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cpriley401's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
mpapomeroy's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.25
book_concierge's review against another edition
3.0
A national forest service bureaucrat is brutally murdered just as a caravan of anti-government “sovereigns” arrive to set up camp in the Battle Mountain campground. This would not be Game Warden Joe Pickett’s concern except that the man who was killed was in his custody at the time, and the Sovereigns are sheltering the mother of Joe’s foster child, Lucy.
Book # 3 in the Joe Pickett series has two distinct plot lines – maybe three. Who is targeting the federal officers? How far with the clearly “not right in the head” FBI agent and NFS district manager go to prove their assertions and further their own careers without regard to health or safety of anyone else? And how can Joe and his wife Mary Beth fight the legal battle to adopt Lucy, when her biological mother gets a court order requiring them to return the child to the mother who abandoned her?
Joe Pickett is the quintessential “good guy.” I like his relationship with his wife and children. He is deliberate in his actions, almost always thinking through various possibilities and consequences before acting. However, he is also frequently unsure of his position, and has a tendency to beat himself up for either not acting more decisively or for losing his temper. This makes him vulnerable and likeable, but I’m getting a little tired of his inner struggles.
The main difficulty I had with this particular book, however, is that the plot got overly complicated. I don’t think the multiple story lines worked as well as they should have for this genre. The murder happened quickly, but then we got sidetracked with the egomaniacal district manager and FBI agent, and Lucy’s mother just further complicated the storyline while distracting from the original murder. Still, Box writes a fast-paced thriller and has a gift for making the landscape (and weather) as important a character as Joe.
Book # 3 in the Joe Pickett series has two distinct plot lines – maybe three. Who is targeting the federal officers? How far with the clearly “not right in the head” FBI agent and NFS district manager go to prove their assertions and further their own careers without regard to health or safety of anyone else? And how can Joe and his wife Mary Beth fight the legal battle to adopt Lucy, when her biological mother gets a court order requiring them to return the child to the mother who abandoned her?
Joe Pickett is the quintessential “good guy.” I like his relationship with his wife and children. He is deliberate in his actions, almost always thinking through various possibilities and consequences before acting. However, he is also frequently unsure of his position, and has a tendency to beat himself up for either not acting more decisively or for losing his temper. This makes him vulnerable and likeable, but I’m getting a little tired of his inner struggles.
The main difficulty I had with this particular book, however, is that the plot got overly complicated. I don’t think the multiple story lines worked as well as they should have for this genre. The murder happened quickly, but then we got sidetracked with the egomaniacal district manager and FBI agent, and Lucy’s mother just further complicated the storyline while distracting from the original murder. Still, Box writes a fast-paced thriller and has a gift for making the landscape (and weather) as important a character as Joe.
ryanferguson83's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
selfbetty's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
thelonebookwyrm's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kthomas0701's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
mrtaylor23's review against another edition
5.0
Out of the first three books of this series, “Winterkill” dominates as my favorite. This story was building up to a huge conflict throughout the whole story and came to a sudden resolution. While it is a tragic plot, justice is served (in an unjustified manner), and it leaves me eager to see what mystery awaits me next in the series.