"...it's as good as a psychological/action thriller gets..."

By Margaret Cannon

C. J. Box is one of those fine U.S. writers whose names don't often pitch up on the bestseller lists, but whose work really deserves to be there. His prose is a spare and elegant as James Lee Burke's, and his loving exposition of the western American landscape is excellent, as good as anything Hollywood ever put on film. Blue Heaven is Box's seventh novel, and it's as good as a psychological/action thriller gets.

Annie Taylor is a cranky 12-year-old. She's none too pleased with her feckless mother's latest live-in boyfriend, so she decides to send Mama a message and, at the same time, send the boyfriend off the premises. Taking his expensive fishing rod and vest, she heads to the woods with her 10-year-old brother, William.

The setting is rural Idaho, a small town with plenty of space for big, big houses and no interfering neighbours. People here keep themselves to themselves. That's Annie's attitude, too. But in the woods, far off the track, Annie and William witness a murder - and no ordinary murder. This is a formal execution. In one second, Annie and William see too much and become not children, but witnesses. They have to die.

The men Annie and William saw committing murder are locals. They're part of a large contingent of retired California police who call this part of Idaho "Blue Heaven." Cops here are liked and respected.

When word of the children's disappearance hits town, everyone from parents to the local sheriff is stunned. This kind of thing doesn't happen here. Quickly, the ex-cops from L.A. take charge, organize the hunt and set up communications. But their plans include hunting down two children and killing them.

Annie Taylor's survival instinct is enough to evade them once, but they're big and powerful and armed and in charge. The only help for the children comes from a rancher and a retired cop following up a cold case. This is a terrific suspense novel, with superb characters and a satisfying plot. You'll be hooked.

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