"...It's four days of high tension and high action. And Box delivers surprises until the final page..."

Wyoming author C.J. Box knows the people, the geography, the issues of the mountain West.

He has won lots of praise and fans for his Joe Pickett mystery series starring a fictional Wyoming game warden.

Now, Box leaves Pickett behind and travels north to set a suspense novel in Idaho's wilds.

The area has become a retirement paradise for former policemen - "boys in blue" - especially from California. As the novel's name implies, the area of North Idaho is turning into a "Blue Heaven."

But two youngsters, their mother and other longtime residents learn that living among so many former lawmen is no assurance of safety.

In his usual style, Box moves to the heart of action in the first sentence:

"If twelve-year-old Annie Taylor had not chosen to take her little brother William fishing on that particular Friday afternoon ... she never would have seen the execution or looked straight into the eyes of the executioners."

And the killers never would have realized that their brutal slaying had been witnessed or raced to capture the children who could betray the adults' crime.

The youngsters' heart-pounding flight to escape quickly reminds readers of Box's knowledge of the terrain of the Western wilds and how those familiar with it can use it to their advantage.

Annie and William already had felt betrayed by their mom because of her boyfriend, Their escape from the killers only sets them up for new betrayal and growing uncertainty of who can be trusted and whether they can survive.

When the children don't return home, official response is slow. Then former L.A. cops volunteer to help in the hunt, which they quickly control.

Box tells the tale across 48 hours as a mother's concern over kids late coming home from school becomes a search for kidnappers that draws national media attention.

The author mixes in issues of concern to residents of Montana, Wyoming, Idaho and similar areas where folks from outside the area are buying up land for mini-ranches while longtime residents can barely hold on. Values, lifestyles and economics all are pressured.

Longtime rancher Jess Rawlins already is battling to keep his land, but he has a new fight on his hands after the kids vanish.

Box expertly handles stories that have lots of twists and turns. And does so in "Blue Heaven" as a local banker is caught up in trying to save Rawlins' ranch, questionable dealings with some of the retired cops and the arrival of yet another retired cop in search of answers about a California heist and killings.

The story moves from the police station to the children's home, Rawlins' ranch to the woods and more as human concerns play against the suspense storyline.

At times, Box shocks with revelations of just how far humans will go to protect their own interests. But it's offset with the sacrifices that some people will make for others.

Normal activities of life, such as tending cows giving birth on the ranch or eating breakfast, go on even while a flood of evil washes through the small Idaho town.

Box excels in capturing the personalities and lifestyles of the inland Northwest. He also masterfully peels away the layers of lives to reveal secrets that influence folks' decisions across decades.

Fans of Joe Pickett will find the tortured good-guy values in Rawlins, too. And the added focus of the children struggling just to get home and erase the dangers makes the stakes higher.

It's four days of high tension and high action. And Box delivers surprises until the final page.

By CHRIS RUBICH
Of The Gazette Staff
Sunday, January 27,2008

Contact Chris Rubich at crubich@billignsgazette.com or 657-1301.