Books Set in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming

by Jeannette Walls
Setting: ARIZONA, first half of 20th century

Lily Casey was born in Texas in 1901 and learned about ranching from her father. By the age of 6, she was helping to break horses. And at the age of just 15, she left home and rode over 500 miles alone on her pony to take a job as a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse in Arizona.

Lily married and raised two children on a vast Arizona ranch, but she never lost her adventurous spirit. She learned to repair cars and how to fly a plane. She survived tornadoes, droughts, floods, the Great Depression, and great personal tragedy. She pushed back against any kind of prejudice - whether it be against women, Native Americans, or anyone else who didn’t fit the expected mold.

The Book Girls Say… Author Jeannette Walls is most well-known for her memoir, The Glass Castle. Half Broke Horses is a novelistic re-creation of her maternal grandmother’s life. Although she wrote The Glass Castle first, if you haven’t already read it, we recommend reading Half Broke Horses first because it provides so much context for how Jeannette’s mother, Rosemary, came to be the woman she was.

by Mary Doria Russell
Setting: Tombstone, ARIZONA, 1881

Since the region we’re reading this month includes a large part of what was considered the “Wild West,” we wanted a book with a true Western feel. In Epitaph, we travel back in time and meet Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday in Tombstone, Arizona.

By 1881, tensions bubbling across the country culminated in a now-fabled 30-second gunfight at the OK Corral. What should have been a quick arrest led to the death of three citizens and the wounding of three officers. The only man standing at the end was Wyatt Earp.

Rumors about the battle began spreading immediately, and many continue to this day. In this well-researched historical fiction novel, Mary Doria Russell tells the real story.

The Book Girls Say…Epitaph was a Goodreads Nominee for Best Historical Fiction in 2015. For an earlier look at Doc Holliday in his Texas years, try Doc by the same author.

by Kallista Kohl
Setting: Sedona, ARIZONA, 2022

CEO Izabelle is preparing for the most important presentation of her career at a Sedona resort. She’s known for being independent and doing everything without assistance, but then she runs into a handsome, yet awkward, stranger who has the expertise she needs.

Jake has been sent for mandatory time away from the office, and they won’t even let him log in to the company network. He’s going stir-crazy until he runs into his dream woman, twice. When she asks for his help, he can’t find the words to explain why that’s a bad idea.

Izabelle and Jake both do their best to resist the urge to mix business and pleasure, but how long can they keep things strictly business?

The Book Girls Say…This rom com is said to be as steamy as the Arizona sun, so avoid it if you prefer a clean read. For another Arizona Rom-Com, try Wait for It by Jenn McKinlay which is set in Phoenix.

This book is included with Kindle Unlimited as of 1/15/23.

by Kevin Fedarko
Setting: Grand Canyon, ARIZONA, 1983

In the winter of 1983, superstorms battered the west, followed by a massive snowmelt that threatened the Glen Canyon Dam at the head of the Grand Canyon. While engineers and federal officials scrambled to prevent a catastrophic dam failure, rescuers scrambled to evacuate rafters by helicopter and future launches were forbidden until the waters were under control.

However, Kenton Grua saw an opportunity. The floodwaters could work as a hydraulic slingshot, assuring his place as a new record-holder for the fastest trip down 277 miles of whitewater through the canyon. He was already known as being fearless, but this was unlike anything anyone had ever attempted.

The Book Girls Say…This thrilling non-fiction tale was written by a river guide intimately familiar with the setting. The Emerald Mile won the National Outdoor Book Award for History/Biography in 2013. If you prefer a fiction title with characters traversing the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon, try In the Heart of the Canyon.

by Brady Udall
Setting: ARIZONA & Richland, UTAH, 2000

When a half-Apache boy named Edgar is run over by a mail truck, he miraculously survives, but the incident changes the path of his life. When authorities discover that he’s mostly orphaned, he’s sent to a boarding school for Native American orphans, which is not a nice place to be.

Eventually, he’s sent to foster care with a dysfunctional Mormon family. Despite his difficulties and lack of consistent family, Edgar's goodness remains. He’s determined to find and forgive the man driving the mail truck.

