Circles in the Snow by Patrick F. McManus

First Line: Blight County Sheriff Bo Tully stood on snowshoes atop a knoll overlooking the Blight River.

Sheriff Bo Tully of Blight County, Idaho, is seriously contemplating retirement, but he doesn't have the time to do more than gallop the idea through his mind from time to time. Someone is killing bald eagles, a widely disliked rancher has been killed-- by bow and arrow no less-- and there are perfectly round circles appearing in the snow.

Tully has a long list of suspects in the rancher's murder, several of whom lived right on the ranch with the dead man. This time putting together all the pieces of the puzzle might mean a trip to Mexico for his cantankerous father and his second-in-command. Will Bo be able to solve the crimes (and will Mexico ever be the same)?

I always know I can depend on Patrick McManus for a well-crafted mystery with a fine cast of characters and plenty of humor, and Circles in the Snow is no exception. McManus has a gift for dialogue, and his humor always stems from his characters and the situations they find themselves in; there's no clever word play or comedic set-ups.

The baffling part of the death of rancher Morgan Fester isn't who done it, but how it was done, and I often find that type of mystery more fun to solve. From the author's splendid descriptions of eagles roosting in trees to his theme of intelligence (or lack thereof) and on to the solution to the circles in the snow, McManus's latest Bo Tully mystery is just plain fun to read. I sincerely hope the sheriff doesn't  retire any time soon!
    

Circles in the Snow by Patrick F. McManus

eISBN: 9781629142838
Skyhorse Publishing © 2014
eBook, 240 pages

Police Procedural/Humorous Mystery, #6 Sheriff Bo Tully mystery
Rating: B+
Source: Purchased from Amazon. 


 

The Tamarack Murders by Patrick F. McManus

First Line: Blight County Idaho Sheriff Bo Tully scanned the ridge above him.

Sheriff Bo Tully and his deputy are up in the mountains tracking a bank robber when they witness a man being shot and killed from long range. Tully quickly calls for "Lurch," his trusty one-man crime scene investigator, but now he has to figure out if this death is tied in with the bank robbery... and what's up with those two elk hunters who don't seem to know beans about hunting elk? A local named Gridley Shanks seems to have a lot of connections-- not only to various doings in and outside of town-- but with the bank robbery and the murdered man. Has he got something to do with this business?

Once again, it's up to Tully and his Blight Way of investigating crime to put all these bits and pieces together to figure out who needs to go to jail.

If you're the type of mystery reader who sometimes prefers your murders to be served up with a smile-- and if you're caught up with all of Craig Johnson's Longmire books-- let me recommend Patrick McManus's Sheriff Bo Tully series. They don't necessarily have to be read in order, but some of the characters and events might be a bit clearer to you if you do.

Sheriff Bo Tully is a man who always has an eye for the ladies, and for the most part the ladies of Blight County have just as much fun as Bo does. But Bo is really a crime-solving natural who uses his in-depth knowledge of the area and its inhabitants to close his cases. His investigations often delve into the history of the area a little as well, which brings a bit of the Old West into the story.

As in other books in the series, Bo tends to be a couple of steps ahead of readers and the other characters in The Tamarack Murders, something that usually annoys me in other mysteries, but it doesn't here. Bo is one savvy sheriff, and it quickly becomes apparent that his attempts to remain those two steps ahead are mostly to prevent any harm from coming to his team. 

Down-home humor plays an important part in the book, and a little old lady named Vera steals the show from Bo. Her scenes alone are well worth reading the book.

If you like mysteries that are light, fun, and quirky from first page to last, I think it's time you introduced yourself to Bo. But be warned: if you're female, this here sheriff is a dyed-in-the-wool lady's man.
  

The Tamarack Murders by Patrick F. McManus

eISBN: 9781620876343

Skyhorse Publishing © 2013

eBook, 208 pages

Police Procedural/Humorous Mystery, #5 Sheriff Bo Tully mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Purchased from Amazon. 


