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Authors: Margaret Coel

The Dream Stalker

THE DREAM STALKER

“[D]eft storytelling and vivid characterizations . . . Coel’s writing is as clean and sharp as surgical instruments, her characters complex and believable, her storytelling quick and spare.”


The Gazette
(Colorado Springs, CO)

“A fine addition to a successful series.”


Library Journal

“Coel weaves deeply human conflicts into her characters’ lives . . . Critics who have called Coel a ‘female Hillerman’ are right on the mark. Her breezy, fast-paced style and grasp of cultural details make
The Dream Stalker
a book that will keep you reading until late at night.”


Daily Camera
(Boulder, CO)

“Murder, romance, a nuclear storage facility and Indian lore blend appealingly in this third mystery . . . The nicely drawn Wyoming backdrop, capable plotting and engaging characters all add up to another coup for Coel.”


Publishers Weekly

Praise for Margaret Coel’s

THE GHOST WALKER

“Margaret Coel guides us mystery lovers on another of her gripping tours of evil among the Wind River Arapahos.”

—Tony Hillerman

“Coel is a vivid voice for the West, its struggles to retain its past and at the same time enjoy the fruits of the future.”


Dallas Morning News

“There is something so real, so good about the setting and the people in
The Ghost Walker.”

—Elaine Long, award-winning author of
Jenny’s Mountain
and
Bittersweet Country

“A tautly written, compelling mystery, grounded in and sympathetic to the Arapaho culture.”


Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel

“A corking good read . . . Coel’s Catholic Irish Jesuit priest and his Arapaho friends and neighbors, each with their individual worldviews and sensibilities, make for interesting contrasts in this excellent mystery that focuses on the strange place Native Americans occupy in their own land. An outstanding entry in a superior series.”


Booklist
(starred review)

“Engaging . . . Coel’s series in the Hillerman tradition finds a space where Jesuits and Native Americans can meet in a culture of common decency.”


Kirkus Reviews

“Sharp writing and poignant characterizations.”


Affaire de Coeur

“The writing has grown smooth in a way that makes it clear that Margaret Coel and Father John O’Malley will both be around for a long time to come.”


Mostly Murder

Praise for Margaret Coel’s national bestselling debut,

THE EAGLE CATCHER

“Margaret Coel’s account of dastardly deeds among the Arapahos on the Wind River Reservation shouldn’t be missed by anyone interested in either new trends in mystery writing or contemporary American Indian culture. She’s a master at both.”

—Tony Hillerman

“The best parts of
The Eagle Catcher
are Coel’s portrayal of the dual cultures that exist uneasily on the reservation and an uncanny sense of dialogue that make her characters ring true. Coel merges her grasp of history with the mystery genre. The result is so successful, you wonder what took her so long!”


Denver Post

“[I]nsightful commentary about Arapaho culture, well-drawn characters and a lively pace.”


Publishers Weekly

“The Eagle Catcher
’s Native American theme will inspire comparisons to the work of Tony Hillerman, but its insights into the Arapaho way of life in our century are unique to this form.”

—Loren D. Estleman, author of
Edsel
and
City of Windows

“Welcome Margaret Coel to the ranks of esteemed western mystery writers such as Hillerman, Hager, and Prowell.
The Eagle Catcher
is not only an alluring fresh mystery told with the authoritative voice of an historian, it is also a thoughtful testimony to the clash of cultures that endures in the West.”

—Stephen White, author of
Higher Authority
and
Private Practices

“Intense and fascinating . . . Coel has gifted us with a western mystery full of characters we long to know better and a Wyoming setting that takes our breath away.”

—Earlene Fowler, author of
Dove in the Window
and
Goose in the Pond

“The Eagle Catcher
mines the Arapahos’ rich history and lore to stake out Coel’s territory among the growing body of western literature.”


Associated Press

“The Eagle Catcher
is a beautifully plotted novel with tension that builds with the speed of a stone rolling down a hill.”

—Ann Ripley, author of
Death of a Garden Pest

“One can only hope that this is the beginning of a long and shining career for both Margaret Coel and Father John.”


I Love a Mystery

“A first rate mystery.”

—Jean Hager, author of the
Mitch Bushyhead
and
Molly Bearpaw
Cherokee mysteries

“The story begins at once and drives straight through. The theme is handled with a wonderfully deft hand.”

—John Dunning, author of
Booked to Die

“Coel’s writing raises
The Eagle Catcher
to a level that’s rare in a first piece of work.”


Colorado Daily

“A rousing mystery.”


Rocky Mountain News

Berkley Prime Crime titles by Margaret Coel

Catherine McLeod Mysteries

BLOOD MEMORY

THE PERFECT SUSPECT

Wind River Mysteries

THE EAGLE CATCHER

THE GHOST WALKER

THE DREAM STALKER

THE STORY TELLER

THE LOST BIRD

THE SPIRIT WOMAN

THE THUNDER KEEPER

THE SHADOW DANCER

KILLING RAVEN

WIFE OF MOON

EYE OF THE WOLF

THE DROWNING MAN

THE GIRL WITH BRAIDED HAIR

THE SILENT SPIRIT

THE SPIDER’S WEB

BUFFALO BILL’S DEAD NOW

KILLING CUSTER

NIGHT OF THE WHITE BUFFALO

Anthologies

WATCHING EAGLES SOAR

The
Dream Stalker

Margaret Coel

An imprint of Penguin Random House LLC

375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014

THE DREAM STALKER

A Berkley Prime Crime Book / published by arrangement with the author

Copyright © 1997 by Margaret Coel.

Penguin supports copyright. Copyright fuels creativity, encourages diverse voices, promotes free speech, and creates a vibrant culture. Thank you for buying an authorized edition of this book and for complying with copyright laws by not reproducing, scanning, or distributing any part of it in any form without permission. You are supporting writers and allowing Penguin to continue to publish books for every reader.

BERKLEY® PRIME CRIME and the PRIME CRIME logo are trademarks of Penguin Group (USA) LLC.

For more information, visit
penguin.com
.

eBook ISBN: 978-1-101-66364-6

PUBLISHING HISTORY

Berkley Prime Crime hardcover edition / October 1997

Berkley Prime Crime mass-market edition / September 1998

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Version_1

For George, Kristie, Lisa, and Tom

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

My thanks to Ron Ross and Jo Clark of the Western Governors Association for pointing the way through the intricacies of interim nuclear waste storage facilities;

to Dr. Virginia Sutter of the Arapaho tribe for sharing with me much invaluable insight into her culture;

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