The Book Girls Say…Reviews say this author’s writing style is similar to John Irving, and you’ll enjoy it if you love The World According to Garp or a Prayer for Owen Meany. Also similar to Irving, you’ll find the author is not particularly kind to his main character.

by Megan Kate Nelson
Setting: 1860s, land that became ARIZONA & NEW MEXICO

This riveting non-fiction takes you to the American West during the Civil War. While plenty has been written about the South during this period, it wasn’t the only region of conflict. In the territory that later became Arizona & New Mexico, there was a three-sided fight between the Union, the Confederacy, and several tribes, including the Navajo and Apache.

The book shares the history of nine individuals, including a Texas legislator, a Union Army wife, a Navajo weaver, and a gold miner. Each of the nine demonstrates the difference individual actions can make amid a larger battle. The book is based on their letters, diaries, military records, photographs, and more.

The Book Girls Say…This book was a Pulitzer Prize Nominee for History in 2021. We learned a lot about the region just while researching the book, so it’s a great one if you want to add to your knowledge of US history. For a more modern non-fiction look at Arizona, consider reading The Devil's Highway, the 2005 Pulitzer Prize nominee about 26 men attempting to cross the border.

by Kent Haruf
Setting: rural eastern plains of COLORADO, early 1980s

Set in the fictional high plains town of Holt, Colorado, this novel centers around several different characters that span four generations in a small town. A high school teacher is raising his two sons alone after their mother leaves. A pregnant teenage girl has been evicted by her mother. And two elderly bachelor brothers live together out in the country, continuing to work their family homestead.

The Book Girls Say... Colorado native Kent Haruf wrote many beautiful novels about the ordinary lives of folk living in the isolated landscape of northeastern Colorado. He is regarded as one of the most talented modern-day Colorado novelists. This is the first book in a series of three. If you enjoy Plainsong, you may also want to read Eventide and Benediction.

Book Girls' Readers Rate This Book ⭐⭐⭐⭐½
100% Would Recommend to a Friend

by Matthew Sullivan
Setting: Denver, COLORADO, 1990s

Lydia is a bookseller at a popular Denver bookstore. When one of her regular patrons commits suicide in the store, Lydia is determined to find out why. As Lydia delves into his past, she also uncovers a buried memory from her own violent childhood. This is a twisty crime novel with a very creative puzzle element that will keep readers guessing.

The Book Girls Say... Colorado-based readers will recognize the Bright Ideas bookstore as The Tattered Cover. In the mid-1990s, the area of downtown Denver known as LoDo, which would become very trendy by the next decade, was still primarily a warehouse district and was very rough around the edges. One of LoDo’s main draws at that time was a newly opened bookstore, known as the Tattered Cover, that boasted 20,000 square feet of space over four floors of a historic warehouse building. Author Mark Sullivan was a bookseller at this Denver book institution during the 1990s and used the store as his inspiration. His novel does an excellent job of capturing what Denver was like during this decade.

by Bruce Holsinger
Setting: Fictional town of Crystal, COLORADO

This juicy contemporary drama focuses on four families that have been friends since their children were born. However, secrets and resentments were buried along the way.

Early in the book, we are introduced to each of these families as they discuss a new, exclusive school that will be opening in the town of Crystal, Colorado (which many readers will recognize as a slightly fictionalized version of Boulder, CO). What starts as good intentions is quickly derailed by very questionable actions as they each fight to get their kids into the new school. These ambitious parents will go to any length to secure a spot for their children. Along the way, secrets and lies will resurface in explosive ways.

This novel explores issues of talent versus privilege, achievement versus potential, and the pursuit of prestige at any cost.

The Book Girls Say… Author Bruce Holsinger once taught English literature at the University of Colorado in Boulder. He has confirmed in interviews that the town of Crystal, where he set his story, is a “reimagined Boulder.” Boulder, located about 30 miles outside of Denver, sits in the shadow of the Flatirons - the striking, reddish sandstone formations that make up a portion of the foothills. In addition to being a popular college town, Boulder is also a major tech hub. It was recently named the seventh most expensive real estate market in the country.

