Best Craig Johnson Books
Craig Johnson writes Westerns disguised as mysteries — and the disguise is so good most readers don't notice until they're already hooked. His Walt Longmire series, set in the windswept high plains of Wyoming, follows an aging sheriff whose cases are inseparable from the landscape around him: brutal, beautiful, and unforgiving. Johnson's prose has the unhurried confidence of someone who knows exactly where he's going — dry wit, genuine warmth, and an ear for dialogue that makes every scene feel lived-in. The Cold Dish announced a fully-formed voice from the start, and Hell Is Empty pushed the series into something mythic without losing its boots-on-the-ground authenticity. Readers who love a strong sense of place, characters who earn your loyalty slowly, and mysteries with real moral weight will find Johnson essential. George Guidall's narration on audio is among the best author-narrator pairings in the genre.
Where to Start with Craig Johnson
- Best entry point → Tooth and Claw
- Start the Walt Longmire series → The Cold Dish
- Quick read, big payoff → The Longmire Defense
- What readers keep coming back to → Death Without Company
- Highest rated by readers → First Frost (Walt Longmire #20)
Best Craig Johnson Books
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The Longmire Defense
Walt Longmire • Book 19
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After his last case forced him to confront ghosts and question the nature of justice, Sheriff Longmire encounters a crime scene unlike any he's seen in Wyoming.
★ 4.54 Goodreads (11.0K ratings) - 2
The Dark Horse
Walt Longmire • Book 5
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When a woman confesses to shooting her horse-burning husband six times, Sheriff Longmire suspects there's more to the story. Johnson weaves a mystery through Wyoming's harsh landscape where everyone has secrets worth killing for.
★ 4.30 Goodreads (21.6K ratings) - 3
A Serpent's Tooth
Walt Longmire • Book 9
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Sheriff Longmire faces his most dangerous case when a roadside shooting leads to a heavily armed polygamist compound where federal agents and family loyalties create explosive tensions.
★ 4.30 Goodreads (17.1K ratings) - 4
As The Crow Flies
Walt Longmire • Book 8
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With his daughter's wedding in two weeks and the venue in ashes, Sheriff Longmire must solve a case while avoiding Cady's wrath over the ruined arrangements.
★ 4.29 Goodreads (19.1K ratings) - 5
Hell Is Empty
Walt Longmire • Book 7
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Johnson strands his Wyoming sheriff in a deadly mountain pursuit of escaped convicts during a brutal winter storm, testing Longmire's limits like never before.
★ 4.29 Goodreads (18.4K ratings) - 6
First Frost
Walt Longmire • Book 20
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Before Vietnam, college graduates Walt and Henry surf California waves until a storm reveals a decades-old mystery that changes everything.
★ 4.31 Goodreads (8.8K ratings) - 7
Junkyard Dogs
Walt Longmire • Book 6
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Multi-million dollar developers want to eliminate the adjacent junkyard, but when a severed thumb appears among the scrap metal, Sheriff Longmire faces escalating violence.
★ 4.26 Goodreads (21.0K ratings) - 8
Another Man's Moccasins
Walt Longmire • Book 4
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Two murders separated by forty years and continents converge when Sheriff Longmire investigates a Vietnamese woman's death in Wyoming. Johnson uses the dual timeline to examine how war trauma echoes across decades.
★ 4.25 Goodreads (22.6K ratings) - 9
The Western Star
Walt Longmire • Book 13
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A vintage photograph of armed lawmen on a steam locomotive forces Sheriff Longmire to relive a deadly train journey from his youth. Johnson weaves past and present as Walt faces consequences decades in the making.
★ 4.27 Goodreads (12.2K ratings) - 10
An Obvious Fact
Walt Longmire • Book 12
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During the world's largest motorcycle rally, a young biker's hit-and-run accident pulls Walt Longmire into Devils Tower's shadow. Johnson balances the clash between biker culture and Wyoming traditions with his signature wit.
★ 4.26 Goodreads (14.6K ratings) - 11
Any Other Name
Walt Longmire • Book 10
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Johnson sends his Wyoming sheriff into dangerous territory when a colleague's mysterious death reveals corruption that reaches far beyond their rural jurisdiction.
★ 4.25 Goodreads (14.9K ratings) - 12
Death Without Company
Walt Longmire • Book 2
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Sheriff Walt Longmire faces a poisoning case that dredges up old secrets in small-town Wyoming, testing his investigative skills and personal relationships.
★ 4.22 Goodreads (28.3K ratings) - 13
Kindness Goes Unpunished
Walt Longmire • Book 3
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Wyoming sheriff Walt Longmire trades wide open spaces for Philadelphia streets when someone tries to kill his lawyer daughter. Johnson moves his character study of Western justice into urban terrain with compelling results.
★ 4.22 Goodreads (24.5K ratings) - 14
Dry Bones
Walt Longmire • Book 11
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A Tyrannosaurus rex discovery site becomes a crime scene when a rancher turns up dead in Absaroka County. Johnson's coldest case yet mixes paleontology with murder in distinctly Wyoming fashion.
★ 4.24 Goodreads (14.5K ratings) - 15
Return to Sender
Walt Longmire • Book 21
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Sheriff Walt Longmire faces his most challenging search when the mail carrier covering Wyoming's longest route—over 300 miles daily—vanishes in the Red Desert.
★ 4.22 Goodreads (7.2K ratings) - 16
Tooth and Claw
Walt Longmire #0.5
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Fresh from Vietnam, Walt Longmire and Henry Standing Bear find Alaska oil work that turns deadly when powerful interests decide the two veterans have learned too much about company operations.
★ 4.21 Goodreads (6.0K ratings) - 17
The Cold Dish
Walt Longmire • Book 1
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Wyoming Sheriff Walt Longmire investigates whether someone's serving cold revenge after a rapist winds up murdered, forcing him to navigate volatile racial tensions between white and Northern Cheyenne communities.
★ 4.11 Goodreads (46.6K ratings) - 18
Depth of Winter
Walt Longmire • Book 14
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Sheriff Walt Longmire crosses into Mexico when a cartel boss kidnaps his daughter Cady for a twisted revenge auction. Johnson strips away Longmire's usual procedural methods, forcing him into a brutal world where badges mean nothing.
★ 4.04 Goodreads (12.6K ratings) - 19
Hell and Back
Walt Longmire • Book 18
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Walt awakens bloody and missing a bullet in the cursed town where thirty Native boys perished in a boarding school fire, surrounded by their restless spirits. Johnson blends Western noir with supernatural horror.
★ 3.96 Goodreads (10.1K ratings) - 20
The Brothers McKay
Walt Longmire • Book 22
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Walt Longmire's latest case brings the Wyoming sheriff face-to-face with new mysteries in this continuation of the series that redefined Western crime fiction for contemporary readers.
★ 4.50 Goodreads (14 ratings)