Cathy C. (cathyskye) -
Helpful Score: 1
Before I wax poetic about the latest mystery from my favorite writer, I want to warn you about two things. One, if you hate cliffhangers, you're going to hate the fact that The Western Star has one that's going to make your jaw drop. Even I wanted to shake my fist in Johnson's face just a little bit. Fortunately, I tend to be even-tempered about dangling storylines.
What's the second thing I want to warn you about? If you happen to be readers who judge each Longmire novel on how often your favorite characters appear, you may-- or may not-- be happy with The Western Star. This book is 95% Walt and Lucian and 5% Cady, Henry, and Vic. Me? I go where the writer takes me and see how I feel about it when that last page is turned.
His previous novel, An Obvious Fact, had large stretches of humor that kept me laughing, but The Western Star is quite somber. This fits the tone of both storylines. Yes, there are two storylines in this book, and readers travel between fresh-from-Vietnam, brand-new deputy Walt Longmire on the train with Lucian and all those other sheriffs and the Walt Longmire of the present day. Don't worry, it's not confusing; the chapters are clearly marked so we can all keep track of what year we're in. (Sometimes I need all the help I can get.)
Craig Johnson always seems to be able to surprise me. Yes, Walt is Walt, and a character tells him one of the things that makes him so special: [With all you've done], "you've preserved your humanity." But there are the other surprises, like that cliffhanger, and my being blindsided by whodunit when Johnson gives us clues all along the way. And what about all those scenes where Walt is simply being Grandpa to Lola. Watching this big man feed his tiny granddaughter, talk to her, and just sit quietly with her asleep on his chest can melt your heart.
The Western Star is tricky and action-packed, and it does have homages to both Agatha Christie (Murder on the Orient Express) and John Wayne (Big Jake), but one of the sobering thoughts brought up in its pages is one we long-time Longmire lovers don't want to think about. Walt is, though-- retirement. He's been putting away bad guys for a long, long time, he's tired, and when he holds Lola, the end of the trail is looking mighty fine. This next book is shaping up to be very interesting indeed, and I'm going to be among the first to grab a copy.
What's the second thing I want to warn you about? If you happen to be readers who judge each Longmire novel on how often your favorite characters appear, you may-- or may not-- be happy with The Western Star. This book is 95% Walt and Lucian and 5% Cady, Henry, and Vic. Me? I go where the writer takes me and see how I feel about it when that last page is turned.
His previous novel, An Obvious Fact, had large stretches of humor that kept me laughing, but The Western Star is quite somber. This fits the tone of both storylines. Yes, there are two storylines in this book, and readers travel between fresh-from-Vietnam, brand-new deputy Walt Longmire on the train with Lucian and all those other sheriffs and the Walt Longmire of the present day. Don't worry, it's not confusing; the chapters are clearly marked so we can all keep track of what year we're in. (Sometimes I need all the help I can get.)
Craig Johnson always seems to be able to surprise me. Yes, Walt is Walt, and a character tells him one of the things that makes him so special: [With all you've done], "you've preserved your humanity." But there are the other surprises, like that cliffhanger, and my being blindsided by whodunit when Johnson gives us clues all along the way. And what about all those scenes where Walt is simply being Grandpa to Lola. Watching this big man feed his tiny granddaughter, talk to her, and just sit quietly with her asleep on his chest can melt your heart.
The Western Star is tricky and action-packed, and it does have homages to both Agatha Christie (Murder on the Orient Express) and John Wayne (Big Jake), but one of the sobering thoughts brought up in its pages is one we long-time Longmire lovers don't want to think about. Walt is, though-- retirement. He's been putting away bad guys for a long, long time, he's tired, and when he holds Lola, the end of the trail is looking mighty fine. This next book is shaping up to be very interesting indeed, and I'm going to be among the first to grab a copy.
Thirteenth in the Longmire series and if I were superstitious I would think, "That explains it". Because this is my least favorite Longmire to date. The story bounces back and forth between today and 1972, when Walt Longmire was a new deputy. Sheriff Lucian Connolly has brought Walt along to the annual sheriff's junket on The Western Star, a train trip across Wyoming and back. On the trip, the president of the Wyoming Sheriff's Association recruits Walt to look into what might be a sheriff's vigilante group, there's conflict involving another sheriff's girlfriend, and another guy has a brother locked in a prison insane asylum. And then the murders begin...In the current day, Walt is there to protest a convicted murderer asking for compassionate release.
Johnson gives us a little homage to Agatha Christie which is fun but this book is mostly downbeat - it's missing the dry humor I like so much. Walt doesn't have any mystical experiences, although perhaps that was getting to be too much of a thing. I did like the back and forth between the time periods, I like seeing Lucian as a younger man and I like Walt's personal doubts about being a deputy. But the timeline didn't make sense to me, if the current story is set today...Walt would be too old. I decided that "today" has to be at least ten years ago. That threw me out of the story for a while. It's certainly a fast read, and there's plenty of action, but very little of any characters other than Walt and Lucian. The end of the 1972 case seems unlikely, the current day ends on a cliffhanger that goes back into the Bidarte thing (I didn't like any of that) and the bit with the vigilante group is unsolved and barely mentioned again. I'm just hoping the Bidarte thing is resolved in Depth of Winter.
Johnson gives us a little homage to Agatha Christie which is fun but this book is mostly downbeat - it's missing the dry humor I like so much. Walt doesn't have any mystical experiences, although perhaps that was getting to be too much of a thing. I did like the back and forth between the time periods, I like seeing Lucian as a younger man and I like Walt's personal doubts about being a deputy. But the timeline didn't make sense to me, if the current story is set today...Walt would be too old. I decided that "today" has to be at least ten years ago. That threw me out of the story for a while. It's certainly a fast read, and there's plenty of action, but very little of any characters other than Walt and Lucian. The end of the 1972 case seems unlikely, the current day ends on a cliffhanger that goes back into the Bidarte thing (I didn't like any of that) and the bit with the vigilante group is unsolved and barely mentioned again. I'm just hoping the Bidarte thing is resolved in Depth of Winter.
