Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett has a new house, a new job and a new truck. Unfortunately, the same trouble and danger that abounds in his life over and over once again rears it’s ugly head. This time Joe investigate a drone that is illegally harassing the wildlife in his district. His investigation leads him to unforeseen complications which put his life, and those of his loved ones, in jeopardy.

Box’s writing is consistently excellent, fast-paced and entertaining. The descriptions of the Wyoming wilderness captivate and draw the reader in. The character development is outstanding. I particularly enjoy reading about Nate Romanowski, Joe’s falconer friend, who is like a fictional, real life super hero. His antics always impress me and I love reading about the very odd and unlikely friendship that he and Joe share. I recommend this series for anyone who loves contemporary mysteries, and especially to fans of Paul Doiron and Nevada Barr.

Many thanks to Netgalley, G. P. Putnam’s Sons and C. J. Box for my complimentary e-copy ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Joe PIckett is back and this time he's fighting a drone and the FBI. His daughter Lucy is dating the "bad guys" son, so things are complicated.

C.J. Box has written a slew of books, most of them in the Joe Pickett series. Wolf Pack is Box’s latest novel, and I think readers can jump right into it with no confusion.

The main character, Joe Pickett, is a Wyoming Fish and Game Warden. He’s had some issues in past books, even lost his job the last one (The Disappeared), but now he’s back-- and has landed in the middle of a modern-day crisis. Someone is using large drones to herd animals for trophy hunters, killing hundreds in the process.

When Joe confronts the drone operator, the FBI and DOJ both ask him not-too-nicely to back off of prosecution, which makes Joe suspicious. To complicate matters, the drone belongs to a mysterious and wealthy man whose son is dating Joe’s own daughter, Lucy.
Meanwhile, bodies are piling up in and around Joe’s district in alarming numbers. A pack of vicious killers have come to his district, doing contract work for the Sinaloa Cartel. Their target seems to be the mystery drone owner, as well as anyone associated with him.
Teaming up with a female game warden (based on a real person, one of the few female game wardens working in Wyoming) to confront these assassins, Joe finds himself in the most violent and dangerous predicament he's ever faced.

They get help from Joe’s best friend, falconer Nate Romanowski, a recurring character with a checkered past, who has now become a respectable businessman, employing his falcons for avian pest control. But Nate still travels with his gun in his truck. Of course he will need it -- there’s a high body count in Wolf Pack and more violence than is the norm in this series. That violence has bothered some readers, but I wasn’t one of them (but I also love Game of Thrones, so that hints at my tolerance for high death tolls in a book).

C.J. Box has a knack for nailing personalities in just a few sentences and then developing them into believable, fully-rounded characters. Joe Pickett is a decent man who lives paycheck to paycheck and who is deeply fond of his wife and daughters. He’s a lousy shot and he doesn’t talk much. He isn’t especially remarkable except for his honesty (his friend Nate calls him “Dudley-Do-Right”). But he’s also no one’s fool, and underestimating him is a mistake.

You’ll like Joe and the other characters, and if you enjoy thrillers set “in the wild,” I think you’ll enjoy all the books in this large series. C.J. Box his lived the life he writes about. He has worked on ranches and exploration survey crews, been a fishing guide and hunter, and learned first-hand about the beauty, cruelty, and balance of the natural worlds. It was fascinating to learn about the value of antlers, as well as the unscrupulous and malicious behavior of collectors. Box weaves underlying themes from today’s environmental and political events into his thrillers without his readers feeling like we’re being lectured about a “cause.”

That’s the sign of a deft plotter, and I have yet to predict or be bored by a C.J. Box novel. If you enjoy reading thrillers, or stories set in the wild regions of the American West, try Wolf Pack. You’ll find it difficult to put down.

I do not hunt and I no longer fish. In fact, as my hunting friends are aware, I do not approve of hunting, and I am appalled at the inhumane way steer are slaughtered in commercial slaughterhouses. Nonetheless, I love C.J. Box’s Joe Pickett mysteries, which are about Wyoming Game Warden, Joe Pickett and his friends and family in Wyoming. Why is that? Because author C.J. Box makes clear that lawful hunting is, to the extent it is able to be, humane, and Joe Pickett has nothing but contempt for those who break the law by leaving carcasses, by hunting off season, and by killing nursing mothers and their young.

