9mm: An interview with CJ Box

Welcome to the fifth instalment of Crime Watch's exclusive 9mm author interview series for this year, and the 49th instalment overall. You can check out some of the previous author interviews by clicking on an author's name on the sidebar to the right, on '9mm' on the header bar above, or you can see the first 44 instaments here.

But for now it is time to once again polish off the gun and point it towards a creator of tales mysterious and thrilling. Thanks to everyone for their comments and feedback on the series so far - I really appreciate it, as I know many of the participating authors do as well.

For those new to this rodeo, 9mm consists of the same 9 Murder Mystery questions put to a variety of New Zealand and international crime, thriller, and mystery authors. It’s been fun seeing the variety of answers the authors give to the questions - both in terms of great personal anecdotes and insights, and comparing the influences etc that many authors share. I hope you have all been enjoying the series as much as I (and the authors) have been. Suggestions are always welcome as to who else you'd like to see interviewed. Upcoming interviews include the likes of Kathy Reichs and Robert Crais, amongst others.

But today I am very pleased to share the thoughts and answers of Edgar Award-winning author CJ Box, creator of the terrific Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett series, along with some outstanding standalones, such as BLUE HEAVEN, which won the Edgar Award in 2009 and was one of my 'crime picks of 2010' for the Herald on Sunday (the book was released in New Zealand last year). For that article I described BLUE HEAVEN as: "An absorbing tale of frightened children on the run after witnessing four corrupt policemen gun down a man in rural North Idaho. Something of a crime fiction and classic Western love-child, this is a gripping, intelligent thriller with complex characters, a beautifully-evoked setting, and a ferocious conclusion."

In January I read my first Joe Pickett novel, IN PLAIN SIGHT, and enjoyed it greatly. You can read more about CJ Box at his website here. For those in the UK, you have an opportunity to meet him later this year when he is a guest at the terrific Harrogate Festival (yet another reason to make that event a must-attend). His newest Joe Pickett novel, COLD WIND, isc scheduled for release in the US later this month, and a standalone thriller called BACK OF BEYOND will be released in August 2011. But for now, CJ Box stares down the barrel of 9mm.

9MM: AN INTERVIEW WITH CJ BOX

Who is your favourite recurring crime fiction hero/detective?
I'm a fan of John Sandford's Lucas Davenport, Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch, and Denise Mina's Paddy Meehan -- although I think she's discontinued that series.

What was the very first book you remember reading and really loving, and why?
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller was the book that turned me all around. I'd read plenty up to that point, but Catch-22 made me realize for the first time that a book could rattle the reader to the core and make him think differently about... everything. I've since re-read it four times and get something new out of it every time.

Before your debut crime novel, what else had you written (if anything) unpublished manuscripts, short stories, articles?
I was a newspaper journalist prior to writing fiction. The newspaper I worked for was a very small Wyoming weekly, meaning I did everything -- features, sports, investigative, outdoor, a column, etc. It was the best training ground I can think of for what I do now because it exposed me to every level of small-town life from billionaire ranchers to low-rent survivalists.

Outside of writing, and touring and promotional commitments, what do you really like to do, leisure and activity-wise?
I love to fly-fish. And hunt. And ski. Outdoor stuff. But I'm passionate about fishing and I've been able to fish some of the best trout waters in the U.S. and blue-water ocean fishing outside the U.S.

What is one thing that visitors to your hometown should do, that isn't in the tourist brochures, or perhaps they wouldn't initially consider?
We live outside Cheyenne, Wyoming, home of the Cheyenne Frontier Days rodeo which is the largest outdoor rodeo in the world. I'd encourage visitors to go to the rodeo grounds even then the event isn't taking place to soak in the magnitude, culture, and unique nature of the place.

If your life was a movie, which actor could you see playing you? Ha! Any answer I could come up with would be ridiculous.

Of your books, which is your favourite, and why?
Very tough question, so I'll duck it. I'm very proud of OPEN SEASON because it launched my career. BLUE HEAVEN is a favorite because of it's structure and depth. It's a big story that is told in 60 hours of real time. NOWHERE TO RUN elicited some strong feelings from readers, and that's a good thing.

What was your initial reaction, and how did you celebrate, when you were first accepted for publication? Or when you first saw your debut story in book form on a bookseller's shelf?
I had three goals. One was to see my book in a library. The other was see it in a bookstore. The third was to see someone reading my book in an airplane. I'm happy to say all those goals have been achieved. I was thrilled...

What is the strangest or most unusual experience you have had at a book signing, author event, or literary festival?
Every year, I sign books in the lobby of Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone Park. It's a humbling experience. Many people come to my table simply to get directions to the toilets or to ask when the geyser will erupt. A few years ago, though, a woman stood in line glaring at me. When she reached the table, she leaned over and spat, "I knew your first wife Linda, you bastard!" and stomped away. The thing is, I'm still married to my ONLY wife, Laurie. I have no idea who Linda is, or was.


