The Case of the Missing Game Warden

by Steven T. Callan

"Best First Novel” Award Finalist for 2022
—Next Generation Indie Book Awards

Veteran Northern California game warden Norman Bettis and his wife, Martha, lived an idyllic life in the small Sacramento Valley farm town of Gridley. On the morning of December 13, 1956, Norman kissed Martha on the forehead and drove off to work. He had no way of knowing he was destined to stumble into a rat’s nest of commercial duck poachers and disappear–patrol car and all.

Three years later, a gifted eleven-year-old named Henry Glance confronts two goose poachers near the Southern California town of Temecula, preventing them from leaving before game warden Ned McCullough arrives. Impressed with the brave young man and his compassion for wildlife, McCullough suggests he become a game warden when he grows up. He also shares the story of Warden Bettis’s strange disappearance.

McCullough’s mournful tale leaves a lasting impression on Henry as he grows up, suffers disappointment, works his way through Chico State College, falls hopelessly in love, and eventually becomes a game warden himself. Unexpectedly, he’s assigned to Warden Bettis’s old patrol district.

While conducting a number of classic wildlife investigations and honing his skills, Glance remains obsessed with his predecessor’s untimely demise. Unfazed by a mountain of obstacles and determined to succeed where so many others had failed, Henry sets out on an adventure-filled quest to find the missing game warden and solve the thirteen-year-old mystery of his disappearance.

286 pages, Paperback

First published June 8, 2021

About the author

Winner of 2026 “Best Crime Fiction” Award

A career fish and game warden and patrol lieutenant for the California Department of Fish and Game, Steven T. Callan draws from his decades of experience in the field to craft his stories—most of which take place in Northern California.

Callan is the award-winning author of The Outlaw From Newville, his second novel in the popular Game Warden Henry Glance series and winner of the 2026 “Best Crime Fiction” award in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards—the largest international book awards competition for independent publishers and authors. The Case of the Missing Game Warden, Callan’s first novel in the series, was a “Best First Novel” award finalist in the prestigious Next Generation Indie Book Awards.

All of Callan’s books are published by Coffeetown Press, including his nonfiction works The Game Warden’s Son—named “Best Outdoor Book of 2016” by the Outdoor Writers Association of California—and Badges, Bears, and Eagles—The True-Life Adventures of a California Fish and Game Warden, a “Book of the Year” award finalist (Foreword Reviews).

The game warden-turned author grew up in the small Northern California farm town of Orland, where he spent his high-school years playing sports, hunting, and fishing. With an insatiable interest in wildlife, he never missed an opportunity to ride on patrol with his father, a California Fish and Game warden. Steve went on to graduate from CSU, Chico, and attended graduate school at CSU, Sacramento. Hired by the California Department of Fish and Game in 1974, he began his career as a game warden near the Colorado River, promoted to patrol lieutenant in the Riverside/San Bernardino area, and spent the remainder of his enforcement career in Shasta County.

Passionate about wildlife and the environment, Steve and his wife, Kathy, are avid bird-watchers and scuba divers. They live in California's Sacramento Valley.

Learn more about the author and his books at steventcallan.com.

Reviews

[Tandy Hood · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am from and currently live in Glenn County! This was a fun read for me, because of the locality references. Even though the story line is amazing, there were a few typos that turned me off a few times. All in all, this was a great read!

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

An oddly mesmerizing book. I nearly stopped reading several times but somehow picked it up again. The book actually includes passages from the fish and game regulations and includes road numbers but does not flesh out the characters. The book plods along, takes a turn, and finally ends.

[Marjeanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Recognized so much of the area ...brought this story to a personal level. Fun!

[Dave Prall]

Great outdoor story!

This story is built upon great knowledge of the environment and the wildlife found there. I live in the area the story takes place in so I can attest to the authenticity of the wildlife descriptions. I really enjoyed the use of geography I know and love. I recommend any graduates of Chico State college to read this book as so many memories will enrich the story.