About book Kiowa Trail (The Louis L'amour Legacy Editions) (2006)
This was my first foray into the western genre, and I definitely know it won't be my last. I've been wanting to try it out for a while now, and after one of my customers recommended "just picking any ole one up," that's exactly what I did. I went to the library and pulled the first Louis L'Amour I saw off of the shelf. Luck was definitely shining on me that day. I had seriously the hardest time putting this one down. This was just a good, rollicking tale that I can imagine being told around a campfire. It was simple but eloquent, at the same time. L'Amour doesn't him-haw around with unnecessary detail, but there was a surprising amount of feeling in his words. And there's something about a western--the nobility, the loyalty, the good versus bad--that just makes me happy. I just love it when the "good guys" come to save the day and they have these wickedly cool lines that make me happy that I'm not in the villain's shoes. And then there's the villain who is so frustrating because they are impossible to bring down. I personally think that makes for a good tale. In this one in particular, you can't help but root for the wizened, but tough and flawed Conn Dury. And then there's the totally kickbutt Kate Lundy. It was awesome to see such a strong female character in what I presumed to be a male-dominated genre. I was totally and pleasantly surprised by this, and I will definitely be looking for more from Louis L'Amour!
Every time I read a novel by Louis L'Amour, I am reminded why he is the King of Westerns. His novels are not of the "cookie-cutter" variety and this novel is vintage L'Amour. It is a story of revenge, and the strength of one woman's resolve to avenge the death of her young brother. But it is L'Amour's skillful use of flashback sequences which defines this book. The tale is actually told from the point-of-view of a man whose parents were killed causing him to spend three years living with Apaches, as well as time in Europe and as a Union Officer in the Civil War. It is his story as much as hers and it should be obvious that this is a complicated plot. But L'Amour successfully pulls it off. L'Amour's storys are always "real" in that the locations are real places and many of the characters are historical. Few historians are as knowledgable of this era as L'Amour, and it shows in his novels. Enjoy reading Kiowa Trail!
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Western - It was no crime for a young cowboy to want to talk to a pretty girl, but that was what got Tom Lundy killed. The hard men of the Tumbling B, who had survived stampede and Kiowa lance to drive their herd up from Big Bend country, wanted to burn the town down. But Kate Lundy, the Tumbling B's owner, had a better plan. Calling on dozens of seasoned fighters, Kate aimed to strangle the town that lived off cowboy money but had no use for the Texans themselves. With her rugged foreman, Conn Dury, at her side, the proud and beautiful woman might just stand a chance.
—Ed
