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Detective Fiction, Native American Peoples - Fiction & Literature, Multicultural Detectives - Fiction, Westerns, Police Stories
The Tumbler by Peter Bowen — book cover

The Tumbler

by Peter Bowen
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Overview

Gabriel Du Pré, the old Métis fiddler at the center of Peter Bowen's atmospheric, engrossing series set in the dirty, dusty Montana that's rarely featured in travel brochures, has a knack for finding trouble. Or rather, trouble has a knack for finding him. There's a rumor going around that Du Pré and his old sorceror friend Benetsee have come across a parcel containing the lost journals of Lewis and Clark, and outsiders, drawn by the spirit of the legendary explorers, are beginning to invade Toussaint.

Du Pré won't say whether he's got the journals or not, preferring his usual routine of cigarettes, a whiskey ditch or two and a few fiddling gigs up and down Montana's highways to getting involved in this controversy. Benetsee isn't talking, either, but when a journalist goes a little too far in trying to get the story of the lost journals, and the two men's friends and family are put squarely in the face of danger, Du Pré doesn't have much choice but to wade in and set things right.

The Gabriel Du Pré mysteries have become required reading for fans of the vanishing West, and Peter Bowen's storytelling talent continues to thrive in The Tumbler, a dazzling entry in what has become a classic series.

About the Author, Peter Bowen

Peter Bowen, a Montanan, writes of the West. Cowboy, hunting and fishing guide, folksinger, poet, essayist, and novelist, he's written the picaresque Yellowstone Kelly historical novels, humor columns and essays on blood sport as Coyote Jack, and the Gabriel Du Pré mysteries, in part because "the Métis are a great people, a wonderful people, and not many Americans know anything about them."

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Editorials

Publishers Weekly

Distinctive characters and the rich Montana setting lift Bowen's Gabriel Du Pr adventure, the 11th (after 2003's Badlands) to feature the Metis-Indian tracker. Billionaire Markham Millbank wants to buy the journals of explorer Meriwether Lewis, allegedly found by Du Pr while looking into the disappearance of some Missouri River boaters in 2001's Cruzatte and Maria. Du Pr refuses either to acknowledge or produce the priceless material, and scornfully tosses to the ground envelopes filled with money he receives from Millbank. An increasingly ominous cloud hangs over the Toussaint Saloon, where Du Pr hangs out and sometimes plays the fiddle. When a fellow musician and a friend's niece are attacked, Du Pr must admit the seriousness of the situation. Nosing around between fiddling, drinking "ditchwater" highballs and receiving counsel from his wise longtime love, Madelaine Placquemines, Du Pr is soon at the heart of a murder case that's not what it seems. The author's prose including unusual punctuation and speech rhythms may take some getting used to for the uninitiated. Yet the lure of Du Pr and his cronies is not in Bowen's sometimes elliptical language but in the texture of the storytelling, soaked in folklore, mysticism and wry humor in the face of human folly. (Apr. 7) FYI: Bowen is also the author of Kelly and the Three-toed Horse (2001) and three other titles in his Yellowstone Kelly series. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Gabriel Du Pre (Badlands) becomes involved in the quest for a likely treasure-the long-lost journal of Lewis and Clark-when outsiders endanger his friends and family. Frontierlike Western settings and unique characterizations recommend this addition to all collections. Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Book Details

Published
April 2, 2004
Publisher
Saint Martin's Press Inc.
Pages
224
Format
Hardcover
ISBN
9780312277338

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