A Thief of Time

Blurb

A Thief of Time is the eighth crime fiction novel Joe Leaphorn / Jim Chee Navajo Tribal Police series by Tony Hillerman, first published in 1988.
The story involves the lure of the thousand-year-old Anasazi ruins, a missing anthropologist, a stolen backhoe, people who steal ancient pots on reservation land and human ambition. Chee is pulled into the case by the stolen backhoe, while Leaphorn, now a widow, follows the trail of ancient pots bought and sold.
This novel won the Macavity Award for Best Novel in 1989 and was nominated for two others: The Edgar Award and the Anthony Award. It was adapted for television as part of the PBS Mystery! series in 2004.