The Brothers McKay by Craig Johnson

Second power rotation author: Craig Johnson’s The Brothers McKay.  #22 in the Walt Longmire saga. 

There is no love lost when a cantankerous, but wealthy, local is found dead in a fishing stream back up Crazy Woman Canyon in Wyoming (Remember the crazy woman from the movie ‘Jeremiah Johnson.’ Year, that one). Not a single person liked Pepper McKay. A prominent unlikeable wealthy citizen, Pepper McKay, not his family of four sons (make that 3.5. One of his sons is illegitimate) all who have motive, are the obvious suspects. His adult sons include a journalist, a monk from a nearby mountain monastery, an accountant (? Not sure about that one). The fourth lives as a ranch hand whose most critical project is breaking a big-ass mule named Borax. 

But there is more. All around the county, the locals are watching the wind as multiple wildfires are threatening valleys, farms, and small towns. Another body is found extending the list of possible suspects. We can’t ignore a former Russian spy, Maxim Sudorov who Walt is acting as sort of a parole officer (a leftover character from the previous book, Return to Sender). The chemistry between Walt and Sudorov is tres interesting. It’s Maxim who points out the similarities of familial treachery to Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov (hence, the significance of the book's title) to the case.

The book begins in Johnson’s typical meanderings with locals and co-workers. Walt slowly puts pieces of the puzzle together amid the genial back-and-forth typical of the Longmire series that makes the characters so comfortable and compelling.

Until the Highway Patrol issues the GO order forcing everyone to get the hell out of dodge to seek safety. All that ‘aw shucks’ banter suddenly disappears. The monk runs off into the wilderness and the fire. Walt goes after him to stop him from being engulfed by the flames.  The smoke and flames become so intense that Walt takes a fall - messed up his ankle. As he rolls over to contemplate his immediate future, he sees a familiar face: Borax. And now we witness the travails of the cowboy and his trusted steed (maybe that’s giving Borax more rope than deserved) as they try to get to safety. The whole survival episode is where Johnson earns his chops. The reader may wonder if Walt will get out unscathed (probably), but what about the monk? And Borax? Compelling story telling at a fever pace after nearly three-quarters of the story was more like Gunsmoke on a Saturday afternoon and Miss Kitty’s saloon.  And don’t forget why we are all here? The murder of Pepper McKay. 

You need to check this out. But if you already worship at the alter of Longmire, you don’t need me to push this book on you. It’s an easy read. Straightforward storytelling. Fun characters (well, most are fun), plenty of humor, Native American mysticism, that Wyoming landscape.  

What more could you want?

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance reviewer copy. Available May 26, 2026