THE BROKEN TRUTH

Self-described cattle cop Tucker Snow and his kid brother, Harley, stumble into yet another case that takes them a long way from cattle.

Tuck’s job description as special ranger for the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association may not sound very exciting, but he keeps finding new ways to get into trouble. The latest involves the death of rancher Mitch Ramsey, who’d already lost a leg to cancer, and the sudden sale of his place to a shadowy collective. Wendel Cross, an agent for ChemShale, hints that he’s willing to pay Tuck plenty for certain information he never quite describes, and he indicates that he’s in a position to make Tuck’s life miserable if he doesn’t help out. Tuck’s life, of course, has already been miserable ever since the death of his wife and younger daughter in a collision with a car driven by a meth addict, but at least he and Harley have recovered Chloe, his remaining daughter, from the abusive meth dealer who kidnapped her. Piqued by Cross’ challenge, Tuck looks around for signs of criminal activity in Red River County and finds not only the usual cattle rustling, one round of which serves as a prologue to his latest case, but a mind-boggling array of higher-tech felonies. The leading players include perfect heroes, dastardly villains, in-betweeners, conspirators who mix virtuous and evil impulses, and free agents who can turn on a dime from bad guys to good. The plotting is erratic, but the pattern behind all the crimes and misdemeanors is clear: “The whole world is made from petroleum products” and suffers from the unimaginable harms they cause.

Part Western, part mystery, all action.