This book is on the longer side at 560 pages, and it may take several chapters to keep the large cast of characters straight, but it's worth sticking with it! We highly recommend the audio version of the book, as the narrator did an excellent job.

by Kali Fajardo-Anstine
Setting: COLORADO, 1868-1930s

This novel begins in Denver in the 1930s, where Luz “Little Light” Lopez begins working for a prominent civil rights attorney. Luz begins to have intense visions of her ancestors in the old west, including her grandmother (who the author says is somewhat loosely based on sharp-shooter Annie Oakley), and her great-grandfather (an indigenous man who leaves the Pueblos in Northern New Mexico).

Told in a non-linear timeline, this novel explores five generations of an Indigenous Chicano family. It will transport you to the wild American West, as well as to the city of Denver, which was deeply segregated in the 1920s and 30s.

The Book Girls Say… This novel is based on the author’s own ancestors who lived in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado. She spent over 10 years researching and writing this novel, beginning when she was a teenager hearing family stories from her aunt Lucy, who inspired the character of Luz in the novel.

by Mariana Zapata
Setting: Pagosa Springs, COLORADO

After her marriage ends, 33-year-old Aurora decides to head back to Pagosa Springs in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains for a fresh start. It’s the only place she’s ever really considered home. She rents a garage apartment in town, but it turns out the owner’s son had listed it for rent without his father’s knowledge or permission in order to get money for a guitar that he desperately wants to buy. Aurora convinces the owner, Tobias Rhodes, to let her stay for one month.

Aurora is on a journey of recovery - both from her relationship and from a loss twenty years in her past. Rhodes is a grumpy man of few words, and his teen son, Amos, is described by reviewers as one of the most authentically written teens you’ll ever read. As time goes on, Aurora and Rhodes slowly become friends, and then eventually more.

The Book Girls Say… This is a long book (nearly 600 pages) with a very slow-burn romance with a meandering plot. The reviews are excellent, but don’t pick this book if you’re looking for a fast-paced read. But if you want to read a contemporary novel set in the mountains of Colorado, readers say that the beautiful descriptions in this one will have you itching to lace up your hiking boots and get outside! Additionally, this book also delves into some deeper topics, including grief, trauma, and mental health.

Note: Reviewers say this book includes some swearing and sex scenes, so skip it if that’s not your thing.

by Helen Thorpe
Setting: South High School, Denver, COLORADO

The Newcomers follows the lives of twenty-two immigrant teenagers throughout the course of the 2015-2016 school year as they land at South High School in Denver, Colorado. Ranging in age from fourteen to nineteen, most of these students came directly from refugee camps in countries plagued by war, famine, or drought.

The non-fiction read follows the student's English language education with their dedicated and creative teacher Mr. Williams. As they grasp the language, their individual histories unfold and add faces, names, and stories to those seeking asylum. At the same time that these teenagers are trying to adapt to an unfamiliar way of life in a new country, they are also balancing the more typical teenage challenge of fitting in and making friends.

The Book Girls Say… This book is very special to Angela, because she lives very near South High School, and it’s the high school her sons will attend in a few years. We all hear about immigration on the news daily. For those immigrant families arriving in Denver with teenage children, most will end up in South High’s “Newcomer” program. This non-fiction book does an excellent job of showing what it’s like for these students and their families to adjust to their new home, while also sharing stories of where they came from and how they ended up in Denver.

Author Helen Thorpe is a journalist and author who is also the former First Lady of Denver and of Colorado.

by Kirstin Valdez Quade
Setting: Las Penas, NEW MEXICO Present-day

Thirty-three year old unemployed Amadeo is preparing to play the role of Jesus in the Good Friday procession. While he practices and hopes for personal redemption, his fifteen-year-old daughter Angel shows up on his doorstep pregnant. She only has a few weeks to go before her baby is born, and has fled her mother’s turbulent home.

The book shows the baby’s first year through five members of the Padilla family, which also includes Amadeo’s mother, Angel’s mother, and a disapproving uncle. Each person has expectations that Amadeo fears he cannot live up to.

