# westerns



## Travis haselton (Jul 24, 2010)

has there been any good westerns on the market recently? I hae read just about all of Louis Lamour and sometimes cant get my head into a max brand book. Not that thier bad just who can tell the storie as good as lamour.


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## Jeff (Oct 28, 2008)

There are several authors here on Kindleboards who write westerns:

Western
*Rye James* - _The Assassin, Bounty Hunter, Deadlock _, _Escape_
*Pati Nagle* (P.G. Nagle) _Glorieta Pass_
Contemporary Western
*Autumn Jordon* - _Obsessed By Wildfire_
Western Historical Romance
*Ellen O'Connell* - _Eyes of Silver, Eyes of Gold_


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## Ann in Arlington (Oct 27, 2008)

Have you read Tony Hillerman?  Many of his are on Kindle.  They're not westerns per se, but are murder mysteries set in the west.  Frequently with a Navajo (or other) mystical element.


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## vikingwarrior22 (May 25, 2009)

Ann in Arlington said:


> Have you read Tony Hillerman? Many of his are on Kindle. They're not westerns per se, but are murder mysteries set in the west. Frequently with a Navajo (or other) mystical element.


I agree great reads and the setting and discriptions take you to the "reservation" ...


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## Travis haselton (Jul 24, 2010)

I will give them all a shot. Thank you for the suggestions.


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## Sandra Edwards (May 10, 2010)

try Cameron Judd and Robert J Randisi. 

Sandy


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## Mike D. aka jmiked (Oct 28, 2008)

For classic westerns, there seem to be quite a few Zane Grey available from Amazon for the Kindle.

For free!   


Mike


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## Travis haselton (Jul 24, 2010)

See I grew up with my grandfather being an insane fan of Louis Lamour. That was what I learned to read off of. I have tried Zane Grey. Zane Grey is good but when you grew up with Louis being the norm... It's hard to find anything I like. Thank you all for your feedback and I would gladly welcome more. Everyone here seems to be a great bunch. I guess writers and readers are about the best company to find.


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## Music &amp; Mayhem (Jun 15, 2010)

This might not be exactly what you're looking for, but Nevada Barr writes a NY Times best-seller series of mysteries that take place on various National Park sites. She's a fab writer. You can check out Borderline, available on Kindle. Her latest comes out next month.

Of course, if you're looking for something more historical, check out Elmore Leonard's Cuba Libra set in and around the Spanish American War, 1898. Also: The Complete Western Stories of Elmore Leonard

He wrote mostly westerns before he caught on with the the "urban western" thing that he does now.


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## Travis haselton (Jul 24, 2010)

another question. Is Elmore the guy who wrote the first episode of Justified? I am a huge fan of it. I didnt know for sure beins how it has been off season so they havent said anything on t.v.


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## LeeGoldberg (Jun 12, 2009)

Richard Wheeler's Spur award winning book MASTERSON is now on the Kindle. So are some of Ed Gorman's terrific GUILD books.

You also can't go wrong with anything by Elmer Kelton, who I believe was named the greatest western writers of all-time by the Western Writers of America. I also recommend A.B Guthrie, Frederick Manfred and, of course, Larry McMurtry.

There are also some mighty good westerns by Clifton Adams, Harry Whittington, and Marvin Albert...though they may be hard to find on the Kindle.

Lee


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## MachineTrooper (Jun 22, 2010)

My father and oldest sister are HUGE L'amour fans. I like most of what I've read of his, though his heroes all seem to be the same guy. I read Max Brand and Zane Gray 'til I got sick of them. If you like that L'amour flavor, try some of the classics like _Shane_ (Jack Scaffer?). Also, there's a Christian Author by the name of Gilbert Morris, whose "Reno" western series is mostly quite good, especially _Vigilante/Boomtown_. He gets kinda predictable if you read him a lot, but not so much within the Reno books.


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## Music &amp; Mayhem (Jun 15, 2010)

abovelaw said:


> another question. Is Elmore the guy who wrote the first episode of Justified? I am a huge fan of it.


Yes! I love that show too. It's a great example of Elmore's use of sardonic humor in the midst of (often) nasty action! As mentioned in my earlier post, Elmore wrote westerns exclusively for many years before switching to what many call "Urban Westerns" ie, crime capers set in current times and cities like Detroit, Miami, etc.


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## jason10mm (Apr 7, 2009)

My understanding is that EVERY episode of "Justified" is based off a different Elmore work, just with a consistent character and setting worked in.

There is a pretty good compilation of early Elmore western short stories I'm working through. Called "The Complete Western Stories of Elmore Leonard" oddly enough, though it doesn't have any of his novels in it. Pretty good, though they tend to be a bit repetitious if read back to back.

But I agree, for what ought to be such a prolific genre, the western literary field is pretty thin. I've been getting most of my western fix through historical non-ficiton books.


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## Marisa14 (Jun 30, 2010)

Try Tony Hillerman!


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## Travis haselton (Jul 24, 2010)

MachineTrooper said:


> My father and oldest sister are HUGE L'amour fans. I like most of what I've read of his, though his heroes all seem to be the same guy. I read Max Brand and Zane Gray 'til I got sick of them. If you like that L'amour flavor, try some of the classics like _Shane_ (Jack Scaffer?). Also, there's a Christian Author by the name of Gilbert Morris, whose "Reno" western series is mostly quite good, especially _Vigilante/Boomtown_. He gets kinda predictable if you read him a lot, but not so much within the Reno books.


Thak you and thank all of the rest of you nout there. If you want something real good from Lamour try the Sackett series. At least it justifies why the heros are similar.


