Author: Craig Johnson
Published: May 28, 2024 by Viking
Format: Kindle, 333 pages
Genre: Police Procedural
Series: Longmire #20
First Sentence: “You’re too big to surf.”
Blurb: It’s the summer of 1964, and recent college graduates Walt Longmire and Henry Standing Bear read the writing on the wall and enlist to serve in the Vietnam War. As they catch a few final waves in California before reporting for duty, a sudden storm assaults the shores and capsizes a nearby cargo boat. Walt and Henry jump to action, but it’s soon revealed by the police who greet them ashore that the sunken boat carried valuable contraband from underground sources.
The boys, in their early twenties and in the peak of their physical prowess from playing college football for the last four years, head out on Route 66. The question, of course, is how far they will get before the consequences of their actions catch up to them—the answer being, not very.
Back in the present day, Walt is forced to speak before a Judge following the fatal events of The Longmire Defense. With powerful enemies lurking behind the scenes, the sheriff of Absaroka County must consider his options if he wishes to finish the fight he started.
Going back and forth between 1964 and the present day, Craig Johnson brings us a propulsive dual timeline as Walt Longmire stands between the crossfire of good and evil, law and anarchy, and compassion and cruelty at two pivotal stages in his life.
My Opinion Maybe I am the last to do the math. But if Walt was 22 in 1964, that would make him 82 in present day. Nope. That is not consistent with the physical demands each book puts him through or his relationship with Vic the Holy Terror.
When a novel is written as a dual timeline, I feel guilty when I enjoy one timeline better than the other. The writing is the same, it’s just that one always captures my attention more than the other. The narrative shifts between two timelines: the present and the summer of 1964. In the present, continuing on from The Longmire Defense, Sheriff Walt Longmire faces an investigation after a fatal shooting involving a member of a powerful family, bringing intense scrutiny. In the past, Walt, and his friend Henry Standing Bear, fresh from college and about to enlist for the Vietnam War, find themselves stranded in the eerie town of Bone Valley, Arizona.
Highlighting Walt’s early days and showcases bravery and determination beyond his years, he uncovers dark secrets in Bone Valley, including a sinister plot involving drug smugglers and a former judge who controls the town. The story also touches on the historical context of World War II internment camps for Japanese Americans, adding depth and a history lesson to the plot.
The way this book ended, the reader wonders if a character, that first appeared in The Longmire Defense and made a small appearance in this book, will be at the forefront of Walt seeking out justice. Then again, it’s not the first time an author left a dangly part and never addressed it again. It looks like we will have to wait until spring of next year to find out what Walt is up to.
Blurb: It’s the summer of 1964, and recent college graduates Walt Longmire and Henry Standing Bear read the writing on the wall and enlist to serve in the Vietnam War. As they catch a few final waves in California before reporting for duty, a sudden storm assaults the shores and capsizes a nearby cargo boat. Walt and Henry jump to action, but it’s soon revealed by the police who greet them ashore that the sunken boat carried valuable contraband from underground sources.
The boys, in their early twenties and in the peak of their physical prowess from playing college football for the last four years, head out on Route 66. The question, of course, is how far they will get before the consequences of their actions catch up to them—the answer being, not very.
Back in the present day, Walt is forced to speak before a Judge following the fatal events of The Longmire Defense. With powerful enemies lurking behind the scenes, the sheriff of Absaroka County must consider his options if he wishes to finish the fight he started.
Going back and forth between 1964 and the present day, Craig Johnson brings us a propulsive dual timeline as Walt Longmire stands between the crossfire of good and evil, law and anarchy, and compassion and cruelty at two pivotal stages in his life.
My Opinion Maybe I am the last to do the math. But if Walt was 22 in 1964, that would make him 82 in present day. Nope. That is not consistent with the physical demands each book puts him through or his relationship with Vic the Holy Terror.
When a novel is written as a dual timeline, I feel guilty when I enjoy one timeline better than the other. The writing is the same, it’s just that one always captures my attention more than the other. The narrative shifts between two timelines: the present and the summer of 1964. In the present, continuing on from The Longmire Defense, Sheriff Walt Longmire faces an investigation after a fatal shooting involving a member of a powerful family, bringing intense scrutiny. In the past, Walt, and his friend Henry Standing Bear, fresh from college and about to enlist for the Vietnam War, find themselves stranded in the eerie town of Bone Valley, Arizona.
Highlighting Walt’s early days and showcases bravery and determination beyond his years, he uncovers dark secrets in Bone Valley, including a sinister plot involving drug smugglers and a former judge who controls the town. The story also touches on the historical context of World War II internment camps for Japanese Americans, adding depth and a history lesson to the plot.
The way this book ended, the reader wonders if a character, that first appeared in The Longmire Defense and made a small appearance in this book, will be at the forefront of Walt seeking out justice. Then again, it’s not the first time an author left a dangly part and never addressed it again. It looks like we will have to wait until spring of next year to find out what Walt is up to.
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