His writing also is very good. Few writers are able to match Box’s ability to describe a sunrise or the beauty of a Pronghorn family or the evil inside a human being who kills an animal without allowing that animal to be part of the food chain, or who kills a human for sport. Such evil is skillfully depicted in Wolf Pack, as is the heroism of the Game Wardens protecting humans and wildlife within their districts.

WOLF PACK (LicInv/Game Warder-Joe Pike-Wyoming-Contemp) - Ex
Box, C.J. – 19th in series
G.P. Putnam's Sons – March 2019
First Sentence: For Wyoming Game Warden Katelyn Hamm, April really was the cruelest month.
Game Warden Joe Pike has his job back, a new house, and another new truck. He and neighboring game warden Katelyn Hamm also have a big problem with someone using a large drone to kill herds of animals. It becomes more complicated when Joe learns that Lucy, one of his daughters is dating the son of the very wealthy man named Hill who owns the drone, and when Joe receives orders from above to leave Hill alone. The drone is the least of the problems when it is suspected that four killers, known as the Wolf Pack, of the Sinaloa cartel, are in the area, and are after Hill and anyone who gets in their way.
One always learns new things when reading Box. It's fascinating to know about the value of antlers and the horrible damaged to a herd of deer caused by unscrupulous antler collectors. It's an industry with regulations of which we would not otherwise know.
Box creates such fascinating characters. Certainly, there are the recurring characters of Joe, his family, falconer Nate Romanowski and his now pregnant fiancé Liz, but it's extra nice to have the female game warder of Katelyn. Joe is such a well-constructed character. That he and his wife Marybeth have such a strong relationship and partnership where she, at times, provides Joe with informational assistance, gives further dimension to both characters. Although Nate may refer to him as "Dudley-Do-Right," Joe is no one's fool. Underestimating him is a mistake and things can get " Western" very quickly. On the other side, the head of the Wolf Pack is as nasty a character as nasty can get.
From the very start, Box creates a sense of threat. The plot is as one is on a roller-coaster ride. There are fairly gentle rises and falls, then huge escalations, heart-stopping drops, flat runs for relief, and then we're off again. Box knows how to plot. He's an expert at linking aspects of the story together in ways one doesn't expect. Even seemingly innocent scenes have an overlay of danger to them. The escalation of tension is palpable to the point where one may even mutter "No, don't go." as if watching a movie. One is definitely never bored.
"Wolf Pack is a high-energy, edge-of-seat book. There is divine retribution and an ending that is very emotional and somewhat bittersweet. Fair warning that this book is more violent, with more bodies, than some of the past books in the series, but it's an excellent read.

WOLF PACK: A Joe Pickett Novel
C.J. Box
Putnam Books
ISBN 978-0-525-53819-6
Hardcover
Thriller

C.J. Box has conceived, constructed, and delivered as terrific a series as one is likely to find in the Joe Pickett novels. Pickett is an iconic Wyoming game warden who regards his position not so much a job as a calling with the creatures, dangerous and otherwise, under his care second in importance only to his family. The newly published WOLF PACK finds Box yet again at his best as he presents an explosive and hair-raising tale, set in the contemporary west, where the modern world and all of its problems collide with nature in a memorable and unforgettable tableau.

