. The story gathers momentum and tension as the partners get closer to the moment when the murderer comes into the open, and the tragic reason for the crimes becomes painfully clear. 30,000 first printing; BOMC alternate; author tour.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

“Superb and pure pleasure to read.” --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 275 pages
• Publisher: Harpercollins Publisher; PF edition (December 1987)
• ISBN-10: 0060808934
• ISBN-13: 978-0060808938
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,693,661 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It takes two to solve a murder, January 3, 2003

By 

Smallchief - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Skinwalkers (Joe Leaphorn/Jim Chee Novels) (Mass Market Paperback)

An unknown person tries to kill Navajo policemen Jim Chee and three apparently unrelated murders on the Navajo reservation puzzle Lt. Joe Leaphorn. The murders, it appears, all something to do with witches (skinwalkers).

"Skinwalkers" is the seventh book in the Navajo Detective series by Tony Hillerman. He wrote three books featuring Joe Leaphorn, then three featuring Jim Chee, and now he brings the two policemen together in the same book. Also, in this book, Hillerman introduces Janet Pete, an agressive Navajo lawyer, as a new love interest for Chee. Hillerman fans will be interested in this book to see how Leaphorn, methodical and reliable, and Chee, a bit flaky but brilliant, get along working together. The answer is: uneasily.

The mystery itself is not overly credible, but weaving the story in and around Navajo beliefs about skinwalkers is fascinating and, as always, Hillerman uses the backdrop of the violent weather and magnificient landscape of the Navajo reservation to frame his story. And as always Hillerman includes a goodly dose of instruction in Navajo etiquette and attitudes and demonstrates -- usually with good humor -- the ineptness of white policeman, especially the FBI, in the Navajo culture and environment.

If you haven't read Hillerman before, this is probably not the best book of the series. He has written more intriguing mysteries. But the settings of Hillerman's books are fabulous and Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee are top caliber characters worthy of inclusion in a short list of the best detectives in fiction.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hillerman at his best, August 18, 2003

By 

D. B. Killings "Dagnabbit!" (Chicago, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Skinwalkers (Joe Leaphorn/Jim Chee Novels) (Mass Market Paperback)

As long time fans of Tony Hillerman know, Navaho Tribal Police officers Jim Chee and Joe Leaphorn didn't always work together. In fact, for the first half dozen or so novels in Hillerman's series of mysteries, the two characters were pretty much independent of one another, starring in their own novels without the benefit of each others company (although Leaphorn does get a passing reference in the Jim Chee-centered People of Darkness). But all that changed with Skinwalkers, where for the first time Hillerman has his two principal characters work together side-by-side on a case, and in the process start what has to be one of the best Holmes-Watson combinations in all of literature.

The book starts out with a bang, literally. Someone fires three shots into Jim Chee's dilapidated trailer while he's inside, missing him by inches. Why someone would want to kill him he hasn't the faintest idea, but is there any connection between this and three unsolved murders on the Navaho reservation? And how, of all things, do reports of witchcraft and "skinwalkers" (the evil shape-changers of Navaho myth) fit into the puzzle? Lt. Leaphorn wants to know, Sgt. Chee can't let so personal a mystery go uninvestigated, and before long the two are navigating their way through that trademark intricate array of clues woven with Navaho folklore that have made Hillerman such a staple with mystery fans.

It's hard to dislike any of the novels in this series, and Skinwalkers is one of the best. The mystery is tight and interesting, the characters engaging, and there is that whole fascinating world of the Dinee, the Navaho people, that Hillerman so obviously loves to explore. Skinwalkers is especially a good place to start for those who have never read a Navaho Tribal Police novel before, because it is at the start of the Leaphorn & Chee combination that has dominated the series ever since (although don't forget to pick up those earlier novels!). Highly recommended.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great mystery, better character development!, July 28, 2002

By 

ROBERT KINGSLEY (Fort Collins, Colorado USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Skinwalkers (Joe Leaphorn/Jim Chee Novels) (Mass Market Paperback)

Reading the Hillerman Navajo mystery series is a joy, and this addition to the series is wonderful! If you have been reading the series, this book will intrigue you and allow you to see sides of the two main characters, Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee, that you have not yet seen.

The first book of the series to join Leaphorn and Chee, Hillerman develops the inner character of both men and this provides further reason to follow the series. The men are very real with their everyday concerns and their doggendness in their pursuit of the solution to the mystery. Hillerman ties the reader to the charcters without pulling at the heartstrings of the reader - in other words, it is not a sappy read, but one that makes one feel they are involved with real people in a desolate, intriguing setting.

The mystery is the best of the series to date, one that has twists, turns, and surprises. As always, the feel of the Navajo culture and the conflicts with the surrounding culture is present. Well researched and set in the time of the late 1980s, this book gives the reader a true life feel. If you are a Hillerman fan, you will love this book. If this is your first look at the Hillerman series, I would strongly recommend reading the series in order - the story within the novels will unravel much more clearly.