The Book Girls Say… Kirsten Valdez Quade also has a short story collection set in New Mexico called Night at the Fiesta.

by Peter Heller
Setting: Santa Fe, NEW MEXICO; rural COLORADO 2010s

This suspenseful fiction takes you deep inside the contemporary Sante Fe art scene and into rural Colorado. Expressionist painter Jim was well-known before his marriage ended after he shot a man in a bar. He retreated from Sante Fe and now spends his days in rural Colorado, painting and fly fishing as he tries to find peace and escape occasional dark impulses.

When he comes across a man beating a small horse, there is a brutal encounter. Now he must run again, this time escaping men looking for retribution. He returns to New Mexico and tries to create a meaningful life from his losses.

The Book Girls Say...This is one of those books that has you rooting for a very imperfect protagonist who has done some bad things, but wants to be better. The book describes the scenery in New Mexico and Southern Colorado, from the Canyon Road art galleries to the Tesuque Village Market and thunderstorms in the Sangre de Cristos mountains.

by Elizabeth J. Church
Setting: Las Alamos, NEW MEXICO, 1940s-1960s

Meridian is smart and ambitious, which isn’t the expectation of young women in her time. She's obsessed with birds and pursuing her PhD to become an ornithologist. However, her brilliant physics professor, Allen, becomes quite a distraction from her plans when they fall in love.

When Allen is recruited to Los Alamos for a secret wartime project, Meridian reluctantly gives up her goals to join him. Before long, she’s unwillingly taken on the role of traditional housewife. Years later, Meridian meets a Vietnam Vet who opens her eyes to how much she has given up. But is it too late to pursue her dreams now?

The Book Girl Say...The novel Hannah's War also takes place partially in 1940s Los Alamos.

by Carolyn Meyer
Setting: Santa Fe, NEW MEXICO, 1930s-1950s; Chicago & New York City

Renowned Painter Georgia O’Keeffe developed a deep love for New Mexico and made it both her home and the inspiration for much of her art. This YA biographical fiction explores her life and contributions to the art world.

At age 12, she announced she wanted to be an artist, and was able to attend boarding schools with strong art programs. After graduating high school in 1905, she went on to study at both the Art Institute of Chicago and the Art Students League in New York.

However, new financial troubles forced her to abandon her degree and find a new path to the career of her dreams. This included teaching art in both Texas and North Carolina before finding a new home in New Mexico that would inspire the following decades of her life.

by Olivia Hawker
Setting: UTAH Territory, 1850s

This novel tells the story of three women who go from strangers to wives of the same man. Following the call of their newfound Mormon faith, Tamar and her family undertake a brutal pilgrimage from England to Utah. When they arrive, she is united with her destined husband, only to learn that he is already married to one woman (Tabitha) and betrothed to yet another. Jane is not a member of the Mormon migration, but as an orphan struggling to care for her younger sister, she agrees to marry Thomas for the security the marriage will provide.

In 1857, President James Buchanan ordered the US Army to march on the Utah Territory, where Brigham Young had been governing a theocracy. When the troops arrive, Tamar, Tabitha, and Jane are forced to retreat into the hostile desert wilderness with one common goal - to keep themselves and their children alive.

The Book Girls Say… Reviewers praise this new novel as well-researched with compelling characters, and say that you’ll be able to feel the desert sun beating down on you and the snow biting your skin. Don’t miss the author’s note that provides additional insights that add a great deal to the story.

If you’re interested in reading another novel set in Utah in the second half of the 19th century, consider The 19th Wife. This book tells the story of Ann Eliza Young who is separated from her powerful husband, Brigham Young, and embarks on a crusade to end polygamy in the United States. Keep in mind, however, that the historical documents referenced in this novel are also fictional.

This book is included with Kindle Unlimited as of 1/15/23.

by Ella Joy Olsen
Setting: Salt Lake City, UTAH

Ivy and her husband are raising their two children in a bungalow in one of the oldest neighborhoods in Salt Lake City, tucked right at the base of the massive Wasatch Mountains. She loves everything about her quaint home, from the old porch swing to the ornate tiles and the heirloom rose bushes. Ivy believes that this home will be the place where her family enjoys their “happily ever after.” But when her husband dies unexpectedly, she’s left tackling home improvement projects alone while striving to be strong for her kids.