WOLF PACK finds Pickett in the driver’s seat of his life in a manner such that we haven’t seen in quite a while, if ever. He has his job back, a new home, and (as is often the case) a new truck to replace a damaged or totaled old one. Pickett and his wife, stalwart and patient Maribeth, are also on the cusp of becoming empty nesters. Meanwhile, Nate Romanowski, Joe’s very capable and very dangerous friend, has an announcement which is all but certain to change his own life forever. The seeming domestic in the Pickett household, however, is not to last. Katelyn Hamm, a game warden in the territory adjacent to Pickett’s, spots an anomaly while on patrol in the rustic and primitive area that she calls her own. That would be a drone which is harassing the wildlife in the area with deadly effect. The drone invades Katelyn’s territory and then retreats into Joe’s. A bit of sharp investigative detective work leads Joe to what amounts to a compound of sorts which also ties into one of Joe’s own investigations into a hunter of sorts who has been abandoning traps in the area, putting but animals and human beings at risk. The folks occupying the compound include a man named Bill Hill, a stranger to the area who freely admits that he has been operating the drone but isn’t troubled by any potential consequences. Ironically enough, Hill’s son is dating Joe’s youngest daughter, a situation which puts Joe’s happy home life in a somewhat precarious position. Joe, of course, is driven to do the right thing regardless of consequence. He becomes doubly determined to do so when a pair of east coast FBI agents show up and begin throwing the might and majesty of the Federal Government at Joe as well as Kaitlyn, telling them to stand down with regard to Hill over what they regard to be a minor violation, at best. Meanwhile, a path of violence and destruction beginning several hundred miles to the west of Wyoming is making its way toward Joe and his patch in the form of four mysterious strangers --- the Wolf Pack of the title --- who seem at odds with the world and who will stop at nothing to complete their mission, killing everyone in their path along the way. Things get really “western,” if you will, in the final fourth of the book when the murderous quartet arrives in Wyoming and all of the moving parts which Box has ever-so-skillfully assembled throughout the WOLF PACK effectively come together for an explosive conclusion that echoes beyond the last paragraph of the book.

Box is one of fiction’s most honored authors and WOLF PACK is a stellar example of why this is so. His combination of iconic and memorable characters and descriptive exotic backdrops is shot through with a plot containing several layers of irony. All of it resonates resoundingly from the first page to the last, at which point the reader is both fully satisfied yet wanting more. Those who have been on the Pickett ride know what I am talking about. Those who are new to the character and the author have a wonderful experience in store. Strongly recommended.

Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
© Copyright 2019, The Book Report, Inc. All rights reserved.

What a thriller. I was not familiar with the Joe Pickett oeuvre but I will be tracking down this series from now on. I started the book expecting a mystery with a setting of great natural beauty. What I got was a heart pounding page turner with a setting of great natural beauty. I had only one complaint of the story, namely why these lawmen and women didn’t realize they had stumbled into a witness protection situation? It was certainly obvious to me, and their ignorance made them look woefully incompetent. I won’t complain too much, however, since those last 50 pages were some of the best action I’ve read in quite awhile. My hat’s off to C. J. Box for providing some great entertainment.

Joe Pickett is among my favorite characters in suspense novels because he is a fully rounded figure, with a wife and two daughters who typically play a role in this fine series. "Wolf Pack" continues Box's streak as best-selling author whose books are both page-turners and interesting commentaries on life in the American West.

Joe Pickett is the model law enforcement officer. C.J. Box brings his investigations to life and makes the reader feel like he's there. Wolf Pack was an exceptional book.

I have been counting the days for CJ Box to release a new Joe Pickett, since attending his appearance/Author Night at St. Louis County, MO Library last year for Disappeared. As a librarian, I have recommended him to many friends and patrons that we have Joe and Nate talks. I was ecstatic to get an advanced copy. I already have shelf prepped and ready and told library patrons that Wolf Pack is coming. Many are rereading the previous books in the series in anticipation.

I started reading and I could not stop-- read it all i 1 sitting with water next to me to keep me going. I love these characters, feel like family to me, and I am catching up with them.

I dream of living there! I want these characters as friends and neighbors- I feel like a part of the community through CJ Box's descriptive words.

I have some samples of the descriptions that I will check in released copy before sharing.

I highly highly recommend this book and this series!

cJ Box once again writes a great mystery! I flew through the last half of the book. It’s a great read and a great ride.

Once again C.J. Box has penned a winner, all the more remarkable that it’s the 19th in the Joe Pickett series. A mix of good character development and an interesting and action packed plot combine to make The Wolf Pack hard to put down. Fans of the series will line up for it, but it can be read as a stand-alone as well. It’s sure to garner more fans. I await Box’s next book with much anticipation.

Wolf Pack is the latest in C.J. Box's great Joe Pickett series. Although it is part of a large series, it can be read alone. Joe Pickett is as always a relatable character who always tries to do the right thing. Most of the supporting cast from the previous books appear as well as a couple new faces. Highly recommended for any C.J. Box fans or for a great series to start. Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for letting me review a advance copy.

Once again CJ Box has written a book that I can’t put down. Also it makes me rethink issues that are at the forefront in the United States and the impact it could have in rural America.
I’m enjoying Nate expanding his life and what is going on with him!

