Cover image of "The Way of the Bear," a novel about fossil hunters in Navajo lands

When Tony Hillerman died at the age of 83 in 2008, he left behind an extensive literary legacy that included the 18 books in his award-series of Navajo detective novels. The Leaphorn and Chee books won him plaudits throughout the world and made him a wealthy man. Five years later, his daughter, Anne Hillerman, an established author in her own right, published the first of what is to date 10 books in a continuation series. The focus shifts from Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee to Chee and his wife, Bernadette (“Bernie”) Manuelito. The couple now work as a team. And in the eighth book in the continuation series (and the 26th of them all), they stumble into a series of baffling events away from their home in northwestern New Mexico. The Way of the Bear is a worthy addition to this outstanding series that celebrates Navajo culture.

A tense story opens fast

Bernie Manuelito has driven down to a picturesque spot in the Bears Ears National Monument to watch the sunset. But there’s something amiss there. Someone has defaced ancient petroglyphs, and there is an unusual scattering of pottery shards nearby. Then she hears a rifle shot. Investigating, someone in a large pickup tries to run her down. As she runs, more rifle shots ring out. Fearing for her life, Bernie manages to escape, returning to her car. Clearly, somebody doesn’t want her to know what’s going on at the site of the defaced ancient art. Thus begins a suspenseful and engaging new Chee and Manuelito police procedural.

The Way of the Bear (Leaphorn, Chee & Manuelito #26) by Anne Hillerman (2023) 281 pages ★★★★☆

Photo of promotional image for the TV series about this series of novels, including this one about fossil hunters in Navajo lands
Promotion for the “Dark Winds” television series, which has run on Netflix since 2022. Image: IMdB

What’s going on here?

This story unfolds in the Bears Ears region of Utah. There, Bernie’s husband, Lt. Jim Chee, meets in a sweat lodge with a Navajo elder. He’s able to make the trip, and take Bernie with him, because he’s on assignment from their new boss. His job is to accept a large donation from a wealthy and eccentric paleontologist, Dr. Chapman Dulles, for the Navajo Nation’s Fallen Officers Memorial Fund. But what begins as a working getaway quickly turns life-threatening for Bernie.

After her escape from the onrushing truck, complications quickly ensue. Bernie comes upon a woman about to give birth in a car by the side of the road on her return to meet JIm. Then a seasoned outdoorsman and well-known paleontologist is found frozen to death within walking distance of his car. Meanwhile, at Chapman Dulles’s house, an unidentified corpse turns up on the front porch. Someone has broken into the house—and Dulles has disappeared. Unsurprisingly, this is all too much for the local police.

Somehow, Chee and Bernie must untangle a web involving fossil harvesting, ancient lore, greed, rejected love, and murder. And it’s all complicated by an approaching blizzard and spotty cell service. A fossilized skull worth millions that Dulles has treasured is at the heart of the mystery.

Beyond the crime plot, the novel explores Bernie and Chee’s private preoccupations. Chee is intent on training as a Hatááłii, a practitioner of traditional Navajo healing ceremonies. Bernie is struggling to balance the demands of her career with the police with obligations to her mother and sister. And she’s deeply troubled by having been passed over for a slot as a detective. The Way of the Bear also raises pointed questions about the fate of fossils discovered on public lands that remain sacred to Indigenous peoples.

About the author

Photo of Anne Hillerman, author of this novel about fossil hunters in Navajo lands
Anne HIllerman. Image: New York Times

Anne Hillerman continued her father’s series of Joe Leaphorn-Jim Chee novels following his death, adding officer Bernadette Manuelito as a full partner in solving the crimes. Born in 1949 and educated at the University of New Mexico, she began adult life as a journalist. Her first books were about travel in her state. She published the first in her 10 books to date in the series in 2013.

I’ve reviewed only one of the previous novels in this long-running series. The author is Anne HIllerman’s father: Dance Hall of the Dead (Leaphorn and Chee #2) by Tony Hillerman (Navajo Police investigate a shocking murder).

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