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4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
This was a departure from the traditional mystery that has been the Longmire series. It was a good story with Virgil, but beyond that the substance was lacking for me on this one. I'll keep reading the series, but this one wasn't my favorite.
Walt Longmire, the gruff Sheriff or Absaroka County, finds himself having a very bad day when he's asked to help Federal Marshall's uncovered evidence buried in Walt's jurisdiction by deranged prisoner Reynaud Shade. Things go from bad to worse when Shade escaped with hostages and takes off into the mountains in the middle of a blizzard, with only Walt close enough to go after him. Soon Walt is on a one-man trek through the brutal wilderness, fighting the elements as he closes in on quite possibly the most dangerous man he's ever encountered.
A bit of a departure from the other Longmire mysteries with much more surreal and thriller elements than detective work, "Hell Is Empty" is nevertheless an engaging, entertaining, and at times downright thrilling book. And while many of Longmire's regular cast of characters are absent for most of this one, Walt is such a strong character and the stakes are so high that I didn't mind at all.
Another terrific read from Craig Ferguson. I can't wait to catch up with Walt again.
A bit of a departure from the other Longmire mysteries with much more surreal and thriller elements than detective work, "Hell Is Empty" is nevertheless an engaging, entertaining, and at times downright thrilling book. And while many of Longmire's regular cast of characters are absent for most of this one, Walt is such a strong character and the stakes are so high that I didn't mind at all.
Another terrific read from Craig Ferguson. I can't wait to catch up with Walt again.
I am really enjoying all of the Longmire books, and able to see them as different from the TV series, which I also really like.
I saw a variation of this story on the excellent Longmire TV series (well, it has sort of jumped the shark recently), so I was prepared for having a basic idea of what was going to happen. Wrong. Very different. No problem, the books are always good.
Walt takes off after a gang of escaped convicts in the middle of a snowstorm. There’s a marvelous scene up in the mountains where Virgil White Buffalo, the huge Indian and Vietnam veteran from a previous book, and Walt hunker down during a snowstorm and discuss the Aeneid and play chess using some pebbles and rocks. The question is, did it happen?
I questioned the motivations of the bad guy and certainly the apparitions, but Johnson always delivers a good story.
Walt takes off after a gang of escaped convicts in the middle of a snowstorm. There’s a marvelous scene up in the mountains where Virgil White Buffalo, the huge Indian and Vietnam veteran from a previous book, and Walt hunker down during a snowstorm and discuss the Aeneid and play chess using some pebbles and rocks. The question is, did it happen?
I questioned the motivations of the bad guy and certainly the apparitions, but Johnson always delivers a good story.
Mini-Review:
My initial response was to give this 3 stars but there's something that makes me want to give it 4. I will think about it and make up my mind tomorrow.
Alright. My general response to the story was that nothing new was happening and that this was a new situation that covered familiar ground. The Native American stories really stood out and made more of an impact than the chase. The ending seemed like a vague meandering that didn't manage to actually go anywhere. But all of the responses I had to the story made me look back at what happened, and I thought about how well the story expressed Walt's state of mind & being from the start to finish. I am reminded that a large part of what I like about this series are the characters and how real they are.
A friend's review made all of the key points that I thought & felt when I read the book. Yet I came away from the ending and thought that the book was exactly as it should be. It would have been nice if there had been more concrete parts to balance the abstract. Yet, I'm not sure if more clarity would have made the same impact of actions taken in the present and all the visions that kept Walt from the final steps to death.
I am left wondering if a part of all the events that have happened in Walt's life is due to him not realizing or acknowledging a shaman's path. A warrior shaman is not that weird of a mix. The story was a spiritual journey and it was quite excellent in that regard.
My initial response was to give this 3 stars but there's something that makes me want to give it 4. I will think about it and make up my mind tomorrow.
Alright. My general response to the story was that nothing new was happening and that this was a new situation that covered familiar ground. The Native American stories really stood out and made more of an impact than the chase. The ending seemed like a vague meandering that didn't manage to actually go anywhere. But all of the responses I had to the story made me look back at what happened, and I thought about how well the story expressed Walt's state of mind & being from the start to finish. I am reminded that a large part of what I like about this series are the characters and how real they are.
