by C. J. Box
Part of Joe Pickett, book 14.5
First published 2014
Game warden Joe Pickett faces off against a hostile landowner at a remote one-car bridge, setting off a chain of events with devastating consequences. In another case, Pickett investigates a mysterious radio call that nearly becomes his final assignment. These dangers represent just two of the ten stories collected here, three appearing in print for the first time. The collection also follows two Eastern European criminals who discover that Yellowstone operates by different rules than they expected. In Paris, a Lakota man entertains French women by playing up stereotypes about noble savages until he encounters Sophie and learns what savage truly means. Each story explores characters pushed to their limits, whether they are law enforcement officers, criminals, or ordinary people caught in extraordinary circumstances. The tales reveal how quickly situations can turn deadly and how people respond when everything they thought they knew gets stripped away.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, action
Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water
Setting: Yellowstone, Paris
Period: 21st-century
269 pages · Hardcover · G.P. Putnam's Sons
Content warnings: violence