The Last Ranger by Peter Heller

THE LAST RANGER is another mystery adventure story set near Yellowstone National Park written by Peter Heller (The River, Celine, and other best-sellers). It honestly took a little while to get into this story, but Heller’s writing is so descriptive and enjoyable that readers will ultimately feel as though the characters have become friends. In some ways that parallels the learning about the “lone wolf” and the sense of community which develops in packs. Hilly is a biologist who studies the local wolves, numbering rather than naming them, but still becoming attached and indirectly educating readers about their habits. Les Ingraham is a sometimes violent tracker with a checkered past and who, along with suspected terrorists, projects a threatening presence. Ren Hopper is the ranger, an arbitrator who investigates disturbances over campsites, handles traffic snarls, and rescue tourists from too close encounters with wild animals; “it was utterly draining, keeping the peace in one remote valley.” Despite beautiful, awe-inspiring nature, Ren often experiences anger or loneliness and muses about life (“Is this what happened as life went on? You got less sure about everything?”). THE LAST RANGER is a book to savor, just like the toasts Heller shares with his readers: from Hilly: “To life. … One part wonder, three parts pain.” Or from Ren and his friend Ray who “raised his cup: ‘Love, money, and the time to enjoy them.’”