A friend's review made all of the key points that I thought & felt when I read the book. Yet I came away from the ending and thought that the book was exactly as it should be. It would have been nice if there had been more concrete parts to balance the abstract. Yet, I'm not sure if more clarity would have made the same impact of actions taken in the present and all the visions that kept Walt from the final steps to death.
I am left wondering if a part of all the events that have happened in Walt's life is due to him not realizing or acknowledging a shaman's path. A warrior shaman is not that weird of a mix. The story was a spiritual journey and it was quite excellent in that regard.
I really liked [b:Hell Is Empty|9794605|Hell Is Empty (Walt Longmire, #7)|Craig Johnson|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1388459227s/9794605.jpg|14684712] so I have found a new series to read. It is #7 in the Walt Longmire series. This was the first I have read in the series and chose it because I needed a serial killer for a group challenge.
Walt Longmire delivers 3 criminals including a psychotic schizophrenic killer to federal law officers. The prisoners escape into the Bighorn Mountains wilderness area with an impending blizzard. The story was very intense, building until the very ending. But it has even more....Native American spiritualism, literary references (Dante's Inferno) both play a big part in this story.
I had some confusion with characters because the author using multiple names and nicknames for each character. So if you are new to the series I would start with #1 to build the character's histories.
Walt Longmire delivers 3 criminals including a psychotic schizophrenic killer to federal law officers. The prisoners escape into the Bighorn Mountains wilderness area with an impending blizzard. The story was very intense, building until the very ending. But it has even more....Native American spiritualism, literary references (Dante's Inferno) both play a big part in this story.
I had some confusion with characters because the author using multiple names and nicknames for each character. So if you are new to the series I would start with #1 to build the character's histories.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I complained about the previous two books in this series. I was worried this one would disappoint too but Johnson's back on track - I read this book in two sittings.
I've mentioned in previous reviews that the show is true to the books in the same way that Midsomer Murders was true to Caroline Graham's books: the show captures the essence of the characters but takes liberties with plots, which keeps both formats fresh for viewers. I've also noted that the deviations between the show and the series grow with each book.
This is one of the books that was turned into an episode. Up until this episode, the show only hints at Walt's spiritual nature so this episode was one that tried to touch base with the series. I appreciate that, I really do, but the show doesn't depict the depth of Walt's spiritual side as shown in the books. I don't know that the show can, it can't give us the inner workings of Walt's mind without changing format; we'd lose something of the supporting characters and they are big part of the books too. So it's one of those things that the show mediates. Shrug. I take that with a grain of salt. Some people will be annoyed by the deviation. The books make me think better of Walt on the television.
One of the strong draws of this book series is the romantic plot threads - I love how Johnson draws out these relationships over several books; there's no drowning in pages of characters staring into each other's eyes. When they talk to each other, it's real conversation, not endless dialogue promising sweet-nothings. I prefer romances written by men and targeted at men; they feel more real to me than bodice-ripper romances. This series, taken as a whole, is a superb example of how romances should be done.
I've mentioned in previous reviews that the show is true to the books in the same way that Midsomer Murders was true to Caroline Graham's books: the show captures the essence of the characters but takes liberties with plots, which keeps both formats fresh for viewers. I've also noted that the deviations between the show and the series grow with each book.
This is one of the books that was turned into an episode. Up until this episode, the show only hints at Walt's spiritual nature so this episode was one that tried to touch base with the series. I appreciate that, I really do, but the show doesn't depict the depth of Walt's spiritual side as shown in the books. I don't know that the show can, it can't give us the inner workings of Walt's mind without changing format; we'd lose something of the supporting characters and they are big part of the books too. So it's one of those things that the show mediates. Shrug. I take that with a grain of salt. Some people will be annoyed by the deviation. The books make me think better of Walt on the television.
One of the strong draws of this book series is the romantic plot threads - I love how Johnson draws out these relationships over several books; there's no drowning in pages of characters staring into each other's eyes. When they talk to each other, it's real conversation, not endless dialogue promising sweet-nothings. I prefer romances written by men and targeted at men; they feel more real to me than bodice-ripper romances. This series, taken as a whole, is a superb example of how romances should be done.