Trophy Hunt: A Joe Pickett Novel [Large Print] [Hardcover]

C. J. Box (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 12, 2004

An Anthony, Macavity, and Gumshoe Award-winning Author

On an idyllic late-summer day in Saddlestring, Wyoming, game warden Joe Pickett is fly-fishing with his two daughters when he stumbles upon the mutilated body of a moose. Shaken by the sight, Joe starts to investigate what he hopes is an isolated incident. Days later, the discovery of a small herd of mutilated cattle makes him realize this is something much more terrifying than he could have imagined.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Box's riveting fourth Joe Pickett adventure (after 2003's Winterkill) opens on a disturbing note, with the Wyoming game warden's chance discovery of the oddly mutilated body of a moose near his favorite fishing hole. When several mangled cows and two grisly human corpses are added to the macabre menagerie, Joe reluctantly joins a task force to investigate. Bud Barnum, the corrupt sheriff of Twelve Sleep County, attributes the mutilations to birds or a notorious grizzly bear from Joe's jurisdiction, but Joe isn't convinced. Enter paranormal expert Cleve Garrett, who zealously follows mutilation and alien sightings in his recreational vehicle laboratory. Despite ridicule from the task force, Joe interviews Garrett, who supplies little fresh information but gives off creepy vibes. The clues that the quietly heroic Joe gathers from many disparate witnesses, including his own young daughters and a mentally incapacitated fisherman, may point to the otherworldly, but readers will be well satisfied with the all-too-earthly solution to the bizarre crimes. With its credible and sensitively drawn characters, loads of interesting tidbits about the natural world and timely plot, this skillfully crafted page-turner should have wide appeal.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

Box, whose superb Joe Pickett series has nailed some great western issues (ecoterrorism, endangered species, survivalists), here draws a bead on one out in left field: cattle mutilations. When the Wyoming game warden finds a mysteriously mangled moose, he is unnerved. When cows and even humans turn up the same, he finds himself a reluctant member of a special task force. County residents think aliens are responsible and start wearing aluminum-foil hats and finding crop circles in their backyards; Pickett calls the theory "woo-woo crap." This has all the elements that made the first three Picketts so pleasurable: Pickett himself, a bad shot but a good man; a strong supporting cast, especially his family; an inventive plot; and Box's own well-reasoned grasp of the issues. If this one works a hair less well, it may be because of the woo-woo crap itself. Although there's a believable motive behind some of it, there's also a touch of the supernatural that doesn't quite fit. Still, there's nothing wrong with being merely excellent instead of state-of-the-art once in a while. Keir Graff
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 565 pages
• Publisher: Thorndike Press; 1 edition (November 12, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786270527
• ISBN-13: 978-0786270521
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,472,971 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

C. J. Box is the author of the award-winning Joe Pickett series of novels, including Open Season (2001), Savage Run (2002), Winterkill (2003), Trophy Hunt (2004), Out of Range (2005) and the upcoming In Plain Sight (May, 2006). He's the winner of the Anthony Award, Prix Calibre 38 Award (France), the Macavity Award, the Gumshoe Award, the Barry Award, and an Edgar Award and L.A. Times Book Prize finalist. Open Season was a New York Times Notable Book and three of the novels have been Booksense 76 picks.


The novels have been national bestsellers and have been translated into 12 languages.


Box is a Wyoming native and has worked as a ranch hand, surveyor, fishing guide, a small town newspaper reporter and editor, and he co-owns an international tourism marketing firm with his wife, Laurie. An avid outdoorsman, Box has hunted, fished, hiked, ridden, and skied throughout Wyoming and the Mountain West. He serves on the Board of Directors for the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo.


Box lives with his family outside of Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Wyoming Mystery with some "woo-woo" thrown in, August 26, 2004

By 

Professor D. L. Hoffman (Lewisburg, PA United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Trophy Hunt: A Joe Pickett Novel (Hardcover)

The Jo Pickett Mysteries by C. J. Box were recommended to me through Amazon.com, being a gungo-freak for Randy Wayne White and James W. Hall mysteries. After reading "Open Season", I bought and finished the next three novels over a period of three weeks. Needless to say I was "hooked". I enjoyed Trophy Hunt less than I did the other three. The story line was to say the least a bit macabre with all sorts of bizarre happenings. There were all sorts of loose ends that were not resolved. Why did Maxine's hair turn white? What was the significance of Nate and Sheridan's dreams? What caused Nate's falcons to "freak out"? Where did that grizzly bear come from (Savage Run, perhaps?) There was a bit too much of the "woo-woo" stuff (using Jow Pickett's apt descriptive words. I do like the continuity that follows from one novel to the next; so I really recommend starting to read the Joe Pickett novels with the initial "Open Season." You get to see the development of the major characters in the storyline.
I agree with one of the reviewer's comments that it is time that Joe becomes a real lawman. Hey C. J.! Let him run for sheriff and earn enough money to take care of his family. Let's crank out a sequel and explain where that bear came from. I still get queasy when I smell slab bacon.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Anthother "Trophy" for Box!, June 24, 2004

By 

Ken Rabb (Durham, NC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Trophy Hunt: A Joe Pickett Novel (Hardcover)

After months of waiting, I anxiously dove into the latest Joe Pickett adventure -- Trophy Hunt. CJ Box did not disappoint this reader with his fourth story about this modern-day sleuth. Once again, Pickett takes on the bureaucracy, knows he is right and plunges ahead. With a number of well timed twists and turns, Box exposes Pickett for who he is -- an everyday guy trying to do his job against tough odds. Draped with the Wyoming Rockies as a background, Trophy Hunt weaves myth and fact together in great tale. Box has once again captured the essence of a great story and a character with whom everyone can identify. From shady dealers to mysteriously mutilated livestock, with a couple of murders thrown in, Trophy Hunt is another trophy on BoxÕs shelf! Long live Joe Pickett!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Misses the Trophy for Best Pickett Adventure by a Huge Margin, October 7, 2005

By 

James N Simpson (Gold Coast, QLD Australia) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Trophy Hunt: A Joe Pickett Novel (Hardcover)

This is the third Joe Pickett novel I have read and it is not up there quality wise with his first two Open Season and Savage Run. There are a lot less surreal Carl Hiaasen style characters and Box seems to be moving more in the direction of far fetched fantasy land solutions then stuff that could occur to anyone in every day life. It's not a bad read and fans of the Joe Pickett and his family characters may well get something out of it but hopefully C.J. Box will return to the real world for his next novel.

Cattle and other animals are being found mutilated with surgical precision around Saddlestring, Wyoming. The lazy cops are quick to blame a grizzly bear who has ventured from his national park. Joe Picket of course knows that a bear could not leave the corpses like they are being found and when human corpses start to join the list he has a wall to overcome in convincing the task force assigned that the bear, birds or any other wildlife aren't the killers. Meanwhile Cleve Garrett heavily funded by secret backers has been following the mutilations all over the country and is trying to convince Joe that aliens are responsible.