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Fiction. Mystery. Thriller. HTML: The inspiration for the new ABC series Big Sky. Winner of the Edgar Award for Best Novel, the New York Times bestselling author of Back of Beyond and Breaking Point and the creator of the Joe Pickett series is back. "If CJ Box isn't already on your list, put him there." �?? USA Today When two sisters set out across a remote stretch of Montana road to visit their friend, little do they know it will be the last time anyone might ever hear from them again. The girls�??and their car�??simply vanish. Former police investigator Cody Hoyt has just lost his job and has fallen off the wagon after a long stretch of sobriety. Convinced by his son and his former rookie partner, Cassie Dewell, he begins the drive south to the girls' last known location. As Cody makes his way to the lonely stretch of Montana highway where they went missing, Cassie discovers that Gracie and Danielle Sullivan aren't the first girls who have disappeared in this area. This majestic landscape is the hunting ground for a killer whose viciousness is outmatched only by his intelligence. And he might not be working alone. Time is running out for Gracie and Danielle...Can Cassie overcome her doubts and lack of experience and use her innate skill? Can Cody Hoyt battle his own demons and find this killer before another victim vanishes on the highway… (more)
User reviews
The story is about a long-haul trucker who preys on
Two teenage girls are heading north, supposedly to visit their father, but the eldest instead turns off their route toward Helena, Montana to check on her boyfriend because he is apparently not so stuck on her anymore. Her sister doesn't want to do this, but has to go along. Then they and their car vanish.
I can't tell you anymore without spoilers but this plot will have you on the edge of your seat. As for characters, I thought the bad guys were better portrayed than the good guys, but then a lot of the action is theirs and Box concentrated on describing them and their methods.
C. J. Box is an excellent writer whose plots are elegantly constructed for maximum page-turning effect.
Recommended reading.
Source: Amazon Vine
Cassie Dewell, a Montana Sheriff's Department Investigator leads the investigation. Cody Hoyt is part of
The characterization is well described and interesting to read.
This part of Montana is lonely and a truck stop is the base from which a man can prey on women, usually prostitutes who cater to the long distance truckers using that truck stop.
There is good imagery of the Montana life and the author provides some excellent twists and surprises that will leave the reader thinking about this novel into the future.
In THE HIGHWAY, we are reunited with cop Cody Hoyt and his son, Justin, who was lost in Yellowstone Park with Danielle and
This was a fast-paced read, it takes place over two days and a lot happens, so there are no slow moments. I was quite surprised at a game-changing move in the plot and not sure how I feel about that. I liked Cassie and Grace, the younger of the sisters. I'm not sure why the author decided to use the same characters that had been traumatized in the previous novel. Overall, it wasn't a bad read, not my usual preference, but one I think fans of thrillers can enjoy.
If I hadn't read any of the Pickett books, and picked up either of the Hoyt books first, I probably wouldn't stick with CJ Box. The Highway was a decent way to pass the time, but nothing special.
I think my problem is that in all of the Pickett novels, there is a greater issue (wind, minerals, etc) although of course greed and off-balance people are always invovled. In Highway, it was simply evil people doing evil things - not a genre of books I'm drawn to.
SPOILERS START HERE: I looked for interviews with Box to see if he mentioned a future for this series but couldn't find one. I find it interesting that he killed off Hoyt. Did Box not like where it was gong with such a dark character? (Pickett goes off the rope now and then, but not like this). Or is there some other plan. At any rate, not sure I'd read another Hoyt, though I look forward to other future novels.
It would be easy to say "this is just a good thriller", but I'd like to say it's a little bit more than that. The realistic feel of the setting, the dialogues, and the personalities involved comes through as something very spontaneous, almost simple, when we know that it's no easy job to write a good old damn thriller. The story has its twists and turns, and overall perhaps nothing too original happens, however, hearing of new wonderful ideas is not the reason why you read a thriller. At least i don't. It's the pleasure of immersing yourself in a certain primordial mood (the chase, the victim, the hunt), it's the chill of sitting right next to the criminal, being in his mind, and in the mind of the investigator. All those things might be always the same but they're incredible fun.
Mind you, as a very general rule, i believe the simpler and smoother a crime novel or a thriller comes across, the more skilfull the author has been at putting it together. Think of Michael Connelly or Dean Koontz. "The Highway" is not as procedurally sophisticated as a Connelly book, or as dark and creepy as a Koontz book (although it is quite creepy in places), but in my opinion it presents a very similar level of fine-tuned, polished writing craft.
You won't ever look at big trucks on the highway the same way again. Guaranteed.
It would be easy to say "this is just a good thriller", but I'd like to say it's a little bit more than that. The realistic feel of the setting, the dialogues, and the personalities involved comes through as something very spontaneous, almost simple, when we know that it's no easy job to write a good old damn thriller. The story has its twists and turns, and overall perhaps nothing too original happens, however, hearing of new wonderful ideas is not the reason why you read a thriller. At least i don't. It's the pleasure of immersing yourself in a certain primordial mood (the chase, the victim, the hunt), it's the chill of sitting right next to the criminal, being in his mind, and in the mind of the investigator. All those things might be always the same but they're incredible fun.
