Trophy Hunt

Written by C. J. Box

Narrated by David Chandler

Publishers Weekly calls this fourth entry in Anthony Award winner and New York Times best-selling author C.J. Box's gripping Joe Pickett series "riveting." Trophy Hunt opens at the Wyoming game warden's chilling discovery of a mutilated moose. Although the sheriff believes the carnage was the act of a ravenous bear, Joe has a hunch something-or someone-much more sinister is to blame.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 29, 2011
• ISBN: 9781456123055

C. J. Box

C. J. BOX is the New York Times best-selling author of many novels including the Joe Pickett series. He has won the Edgar Alan Poe Award for Best Novel (Blue Heaven, 2009) as well as the Anthony Award, Prix Calibre 38 (France), the Macavity Award, the Gumshoe Award, and the Barry Award. Over four million copies of his novels have been sold in the U.S. alone and they have been translated into twenty-seven languages. He lives in Wyoming.  

Reviews for Trophy Hunt

[Wanda Schaefer · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Excellent! So many twists and turns! Don't even TRY to guess the ending! Diabolical characters, with some science fiction tossed in for good measure.

[Heather Ploski · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Didn’t like any of the sexual perversion stuff! Other wise story line is good.

[Kathe Buset · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love the Joe Picket series books & the narrator is awesome too!

[jessiep73 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Loved it. Left a little confused by some of the politics/real estate stuff, but it didn't hamper my enjoyment.

Joe Pickett is the modern-day Cowboy Joe. Only maybe he doesn't quite swing back and forward in his saddle. I imagine he rides his horses properly and seriously.

[infjsarah · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is probably my favourite of the ones I have read so far. Mainly because the mystery was not solved really early on.

[asheley-627878 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My very favorite Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett is investigating a string of animal mutilations when he becomes involved in the investigation of a couple of area murders. Normally this would be the jurisdiction of other local authorities, but these two murders have characteristics strikingly consistent with the animal mutilations: the two bodies have been damaged in exactly the same way. These crimes are horrific and terrifying to area residents. Joe will bump heads with the same local authorities as normal, because he has a tendency to want to do things correctly, morally right, and by the book where some of the other officers don't seem to care about that. The goodness in Joe is one of the reasons that I enjoy this series so much.Besides Joe, the best thing in this book is how big the roles that his daughter Sheridan and his friend Nate Romanowski play. It's fun to watch Sheridan grow up and become more perceptive to her surroundings as these stories progress. Nate is a falconer and a loner and a bit of an oddity to the other folks around, and I love everything about him and his place in these stories. He has some secrets and some darker ways of obtaining the truth than Joe does, but the two work very well together.My least favorite thing about this story is the amount of "woo-woo" in it. That's what Joe calls it. What I mean is that there is a lot of talk of supernatural, magical type stuff with regard to the cause of the animal and human deaths. Lots of area folks think maybe there is some magic involved or something. Just like Joe, I sort of rolled my eyes at all of it. (Even though it does have a place in the story.)A fun thing about this one: my little town, where I live, plays a big role in the story too! That happens so rarely that when I heard my town come up and then keep popping up, I was overjoyed. This is probably very nerdy of me.This one didn't pull on my feelings and emotions like Winterkill did for reasons that I don't want to spoil (in case you haven't read Winterkill). Just, the emotional attachment to the injured parties and those in danger wasn't there this time, because this one was a little less directly dangerous to his family and friends-but only a little bit less dangerous.Trophy Hunt takes place approximately a year-ish after the horrific events of Winterkill. Joe and his wife Marybeth are barely managing to get by on Joe's game warden salary, so Marybeth begins to take on a career of her own. Sheridan is twelve years old and has tons of grit. Lucy is now seven years old and has a big role in this story as well. The Wyoming setting is still strong and a huge, huge reason why I keep coming back to this series.Audiobook Notes: I love David Chandler's narration of this series so much and I'm so glad that I took the chance on the first one because I can't imagine not listening to it. David Chandler's narration has completely become Joe Pickett to me, and I fangirl so hard over the way he narrates Nate Romanowski: gravelly and a little dark. I can't recommend these audiobooks more.Title: Trophy Hunt by C.J. BoxSeries: Joe Pickett #4Narrated by: David ChandlerPublisher: Recorded BooksLength: 11 hours, 0 minutes, Unabridged

[olivermagnus · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Joe Pickett is a US Game Warden in Twelve Sleep County, Wyoming, where he lives with his wife and two daughters. He doesn't get paid very much and lives paycheck to paycheck. He's deeply in love with his family and always tries to do the right thing.

