Customer Reviews

In Plain Sight (A Joe Pickett Novel)

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I had a standing order with Amazon to receive the latest Joe Pickett novel as soon as it was published.And I wasn't disappointed. I really enjoy the way he ties the various story lines from past novels together. A sociopath tries to revenge the deaths of members of his family from an earlier Box novel and blames Joe and his family. Nate Romanovski appears again along with his birds-and comes to Joe's aid in the end.

Joe is a very family oriented guy. I find him very similar to Cork O'Connor in the William Kent Krueger mystery novels. For those of you who enjoy CJ Box, check out Kent Krueger and start with "Iron Lake" to get introduced to the characters and story line. Joe is not the most ambitous of game wardens, yet he is honest and true to his duty. Yet he has a short fuse, tells it like it is and constantly is getting in trouble with the local fuzz, his superior and even the feds, much to the consternation of his wife. Yet he always comes out on top.

I wish some TV or movie producer would wise up and finally bring these Joe Pickett stories to the screen. Congratulations CJ on another great read!

Spring has finally arrived in Saddlestring but Wyoming Game Warden Joe Pickett is not a happy man. With a new democratic governor in charge of the state, Joe now has to report directly to the agency director Randy Pope. The two men don't get along and Pope is doing everything in his power to make Joe's life miserable and has ultimate goal is to find a way to fire him.

More trouble is coming to town in the form of J.W. Keeley who, just been released from prison, committed murder and grand theft auto. He blames Joe for the death of his sister in law and his daughter, and intends to make the law enforcement official pay. He takes advantage of the feud between the brothers Hank and Arlen Scarlett who are fighting over ownership of the family ranch since their mother Opal disappeared or was murdered. Keeley is hiding is plain sight and is doing a great job of instilling fear in the Pickett family. Joe knows someone is after him and he intends to hunt that person down even if it costs him his job and his life.

C.J. Box has a special kind of talent that he imbues in his police procedurals. He is able to touch the heart of readers through his protagonist who cares passionately about the family, land and wildlife. Pickett refuses to play politics which gets him in trouble with the director yet it is his straight shooting that allows him to be effective in his job. This mystery is totally awesome due to brilliant characterizations and a tense down home storyline.

Harriet Klausner

Joe Pickett, a game warden with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, is on the outs with his boss, is being tormented by an ex-con with an eye toward revenge, and is trying to solve the mystery of the disappearance of the matriarch of THE major ranching family in his district.

Just another day in the life of Joe Pickett. In Plain Sight is author C. J. Box's newest installment in the life and times of this hard-working character. I've been part of the "Joe Pickett family," watching Joe evolve. He still is a bad shot with a handgun. He still is hard on departmental trucks (although, this time, he has an excuse). And Joe is involved up to his neck in multiple mysteries.

My desire to follow Joe Pickett in this volume was affected by the strangeness of the story, however. The coincidental juxtaposition of killer Wayne Keeley (recognize the name?) into Joe's life, as well as the ease that Keeley committed major crimes in Joe's district. The absolute strangeness of Opal Scarlett's children (my proposal for a family motto: "None of us are normal"). Nate to the rescue again. Director Pope continuously harassing an employee.

Expect a LOT more from the next book, Free Fire, one of Box's best stories yet. However, this one, like all of the previous books, is required reading for those of us who are Joe Pickett fans.

Wyoming Game warden Joe Picket reports to a man with whom he does not get along in a town whose sheriff likes having the persona of a "Western Lawman" without having to bother with enforcing the law. The power in the town is the Scarlett family and matriarch Opal Scarlett is missing leaving the two of the sons literally fighting over ownership of the ranch and the town members forced to take sides. The greater threat is J.W. Keeley who blames Picket for the death of his brother, sister-in-law and daughter, and Keeley is out for revenge.

This is a story of conflict on multiple levels and is superbly done. It's not just the conflict of the good guy against the bad guy, but Joe against his boss, doing what is right versus what is expedient, being who he is versus who others might like him to be, doing what is just versus what is legal. Even in the story, a character is advised not to underestimate Joe and that is exactly the way Box has conveyed him; as someone who is not powerful or successful, but rock solid and dependable as time. In addition to strong characters, Box creates excellent sense of place and knows how to build suspense. For me, this was an excellent book in a series I recommend reading in order.