It pains me to call this is a minor work in C.J. Box's career and Joe Pickett's story, but it's still a Recommend for his fans, with just enough ball movement on the Pickett family (and Nate's) story and just enough plot to tide us over until the next installment. After the deliberate set-up of the plot--one of Box's strengths--and what was built up as one of his best villains--and a gripping, sprawling action sequence set on courthouse steps--the ending felt rushed. All that said, Box's lesser tales offer more depth and detail than the best works of most authors and this avid fan is already Googling for intel on when he can expect the next Pickett update. (And Box's next book, fortunately already on the release schedule.)

Another first rate book by CJ Box. I have read all the books in the series and anxiously await each new novel. I love how the characters develop throughout the series. Have to give it to the author....didn't predict the ending of this one! No spoilers but I will be curious to see how the next book plays out. Our library will definitely be purchasing this one. Thank you to the publisher for the advanced copy.

With the help of the Joe Pickett’s old pal, the ex-governor of Wyoming as his attorney, Joe manages to get his old job back as game warden as well as a new state owned home and yet another new pickup truck as part of the settlement.
Back at work, Joe receives a tip from the game warden in the adjacent district that a reclusive drone hobbyist is spooking the wildlife then photographing the deadly results. The hobbyist happens to be the father of Lucy’s boyfriend. Lucy is Joe’s youngest daughter and last one still living at home. The drone hobbyist, Joe quickly learns is also of great interest to and under protection of the Federal government. To Joe the Witness Protection Program does not excuse abusing wildlife on his turf. He calls on his buddy Nate Rowanowski to ground the drones using his falcons. But Joe’s persistence in squelching the drones draws him into a treacherous plot by a band of assassins known as the Wolf Pack whose mission is to eliminate the protected witness and everyone who knows him… everyone.
Box once again combines current issues in modern day Wyoming with the moral code and tenacity of a lone game warden to thoroughly entertain… one of his best.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advance look.

Being that this is the 19th entry in this series I keep thinking that the next one is not going to be as good as previous ones. Well boy was I wrong again! This series just keeps getting better and to have Joe Pickett back on his home turf and in his old job is perfect for what he finds himself up against this time. There is an evil set of killers roaming the mountains and Joe finds himself right in the middle of a situation he doesn’t understand at first.

Another incredible read and let me leave you this; you will never look at “Wolf Pack” the same way again.

Add this one to your list. It is set to be released in March 2019.

In Wolf Pack (G.P. Putnam 2019), C.J. Box's nineteenth in the wildly-popular Joe Pickett series, Wyoming Game Warden Joe Pickett is back to work patrolling the beautiful loneliness of the Wyoming wilds thanks to the legal efforts of the former Wyoming governor and the ineptitude of the new one.

"...cold hard rain to Winchester with dark storm clouds pressing down on him and obscuring the mountains."

"The stream had jumped the banks, and water pooled within stands of willows and around the trunks of pine trees. Large branches and even entire trees had come down from above and were wedged into hazardous deadwood dams that diverted the flow and changed the banks."

As part of the settlement (read about that drama in Book #18), he has a new house, a new car, and his old seniority number. But instead of wild herds and hunters, he runs into a drone, herding the natural herds, frightening them so badly, they run themselves to death trying to escape.

"The pilot was destroying winter-weakened mule deer by running them until they collapsed."

Working with another game warden, he begins to hone in on where the drone is coming from and who controls it, thanks in no small part to his long-time friend, Nate Romanowski. Nate trains falcons for lots of interesting jobs but most recently, to take down drones by grabbing them from underneath--the non-propeller side. Fighting drones is new territory for Joe but anyone who has read earlier books in this series knows that no problem frightens Joe away. He may bend the rules and break new territory, but he'll figure out how to protect the lives of his beloved wild animals. The other piece of investigating that he's good at--really good--is connecting the dots. Joe often sees what no one else does and pulls that thread. Again, despite drones and falcons, he does just that but not without a strange group of hard folks visiting his town and the murder-suicide of a couple who seemed to have lots to live for and the zest to do just that.

And the last ten pages--you don't want to miss those.

--to be published on my blog, WordDreams 1/12/19