The Bone Finder by Peggy Blair
Reviewed by James M. Fisher
The stones of the rubble floor from the fieldstones pushed uncomfortably through the thin soles of his running shoes. There was a rusted hay bale hook lying on the stone floor and what appeared to be dried blood splattered–practically splashed–against one weathered-grey wall.
He thought of what Nick Morgan said: It looked like a slaughterhouse.
Charlie used his flashlight to examine the interior of the barn more closely. A corroded pitchfork and a metal shovel were leaning in the corner. Both had what could be rust or dried blood on them. Maybe both.
“Find them for me, Annie” Charlie said to the dog. “Find the bones.”
Peggy Blair’s The Bone-Finder is the second title I have read from her ReBound Press publishing house. The other was Stephen Randle’s Trace Evidence. ReBound specializes in publishing mysteries, thrillers, and crime fiction by Canadian authors.
Ms. Blair is an award-winning author, and this was the first time I have ever read one of her books. The cover of The Bone-Finder depicts a silhouette of a man holding a rifle with a dog by his side. I remember thinking, “I hope the dog doesn’t die!” (Spoiler alert: he doesn’t)
In a nutshell, the story is set in the fictitious Manomin Bay First Nation in Northern Ontario. Bill Wabigoon, the chief, has asked the Canadian government to investigate the possible murder of two Ojibway boys back in the 1970s. Charlie Pike, a member of the same First Nation, but working with the Rideau Regional Police (also fictitious) in Ottawa, has been seconded to the RCMP to lead the investigation using Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) technology to find the burial site, as described by a witness to the alleged murders.
What Pike finds —or stumbles into— though, is a corpse in a burned out pickup, an injured dog, Indigenous/Federal politics, a possible lithium mine (on treaty land) and a witness that cannot keep her stories and facts straight due to accumulated trauma. “The shock of those who will never completely recover from traumas planted deeply in childhood”, to borrow a phrase from Emily Weedon.
It’s a busy, but entirely balanced story that Ms. Blair has put together. Her career in Indigenous law, real estate, and boxing(!) serves her well in filling in aspects of the story that other authors would have spent considerable time researching. There is a very detailed ballistics account that dives a little too deep for me, but anyone with an interest in firearms would appreciate it.
Aside from Charlie Pike, there are other characters such as the local OPP Sergeant Pete Bissonette, his new constable John Bailey, and Charlie’s childhood friend Sheldon Waubasking. Charlie Pike previously appeared in Hungry Ghosts (2023).
I found The Bone-Finder to be a brisk, but satisfying read with little to no distracting elements to the story. There is a date or two Charlie has with the local veterinarian, and there’s Jamie Wallace, his police partner back in Ottawa that he has feelings for, but Charlie Pike has nothing on James Bond in the romance department. Charlie is a smart and keen investigator, a good listener who picks up on inconsistencies in stories and timelines and uses them to formulate his theories. A very likeable character with a lot of potential.
There must be hundreds, if not thousands, of mysteries and police procedurals printed every year, worldwide. But if you’re looking for a 100% Canadian story published by an independent Canadian press, then The Bone-Finder and the other titles at ReBound Press certainly fills the bill.
“I consider Peggy Blair to be a force of storytelling.” — Waubgeshig Rice
About the Author
Peggy Blair was a lawyer for more than thirty years, most of which she spent working with First Nations. She has a doctorate in Indigenous law and is named in Canadian Who’s Who. A renovator, artist, and Level 6 boxer, she is perhaps best known for her #DearestMartha tweets during the Freedom Convoy. She lives just outside Ottawa with a friendly cat and a TV-watching dog.
About the Reviewer
James M. Fisher is the Editor-in-Chief of The Seaboard Review of Books. He resides in Miramichi, New Brunswick, with his wife, Diane, their tabby cat, Eddie, and Buster, their Border Collie. James also works as an MRI technologist at the Miramichi Hospital.
Book Details
ISBN: 978-0-9919236-8-7
Publication Date: May 2025
Type: Trade Paperback
Pages: 340
Dimensions: 8.5” x 5’5”