stanleys1's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
papi's review against another edition
3.0
The back story to L'Amour's North to the Rails. Good yarn about Tom's father, Borden Chantry. I have always enjoyed when L'Amour interweaves characters from other books he wrote.
birdmanseven's review against another edition
4.0
I don't know what possessed me to pick this book up, but I really enjoyed it. I've never read a straight-up western before. It was fun. This was probably a good one for me to start with because it just so happened to be a murder mystery. I thought Borden Chantry was a great character. In a lot of ways it reminded me of Robert B. Parker's Jesse Stone; a quiet, tough guy who gets the job done. I'm bummed that L'Amour didn't turn this into a regular series.
We discuss some of our favorite westerns here: https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/episode-35-all-the-books-goes-west
We discuss some of our favorite westerns here: https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/episode-35-all-the-books-goes-west
angielisle's review
3.0
My grandfather used to read me to sleep when I was little and this book was read when I was maybe four years old so the memory is fuzzy around the edges. I honestly can't say if I figured out the killer so quickly because I remembered from the original reading or if the killer was just that obvious. I did pinpoint the killer the third or fourth time that the character appeared in the story, which was closer to the beginning of the book rather than the end, but I may have known what to look for in this western whodunit.
I did enjoy the story, maybe because I associate the book with my grandpa. Parts of the story read so much like the dialogue of old TV westerns (which were frequently playing in the background of my childhood) that it's hard for me to not be nostalgic about this book.
I did enjoy the story, maybe because I associate the book with my grandpa. Parts of the story read so much like the dialogue of old TV westerns (which were frequently playing in the background of my childhood) that it's hard for me to not be nostalgic about this book.
rebekahmorris's review
4.0
When I started this book I figured I'd enjoy it as I had the few other Louis L'Amour books I have read. I didn't expect to be trying to solve the murder myself and getting worried anytime a certain character came into the picture. At first I wasn't sure who was the murderer, as there were so many possibilities, but it turned out that my first hunch was correct.
Borden Chantry was a great marshall, and I wouldn't mind living in a town where he was the law.
My all time favorite part though was the judge's talk with the banker.
"That young man is all that stands between us and savagery. He's the thin line of protection, and when he walks out there on the street his life is on the line every minute he wears that badge. . . . Laws are made to free people, not to bind them–if they are the proper laws. They tell each of us what he may do without transgressing on the equal liberty of any other man."
As with the other books by this author that I've read there is swearing, mostly using the "d" word.
Borden Chantry was a great marshall, and I wouldn't mind living in a town where he was the law.
My all time favorite part though was the judge's talk with the banker.
"That young man is all that stands between us and savagery. He's the thin line of protection, and when he walks out there on the street his life is on the line every minute he wears that badge. . . . Laws are made to free people, not to bind them–if they are the proper laws. They tell each of us what he may do without transgressing on the equal liberty of any other man."
As with the other books by this author that I've read there is swearing, mostly using the "d" word.
raehink's review
3.0
Borden Chantry is the marshal in a small western town. It's his duty to solve the crimes when a number of town members are murdered.
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