Joe is teaching his daughters to fish on a day off when they come across a dead moose. A dead animal is nothing new to him or his girls by the nature of their lives, but the moose has been surgically butchered and parts of it are missing. Joe has no explanation for what happened to the moose, but he hopes that will be the end of it. A few days later a small herd of cattle is found dead and mutilated. The sheriff attributes the attacks and mutilations to a grizzly bear, but game warden Joe Pickett knows that the cuts on the cattle were made with a smooth blade, just like those on the moose. The killer is definitely not a grizzly bear.

Each time something happens, Joe feels an energy in the air that there's something of the supernatural in the Wyoming forests and mountains. Some aspects of the investigation are left unexplained, and the reader is unsure as to whether there may be a down-to-earth explanation or whether "woo woo" forces are operating.

Trophy Hunt is a highly readable novel about a real family and their various tribulations of daily life, as well as being an involving, knowledgeable account of the natural environment and its preservation. Box isn't afraid to take chances and kill off or hurt central characters in these books and this makes you continually wonder if Joe Picket and his family will survive to the end of each novel.

I love the characters and the the fact that it's set against the beautiful, unforgiving landscape of Wyoming. I definitely plan to read more of the series.

[shelbycassie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This one had a little supernatural in it which was not my favorite, but overall, I liked the book. Nice books to read in between heavier reads.

[bookconcierge · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Book number four in the Joe Picket mystery series opens with Wyoming Game Warden Joe taking his daughters on a fishing trip. They discover the carcass of a moose, and Joe is disturbed to notice signs of mutilation. It’s only the beginning of the nightmare.I like this series, mostly because I really like Joe Picket (and his wife, Marybeth). He is the quintessential “good guy,” fighting to preserve the environment and a peaceful setting for his family and the residents of Twelve Sleep County. Box gives us plenty of action – in addition to the moose there are cattle mutilations, a horse is attacked, and two men killed. His daughter’s playmates seem bent on leading her into trouble, and I about screamed in fright along with the kids when …. Well, I won’t spoil the action for you. But I was dissatisfied with the ending. Too much “aliens” mumbo-jumbo, and a too-convenient demise made me feel as if Box had run out of ideas and turned to 1950s sci-fi films for inspiration. Still, it’s a good story and a fast read; I haven’t given up on the series, but I’m in no hurry to read the next one.

[buffalogr · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Wyoming Game Warden Joe Pickett is assigned to a cop task force whose objective is to solve a couple of murders and some cow mutilations. Author cleverly does not take sides in the latter. Of course, Joe's wife and kids are involved. Nate, my favorite character and an off-the-grid falconer, gives no quarter and reflects what we all want to do in the situation. Nate also provides a look at some paranormal activities and seems always to be the one who shows Joe the way. In the end, everyone in town seems involved in the murders/mutilations. Descriptive of small town Western America.

[macygma · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Mutilated cows. Mulilated people. This is what has Joe Pickett's interest in the 4th novel about this Wyoming game warden. Who's doing it? And, more importantly why?Things are not calm in the Pickett household. Marybeth is being flirted with by her boss. Sheridan has more dreams which are seemingly portents to the future. Lucy is growing up and Maxine has inexplicably changed color!Excellent book!

[carol420 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett comes upon a dead moose that's been horribly mutilated. Meanwhile cattle have been found dead with the same mutilations. When the killing spreads to humans, everyone gets involved in the case: the sheriff, the FBI, the county attorney, and Joe too. Speculation is rife in the community. People blame government experiments, cults, and aliens by turns.

