‘The Crossroads’ by C.J. Box

Published by Head of Zeus,
5 March 2026.
ISBN: 978-1-0359881--2 (HB).

Joe Pickett, Montana Game and Fish Warden, has been shot in the head while out on his rounds in his pick-up. While doctors fight to save his life, with his wife Maybeth waiting anxiously in the hospital, the local Sheriff and Joe’s three daughters try to find out who his assailants were, before they try to finish the job. 

I’m not sure how well-known C J Box is in the UK. I’d not come across him before having the pleasure of hearing him as the National Guest of Honour at Bouchercon, Toronto, 2017 – a big, expansive personality with a soft drawl and a Stetson. This book, the 16^th in the Joe Pickett series, clearly shows why he’s such a favourite with readers: great characters, a vivid sense of place and page-turning plotting. There are frequent backward glances to earlier books, but no spoilers and their backstories add a sense of reality to the characters. 

The three-strand plot is deftly woven. There’s Joe and Marybeth’s presence, in the hospital; there are chapters of Joe’s recent past, showing his activities in the days before the ambush, and there’s the investigation by his three redoubtable daughters: Sheridan, who’s the manager of a bird abatement firm, and who’s attracted to the new Sheriff, Steve Sondergard, spiky April, now working as a PI, and Lucy, just returned to University after a semester in France. They divvy up the suspects between them, the owners of the three ranches whose roads branch off from the crossroads of the ambush, and a suspicious bunch they are too. Sheridan draws the Bucholz Cattle Company, where she spots John and Shelby Bucholz with digging trucks and finds John’s Uncle Hank imprisoned. Lucy heads for the Double Diamond Ranch, and its rich, unpleasant owner, Michael Thompson, recently involved in financial scandals. April draws the McElwee sisters, Lisa and Lainie, a pair of hard-bitten ranchers who’ve been behind several scams. Naturally there’s trouble a-plenty before the final, satisfying conclusion. 

A huge treat for Joe Pickett’s many fans, and an excellent taster for new readers. If you want to go back to the beginning, the first novel in the series is Open Season.
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Reviewer: Marsali Taylor

C J Box is a Wyoming native and has worked as a ranch hand, surveyor, fishing guide, a small town newspaper reporter and editor, and he owned an international tourism marketing firm with his wife Laurie. In 2008, Box was awarded the "BIG WYO" Award from the state tourism industry. An avid outdoorsman, Box has hunted, fished, hiked, ridden, and skied throughout Wyoming and the Mountain West. He served on the Board of Directors for the Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo. They have three daughters. He lives in Wyoming.

Marsali Taylor grew up near Edinburgh and came to Shetland as a newly-qualified teacher. She is currently a part-time teacher on Shetland's scenic west side, living with her husband and two Shetland ponies. Marsali is a qualified STGA tourist-guide who is fascinated by history, and has published plays in Shetland's distinctive dialect, as well as a history of women's suffrage in Shetland. She's also a keen sailor who enjoys exploring in her own 8m yacht, and an active member of her local drama group.  

Click on the title to read a review of her recent book
Death in a Shetland Family

www.marsalitaylor.co.uk