Craig Johnson has been known to travel to book signings on
his BMW R1100GS, a precursor to my trusty steed. That would be good enough for me. But, bonus upon bonus, his Walt Longmire series has proven
to be good fun. While, from one
tale to the next, there may be some better or less better plot lines, the
stories and the characters are quite engaging; many of whom the reader cares
about more than the ultimate outcome.
Most of the Longmire series are traditional Who-Done-Its with
subplots based upon cultural or societal issues played out on a vast and
breathtaking Wyoming landscape.
Enter the novel “Spirit of Steamboat,” where the issue isn’t
about catching some creepy villain, but rather how might the crew of an aging
Mitchell B-25 (like what my dad worked on in WWII) might survive a 1988 life
flight mission through the teeth of the worst storm the Rockies had seen in
decades.
In this short piece we find the answer to tantalizing
questions about characters Johnson introduced in his previous mysteries. Because of the flashback nature of this
composition, we should figure that we already know the outcome, but how the
outcome is achieved is more than worth the price of admission.
This is a marvelous use of twenty bucks and about three
hours. See your local, independent
bookseller.
o0o
Spirit of Steamboat.
Craig Johnson. Viking Press. 2013. $20.
© 2014
Church of the Open Road Press
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