Well, it is a mosaic novel and a great one at that featuring Hap and Leonard-Lansdale's immortal contribution to the dynamic duo genre. ( )

Joe Lansdale can always be counted on to deliver an impressive story and in this case, he delivers several.

These short stories are presented around the framework of Hap and Leonard chatting-sometimes in Hap's truck, sometimes at the DQ and towards the end, back home at Hap's house with Bret and Chance. They're almost all about Hap, but some are about both Hap and Leonard and how their friendship originally developed.

The tales about Hap and Leonard as two young men were the ones I liked the most. Especially the one where they first met, fist fighting on the banks of the river being a thing back then. You'll have to read Blood and Lemonade for more detail. My other favorite was the story of what they discovered at the bottom of the river one day when Leonard lost his favorite weight.

Those two were my favorites but every story here is good and they're all told in the trademark style of the Champion Mojo Storyteller. Which of course means, there is a lot of humor here as well as magnificent storytelling. There's also a touch of poignancy to some of the tales and I liked that just fine. I bet you will too.

Highly recommended to fans of Joe Lansdale and the Hap and Leonard series!

*Thanks to NetGalley and to Tachyon for the free e-ARC in exchange for my honest feedback. This is it.*

You can preorder your copy here: Hap and Leonard: Blood and Lemonade ( )

This is H&L #11, and the author calls it “The Mosaic Novel”, a novel that is not in order of events, nor do those events roll precisely into each other. The stories herein are about “the early life of one Hap Collins”.

I’d read two of these before, but the rest were new to me. “Tire Fire” was a special treat - the first time H&L meet! And “Apollo Red” shows us what a bad ass Hap’s dad was (and where Hap gets it from!)! Actually, many of these involve Hap's dad, Bud, and they are pretty dang good! The whole book has a nostalgic feeling, and it really made me feel like I was there. It's a really well-written bunch of stories, even if you don't like the usual H&L action packed novel. This volume has a sweetness to it, despite some of the sour subject matter. It's good background information about H&L, mostly H, but it's also good stories about the life of a poor boy growing up in East Texas. Bravo Mr. Lansdale! ( )

Interesting series of vignettes, with Hap and Leonard reminiscing about the times when they were much younger. I know they're middle-aged at this point, but overall, it felt like they were older, as of they were sitting in an old barber shop passing the tone and shooting the bull.

Some of the stories were quite good, too. I especially liked the title story, Blood and Lemonade. Very poignant and touching. I also liked the stories of how their friendship started and grew. Great background material.

I'm not sure that I would classify this as a novel in the true sense of the word, and the author says pretty much the same thing. It's almost like a book of stories that he started and left without finishing. The writing is still very good, typical Lansdale, and it shows his ability to capture the reader with a shorter format.

My wife and I homeschooled our two kids (both graduated over 10 years ago now) , and I was always looking for ways to challenge them, especially in the field of literature and reading/writing. This book would have been great to have simply for the potential discussions, especially the stories of the racism both Hap and Leonard experienced as young men. In that regard, this book is very thought provoking. ( )

A quick read with some stories about Hap and Leonard when they were young. Most of the stories concern Hap. The stories are loosely joined together by being told as one whole over a short period of time. It's Lansdale, so of course, the writing is good. I do wish he would quit interjecting his daughter's music career into his stories. Takes me out of the narrative, each time he does so. ( )