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Series · mystery
Wind River Mysteries
The Wind River Mysteries series by Margaret Coel has 20 books and is best read in publication order, starting with The Eagle Catcher (1995).
- Books
- 20 books
- First published
- 1995
- Status
- completed
- Last checked
Start here: The Eagle Catcher (1995) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The order the books were released — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
The Eagle Catcher
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Eagle Catcher - Book 2:
The Ghost Walker
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Ghost Walker - Book 3:
The Dream Stalker
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Dream Stalker - Book 4:
The Lost Bird
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Lost Bird - Book 5:
The Story Teller
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Story Teller - Book 6:
The Spirit Woman
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Spirit Woman - Book 7:
The Thunder Keeper
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Thunder Keeper - Book 8:
The Shadow Dancer
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Shadow Dancer - Book 9:
Killing Raven
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Killing Raven - Book 10:
Wife of Moon
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Wife of Moon - Book 11:
Eye of the Wolf
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Eye of the Wolf - Book 12:
The Drowning Man
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Drowning Man - Book 13:
The Girl with Braided Hair
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Girl with Braided Hair - Book 14:
The Silent Spirit
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Silent Spirit - Book 15:
The Spider's Web
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Spider's Web - Book 16:
Buffalo Bill's Dead Now
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Buffalo Bill's Dead Now - Book 17:
Killing Custer
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Killing Custer - Book 18:
Night of the White Buffalo
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Night of the White Buffalo - Book 19:
The Man Who Fell from the Sky
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Man Who Fell from the Sky - Book 20:
Winter's Child
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Winter's Child
About the Wind River Mysteries series
The Wind River mysteries follow Vicky Holden, an Arapaho lawyer who returned to Wyoming's Wind River Reservation after a career in Denver, and Father John O'Malley, the Jesuit priest at the reservation's St. Francis Mission, as an investigative partnership that spans twenty novels. Each book pairs a contemporary crime -- often rooted in reservation politics, land and oil rights, or buried family history -- with the real cultural and historical texture of the Arapaho community and the Wind River Reservation itself, drawing on Margaret Coel's own background as a historian of the American West.
Vicky and John's relationship is the series' emotional throughline: a deep partnership complicated by his vows and her own past, that develops gradually and unevenly across two decades of books without ever resolving into a conventional romance. Coel researched the reservation directly over the years she wrote the series, and the books are frequently cited for their respectful, closely observed depiction of Arapaho life alongside their traditional mystery plotting.
Frequently asked questions
Who are the main characters in the Wind River mysteries?
Vicky Holden, an Arapaho lawyer, and Father John O'Malley, a Jesuit priest at the Wind River Reservation's St. Francis Mission, investigating crimes together across the series.
How many books are in the Wind River series?
Twenty, published from 1995 to 2016.
Do I need to read the Wind River books in order?
Each mystery is largely self-contained, but Vicky and John's relationship and personal histories build across the series, so reading in publication order gives the fullest picture.
If you like the Wind River Mysteries series
Reading order last verified .