Thursday, January 23, 2020

2 Bloggers 1 Series - A New Adventure Begins!


So welcome to 2020 and yep, Stormi and I are at it again.  We've know for some time what series we planned on tackling next and guys, it's a long one - 15 books and a bunch of novellas and short stories thrown in.  In addition, I don't think either of us were extremely thrilled with the first one so we're hoping we will either catch on to the author's writing style or the books with pick up.  

Are you still curious?  This year we are reading the Walt Longmire series by Craig Johnson.  So continue on for my thoughts on the first book and then check out Stormi's review over at Books, Movies, Reviews! Oh My!  I have to admit that I love the fact that this author is from my state and graduated from my alma mater, Marshall University.  

TITLE: The Cold Dish (Longmire #1)
AUTHOR: Craig Johnson
PUBLISHER: Penguin Books
PUBLISHING DATE: December 29, 2004

FROM GOODREADS: Walt Longmire, sheriff of Wyoming's Absaroka County, knows he's got trouble when Cody Pritchard is found dead. Two years earlier, Cody and three accomplices had been given suspended sentences for raping a Northern Cheyenne girl. Is someone seeking vengeance? Longmire faces one of the more volatile and challenging cases in his twenty-four years as sheriff and means to see that revenge, a dish that is best served cold, is never served at all. 

MY THOUGHTS: So I need to get this out of the way first.  I am a huge fan of the television/Netflix series and have watched all of the existing series.  While not a HUGE fan of westerns, I found that it straddled the line between "western" and police procedural quite well.  I quickly grew to love some characters and hate others (appropriately so).  And because of all of this, I think I had a hard time transitioning to the book, but more on that later.

The Cold Dish fulfills the job of introducing us to a cast of characters and giving us a mystery to boot.  Years ago a disabled young Cheyenne girl was raped by a group of guys.  Two years later, the main perpetrator is found dead and soon, other's follow.   Walt was never comfortable with how the trial played out and the list of suspects is a mile long.  He struggles to find the culprit and navigate the strenuous relationship between Absoroka County and the Native American reservation without starting any additional issues.

I really enjoyed the mystery aspect of The Cold Dish.  It sent me back to the episode where it was addressed on the series, yet included some fresh new suspects and information.  I am actually glad that the book didn't follow the series (or vice versa) in a strict manner because it shook things up for me.  I was a tad shocked by the resolution but in the end it all made sense and I was happy with the direction it took. 

I also really loved some of the characters.  Vic, the main deputy, is a joy.  Yes she is foul-mouthed, cynical and brash, but that's what I love about her.  She shoots straight from the hip and I love her for it.  I also loved Henry Standing Bear, Walt's best friend and bar owner.  In the series Henry was played by Lou Diamond Phillips and was also a favorite.  Then there was Walt.  I adored Robert Taylor cast as Walt.  However Book Walt is not the same as Series Walt.  And my head has a hard time wrapping around that one.

Also, I need to mention the author can be long winded and at times I found his transitioning to be confusing. I grew more comfortable with his style as the story progressed and I hope that continues.  I also hope I don't have to read paragraph after paragraph of firearm descriptions like I did here.  I expect some but at one point it was kind of overkill.  I can tell this series was probably more geared to engage male readers rather than female ones.

So suffice to say, this book was okay and I'm optimistic things will improve.  I think the characters alone are pulling me into the next one (I'm looking at you Vic and Henry) and hopefully things pick up.

RATING:  3 PAWS

19 comments:

  1. wow...that is ambitious. i can see why you chose it and that's a loooot of books, so i hope it picks up for you
    sherry @ fundinmental

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    1. I don't know if we'll manage them all in a year - they may get pushed into 2021 because we do have some other things planned.

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  2. I haven't seen the series, but I'm sure it's not the first time the TV show was better than the book. I felt that way about True Blood, the books were just so different in tone, and I loved the show much better.

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    1. I sort of considered the True Blood series and the books two different entities entirely. I enjoyed them both and actually read the entire series, but they were so different. I do like how the books wrapped up regarding Sookie's final choice of men. And Vampire Bill in the show always gave me the creeps.

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  3. I loved the show and especially Vic and Henry, so yeah. :) Glad this was mostly good, I'm tempted to give these a shot.

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    1. Yes they were great. Katie Sackoff has an awesome youtube channel that's a ton of fun.

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  4. I'm excited to read your reviews as you go along. I vaguely knew there was a tv version but haven't watched it. I tried to listen to the audio of the first one from the library and gave up after a bit. I might try again later. Good luck! I appreciate the review!

    Anne - Books of My Heart

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    1. I think it's all on Netflix now. I love them and while I'd love to rewatch, I'm pretty sure it would spell an end to me reading the books.

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  5. Yeah the gun rambling was a bit much! I think we had a lot of the same thoughts and I do hope the next one is better! :)

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    1. Yep, I don't mind guns and sometimes Mr. Barb will ramble but honestly, me and guns are on a need to know basis.

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  6. I haven't watched the series though I have heard of it. I didn't know there was a series of books. But this sounds good. I hope the next book is even better.

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    1. Me too. It needs to pick up if I'm going to make it through all of them :)

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  7. How fun! I hope you both enjoy this series. All 15 books of it! :)

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  8. I have not watched the show or read anything by this author. I do like western stories so it does appeal to me. I hope this picks up a bit for you.

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    1. Oh you definitely need to watch the show then.

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  9. I got hooked on the series and then got distracted by something else entirely -- but it's definitely one I enjoyed very much. I've been wondering about the book series, and my gosh, are you guys going to be busy this year with this series! I look forward to reading your reviews!

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    1. I'm betting several might get pushed to 2021. Unless they pick up I can't see doing 2 in a month :)

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  10. I wasn't aware of this, either book or series, but I like a good western and Ilike the idea of a police procedure style crossover so I will look this one up.
    Thanks.
    Lynn :D

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