Full Curl

Dave Butler might have somewhat over-dramatized the normal life of an animal warden in his novel, “Full Curl,” but that’s okay. There are so many police procedurals floating around the book world these days there’s a need to find new careers that might have a dog in the fight.

Jenny Willson is the no-nonsense protagonist of this initial entry in a series that will feature her and her glorious wilderness in stories to come. In “Curl,” she is outraged by the poaching deaths of some of the protected wildlife in the magnificent Canadian Rockies, animals she is sworn to protect. An unscrupulous guide has taken on a client who is greedy, vicious, and deeply dedicated to filling out his dead-eyed statuary display with the bodies of all the major wild animals he can murder. Willson is just as devoted to making sure the killing ends and that both the guide and the hunter will have their hides stretched out on some wall instead.

The story follows the steps necessary to bring all the loose ends of animal protection together, get all the details in proper alignment, and to get handcuffs and prison garb on the miscreants. Subterfuge, secrets, terror, and eventually murder are obstacles that the stubborn and inventive Willson must climb over as she attempts to put a stop to the senseless killing.

It is obvious that the author is convinced he has more stories to tell. Several ideas are casually thrown about in his story that will, no doubt, be worked out in the future and I will be watching for them because I enjoyed his heroine, her sidekicks, and the beautiful scenic writing he was able to develop.