Wife of Moon

By: Margaret Coel

Narrated by: Stephanie Brush

Length: 8 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's Summary

In 1907, photographer Edward S. Curtis arrived at the Wind River Reservation, hoping to document the Arapaho way of life before it vanished altogether. To preserve the legacy of warriors in battle, Curtis staged an attack on a village, planning to capture it on film. But it became all too real when the daughter of the tribe's chief was found murdered, and her killer was never identified.

Now, Curtis's photographs are on display at the museum of St. Francis Mission on the reservation, and history seems doomed to repeat itself. A descendant of the tribal chief who appeared in Curtis's pictures has been shot to death, and the museum's curator has disappeared. The two incidents may be linked to the near century-old murder. Soon, Arapaho attorney Vicky Holden and Father John O'Malley will discover an even more disturbing connection to present-day events.

Investigate another Arapaho Indian Mystery.

©2004 Margaret Coel (P)2004 Books in Motion

Critic Reviews

"Coel draws readers into early Arapaho life as smoothly as she brings them into the sinister goings-on at present-day Wind River, masterfully blending authentic history with an ingenious plot." ( Publishers Weekly)

Another murder-by-narrator

The premise and the plot are interesting and engaging. The writer, however, must have attended one of those awful workshops where they proselytize "show not tell" - about the most misused advice there is - with the predictable result that her characters pluck, swivel, gulp, freeze, like they all have nerve disorders, and spend most of their time not looking at each other. There are also some very elementary errors, like grabbing a menu off a podium. And a few holes in the story, like: If you were desperately investigating a particular person's recent activities, and if you found that this person had intensely scrutinized an old photograph, even to the point of getting a magnifying glass for it, and then got all excited and offered a huge amount of money to have it ... would you give the equivalent of "hmm. thanks. bye" and then leave without looking at it?

AUDIO: Oh, spare us from this reader! She's a very poor actress, and poor with voices and accents, overacts unbearably, especially during sensitive moments. She often has no sense of the characters' personalities, or of the point of what's being said, and is often gratingly shrill. Sometimes so awful I was embarrassed for her, as when one of the Arapaho elders inexplicably develops a thick Irish accent. Worst of all, she acts out everything like "sighed," "drew her breath in," "took a gulp of air," "small laugh," "big guffaw," "choking laugh," "stutter," -- aack! She did everything short of belch and break wind. I'd like to read more from this author, but don't know if I can stand listening to this reader again.

Mystery with historical interest

This is a book in the Father John O'Malley series, which takes place on the Arapaho reservation. He is the Irish priest at St. Francis Mission, and he has a great love for the people he has come to know and feel a part of--and they love and trust him in return.

In this book, murder is afoot--both in the present and in the past. They are linked through some photographs that were taken by a famous photographer at the turn of the twentieth century, as he sought to depict the Native American lifestyle, even though it had meant he had to stage the pictures rather than find them in a natural manner. This was the opportunity for a shocking murder to occur--which has repercussions through the generations, and provides a link to the crimes occurring now.

Ftr. O'Malley and his lawyer friend Vicky Holden (or if he were not a priest, she would be more than a friend) have worked together on other cases, so it is natural that they come together again for another really good story, filled with interesting lore about the Arapaho people, and well-drawn characters.

The story itself is good, and a word about the narration. I think that for the most part she is excellent. But in places, it sounds as though she is trying so hard to have crisp, clear diction, she overdoes it a bit--you can hear the final "t" sounded on too many words. However, I'd like to give her a "wavy hand" on this (good and bad mixed) since in other respects, she has an uncommon ability to create very good voices, with unusually good inflections, voices tones, and little things--like her including a throat clearing, laugh, indrawn breath, etc--that give a more authentic sense to characters' dialogue. This is the third I've read in the series, and find them very good.

Stunning Historical and Fictional Tale

Wow! Author Margaret Coel does it again with Wife of Moon, combining a fictional story with an historical account involving famous Indian photographer, Edward Curtis (1868-1952). The book opens in the year 1907 with the photographer instructing the tribe to get into position for the staged battle which he is about to photograph. The Indian warriors have their weapons loaded with blanks and await Curtis’ command. The beautiful Indian mother, Bashful Woman (married to a white man) and her young child are in a tent. The daughter of Chief Sharp Nose, Bashful Woman is married to Carston Evans, a white man who asked the chief for her hand in marriage. Long loved by all the young warriors, but especially by Jesse, who had come to St. Francis Mission School and learned to speak English . . . befriending the young Indian maiden. Chosen to assist the photographer because of his ability to speak the white man’s language, Jesse is poised to hand the heavy glass plates to the photographer as he needs them. The photographer gives the signal for the warriors to begin the fake battle, and begins taking the photographs . . . but the screams are all too real. Continually handing Curtis the glass plates as instructed, Jesse is filled with fear and apprehension. The gunshots sound loud, the horse’s hooves beat hard upon the earth . . . and when all of the ammo is spent and Curtis has finished capturing the scenes, the wails and moans of the tribe can still be heard. Bashful Woman lies in a pool of blood in her teepee. Carston Evans testifies that he witnessed the Indian Warrior, Thunder kill his wife. And that is how the tale has been passed down. In the current day, Father O’Malley is busy at St. Francis Mission with a new curator for the Arapaho Museum and an exhibit of the old photographs that Edward Curtis took back in 1907. Its drawing lots of visitors from far and wide. Vicky Holden has been called to represent an old school friend who is a suspect in the murder of his wife . . . a descendant of Chief Sharp Nose. With news flying on the moccasin telegraph, its hard to know for sure what’s going on. But its surely not boring. And its never what it looks like on the surface. This book in the series is full of the tribal culture, which I love, and rich in the wisdom of the grandfathers and grandmothers of the Arapaho tribe. Don’t miss it!

Great history!

Listened non stop and never lost interest. Captivated by the dual story line and feel in love with the historical politics!

Continues to be exciting, new and interesting

Great use of drive time. Good stories, great characters. Worth every minute and every dollar.

Always smart

-each book in Coel's WRR series is greatly entertaining and endearing. I wish somehow the John and Vicki could get together. :-)

A good book, but...

Would you listen to Wife of Moon again? Why?

Margaret Coel's Arapaho Indian Mysteries are great. I love the stories of Indian culture and the plots are well done. These would all receive five stars except for the reader. Her midwestern accent is a bit over the top and somewhat distracting. Words ending in