Scan barcode
adam_z's review against another edition
2.0
I wasn't particularly fond of the story, but I really like the characters
1st half was ridiculously slow. 2nd half got better - especially the last 40%
I don't particularly feel like I could recommend this book on its own merits, but I'm interested enough in the characters & setting that I'm going to try [b:Death Without Company|236862|Death Without Company (Walt Longmire, #2)|Craig Johnson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349807862s/236862.jpg|229421].
1st half was ridiculously slow. 2nd half got better - especially the last 40%
I don't particularly feel like I could recommend this book on its own merits, but I'm interested enough in the characters & setting that I'm going to try [b:Death Without Company|236862|Death Without Company (Walt Longmire, #2)|Craig Johnson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1349807862s/236862.jpg|229421].
instahgrump's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
abigcoffeedragon's review against another edition
1.0
I love Longmire the TV show, and I have to give it to the people that took this book and turned it into the TV show, because the things that I do NOT like about this book are NOT in the tv show - I like Branch Connely (TV) but I hate Turk Connely (book) - I like Ferg (TV) but I hate Ferg (book) -Walt is a confused, horny old man in the book, but on TV he has much more confidence - and Vick, well not a big fan of her on TV, but in the book, she is a contemptuous, disrespectful B*****.
I know that we are talking Apples and Oranges, but I picked up the book to get a deeper look into the Walt Longmire world, and I wish that I never opened the door - I do not enjoy this novel one bit.
I know that we are talking Apples and Oranges, but I picked up the book to get a deeper look into the Walt Longmire world, and I wish that I never opened the door - I do not enjoy this novel one bit.
carolynmbyrd's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
calbowen's review against another edition
1.0
I love Longmire the TV show, and I have to give it to the people that took this book and turned it into the TV show, because the things that I do NOT like about this book are NOT in the tv show - I like Branch Connely (TV) but I hate Turk Connely (book) - I like Ferg (TV) but I hate Ferg (book) -Walt is a confused, horny old man in the book, but on TV he has much more confidence - and Vick, well not a big fan of her on TV, but in the book, she is a contemptuous, disrespectful B*****.
I know that we are talking Apples and Oranges, but I picked up the book to get a deeper look into the Walt Longmire world, and I wish that I never opened the door - I do not enjoy this novel one bit.
I know that we are talking Apples and Oranges, but I picked up the book to get a deeper look into the Walt Longmire world, and I wish that I never opened the door - I do not enjoy this novel one bit.
zapkode's review against another edition
1.0
{my thoughts} - This books starts off talking about Walt Longmire's obsession with a particular file about an Cheyenne Indian girl named Melissa Little Bird. She was clearly gang raped by four boys who had led her into basement. The saddest part is that she suffers from fetal alcohol syndrome. This is that one case that every cop has the one they can't shake because they couldn't bring it to justice. He has the file memorized from the inside out and just thinking about it the entire case washes over his every thought. The connection between Walt is that Melissa's Uncle Henry Standing Bear and him are old friends from both youth and military. He feels he owes it to his friend to bring justice to the boys that had wronged such a trusting girl.
It is up to Walt to figure out why the boys that had been accused of the crimes against Melissa have been turning up dead. He also goes through a trial and error love mishap throughout the book. The book essentially ends with an unexpected twist.
{reason for reading} - I have to admit I love the show, however the book took me over a month to read. I do not believe I will be reading further into this series as it did not appear to be something that I enjoy. I had an interesting story line, but it had so much foul language and unwanted speech that I had a really difficult time enjoying it. The ending however was a rather nice twist.
It is up to Walt to figure out why the boys that had been accused of the crimes against Melissa have been turning up dead. He also goes through a trial and error love mishap throughout the book. The book essentially ends with an unexpected twist.
{reason for reading} - I have to admit I love the show, however the book took me over a month to read. I do not believe I will be reading further into this series as it did not appear to be something that I enjoy. I had an interesting story line, but it had so much foul language and unwanted speech that I had a really difficult time enjoying it. The ending however was a rather nice twist.
daja57's review against another edition
5.0
A masterclass in how to write this sort of book.
When Walt Longmire, the Sheriff of the fictional Absaroka County in Wyoming, USA (well, Americans always say 'London, England' or 'Paris, France'), first hears of a body, he assumes it's a dead sheep. But a boy has been shot, a boy who recently completed a minimal sentence for raping Melissa, a Cheyenne girl. He fears someone is out for revenge.
I really enjoyed this classic whodunnit. It hit all the tropes of the genre with style and it did more. I felt it brilliantly evoked the neo-wild-west feel of Wyoming's open spaces where everyone has at least one gun and some have many. The sheriff even wins a gun as a prize in a raffle for the library! And the hero-narrator-protagonist is a wonderfully self-deprecating lawman.
There was wise-cracking of the finest calibre with Ruby the lady who runs the office, Vic, Walt's lady deputy, and in particular Henry Standing Bear, his best buddy from school and Vietnam who, as Cheyenne, must be under suspicion. When Walt's ear is frost-bitten the female characters all tell him off for fiddling with the bandage while the men lay bets on whether it will need to be amputated.
The supplementary characters are also brilliant: Lonnie, Melissa's legless father, Vonnie, the poor little rich girl love interest, Dorothy who owns the diner, ex-sheriff Lucian, George Esper who escapes more often than Houdini, and Al the alcoholic.