As she works to rebuild her home and her life, she begins uncovering clues about five of its former female owners, including a young Mormon who was torn between her heart and her anti-polygamist beliefs, a Greek immigrant during WWII, and a single mother in the 1960s.

The Book Girls Say… Author Ella Joy Olsen lives in Sugar House, the same historic Salt Lake City neighborhood in which she set her debut novel. She did extensive research about life in this neighborhood throughout the 20th century, and Sugar House is very much a character in the book. Book Girl Angela spent the first decade of her childhood living in Salt Lake City (her mom grew up in Sugar House) and recognized lots of familiar places.

Reviewers applaud Olsen, who is not a member of the Church of Latter-day Saints, for providing a very balanced portrayal of the Mormon beliefs that are integral to Salt Lake culture. She is also the author of another Salt Lake based novel titled Where the Sweet Bird Sings.

by Jon Krakauer
Setting: American Fork, UTAH, 1984

In 1984, two Mormon Fundamentalist brothers, Ron and Dan Lafferty, insist they received a revelation from God commanding them to kill a list of people within their family and friend circle. They act on this belief with a horrifying double murder.

In this non-fiction book, Jon Krakauer looks at not only the Lafferty case, but dives deep into the often secretive Mormon Fundamentalist communities across the west. These groups broke off from the Mormon Church when it renounced polygamy. That split led to various sects with self-appointed leaders who often have total control over their followers. The book that resulted from Krakauer’s research is a compelling look at human behavior and an American brand of religious extremism.

The Book Girls Say… Under the Banner of Heaven has been adapted into a mini-series on Hulu by the same name. The award-winning author of this book also wrote the popular titles Into Thin Air and Into the Wild.

by Christina Lauren
Setting: Provo, UTAH

Tanner Scott's family relocated from progressive California to conservative Utah three years ago. Life in Provo (home to BYU) is complicated enough as a half-Jewish, half-lapsed Mormon teenager, so Tanner - who was openly bisexual at his previous school, decides to go back into the closet at Provo High. Now, in his senior year, he is looking forward to attending an out-of-state college next year, where he can once again feel free to be himself.

He fully intends to coast through his final semester of high school classes, until his best friend, Autumn, dares him to take a prestigious honors seminar where students draft an entire book in just four months. And his final semester plans are pushed even further off track when Tanner finds himself falling in love with Sebastian Brother, the class mentor who sold his seminar novel to a major publishing house the year before. He's also the son of an LDS Bishop.

The Book Girls Say… We are huge fans of Christina Lauren (the pen name for writing duo Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings), so we were surprised last year when we discovered this YA title from them that we hadn't heard of before - especially since it was a Goodreads Nominee for Best Young Adult Fiction a few years back. This young adult novel is a mostly closed-door romance. Some reviewers say this book felt too much like a predictable romance in the initial chapters, but as the plot moves forward, multiple points of conflict make it a very engaging read.

by Christina Lauren
Setting: Canyonlands, Southern UTAH

Lily Wilder’s father was a notorious treasure hunter - a profession that drained their bank accounts and caused him to sell their beloved family ranch in Wyoming. Lily, however, has finally found a way to turn her father’s passion into something that pays the bills. She uses his hand-drawn maps to guide tourists on fake treasure hunts through the red rock canyons of southern Utah. The last thing she expects is for Leo Grady - the man she once loved - to show up on one of her tours with his crazy crew of friends.

Leo is equally surprised to see Lily, but his feelings on the matter differ from hers. While she’d like to get him lost in the wilderness and leave him there, he’d love nothing more than to reconnect with Lily and finally make things right between them.

But when the trip deep into the isolated and dangerous mazes of Canyonlands goes terribly wrong, Lily starts to question whether her father might have been right all along - maybe there really is hidden treasure out there. But is it worth risking their lives for?

The Book Girls Say… We initially hesitated to put two books by Christina Lauren on the Utah list, but Hobbs lives in Utah and writes her home state so well. Unlike Autoboyography, Something Wilder is an adult rom-com meets western mystery.

