THE LONGMIRE DEFENSE - Craig Johnson


 In this 19th book in the Walter Longmire series, Walt, the sheriff of Absaroka County, Wyoming, finds a new piece of evidence to an old crime. But it's not just any old crime - this one is linked to Walt's grandfather. Back when Walt was only 15, he'd heard about an incident in which a man was shot and killed while out hunting with his friends.  The gun used to kill the man was never found and the group of hunters had each other as alibis - such as it was. 

Walt believes he's found the murder weapon from this many-decades old crime. It's an unusual gun and the more Walt looks into this, the more convinced he is that his grandfather committed the murder.  

Walt and his grandfather didn't get along and Walt doesn't have any good memories of the old man (Walt let his grandfather's property fall into ruin) and his objectivity in this case is in question by everyone who knows the sheriff. But Walt is nothing if not strong-willed and determined.

But the murder that happened two generations prior still resonates today in the halls of politicians and big business and Walt's investigating stirs up a hornets nest with some who would be happy to make Walt and his doggedness disappear.

Meanwhile, Walt off-handedly suggests to Vic that they should get married.  Not exactly the sort of proposal Vic was looking for, and she disappears to think things over.

I enjoy the Walt Longmire series.  Walt's the classic tough-guy hero that you look for in escapist mystery fiction. This is the sort of book you could pick up and not have to worry about whether you've read any of the previous books in the series - everything you need to know happens in front of you.

I appreciated this close-to-home mystery as well.  It branches out just enough that the bad guys aren't neighbors, but it's not the big cartel/international terrorists kind of plot (those books were getting a bit far-fetched for me).

This is a quick read, with plenty of action that should keep the reader turning pages. If you haven't tried a Longmire book this is as fine a place to start as any other.

Looking for a good book? The Longmire Defense by Craig Johnson is a worthy addition to the Walt Longmire series.  Walt is a tough, modern-day cowboy detective who deals with problems directly ("I'll throw you throw that window") which is much appreciated.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

4 stars

* * * * * *

The Longmire Defense

author: Craig Johnson

series: Walt Longmire #19

publisher: Viking

ISBN: 9780593297315

hardcover, 368 pages

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

VINYL RESTING PLACE - Olivia Blacke

Image
 Juni Jessup and her two sister, Tansy and Maggie, have gone into business together in their hometown of Cedar River, Texas, opening a combination record store and coffee shop. Vinyl LPs are making a comeback after all, despite critics thinking the medium was dead.  But speaking of 'dead' ... finding a dead body in the supply closet just as they are looking to have a grand opening is not part of the plan.  Juni's life gets more complicated when their uncle, Calvin, already a suspect in the murder, disappears. And the police officer leading the investigation is Juni's EX-boyfriend (who passive-aggressively keeps putting himself back into her life). Convinced that her uncle would never murder anyone, Juni sets out to prove his innocence - which isn't easy since he's making himself look guilty - because Calvin is family and family is EVERYthing to Juni. As readers of my blog know, I'm not a big fan of most cozy mysteries, but the setting caught my eye and my in...
Read more

THE WALLED CITY - Ryan Graudin

Image
  Jin and her sister, Mei Yee, were taken and sold and then sent to the lawless Walled City to serve as prostitutes or slaves to anyone willing to pay. Jin managed to escape her captivity, but not the Walled City and she now lurks about, disguised as a boy and is trying to track down the brothel where her sister is still captive. Jin will work odd delivery jobs to earn a small bit of money and hopefully have a legitimate means of coming in contact with her sister's captors.  This is how she meets up with Dai, a mysterious boy who has somehow managed to avoid running with any of the gangs in the city but he seems to have his own unusual connections, which Jon could desperately use if she has any hope of finding Mei Yee. But Dai has his own desperate needs.  The story is told from the different perspectives of each character and we do bounce around quite a bit as the chapters are generally short. This never bothered me, which is slightly unusual as often I find this techni...
Read more

THE RAVEN THIEF - Gigi Pandian

Image
 With Tempest Raj now a member of the company, Secret Staircase Construction (a company who, as their title suggests, builds mystery-themed, secret rooms inside homes) has finished their first job. Their client now wants to celebrate to kick off her new beginning - new home and new life now that she's divorced from her cheating ex-husband, famous mystery author Corbin Colt. First up, a mock séance to remove any trace of Corbin from the property, led by Tempest's friend, Sanjay.   But during that séance, while all those gathered sat in a dark room holding hands, Corbin's dead body crashes the party, falling across the table in front of everyone. There were eight people in the room, and they were all holding hands, but all the evidence points to one of them being the murderer.  Suspicions point to Ash, Tempest's grandfather, because he was the only one with Corbin's blood on him. Of course, as a doctor, he was also the only one who checked on the body - ...
Read more