I will be the first to admit that I am not a big fan of C.J. Box. I just don;t care for the theme of the stories. But... that having been said it is an excellent read if you like tales of the outdoors and the conflict between man and nature.

[gbelik_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Someone is mutilating and killing animals in game-warden Joe Pickett's Wyoming territory. Then two men are also found dead and cut upon. Although I love this series and its characters, the plot of this one was just too bizarre and unbelievable for me. Plus there was a supernatural element that neither Joe Pickett or I appreciated.

[joeydag · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I little too humorless and gory. An interesting portrait of a strong, silent fish and game warder who wades into matters way too big for himself. Realistic worries about family and finances. A good writer but not my cup of tea.

[thornton37814 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

It all starts with the body of a mutilated bull moose that Joe Pickett, game warden, finds when on an outing with his daughters. Soon cattle are found mutilated in a similar fashion. It isn't long until human corpses are found murdered in a similar fashion. Joe is the representative game warden on the governor's task force which includes local law enforcement and the FBI. It's a quite puzzling and disturbing read for most of the book. The ending wasn't quite as tidy as I would have liked, but I suspect that there are often a few ends that aren't completely wrapped up that the investigating officers would love to see resolved but for which those in charge of budgets do not allow them to continue to investigate.

[she_climber · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Like Joe I'm not big on "woo-woo crap" but the cattle mutilations and alien angle was interesting. I hadn't figured out all the angles until the end. I'm still somewhat amazed that Box can keep coming up with such an interesting life a Game Warden in Saddle String, WY, I just have to look past the fact that a lot of people seem to die out in the middle of nowhere and all around Game Warden.

[cbl_tn · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Game warden Joe Pickett discovers the mutilated body of a moose while out fishing with his daughters. Then several mutilated cattle are discovered on a local ranch. The next mutilated bodies to turn up are human. Joe finds himself on a task force comprised of local law enforcement, FBI, and prosecutors, as they join forces to investigate these seemingly related crimes.The book has some aspects of a detective novel, a police procedural, and even a cozy, but it definitely tilts toward the thriller end of the crime spectrum. The suspense wasn't enough to make me jumpy, but it was enough to make the book hard to put down. I liked the overlap between Joe's personal and professional life. His wife and daughters had significant roles in the book, and I liked the family dynamics.I haven't read the first three books in the series. While this book works fine as a stand-alone, there are frequent references to events from the earlier books in the series. Some of these references may be spoilers for the earlier books.This was a 4-star read most of the way through, but it fizzled out at the end. The threads of the story seemed to get tangled up, and Box didn't quite manage to smooth out the knots.

[joycepa_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

4th in the Joe Pickett series.Joe discovers the disfigured corpse of a moose while on a fishing trip with his daughters. There are odd overtones to the discovery, but all Joe knows for sure is that someone or something has mutilated the corpse. A grizzly is known to be in the area, and while at first glance, this may seem to be the work of a bear, there is something about the kill that doesn’t sit right with Joe; the corpse has been mutilated but not fed on.Then a dozen dead cattle turn up with the same type of mutilations. It’s now clear that something else besides a bear is involved. Joe, reluctantly, becomes part of the investigation.When a dead human being turns up mutilated in the same way under odd circumstances, the situation turns weird as well as dangerous.There are two interesting aspects to this book: one is that it’s based on a true case of a series of cattle mutilations that happened in 2000 and 2001, and the other is the insertion of the paranormal. The book has a definite woo-woo edge to it that is really unusual for Box’s down-to-earth Joe Pickett.Back for another appearance is Joe’s odd friend Nate, who has a mysterious background that may include Special Forces and who assists Joe with the more unusual aspects of the case. Nate is not particularly original as a character, but Box uses him well.Again, box continues to improve as a writer. He’s never going to win awards for outstanding characterization, but Joe s believable and so, for the most part, is his family. Box is at his best in action scenes, very much less so in emotional situations, but overall the book is an excellent read. Highly recommended

[moty47 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Excellent as all the Joe Pickett novels. Love the descriptions of Wyoming and the attention to environment without being preachy