Treasue State by C.J. Box

 

Cassie Dewell’s P.I. business is thriving.  She has more work than she and her receptionist can handle so she takes on April Pickett (Joe and Mary Beth’s adopted daughter) as an intern.  Currently, Cassie has two open cases.

The most immediate case involves a wealthy Florida women who was conned out of her fortune by a devious Montana man.  The previous P.I. on the case was murdered near Anaconda, Montana.  Cassie quickly discovers a likely suspect in the area but his charm, wit, and skills of deception temporarily misdirect her and put her in danger.  The second case is more abstract.  Someone has written a poem promising a buried treasure in Montana to anyone who can decipher the clues found within the poem.  Cassie is hired by the poet not to find the treasure but to see if she can find and identify him.  Fierce competition among the treasure hunters to find the treasure has already resulted in five deaths.  The instigator poet wants to be assured he will remain anonymous.

While I prefer the Joe Pickett series to the Cassie Dewell series, I've grown to enjoy most anything C.J. Box writes.  That same under estimated, ‘dumb like a fox’ attribute comes through in all his lead characters.  That combined with the western outdoor backdrop always makes his work worth reading.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance look.

Comment from West Coast Don:

I agree with Midwest Dave that it's a bit strange to read our beloved Box working on a set of characters other than Joe Pickett, but hey, this is CJ Box. I spent a summer in the Bozman area, where Cassie has her PI business, then 16 years old and working on a dude ranch as a wrangler. Cassie has a good business and she is a compelling character, but there haven't been enough books and enough stories about her to have the same depth of feeling created by Joe Pickett. 

Nonetheless, I'm glad I read this, and if Box produces more of this series, or anything else, I'll read that to. The book's plot developed slowly as the author put forth all the background information that we needed, but it picked up into a rapid pace The resolution of the two main plots was excellent. I look forward to more.

WCD