Joe Pickett is just the most decent guy and you wish he was your friend and neighbor. I love these books, but as usual I have consumed it in one sitting and now I have to wait a year for the next one. How can you not be rivited by a book with an opening paragraph that has three brothers fighting it out "with shovels"? I have relatives like this. I could hardly get off the first page for laughing. Sure do wish you would come to the Carolinas for a book signing.

First, I love this series. It has all the ingredients for a total escape into another, wonderful world. But in this book, the author seems to be testing the readers and finding out how much he can get away with. Previous books in the series are grounded in reality, in the West, in family, political, and ecological values. The characters may be a little larger than life, but that's what makes them interesting - heroes and villains alike. But this book is unreal, the characters, many of the same characters in the earlier books, are just distorted. Joe Pickett is perhaps the most human of all the cast, but he is starting to come across as a whiner, even throwing his cellphone, not once but twice! Come on, Joe. Set an example for the reader.

The book begins as the eccentric, pragmatic, and sometimes cruel matriarch of the most important family in the county disappears, and her sons start beating each other over the head with shovels! These are established, important men! Turns out a drunken fisherman confessed to throwing Mother in the river after she nearly beheaded him with piano wire. She disappeared, and her body was never found! However, her car soon disappeared so what does that mean? I will not reveal what happened to Mother, you'll have to read the book.

It's a good read, but it really crosses the line over into melodrama and even slapstick at times. The villains in this story are really, really evil, and they don't even belong to the same team. Maybe the worst character of all is Joe's new supervisor, who is truly the boss from hell. Even the charismatic, newly-elected governor is on to the guy, and I suspect the guv will be featured as a FOJ (friend of Joe) in future instalments of the series. Oh well, I'll keep reading....

You'll get much more out of this book if you've first read OPEN SEASON and the other four novels preceding this since there are connections especially to OPEN SEASON and WINTERKILL as well as to the immeditely preceding OUT OF RANGE.The mood here is dark. The rivalry of brothers, the ex-con bent on revenge, uneasiness between Joe Pickett and his wife Marybeth, along with the animosity of Pickett's boss combine for a rather downbeat novel compared to the previous installments. All in all, this is an engrossing read and indeed a welcome addition to the series.

Wow! I've been reading the "Joe Pickett" books as fast as I can get a hold of them...and this one, number 6, is by far my favorite. It has everything that smacks of a Hollywood blockbuster jammed into 250+ pages. Secrets? Check. Lies? Check. Danger? Check. Blazing fires, twisted motives, evil killers, and bigger than life heroes? Check, check, check, and check again.

Box has, once again, hit upon a formula that works- he has taken an every-man as a protagonist, given him definite flaws, and then turned him loose in the midst of personal tragedy, shifting alliances, and close calls with danger to see what happens. Moral fiber is amazing stuff- and Joe Pickett has it in spades- come hell or high water- he will get to the bottom of the issue and root out the truth- slimy ex-cons, flash floods, an a heady mix of hate be damned.

The book is written well, with a pace that doesn't let up from the get-go. The plot is solid, and the secrets are doled out at a pace that will have you eating out of Box's hand. Within the pages of this novel, old events come back to haunt Joe, new dangers are piling up faster than paperwork in the Cheyenne office of the Governor, and shifting alliances threaten an entire town. Deeply rooted family pride, fanatical devotion, greed, anger, rage, disappointment, and heartbreak all make this one a satisfying read. Now it's not just Joe's head on the chopping block, but someone has made it personal- they have come after his family and are hell-bent on taking Joe down where it hurts the most. Taught and riveting, this book delivers the goods with a deft touch. I burned though it faster that even I thought possible and felt like I was in a race to the ending. Well done Mr. Box! Keep 'em coming...the literary world needs more heroes like Joe Pickett.

#6 and the hits just keep coming. Thank You C.J. Box for a great book series. These books would make great movies or even a TV series. With the locations and great story lines either one would work. I enjoy every book more than the one before simply because I care more about Joe and his family with every new challenge.

I enjoy all of CJ Box books and In Plain Sight was no different than any of the others. Read one Chapter and you are hooked. You don't want to put it down..