In the wake of an elk hunter's grisly murder, Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett is directed by the governor to investigate the relevance of a mysterious poker chip found at the crime scene.

The author of the Joe Pickett novels presents 10 suspense stories about the Wyoming he knows so well -- and the dark deeds and impulses that can be found there -- in a collection that includes four stories that feature Pickett himself.

"A rogue grizzly bear has gone on a rampage--killing, among others, the potential fiancé of Joe's daughter. At the same time, Dallas Cates, who Joe helped lock up years ago, is released from prison with a special list tattooed on his skin. He wants revenge on the people who sent him away: the six people he blames for the deaths of his entire family and the loss of his reputation and property. Using the grizzly attacks as cover, Cates sets out to...

Discovering that a friend and fellow game warden has committed suicide, Joe Pickett is assigned to the man's district in Jackson, Wyoming, and becomes a pawn in a struggle between environmental extremists and their powerful adversaries.

"When Joe Pickett is asked to join the rescue efforts for the victim of a startling grizzly attack, he reluctantly leaves his district behind. One survivor of the grizzly's rampage tells a bizarre story, but just as Joe begins to suspect the attack is not what it seems, he is brought home by an emergency on his own turf. Someone has targeted a prominent local judge, shooting at him from a seemingly impossible distance. While the judge was not hit,...