The Broken Truth

Action, suspense, and a suspicious death combine with fantastic characters in this contemporary western crime thriller. This is book two in the Tucker Snow series and the story is set soon after book one. Tucker and his daughter Chloe are living on a ranch near Ganther Bluff in Red River County, Texas. They relocated here after Tucker’s wife and youngest daughter were killed in a car wreck.

After leaving his job as an uncover narcotics agent for the Texas Department of Public Safety, Tucker has taken a job as a special ranger for the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association, the oldest livestock alliance in Texas. While a lot of what he deals with is cattle rustling, he also deals with ranch equipment thefts and other items.

In this case, he’s chasing some rustlers, but when a visit to a local rancher is followed by attempted bribes and threats, Tucker believes there’s more going on than rustling. His brother Harley once again joins him in his investigation.

Great characterization is something you can count on from this author. Tucker is still grieving the loss of his wife and daughter while trying to support Chloe as she grieves and goes through normal teenage angst. He is detail oriented, a planner, and pursues justice. He has a strong moral code but doesn’t always play by the official rules when it comes to protecting his family and friends.

The book is disquieting and unsettling at times with plenty of exciting scenes, drama, and action. Once again readers know many of the antagonists early in the book. However, it didn’t detract from the journey of following Tucker’s investigation. The world-building is fantastic and takes readers to rural eastern Texas. The action-packed chase scene in the early chapters is just the beginning of the action. A few twists and turns in the plot added to my curiosity and engrossment in the story. The novel highlights greed, grief, family, friendship, various types of crimes, dangerous coverups, the rural grapevine, contrasts between those living in the city versus those living in the country, and much more.

Overall, this was a tense, riveting novel with a story arc that kept me engaged throughout. While this series is best read in order, enough background is provided to allow this to be a standalone novel as well. Those who enjoy contemporary western crime thrillers will likely enjoy the series. I can’t wait to see where the author takes the next book in the series.

Poisoned Pen Press and Reavis Wortham provided a complimentary digital ARC of this novel via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own. The publication date is currently set for August 20 2024.