For another romantic comedy read that will transport you to the wild outdoors of Utah, check out On Location by Sarah Echavarre Smith, which is a workplace enemies-to-lovers rom-com about a woman hired to produce a series about Utah’s national parks for an outdoor travel channel. And if you don’t mind reading Christmas books outside of the holiday season, we also highly recommend Christina Lauren’s In a Holidaze, which is set in snowy Park City, Utah.

by Charles Martin
Setting: remote UTAH mountains

When a blizzard strands them in Salt Lake City, two strangers agree to charter a plane to Denver. Ben is a surgeon returning home from a conference, and Ashley is a magazine writer heading to her own wedding. But when tragedy strikes, the two find themselves stranded in the unforgiving wilderness in Utah’s rugged mountains. With no food or shelter, the two will have to rely on each other if they have any hope of survival.

As days become weeks, hope of rescue begins to dwindle. At the same time, the initial spark between Ben and Ashley evolves into more.

The Book Girls Say… This novel is a cross between a survival story and contemporary romance (although fans of true-life survival stories may find it hard to overlook some of the “conveniences” in this fiction read).

This book was adapted into a 2017 movie of the same name. While reviewers describe the book as a “clean read,” some feel that the movie should have been rated R (rather than PG-13) due to a sex scene and strong language that are absent in the book.

The audiobook is included with an Audible membership as of 1/15/23.

by Craig Johnson
Setting: Absaroka County, WYOMING

Published in 2004, this is the first in a series of 18 books in the Walt Longmire Mysteries series (with book #19 due out later in 2023). Sheriff Walt Longmire thinks his 25-year tenure in Wyoming is winding down when a young man is found at the edge of the Cheyenne reservation. Was his death payback for the assault of a young Cheyenne girl two years earlier? Throughout the series, you’ll see Longmire’s investigations and relationships with lifelong friend Henry Standing Bear and Deputy Victoria Moretti.

This is a sequential series of modern westerns, with each book building on the others and filling in gaps, so it’s ideal to read this series in order. However, each book is also a standalone mystery, and the author provides enough character background to make every installment work as a standalone if necessary.

The Book Girls Say… Our readers voted this one of the best book series for adults, saying that the books are filled with humor, suspense, and sorrow, as well as great descriptions of small town Wyoming.

This popular book series was also adapted into a Netflix series called Longmire. All six seasons are currently available for streaming.

by Annie Proulx
Setting: WYOMING

Originally published in The New Yorker in 1997, and later adapted into an award winning movie of the same title, this 55-page short-story can be read as a stand-alone, or you may want to read Annie Proulx’s entire 1999 Wyoming short-story collection, titled Close Range.

Brokeback Mountain tells the story of two ranch hands who first meet while working on a range one summer. Their attraction to one another is casual at first, but eventually grows deeper. Both marry and have kids - “because that’s what cowboys do” - but as they reunite time and again over the years, their relationship becomes the most important thing in their lives. This is a dangerous affair for two cowboys in a violent and intolerant world.

Close Range is the first in a series of three short-story collections. Wyoming Stories #2, titled Bad Dirt, was published in 2004, and Wyoming Stories #3, Fine Just the Way it Is, was published in 2008.

by Olivia Hawker
Setting: WYOMING, 1870

With no other settlers around for more than twenty miles, the Benis and Webber families have always relied on one another. All of that comes to an end when Ernest Bemis finds his wife in a compromising situation with the neighbor. With survival on the frontier the last thing on his mind, Ernest makes an impulsive decision that lands him in prison.

The women left behind - Cora and Nettie Mae - have no choice but to set aside their rage and remorse and come together as a means of survival. They share the duties of working the land and raising their children, including Nettie Mae’s son, Clyde, and Cora’s daughter, Beulah. When love blossoms between Clyde and Beulah, their mothers’ bond will once again be tested.

The Book Girls Say… The lyrical prose in this novel will whisk you away to the Wyoming Prairie, with all its beauty and hardships.

Note: Reviewers warn that this book includes a lot of animal death, including chickens, sheep, and coyotes. While this might be expected during life on the prairie, it could be difficult for some to read.

