Until a couple of years ago, I had never read a novel set in the American West. Although I have seen numerous films of the genre over the years, reading fiction set there had never really appealed. However, I kept seeing Lonesome Dove on lists of ‘must read’ books, so finally decided to give it a try, and am very glad that I did.
This book is, chronologically, the second in the Lonesome Dove series. After their baptism of fire in Dead Man’s Walk, Call and McRae are now experienced rangers, spending their time defending settlers, fighting native Americans, riding patrols and finding love in their own, very different ways.
Like Dead Man’s Walk – the first in the series – this book is episodic in form; there are three sections, each separated by a few years. In the first, they have a charismatic leader, Inish Scull; the sort of man that the ‘wild west’ threw up – someone who seemed more myth than reality. When his famous horse is stolen, he sets off on foot to recover it.
In later sections, the rangers continue their work whilst the Civil War rages to the north and east. It is easy to forget that the country did not yet cover the whole continent; indeed, part of the cause of the conflict was around the future administration of the territory yet to be incorporated. This story is set in frontier country, and whilst they would have undoubtedly seen soldiers coming and going, their own lives would have carried on much as before.
There is also room for the politics of the era; this was a time when the States were expanding rapidly, but in a haphazard way, with little official planning or control. Local politicians and adventurers (often the same people) could push boundaries further and further, using almost any means.
Throughout the book, the central characters’ stories are interwoven with various tales, some short, some more complex. We follow the development of Call and McRae, and come to understand their motivations, strengths and flaws. For those readers, like me, who read Lonesome Dove before the prequels, the author has done an extraordinary job in filling in their back stories to produce the men we meet in that novel.
There is also, over the two prequels, a sympathetic portrayal of the native Americans. In this volume you see their gradual realisation that their way of life cannot survive the sheer volume of people streaming across the country. As in any culture, there are those who will fight to the end rather than live a life they cannot accept.
There is, I think, more explicit cruelty in this book than the others, but the world in which it is set was a rough, brutish one. It also contributes to the slow development of the weariness and cynicism of the main characters.
In general, the book has all the strengths of Lonesome Dove and Dead Man’s Walk; a light touch, sparse dialogue, a real feel for the time and place, and believable characters. It leads beautifully into the next book.
This is a review of the Picador 2015 Kindle edition.
It is an extended version of my review previously published on Amazon and Goodreads.
