I bought this because I'm planning a novel set in Montana and wanted to get some background about ranching and the state. I expected a quick read, skimming for relevant passages, but ended up enthralled at the story of a family coming to terms with the end of their way of life.

The main emphasis switches between the Nichols family and the erosion of the business, their life and their family and billionaire Laslo Horoney's attempts to set up a huge wilderness area for buffalo which would encompass the Nichols' ranch. Horoney is presented in a sympathetic light and his motives are well drawn. The Nichol's family are brought to life and their pain and confusion as their world falls apart around them draws the reader in

The story proceeds at a liesurely pace but that is no bad thing as the characters and events grow in your head over a period of time. A few of the side characters are lightly drawn, ciphers for environmental activists, and the ending is rather deux ex machina, or rather deux ex presidento.

Overall not quite five stars, but a good solid four.