This book is included with Kindle Unlimited as of 1/15/23.

by Joseph M. Marshall III
Setting: present-day WYOMING and South Dakota, 1840s-1870s

This biographical non-fiction brings rich detail to the life of Crazy Horse, the Lakota chief who led the stand at the Battle of Little Big Horn. Most historical accounts of these battles and others are written from the side of the US soldiers, making this a worthy read as we experience the events from the point of view of the Lakota.

Instead of focusing on the actual combat of individual battles, the book digs into the bigger picture and consequences of the battles. Overall, it presents a balanced view of a man who had many strengths, but some faults as well.

The Book Girls Say…The author of this book is a descendant of the Lakota community that raised Crazy Horse and he speaks Lakota. This brings additional authenticity and detail to the biography.

GEOGRAPHY NOTE: Crazy Horse lived in the Lakota territory that spanned across the present-day states of Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota, North Dakota, and Nebraska. Some portions of the book take place in the Big Horn Mountains of north-central Wyoming (in the region the Lakota called the Powder River country. The Fetterman Battle discussed in the book also took place in what is now Wyoming. Other portions of the book take place in the area that is now South Dakota, but overall we feel that this book will give readers a good understanding of this general region during the mid-1800s.

by Katerine Center
Setting: Absaroka Mountains, WYOMING present-day

Helen is recovering from two unfortunately common losses that so many women deal with in their 30s - miscarriage, followed by divorce. Her younger brother wants to help her heal, so he convinces her to attend a wilderness survival course in the Absaroka Mountains of Wyoming (pronounced “Ab-soar-kas”). She’s ready to take the time out to pull herself together, but then she finds out that her brother’s annoying best friend will also be on the trip.

In a period of three weeks, she’ll have to face both fears and annoyances, but through those experiences, she also learns more about herself and how to be brave.

The Book Girls Say… This novel includes an element of contemporary romance mixed with a story of personal growth and discovery. Readers describe this book as an uplifting read. Author Katherine Center based this book (including the mid-summer blizzard) on her experience doing a month-long survival course in Wyoming while she was a college student at Vassar (in upstate New York).

Note: A few of our readers reported what they thought was a geographical error in this book, but after reading the book ourselves, we've realized it's actually not an error at all. The novel references the distance between Boston and Evantson as 1,001. Some readers thought this was a mistake because there is a town in Wyoming named Evanston that is 2,284 miles away from Boston. However, the characters are instead discussing the distance of the first leg of their road trip from Boston to their hometown of Evanston, Illinois, where they stop for the night at Hellen's grandmother's house before driving another full day and a half to finally arrive in Wyoming.

Book Girls’ Readers Rate This Book ⭐⭐⭐⭐
87% Would Recommend to a Friend

by Peter Heller
Setting: Yellowstone National Park, WYOMING

Celine is a 68 year old private investigator and artist who works out of her apartment at the base of the Brooklyn Bridge. She’s elegant and aristocratic, and she’s made a career of tracking down missing persons and reuniting families.

A young woman named Gabriela seeks Celine’s help to discover the truth about her father, Paul, a famed wildlife photographer who went missing decades ago near the Montana-Wyoming border. It’s been assumed that Paul died from a grizzly attack, but his body was never found. Gabriela wants answers. When Celine and her husband, Pete, head to Wyoming’s Yellowstone National Park to investigate, it soon becomes clear that they are being followed and that someone does not want them to reopen this case.

The Book Girls Say… Celine has been described as a cross between Katherine Hepburn and James Bond. While some complain that this makes her an unrealistic protagonist, author Peter Heller closely based the character of Celine on his mother, who was both a detective and an artist in NYC. In addition to the mystery, reviewers enjoy this book's subtle but snarky humor and the atmospheric descriptions of Yellowstone.

For those who enjoy audiobooks, Heller’s character-driven prose is said to make this book especially enjoyable to listen to.

Heller also has a new book set in Yellowstone, titled The Last Ranger, that’s scheduled for publication in August of 2023.

Book Girls’ Readers Rate This Book ⭐⭐⭐⭐
87% Would Recommend to a Friend