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BLUE HEAVEN
by C. J. Box
St Martin's Minotaur, January 2008
344 pages
$24.95
ISBN: 0312365705


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

Annie Taylor is angry after discovering that her mother let Tom Boyd stay the night at their house, so she steals Tom’s rod and reel and takes her younger brother William fishing in the woods of North Idaho. The two children are nearing the river when they stumble upon a scene of carnage involving several retired Los Angeles policemen. One of the men has thoughtlessly betrayed the others. The punishment for his crime is death at the hands of the others. Annie and William witness the man’s murder, then flee through the woods after being seen by the remaining ex-cops.

A near-rescue soon turns into a betrayal for the two children. With night approaching, and afraid to go home, Annie and William once again go on the run. This time they find salvation in the form of Jess Rawlins, a divorced rancher about to lose his land to the bank. Jess has enough problems of his own, but he believes what the children tell him and quickly takes on the role of their protector.

Meanwhile, Monica Taylor has reported her children missing. The retired cops easily persuade the inexperienced sheriff to let them lead the search for Annie and William. Using their power as deputized representatives of the law, the four men mislead the community while quietly closing a net around Annie and William.

The only people standing in their way are Jess and his new-found friend, Eduardo Villatoro. Like the killers, Villatoro is an ex-cop. Unlike them, he’s an honest man who, even though retired, is still pursuing the solution to an old robbery case. With only their wits and experience to guide them, Jess and Eduardo risk their lives to save the two children.

Multiple award winner CJ Box wrote seven Joe Pickett novels before penning BLUE HEAVEN. This stunning standalone set in the North Idaho wilderness is a masterpiece of suspense where the tension elevates with each succeeding chapter. While the plot covers a span of two days, time almost seems suspended for the reader as nail-biting action consumes nearly every page of the book.

Annie and William are reasonably depicted, but Box saves his best characterization for Rawlins, the lonely rancher beset by doubt and guilt born of a sense of duty to the land and those who worked it before him. Rawlins exhibits the basic goodness of the everyday hero who responds to a crisis without thought of self-interest. The antagonists, on the other hand, are clear examples of already flawed men now totally corrupted by the power of money.

Other personalities in the story exhibit characteristics ranging from loneliness to bewilderment to unabashed ambition, attributes common to people anywhere, but nicely employed by the author to move the plot forward while at the same time explaining the complex emotional makeup of the community.

In addition to this, Box expertly uses his north woods setting both for plot and character development. One can feel the rugged power of nature in the author’s descriptions of North Idaho, and through those descriptions, better understand the spirit of the people living there. This book is nothing short of brilliant, and I highly recommend it for anyone who enjoys powerful drama in a mystery.

Reviewed by Mary V. Welk, February 2008

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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