An unprecedented oil strike in Willistown, North Dakota leaves the town a focal point for trouble. Law and order is a dim memory and the sheriff's department just can't build the jails fast enough.

Grimstad, North Dakota. A place people used to be from - but were never headed to - has struck oil. As pipelines snake across the prairie, oil flows out and men and money flow in. And with them, comes crime. North Dakota's new oil capital has a serious law and order problem and newly qualified detective Cassie Dewell has just been appointed its deputy sheriff. Twelve-year-old Kyle Westergaard is one of Grimstad's paperboys. Kyle has been written off as the 'slow' kid, but he has dreams deeper than anyone can imagine - he wants to get out of town, take care of his alcoholic mother, and give them a better life.

While delivering newspapers, he witnesses a car accident and now has money and a lot of white powder in his possession. With the temperature dropping to 30 degress below and a gang war heating up, Cassie fears she might be in over her head. The key to it all will come in the most unlikely form: an undersized boy on a bike who keeps showing up where he doesn't belong.

About the Author
C.J. BOX is the winner of the Anthony Award, Prix Calibre. 38 (France), the Macavity Award, the Gumshoe Award, the Barry Award, and is an Edgar Award and L.A. Times Book Prize finalist. He lives in Wyoming.