Mind you, as a very general rule, i believe the simpler and smoother a crime novel or a thriller comes across, the more skilfull the author has been at putting it together. Think of Michael Connelly or Dean Koontz. "The Highway" is not as procedurally sophisticated as a Connelly book, or as dark and creepy as a Koontz book (although it is quite creepy in places), but in my opinion it presents a very similar level of fine-tuned, polished writing craft.
You won't ever look at big trucks on the highway the same way again. Guaranteed.
Meanwhile, a trucker who goes by the moniker Lizard King searches for lot lizards (prostitutes), and the girls happen to catch his eye. Cody's former partner discovers that Danielle and Gracie aren't the first girls to go missing in that area.
This book was a fun read and a little scary. It was my first CJ Box story and I'm already looking for more.
Mr. Box made me think of a favorite author of mine Mr. Rick Mofina. I love Mr. Mofina's books and can read them in one sitting. I think that Mr. Box is going to be another one of my favorite authors like Mr. Mofina. This is because I read this book almost in one sitting. I would have too if it had not already been too late at night. Even though this is my first book, I instantly felt a connection with Cassie and Cody. They each brought something good to the story. The ending was good too. Now back to checking out the prior novels. The Highway is a roller coaster of a great read!
“"There's a killer on the road.
His brain is squirmin' like a toad." Jim Morrison
kidnapping,
long haul truckers,
montana,
murder,
mystery/suspense/thriller
A long haul truck driver is a serial killer, feasting on lot lizards and other prey. When he grabs two sisters, he sets in motion a cat and
A few things that I liked:
1) This story grabbed my attention from Chapter 1 and never lost momentum. I pulled an all-nighter, finishing around 5:30 this morning since I couldn't put it down. I had to bite my tongue in quite a few places to keep from waking the hubby with "OMG!" or "Oh no he did NOT just say/do that!"
2) I was pleased to learn more about Cody's thought process when it comes to his job. He's had a rough couple of years, but his heart is in the right place.
3) Cassie Dewell is my kind of leading lady. She learns a valuable lesson in this book, too. Read it to find out.
4) The scene between Cassie and Sheriff Tubman in the last chapter was extremely satisfying. Best line in that confrontation:
5) Gracie's strength. She's the younger of the two sisters, but she's strong. I liked the way she kept a level head, even when Danielle's actions were making their predicament worse.
6) Box's villains are TRUE villains. I can honestly say there isn't a likable bone in their bodies. I know I'll think twice the next time I consider a late night drive home on the open highway. Safety first, ladies!
Overall a very exciting book! I look forward to reading Badlands!
I liked Cassie at first. I didn't like that her boss used her to get evidence against Cody (her work partner), but if
I do feel sorry for Justin. He probably feels guilty that he asked Cody (his father) to help locate Danielle (his on-again, off-again girlfriend) and Gracie (Danielle's sister) when they went missing. Cody looking in to their disappearance is what got him killed--so I imagine Justin is dealing with the guilt of that as well as with the loss of his father.
Danielle's character bothered me when we were first introduced to her, but I do feel sorry for what happened to her. I feel more sorry for Gracie who was riding along with Danielle thinking they were going to their father's for Thanksgiving and instead finds the trip is hi-jacked by Danielle who is convinced Justin wants to break up with her and feels she needs to see him to prevent that. And though Gracie's insistence that they pull in to a truck stop is what puts the girls on the Lizard King's radar, it is Danielle's later actions that probably make them more of a target to him as well as her neglect of her car in allowing the check engine light to be on for so long without getting it checked.
It's scary how well the Lizard King could plan to get away (while still implicating the man who partnered with and tried to blackmail him). Not only that he could physically do it, but that he knew what to do to disguise his truck until he could get somewhere to trade it in, that he knew where to go to exchange his truck for a different one where his current one would probably get sent to Mexico, that he knew where to go to get new identity papers, that he knew how to reestablish himself as an independent trucker. Also scary that he's planning to take his extra-long trailer and create his own (travelling) cell so he can keep abducting women and doing what he does to them-all while continuing to be on the road so that it will be harder for law enforcement to connect his crimes to one individual.
The novel does do a very good job of plot, character, setting. Some of the interactions—how a character perceives something, or figures something out—are really terrific. Great writing. The two main sleuths, one makes and one female, are both very well done, vivid and unique and believable.
Perhaps Box’s other novels aren’t this dark, or at least not this focused on someone who abuses women so intensely, but after this novel I’ll have to let other readers figure that out. Too dark, too thrilled about the dark—I can’t go there.
Lastly, Cassie goes to Montana to find Cody and the girls.