BADLANDS

4.5 stars out of 5

Make no mistake: this is one of my favorite series, and even if it weren't, if I've ever passed up an opportunity to read anything written by either (or both) of these super-talented authors it was an accident. So why only four-and-a-half stars? Simply because the subject matter, while extremely interesting (I can't imagine the amount of research it must have taken to write the book) it crosses just a hair over the line of credibility for someone like me who is certain my late parents lied and I really was born in Missouri.

Still, except maybe for that one part that encompassed only a couple of pages, I loved it. And I'm pretty sure other fans of the series will love it as well. If nothing else, it once again brings together New Mexico FBI Agent Corrie Swanson and archaeologist Nora Kelly - both interesting yet very different characters. That happens following the discovery of a female skeleton in a remote section of the Navajo Nation badlands - a woman who appears to have been there all alone of her own volition. She'd inexplicably shed her clothing in the terrible desert heat, but she had with her a pair of extremely rare stones Knowing Nora likely would know more about them, Corrie solicits her advice; as it turns out, Nora is more than intrigued - and at that point, let the adventure begin.

Intrigued by the stones, Nora takes her younger brother Skip to meet Edison Nash, the wealthy dude who owns the two known stones. They take an immediate liking to one another - and bottles of expensive tequila - but Nora worries that Nash may have acquired some of his extensive collection of artifacts by not-so-legitimate means and could be a negative influence on Skip. While that's going on, Corrie's team identifies the woman's body and finds a connection to a local university professor and his loyal group of accolytes - most definitely worth checking out, especially since the professor seems to have disappeared. To confuse matters even more, yet another body is found in the badlands - another female who died under almost identical circumstances.

Many more strange discoveries later, everything comes crashing together as Skip and his new best bud go missing and Nora and Corrie head out to find them. Needless to say, everything from that point on I read from the edge of my seat - until I lugged my Kindle to bed just because I wasn't about to wait till morning to finish and that seat edge was getting uncomfortable. It was definitely worth the loss of a little sleep, though, and I heartily thank the publisher, via NetGalley, for allowing me to tag along on this latest ride. I'm ready for next adventure, in fact, so bring it on soon, please!

Badlands by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (Grand Central Publishing, June 2025); 368 pp.

BADLANDS

4 stars out of 5

Now without her former partner, Montana police investigator Cody Hoyt - star of two previous books (The Highway and Back of Beyond - detective Cassie Dewell ventures to North Carolina to help put away a man thought to be serial killer Ronald Pergram (a.k.a. Lizard King). Thanks in part to her efforts, he's finally behind bars. So, she heads back to The Treasure State and almost immediately leaves for a new position as chief investigator in Grimstad, North Dakota - a backwoods town that's growing by leaps and bounds as a result of a booming oil industry.

Almost before she attends her first department meeting, a 12-year-old developmentally challenged boy named Kyle witnesses a car accident in  which the driver was killed. Then he sees a "package" that apparently was thrown from the car, picks it up and discovers a load of cash and packets of white powder - and a possible turn of good fortune that will allow him to provide a better life for himself and his mother.

Meanwhile, Cassie learns she was brought in to replace a chief investigator who was demoted by Sheriff Kirkbride, the kindly but well-seasoned man who hired her (aha - can we smell the resentment brewing)? In addition to her regular duties, her boss wants her to keep her ear to the ground for possible irregularities within the department. All that gets put on the back burner, though, when mutilated bodies turn up that may be related to rival drug gangs - and more specifically, to that mysterious package Kyle found. As the investigation gathers momentum, Cassie gets a new partner, Ian Davis; he's a former undercover cop who infiltrated the burgeoning drug underworld but had to be pulled from the field when his identity was jeopardized.

There's plenty of action in this one - some of it on the gruesome side - and much of it takes place when the temperatures drop to double-digits below zero (I like winter temperatures better than summer, but that's way too cold even for me). There aren't a lot of surprises as to who the bad guys are, but how, why and who's gonna get bumped off next kept me interested and unhappy when I had to put the book down (but close to 100 fewer pages than is usual for this author meant I didn't need to do that very often). By the end, most of the loose ends are tidied up, although a few stragglers remain that are sure to be continued in the next installment.

Also noticeable is what may be yet another example of the product placement trend I've seen in recent books by other authors; the brand name of a well-known outdoor clothing manufacturer was mentioned three times within the first half of the book. To top things off, I got a wee chuckle over two of the central characters named Willie and Winkie - methinks somebody's got a sense of humor. 

Badlands by C.J. Box (Minotaur Books, July 2015); 288 pp.