The Key-Lock Man
by Louis L'Amour
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Description
Fiction. Western. Thriller. Historical Fiction. He had led the posse for miles through the desert, but now Matt Keelock was growing desperate. He was worried about Kristina. His trip to the town of Freedom for supplies had ended in a shootout. If caught he would hang. Even though Kris could handle a horse and rifle as well as most men, the possibility of Oskar Neerland's finding her made Matt's blood run cold. He knew the violent and obsessive Neerland, publicly embarrassed when Matt had show more stepped in and stolen Kris away, would try to kill them both if given half a chance. Matt tried to convince himself that Neerland had returned to the East. But Matt was wrong. Miles away in the town of Freedom, Oskar Neerland was accepting a new job. In his first duty as marshal, he would lead the posse that was tracking down Matt Keelock. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
Average L'Amour offering. There was little background story for the main character, which I found unusual. Also, in this story I felt the love interest was better sketched out than anyone else, and truly strong as a person. Worth reading, but I'm rehoming this one.
I really enjoy reading Westerns. I've read quite a few L'Amour novels and normally enjoy most of them. I've rated many of them at 5 stars. This one was a little bit too predictable for a 5 star rating. I suppose if you've never read Louis L'Amour before then you might have a much better opinion of this novel. This Western is just too formulaic to deserve 5 stars. If you've never read Louis L'Amour before, do yourself a huge favor and read "Jubal Sackett" (or any of the Sackett novels). While "The Key-Lock Man" is a good adventure, the Sackett novels are quite a bit better in my opinion.
One of the best. Matt Keelock is pursued by a posse convinced he shot their friend in the back. By the time they find out their mistake, they have been burned by the desert and lured by the Lost Wagons gold. Matt's wife Kris, a fugitive from European justice, shows herself to be Matt's equal as they fight for a chance to make their place in the wilderness.
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Author Information
870+ Works 99,174 Members
Born in Jamestown, North Dakota on March 22, 1908, Louis L'Amour's adventurous life could have been the subject of one of his novels. Striking out on his own in 1923, at age 15, L'Amour began a peripatetic existence, taking whatever jobs were available, from skinning dead cattle to being a sailor. L'Amour knew early in life that he wanted to be a show more writer, and the experiences of those years serve as background for some of his later fiction. During the 1930s he published short stories and poetry; his career was interrupted by army service in World War II. After the war, L'Amour began writing for western pulp magazines and wrote several books in the Hopalong Cassidy series using the pseudonym Tex Burns. His first novel, Westward the Tide (1950), serves as an example of L'Amour's frontier fiction, for it is an action-packed adventure story containing the themes and motifs that he uses throughout his career. His fascination with history and his belief in the inevitability of manifest destiny are clear. Also present and typical of L'Amour's work are the strong, capable, beautiful heroine who is immediately attracted to the equally capable hero; a clear moral split between good and evil; reflections on the Native Americans, whose land and ways of life are being disrupted; and a happy ending. Although his work is somewhat less violent than that of other western writers, L'Amour's novels all contain their fair share of action, usually in the form of gunfights or fistfights. L'Amour's major contribution to the western genre is his attempt to create, in 40 or more books, the stories of three families whose histories intertwine as the generations advance across the American frontier. The novels of the Irish Chantry, English Sackett, and French Talon families are L'Amour's most ambitious project, and sadly were left unfinished at his death. Although L'Amour did not complete all of the novels, enough of the series exists to demonstrate his vision. L'Amour's strongest attribute is his ability to tell a compelling story; readers do not mind if the story is similar to one they have read before, for in the telling, L'Amour adds enough small twists of plot and detail to make it worth the reader's while. L'Amour fans also enjoy the bits of information he includes about everything from wilderness survival skills to finding the right person to marry. These lessons give readers the sense that they are getting their money's worth, that there is more to a L'Amour novel than sheer escapism. With over 200 million copies of his books in print worldwide, L'Amour must be counted as one of the most influential writers of westerns in this century. He died from lung cancer on June 10, 1988. (Bowker Author Biography) Louis L'Amour, truly America's favorite storyteller, was the first fiction writer ever to receive the Congressional Gold Medal from the United States Congress in honor of his life's work, & was also awarded the Medal of Freedom. There are over 260 million copies of his books in print worldwide. (Publisher Provided) show less
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1965
- People/Characters
- Matt Keelock; Bill Chesney; Neill; Ben Hollenbeck aka Gay Cooley; Kristina Keelock; Oskar Neerland (show all 17); Muley; Kimmel; Hardin; Johnny Webb; Sam; McAlpin; Short; George Benson; Taplinger; Joe Mitchell; John Ware
- Important places
- Freedom, Arizona, USA; Tuba City, Arizona, USA; Mormon Well, Arizona, USA; Noman's Mesa, Utah, USA; Marsh Pass, Arizona, USA
- Epigraph
- [None]
- Dedication
- To Dutch Sam, who missed when it mattered.
- First words
- The man called Key-Lock was a man alone, and before him lay wilderness.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"Kris," he said, "make some coffee, will you? I'm tired."
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 682
- Popularity
- 41,631
- Reviews
- 5
- Rating
- (3.86)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 23
- ASINs
- 13
