Home Range

"We've got company," Robert said. "Two different groups." All three raised their binoculars. "There" said Jo, pointing. "

When Dr. Jo Settle, a Michigan Tech University biology professor, becomes involved with PhD student Robert Peterson, she is unaware of his scheme to steal and relocate two packs of wolves from Wisconsin to a wilderness area in West Virginia. But events quickly spin out of control, thrusting Jo from the placid groves of academe into a terrifying battle of wits and weaponry in the Appalachian coal country.

Jo's brother Cal, a Civil War park docent recovering from failure in both his marriage and the dot-com bubble, tries to help his sister navigate the treacherous dilemma with Robert. Jo's mentor, Theo Rosenbloom, head of Tech's biology department, and Robert's lifelong friend Hassan, a second-generation Arab American, also become caught up in Robert's intrigue.

"Home Range" combines a page-turning crime novel with a sober environmental sensitivity. Driving the plot are issues from today's news:

What does it mean to be an immigrant in America? In fact, who is a native and who is an American? Do we have a duty to protect native species and our environment? And what do we lose for ourselves and our descendants if we don't?