Arikaree War Cry

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Lee's ( Hawks of Autumn ) latest western rises well above the genre's average. The action, which begins immediately and never lets up, centers on Dain Talmage, a Kansas farmer who is new to the frontier. After raiding Cheyenne Indians kill his brother-in-law and kidnap his sister and nephew, Talmage joins an expedition of volunteer scouts led by U.S. Calvary officers to pursue the war party, rescue survivors and exact revenge. The raids and the makeshift military response are based on actual events; in both the novel and history, the resulting battle on a sandbar island, ill-conceived and heroic on both sides, left many dead. Among the casualties was famous Cheyenne war leader Roman Nose, and Lee's vivid portrait of him here is consonant with historical records. Lee balances his depictions of Indians and settlers by shifting the narrative focus between the two opposing groups. The dialogue is stilted at times, as in this observation made about a man of mixed ancestry: ``Jed Wolfcry is more Indian than we think. but the story remains a captivating read. (May)