Wisdom Corner is the second in the Virgil Wounded Horse mystery series. Like its predecessor, Winter Counts, it is set on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota and picks up where that novel left off. Virgil has become an “enforcer,” administering justice when the federal government and Bureau of Indian Affairs refuse to take on cases. Under the influence of his girlfriend, Marie Short Bear, he is moving toward a more balanced life (giving up the enforcement, quitting smoking, cutting back on his drinking, and taking in his orphaned nephew to raise). He remains a deeply flawed but admirable character.
The Virgil Wounded Horse mystery series, like Tony and Anne Hillerman’s Navajo mysteries, gives readers an accurate photograph of contemporary life on the reservation while deftly handling historical themes such as genocide, land reclamation, and boarding schools. One of the most moving scenes in Wisdom Corner is when Virgil, in an attempt to find the grave of an aunt, reads the names off the gravestones at the school, some with as little information as female child, male child, or infant. These remains were never returned to their families after the children’s deaths. Weiden combines a hard-biting thriller with social commentary in a way few authors are able. I’ll definitely continue reading this series as more are released.
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Wisdom Corner (Ecco, July 7, 2026) is available through:
Your local independent bookseller | Amazon | Barnes & Noble
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You can read my review of Winter Counts here.
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