On This Page
Description
This priceless collection of once lost stories brings to life a time of desperate violence and true courage in a wide-open country of fortune seekers and dreamers, lawbreakers and pioneers.A newly sworn-in marshal must outwit a mysterious killer who’s fleecing his neighbors while secretly cutting their throats. . . .
A young drifter, wounded in a gunfight, finds a chance to change his ways—but he must be willing to pay with his life. . . .
A fiercely independent woman and a mysterious show more stranger take a desperate stand against those out to drive her from her home. . . .
And in the haunting short novel Monument Rock, a shadowy horseman delivers a terrifying message to an innocent young woman—the shocking truth about the two men closest to her heart. History, humor, action, and adventure fill the pages of these masterpieces, told by one of the foremost storytellers of our time. show less
Tags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
According to son Beau L'Amour, this will be the last collection of Louis' short stories to be released. Some originally appeared in pulp magazines in the 1940's and 1950's. The story entitled Monument Rock could be identified as a novella as it is over 100 pages in length and divided into chapters.
All the stories are typical L'Amour with plenty of action commencing in the opening pages as Louis suggested in an article in Writer's Magazine many years ago. Some highlight strong female characters as well.
All the stories are typical L'Amour with plenty of action commencing in the opening pages as Louis suggested in an article in Writer's Magazine many years ago. Some highlight strong female characters as well.
This collection contains the last of L'Amour's unpublished short stories, and it's a pretty good bunch. There are some familiar characters within, including Utah Blaine, the Cactus Kid, Chick Bowdrie, Kilkenny, and it even has a new Talon family member. I can't recall any of these tales not being at least a three star. Not going to rehome this one, yet.
I like these short stories.
Ratings
Members
- Recently Added By
Author Information
870+ Works 99,419 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
Awards and Honors
Distinctions
Series
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Monument Rock
- Original title
- Monument Rock
- Original publication date
- 1998
- First words
- The small glow of the lamp over the hotel register, shaded as it was, threw his cheekbones into high relieve and left his eyes hollows of darkness.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)"When I see you're better, I'll have Cain start packing the wagons."
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 538
- Popularity
- 55,120
- Reviews
- 3
- Rating
- (3.67)
- Languages
- English, Norwegian (Bokmål)
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 12
- ASINs
- 6