 

The Huckleberry Murders by Patrick F. McManus

First Line: Blight County, Idaho, sheriff Bo Tully drove slowly up the long gravel driveway leading to the ranch house.

[As I've said elsewhere, I've been doing so much reading that I have a stack of book reviews piled so high that I can't see over it. The only thing for me to do is to go into "Cathy's Quickies Mode": whip up some shorter reviews that will-- hopefully-- still let you know how I feel about the book. Here goes!]

Sheriff Bo Tully is convinced that retiree Orville Poulson has been murdered by his ranch caretaker. Supposedly Orville's off somewhere fishing around Spokane, but Bo doesn't buy it. Now if he could just prove his hunch. Before he can, three young men are shot execution-style, their bodies left in a huckleberry patch up on a mountain. When a female FBI agent shows up to take over the case, Bo finds himself busier than a one-armed paperhanger with the hives.

I enjoy McManus's Bo Tully mysteries. Even though they're played more for laughs than police procedure, I'd still like to get Tully together with my other two Stetson-wearing sheriffs, Walt Longmire and Bill Gastner. Tully is so busy in this one, that it appears that he's ignoring a woman who insists that her ex-husband has been murdered. Notice how I say "appears."

McManus's humor is reminiscent of Mark Twain, and I loved how all the pieces of the puzzle fit together in this one. I recommend this entire series to anyone with a fondness for light-hearted mysteries featuring a good old-fashioned lawman who believes in using cunning and guile to solve crimes. Good stuff!

The Huckleberry Murders by Patrick F. McManus

ISBN: 9781439190845

Simon and Schuster © 2010

Hardcover, 272 pages

Police Procedural/Humorous, #4 Sheriff Bo Tully mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Purchased from Book Outlet. 

The Double-Jack Murders by Patrick F. McManus

First Line: Idaho's Blight County sheriff, Bo Tully, scanned the ridge above his log house with binoculars.

Just because he's had a death threat is no reason to call off the Fourth Annual Sheriff Bo Tully Empty the Freezer Day that always takes place on his property. All the other local politicians have been beside themselves for four years now over missing out on a free vote-gathering extravaganza that doesn't cost Bo a dime. (Although he does draw the line at eating any mystery meats the voters bring in.)

But the death threat is a serious one, and Bo decides to head for tall timber in an attempt to get the would-be assassin away from his constituents and into a trap of the wily sheriff's choosing. When Agatha and Bernice, two old ladies at the remote Quail Creek Ranch, ask Bo to take on a 75-year-old cold case, he knows this fits the bill.

Whenever I'm in the mood for good characters, good stories, and good laughs, I head on over to Blight County, Idaho, and cozy up to Sheriff Bo Tully. Bo Tully, the sheriff who makes pets of spiders that take up housekeeping in his office window. Bo Tully, the sheriff who now shares accommodations with Clarence, the dog with a criminal past. (Clarence was arrested several times for hiding under cars and biting people on the ankles.)

If you're a Craig Johnson fan who's reading this review and starting to have stars in your eyes, I'd advise you to proceed with caution. Yes, McManus's books do have a lot in common with Johnson's Walt Longmire series, but McManus's series is much lighter and played more for the laughs. The two series compliment each other nicely, but come election time, I'm voting for Longmire, if you see what I'm saying.

The story line for this third book in the series is right out of the pages of the Old West. Back in 1927, a gold miner tells his family that he and his young partner have hit the mother lode. The two men return to the location of the mine, but they never come home again. It's up to Bo to piece together clues in this cold case and dodge bullets from an escaped prisoner. Bo knows the territory, and he knows the people. He's got a distinct advantage-- although it's certainly rugged terrain in which to locate a hidden mine.

Watching Bo solve a mystery is one very fun way to spend an afternoon, and I would recommend this series to anyone who likes humorous mysteries set in the West.

The Double-Jack Murders by Patrick F. McManus

ISBN: 9781439131367

Simon and Schuster © 2010

Hardcover, 240 pages

Humorous Mystery, #3 Sheriff Bo Tully mystery

Rating: B+

Source: Purchased from Bookcloseouts.