The best mystery books featuring rogue women who spend lots of time outdoors

Barb Nickless came out with a debut novel to die for. I think it’s absolutely the best debut I’ve ever read. Then she followed it up with four more in the series and four in a new series. In Blood on the Tracks, we’re introduced to Sydney Parnell and her K-9 partner, Clyde. They are ex-military turned railroad cops, and both suffer from PTSD. Nickless brings to life the underground world of rail riders and the obscure job of the railroad cop as Sydney investigates the brutal murder of a young woman found on the tracks. The crimes are shocking, and Sydney puts herself in mortal danger as she seeks justice for victims. This is a writer to watch.

This book was riveting. Helena grew up in the marshlands of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, the daughter of a brutal man whom she loved and a mousey mother for whom she had little respect. Until she learned the truth. Two years before Helena’s birth, her father had kidnapped her mother, then he’d held her prisoner for years. Now, he is in prison and Helena is married with children. A family from whom she’s kept her past secret. All that changes when her father kills two guards and escapes into the wilderness. Helena knows her family is in danger, that the police are underestimating her father’s capabilities, and that she is the only one capable of finding him. Told through a series of flashbacks, this story made me realize just how blind love can be, and how everything we say and do can forever impact our relationships.

I love this character! Anna Pigeon is a self-effacing loner, who struggles with personal issues. Don’t we all? Fleeing New York to escape painful memories, she takes a position as a Park Ranger for the National Park Service in the remote backcountry of Guadalupe Mountains National Park in Texas. Who hasn’t wanted to run away? But when a fellow ranger is killed and his death chalked up to a mountain lion attack, Anna is convinced the cat is not to blame. The politics and prejudices of the locals endanger the protected cats, and that it’s up to her to protect them. Barr does a brilliant job of making you feel Anna’s pain, anger, and fear, which makes the triumphs all sweeter.

Stevens does an incredible job of whipping up a firestorm. Lake of Fire is a must-read for anyone interested in knowing what it’s like to live in the Colorado mountains. Allison Coil is a Colorado hunting guide, and the book opens with a giant wildfire raging through Colorado’s Flat Top Wilderness. It wipes out Allison’s hunting grounds and bears down on her boyfriend’s family ranch. In the fire’s aftermath, she is shocked to learn a friend, a reclusive environmentalist with an unorthodox idea for battling global warming has died in the fire. Determined to find justice for him, Allison digs into an underground group of anti-government extremists, only to have them strike back, hurting those closest to her. Allison doesn’t back down, never afraid to protect the people and places she loves. Her passion is inspiring.

Seventh in Mizushima’s series, this is her best book ever! It’s a very personal story with ties back to Deputy Mattie Cobb’s past. In Striking Range, a woman who has recently given birth is found dead in a mountain campground and her baby is nowhere to be found. While Mattie and her K-9 Robo search for the missing newborn, a deadly storm descends on the Colorado Rockies, and then Mattie’s partner Cole goes missing. Soon she finds herself pitted against a mastermind killer with a cold-blooded plan and personal vendetta. Mizushima is a master at building relationships, but her depiction of the treacherous weather conditions was incredible. Having lived in the mountains of Colorado all my life, and she put me there for every frozen, heart-pounding moment.