|
|
5.0 out of 5 stars
"Toby Ryker" Will Steal Your Heart! Great Book!, 28 Feb 2006
The title character in this powerfully woven western novel rides into Laramie, Wyoming, looking for a friendly scuffle. An aging mountain man, built like the mountains he rode out of, Toby Ryker still has enough fight and spit left in him to wrestle with the best of them and an overwhelming urge to satisfy his lust for brawling. He finds just what he's looking for at Kelly's Saloon-a room full of cowboys he can easily aggravate. The fighting ensues, tables and chairs are broken. He pays the bartender for the damages, impresses everyone as the friendly but cantankerous fellow he is, and leaves Kelly's a happy man. Then drops from a heart attack right outside of the saloon.After regaining his strength and begrudgingly accepting a bottle of nitroglycerin tablets from a frustrated Doc Swensen, Toby sets out to complete the mission that brought him to this area in the first place-to look up an old Cavalry buddy, David Stewart, who has a ranch a few miles outside of Laramie. After arriving at the Stewart ranch and spending some time with David, his wife and children, Toby suggests to David that they go off on a high country hunt in the Medicine Bow Mountains, just the two of them, like old times. David readily agrees, but what he isn't aware of is that a bounty hunter named John McQuiston is tracking Toby for the murder of a banker in Deadwood. McQuiston is a nasty, soulless character, intent on collecting the reward money. Whether he brings Toby back to Deadwood dead or alive is of no consequence to him. Toby and David set out for the mountains on their much anticipated hunt, John McQuiston sets out after Toby, and the sheriff of Laramie, upon learning that McQuiston, himself, is responsible for a murder in Laramie, sets out after McQuiston. They all come together high in the mountains in an explosive ending that will leave you anxiously awaiting the sequel. Written with marvelous detail and rich characterization, Steven Ulmen has done a wonderful job capturing the texture and quality of the Wyoming Territory of the late 1800's. Toby Ryker is an endearing bear of a man whom you'll come to love. I laughed heartily throughout the book at the witty and humorous dialogue, especially the exchanges between Toby and his friend, David Stewart. I highly recommend this novel to anyone looking to satisfy their hunger for tales of the old west. From quirky cowboys to brave and compassionate heroes to saloon girls and sinister bounty hunters, this novel has become one of my favorites.
|