Thank you CJ Box. We really appreciate you taking the time to talk with Crime Watch.

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Have you read BLUE HEAVEN? Any of the Joe Pickett novels? What do you think of CJ Box's writing? Do you like crime fiction set in rural or wilderness areas?

365 books in a year?

In terms of New Years resolutions, aiming to read one novel-sized book a day for an entire year would be quite a big one, I guess. And in all honesty, it's not one of mine for 2011.

However, due to circumstances here in Hanoi (poor weather, having done plenty of sightseeing already, a need for some relaxation after lots of running around SE Asia for three weeks), I've actually managed to read two whole books during the first two days of the year (both courtesy of the Bookworm store, which I mentioned last year, ie a couple of days ago): LAST CAR TO ELYSIAN FIELDS by James Lee Burke and IN PLAIN SIGHT by CJ Box.

Quality-wise, that's a pretty good way to start the year too, with a couple of top-notch Edgar winning crime writers. I had the privilege of interviewing James Lee Burke last year (one of my crime fiction highlights of a terrific 2010), and am hoping to perhaps interview CJ Box in 2011.

LAST CAR TO ELYSIAN FIELDS is part of Burke's sublime and terrific Dave Robicheaux series of Louisiana-set crime novels. In this one, former NOPD detective Robicheaux is working for the Iberia Sheriff, his old partner Helen Soileau. His longtime buddy and hulking sidekick Clete Purcel is working as a PI, and Robicheaux is still on the wagon, just, after the all-too-recent death of his wife Bootsie. Here's the blurb:

"It is a rainy late-summer's night in New Orleans. Detective Dave Robicheaux is about to confront the man who may have savagely assaulted his friend, Father Jimmie Dolan, a Catholic priest who's always at the centre of controversy. But things are never as they seem and soon Robicheaux is back in New Iberia, probing a car crash that killed three teenage girls. A grief-crazed father and a maniacal, complex assassin are just a few of the characters Robicheaux meets as he is drawn deeper into a web of sordid secrets and escalating violence. A masterful exploration of the troubled side of human nature and the dark corners of the heart, peopled by familiar characters such as P.I. Clete Purcel and Robicheaux's old flame Theodosia LeJeune, LAST CAR TO ELYSIAN FIELDS is vintage Burke - moody, hard-hitting, with his trademark blend of human drama and relentless noir suspense."

I will write a full review later (either here on Crime Watch, or elsewhere and linked here), but for now I'll just say that this is another outstanding book in one of the best crime fiction series of recent decades. Poetic, layered, philosophical, elegant, lyrical, and yet brutal at the same time. Vintage Burke.

My second book (started on the night of 1 January, finished on 2nd January) was IN PLAIN SIGHT by CJ Box. CJ Box was one of those authors I'd heard of, but never read, until recently. In late 2010 I read BLUE HEAVEN, the first of Box's books to be widely available in bookstores downunder. It was excellent, a top read mixing crime fiction with an almost Western atmosphere, tone, and pace. While BLUE HEAVEN (which won the 2009 Edgar Award) was a standalone novel, IN PLAIN SIGHT is one of Box's 'Joe Pickett' novels - part of his acclaimed series featuring a Wyoming Fish and Game Warden.

Here's the blurb for IN PLAIN SIGHT, the sixth book in the Joe Pickett series: "J. W. Keeley is a man with a score to settle. He blames one man for the death of his brother: Joe Pickett. And now J. W. is going to make him suffer. Spring has finally come to Saddlestring, Wyoming, and game warden Joe Pickett is relieved the long, harsh winter is finally over. However, a cloud of trouble threatens to spoil the milder weather-local ranch owner and matriarch Opal Scarlett has vanished under suspicious circumstances. Two of her sons, Hank and Arlen, are battling for control of their mother's multi-million-dollar empire, and their bitter fight threatens to tear the whole town apart.

Everyone is so caught up in the brothers' battle that they seem to have forgotten that Opal is still missing. Joe is convinced, though, that one of the brothers killed their mother. Determined to uncover the truth, he is attacked and nearly beaten to death by Hank Scarlett's new right-hand man on the ranch-a recently arrived stranger who looks eerily familiar. A series of threatening messages and attempts to sabotage Joe's career follow. At first, he thinks the attacks are connected with his investigation of Opal's disappearance, but he soon learns that someone else is after him-someone with a very personal grudge who wants to make Joe pay . . . and pay dearly. Compelling and suspenseful, In Plain Sight is a crackling novel from one of today's best mystery writers."

Although if I'm putting my reviewers hat on, I didn't think IN PLAIN SIGHT quite reached the heights of BLUE HEAVEN (it seemed just a touch more cliched/melodramatic at times; a little bit on the nose, tell not show), it was a very good crime novel, I enjoyed the read, and I will definitely read more of the Joe Pickett series. I especially enjoyed Box's descriptions of the outdoors setting, and the character of Joe.

So, two days down, two very good to great crime novels down. Not a bad start to 2011.

What is/has been your first crime fiction read of 2011?