I've been reading Craig Johnson's Wyoming-set mysteries featuring Sheriff Walt Longmire since summer and enjoying them a great deal. Essentially I'm a sucker for the "decent man in an indecent job" trope. Longmire's voice is wry, self-effacing, and keenly observant, making him an excellent guide to one of the other main characters in the books, Wyoming itself.

In Junkyard Dogs, the 6th Longmire book, Johnson rummages around a bit in Carl Hiassan's spice cabinet. Wyoming-man can, it turns out, offer the same opportunities for humor as Florida-man. While Walt interacts with various vivid characters and deals with personnel problems in his department, the underlying mystery grows from quasi-comic beginnings to a rather violent conclusion. Despite the comic tone, this book has underlying sadness and seriousness. Walt is in a difficult job, and the consequences of that are taking their toll on him and the people around him. He's going through a well-earned slow-motion midlife crisis that's likely to be reflected in the upcoming volumes.

I'm looking forward to them.