A Nose for Trouble

I enjoyed the book but it isn’t one of my favorites by Jim Kjelgaard. Most of the time his books make you stop and smell the flowers, or rather feel the beauty of the wild, and I didn’t feel that so much in this book. It was interesting to think of a time when ‘mountain men’ had to change their ways and abide by limits and hunting seasons enforced by a few game wardens. Also, interesting to think of that time from the game wardens perspective. The hunt for the poacher Black Elk was predictable, but the hunt to catch him and his cohorts was enjoyable.

The dog in the book had a good enough part, not too over the top, but good. The dog ‘Smoky’ was described this way:

It was a large, tawny hound, smoke-gray in color. One of its show more dangling ears had been ripped and was almost healed. Tom looked wonderingly at it. Its outward confirmation was similar to the Plott hounds that made up old Bill’s pack, but it was not a Plott hound. Its jowls were very heavy, and overhung the lower jaw in leathery folds. On the sad-looking face, tan relieved the hounds smoky-gray color. show less

I enjoyed the book but it isn’t one of my favorites by Jim Kjelgaard. Most of the time his books make you stop and smell the flowers, or rather feel the beauty of the wild, and I didn’t feel that so much in this book. It was interesting to think of a time when ‘mountain men’ had to change their ways and abide by limits and hunting seasons enforced by a few game wardens. Also, interesting to think of that time from the game wardens perspective. The hunt for the poacher Black Elk was predictable, but the hunt to catch him and his cohorts was enjoyable.

The dog in the book had a good enough part, not too over the top, but good. The dog ‘Smoky’ was described this way:

It was a large, tawny hound, smoke-gray in color. One of its show more dangling ears had been ripped and was almost healed. Tom looked wonderingly at it. Its outward confirmation was similar to the Plott hounds that made up old Bill’s pack, but it was not a Plott hound. Its jowls were very heavy, and overhung the lower jaw in leathery folds. On the sad-looking face, tan relieved the hounds smoky-gray color. show less

Tom Rainse really has no business buying a horse. His trip to Tanner’s Mountain is only scheduled to last a few days – just long enough for him to pick up his gear from his former home and high-tail it back to California where he’s been livin’ for the last five years. But this horse… a beautiful white pinto with black splotches…. Surely Fred Larsen will give him the horse for cheap, and when he’s done with him, he can give him to Bill Tolliver. Tolliver can appreciate good horseflesh.

But Larsen is inclined to be suspicious. He loads a passel of questions off on Rainse: Who is he? Why is he here? How long will he be staying? Gone is the simple trust that once prevailed in Hilldale. Rainse knows that something is different show more on his mountain, something is wrong. But what can it be? He intends to find out.

It turns out that a ring of poachers led by the dangerous man who identifies himself as Black Elk – a man not known by any but his followers – has been ruthless in its devastation of the wildlife on Tanner’s Mountain. In defiance of the gaming statutes and the residing warden, this ring openly kills and commercially sells the pelts of deer, beaver, and elk.

But not any more. Rainse, in retaliation to a threat, has decided to join the warden, Buck Brunt, in his pursuit of these outlaws. With the help of his new dog, Smoky, and his pinto, Pete, Rainse’s outfit begins to stalk the poachers. As the stakes fly high, will Rainse and Smoky pull through? Will they capture the poachers or be razed down as the evil doers continue to exploit the mountain?

Conclusion. A Nose for Trouble was a delight to read; it was long enough to be well-developed, but not so long that it dragged.

Visit The Blithering Bookster to read more reviews!

www.blitheringbookster.com show less

After a five year absence, Tom arrives back in his old mountain town, intent on just catching up, not staying long. After acquiring a horse, and being adopted by a half Bloodhound named Smokey, things get interesting...
Someone is decimating wildlife populations, and it's up to Tom and Smokey to "read the signs" in order to catch the perpetrators. Good, above average read by this author.