The dialogue is witty. One of the best bits of the book is the way so many of the characters have their own distinctive way of speaking. Henry never uses a contraction such as won't or didn't or I've. Lonnie ends almost every statement with 'umhmm, yes it is so'. George, who has the excuse of a broken jaw, melds his words: 'othwe montan' = on the mountain, 'yhew kan'tsopthm' = you can't stop them.
An exceptionally well-written police procedural whodunnit. I understand that there are now nineteen books in the series. I've fallen in love with the characters and I'd love to read some more ... but there are so many books in the world .
When Walt Longmire, the Sheriff of the fictional Absaroka County in Wyoming, USA (well, Americans always say 'London, England' or 'Paris, France'), first hears of a body, he assumes it's a dead sheep. But a boy has been shot, a boy who recently completed a minimal sentence for raping Melissa, a Cheyenne girl. He fears someone is out for revenge.
I really enjoyed this classic whodunnit. It hit all the tropes of the genre with style and it did more. I felt it brilliantly evoked the neo-wild-west feel of Wyoming's open spaces where everyone has at least one gun and some have many. The sheriff even wins a gun as a prize in a raffle for the library! And the hero-narrator-protagonist is a wonderfully self-deprecating lawman.
There was wise-cracking of the finest calibre with Ruby the lady who runs the office, Vic, Walt's lady deputy, and in particular Henry Standing Bear, his best buddy from school and Vietnam who, as Cheyenne, must be under suspicion. When Walt's ear is frost-bitten the female characters all tell him off for fiddling with the bandage while the men lay bets on whether it will need to be amputated.
The supplementary characters are also brilliant: Lonnie, Melissa's legless father, Vonnie, the poor little rich girl love interest, Dorothy who owns the diner, ex-sheriff Lucian, George Esper who escapes more often than Houdini, and Al the alcoholic.
The dialogue is witty. One of the best bits of the book is the way so many of the characters have their own distinctive way of speaking. Henry never uses a contraction such as won't or didn't or I've. Lonnie ends almost every statement with 'umhmm, yes it is so'. George, who has the excuse of a broken jaw, melds his words: 'othwe montan' = on the mountain, 'yhew kan'tsopthm' = you can't stop them.
An exceptionally well-written police procedural whodunnit. I understand that there are now nineteen books in the series. I've fallen in love with the characters and I'd love to read some more ... but there are so many books in the world .
thisisthelion's review against another edition
3.0
I’m a fan of Longmire, the TV show, so that’s why I wanted to check out the books. To see what the differences were and to have a bit of Longmire on my life while the show it’s on hiatus. The book depicts the investigation of the murder of one of four young white boys that were accused (and set free) of the rape of a Cheyenne girl. They used this story for the tenth and final episode of the first season and I thought that was one of the best cases on the show, therefore I was looking forward to read the story on more detail in the book and see if it ended the same way. It doesn't, but both resolutions are good.
The main problem I had with the book is the first person narration which is the same technique they used in the Dexter books and I also ended up giving up on those too. And while it is useful to know exactly that the character is thinking, it only offers Walt's point of view and displaced the secondary characters because you only heard of them when they were interacting with the protagonist. And that may be my problem, because I’m used to the way the TV series is, but I still feel like I’m missing out on something. I feel like Longmire takes a lot of space that could be used for developing other characters. I like Walt, but I don’t find him that interesting of a character by himself. He’s as his best when there are other characters around. The best parts of the book are when he’s with Henry or Vic, and the latter is underused in the book.
Another thing that disappointed me is the way they treated the Indian point of view. Seeing where the show is set, Indians are a very important part, and especially in the case Longmire has in his hands. But it felt like they didn't tackle the issue enough. I didn't know much about Indians, the way the live or how they coexist with the white population before I read the book and it didn't illuminated me much after. It felt like a missed opportunity to truly bring some light into the subject. That said, this is both a problem for the TV show, too, although in a lesser degree.
This sounds like I really didn't like the book, but I did. To a certain point. The ending was really good, I didn't expected at all but it felt real and the killer’s motivations were understandable. But along the way, there weren't enough things that keep me going. Before I finished the book I already knew I wasn't going to read any more of the series.
The main problem I had with the book is the first person narration which is the same technique they used in the Dexter books and I also ended up giving up on those too. And while it is useful to know exactly that the character is thinking, it only offers Walt's point of view and displaced the secondary characters because you only heard of them when they were interacting with the protagonist. And that may be my problem, because I’m used to the way the TV series is, but I still feel like I’m missing out on something. I feel like Longmire takes a lot of space that could be used for developing other characters. I like Walt, but I don’t find him that interesting of a character by himself. He’s as his best when there are other characters around. The best parts of the book are when he’s with Henry or Vic, and the latter is underused in the book.
Another thing that disappointed me is the way they treated the Indian point of view. Seeing where the show is set, Indians are a very important part, and especially in the case Longmire has in his hands. But it felt like they didn't tackle the issue enough. I didn't know much about Indians, the way the live or how they coexist with the white population before I read the book and it didn't illuminated me much after. It felt like a missed opportunity to truly bring some light into the subject. That said, this is both a problem for the TV show, too, although in a lesser degree.
This sounds like I really didn't like the book, but I did. To a certain point. The ending was really good, I didn't expected at all but it felt real and the killer’s motivations were understandable. But along the way, there weren't enough things that keep me going. Before I finished the book I already knew I wasn't going to read any more of the series.