Warden Force

This is not a novel. The WARDEN FORCE series is a collection of short stories, all true adventures of the finest protectors of wildlife in the world. Game wardens, or conservation officers as they're known in some states, have been the subject of an explosion of interest during the past few years.

The WARDEN FORCE series is a collection of short stories, all true adventures of the finest protectors of wildlife in the world. TV shows such as JOE PICKETT (Paramount+), WILD JUSTICE (National Geographic), NORTH WOODS LAW (Animal Planet), LONE STAR LAW (Animal Planet) have introduced the public to this dangerous and little known profession, and left them hungry for more.

Award winning author Terry Hodges was himself a California State Fish and Game warden and supervisor/leader of game wardens for over 30 intense years. He writes with the authority possible only by those who have actually lived the life, who have actually packed a badge and a gun on behalf of wildlife and battled all manner of wildlife-destroying outlaws.

Season 1 contains the first 13 episodes:

1. The Midnight Ride of Bonnie and Clyde: Wardens tangle with a murderous mother-and-son poaching team. A true game warden adventure story.

2. Night Rider: A California warden pursues highly dangerous night-poachers of wild pigs. A true game warden adventure story

3. Decisions: A true game warden adventure story. Wardens off the coast of Southern California’s Catalina Island risk their lives to save the crew of a sinking commercial squid-fishing boat.

4. A Second Second Chance: A California game warden ambushes outlaw catfish fishermen using baby swallows for bait. A true game warden adventure story.

5. The Collectors: California wardens take on a nest of Nazi-worshiping, weapons-collecting, deer poaching outlaws. A true game warden adventure story

6. Nothin’ Personal: True game warden adventure stories. California wardens track down a thief who steals the head and antlers of another hunter’s buck

7. Bottom Feeders: California wardens go after a band of White-trash, sturgeon-poaching, hillbillies with attitudes. A true game warden adventures story.

8. An Outing with Team Taylor: A California game warden and his family, on a short vacation, team up to capture antelope, bear and steelhead poachers. A true game warden adventure story.

9. Rookie: A rookie California game warden gets his first taste of his hazardous new career… A true game warden adventure story.

10. Grand Trickery: A California warden employs a magnificent bluff to catch outlaws night-poaching deer. A true game warden adventure story

11. Tough Luck on the Little Sur: California wardens pursue gaunch-hook steelhead poachers. A true game warden adventure story

12. Serial Poacher: Wardens pursue a disturbing and dangerous lone-wolf deer poacher. A true game warden adventure story.

13. The Vision: A boy’s fondest dream comes true. A true game warden adventure story

It surprises many who read my stories to learn of the great diversity of challenges faced by California's Fish and Game wardens. This is probably due to the general misconception of many as to the true nature of this state, the perception that California is mainly urban when in fact the reverse is true. In truth, California has more natural diversity of wildlife and wildlife habitat than any other state and is second only to Alaska in its vast expanses of wilderness.

Readers are also surprised to discover how hazardous my profession can be. Out of necessity, wardens work alone much of the time, often at night, with absolutely no hope for timely backup should things go wrong. And things go wrong, somewhere in the state, with distressing regularity. The dangers of this work are best illustrated by rather grim FBI statistics which clearly show that game wardens and conservation officers in this country are at greater risk of being assaulted or killed in the line of duty than are most sheriff's deputies and police officers.