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## MariaESchneider (Aug 1, 2009)

Mark Twain has a couple that might interest you.  I can't remember the titles off the top of my head and they may be hard to find on Kindle because they are not his most known works--but check through a list of his works; you'll find them!!


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## Rye (Nov 18, 2008)

abovelaw said:



> Thak you and thank all of the rest of you nout there. If you want something real good from Lamour try the Sackett series. At least it justifies why the heros are similar.


I definitely agree on the Sackett series. Good stuff.


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## romac (Jun 23, 2010)

Which Elmore Leonard book would you all recommend reading? I like western films, but I've never read a western novel before (well, one lamour one but I was younger and don't really remember it).


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## Rye (Nov 18, 2008)

Here are a couple of Elmore Leonard's books I've enjoyed.

The Bounty Hunters http://www.amazon.com/The-Bounty-Hunters-ebook/dp/B000FC2IWQ/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1280509662&sr=1-9

Valdez Is Coming http://www.amazon.com/Valdez-Is-Coming-ebook/dp/B000FC2IW6/ref=pd_sim_kinc_2?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2

Gunsights http://www.amazon.com/Gunsights-ebook/dp/B000FC2IVM/ref=pd_sim_kinc_4?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2


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## Music &amp; Mayhem (Jun 15, 2010)

romac said:


> Which Elmore Leonard book would you all recommend reading?


The only western of Elmore Leonard's I've read is Cuba Libra and I loved it. It is set in and around the Spanish American War in 1898, great characters and the usual Elmore touch when it comes to getting inside their heads.


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## Harry Shannon (Jul 30, 2010)

Good ideas all. Recommend a little book called "Saint Agnes' Stand" from a few years back, it's a good one. So was "The Missing."


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## D.A. Boulter (Jun 11, 2010)

I grew up reading westerns.  And like the OP, I sometimes could and often couldn't get into Max Brand.  Zane Grey is problematic.  I hate his dialect writing--'Ah shore nuff caint do it' sort of stuff.  I've read and reread Louis L'Amour's books so often I've almost memorized them.  Have about 40 or so floating around the house.  But I haven't read much in the western line lately.


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## vikingwarrior22 (May 25, 2009)

D.A. Boulter said:


> I grew up reading westerns. And like the OP, I sometimes could and often couldn't get into Max Brand. Zane Grey is problematic. I hate his dialect writing--'Ah shore nuff caint do it' sort of stuff. I've read and reread Louis L'Amour's books so often I've almost memorized them. Have about 40 or so floating around the house. But I haven't read much in the western line lately.


I tried Zane Gray 25 years ago and like you said the dialect...however if it was so bad no one would keep his books for sale so I tried them again and can almost read them maybe in another year I can read them


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## MachineTrooper (Jun 22, 2010)

> Thak you and thank all of the rest of you nout there. If you want something real good from Lamour try the Sackett series. At least it justifies why the heros are similar.


I'll do that--thanks. I watched one of the Sackett movies but intended to read the books some day anyway.

I've also enjoyed the Hillerman books, though they're really detective novels set in the contemporary west.

A new western just came out for the Kindle I thought was pretty good, and should be a fast read if you're a L'amour fan: _The Curly Wolf_ by M.R. Kayser.

And if you haven't read _The Virginian_, it's available for Kindle and a pretty good read--there's a cheap Kindle edition which combines that with a bunch of Owen Wister's other western fiction.

I tend to like the classic westerns best, and not so much the deconstructionist stuff. I read _The Streets of Laredo_ by Larry McMurtry and was not impressed at all. Plus I kinda' wanted to use that title for a western of my own one day and he beat me to it. 

Glad I'm not the only one who still appreciates the genre.


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## daringnovelist (Apr 3, 2010)

I've got some of Robert Parker's westerns on my TBR list.  (Loved the movie "Appaloosa."  I love any adventure with good, subtle character humor.) Anybody here have any opinions on those?  

Camille


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## Travis haselton (Jul 24, 2010)

wow I thought this thread died. I will definatly check those out when my kindle comes in. Its hard to read full novels on the pc.


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## Rye (Nov 18, 2008)

Been wanting to read Parker's westerns but have not gotten to it yet.


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## Travis haselton (Jul 24, 2010)

I want to try yours but they would be hard to read on the pc. I will once I get a kindle.


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## Five String (Jun 6, 2010)

Not much of a fan, but I thought Larry McMurtry (lonesome Dove, etc.) was one of the better, more popular western writers.


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## Carolyn J. Rose Mystery Writer (Aug 10, 2010)

Try Kirk Mitchell. And mystery writer Loren Estleman also pens some terrific westerns. You might also look into Steve Hockensmith's Holmes on the Range series.


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## emalvick (Sep 14, 2010)

A different take on westerns is the novel _Hundred in the Hand_ by Joseph Marshall. It is a western (mostly) told from the point of view of a Lakota Native. I found it very interesting for seeing it from that side of things. There is a second novel in the series called _The Long Knives Are Crying_, which follows the Battle of Little Big Horn. Unfortunately, it is still on my to read list. It is also unfortunate that neither book is available in a Kindle Format. Joseph Marshall, by the way, is quite famous for his nonfiction centering on the Lakota. I have never read any of it, but I probably will some day.


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## Travis haselton (Jul 24, 2010)

sounds awsome. The Lakota Souix where a pinnacle part of the old west. Sound very interesting.


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## MachineTrooper (Jun 22, 2010)

I liked _Apaloosa_ too, Camille. A real pleasant surprise was the movie _Open Range_. I'd never heard of it--just caught it on Cable one night.  Found the book it was based on in the library (can't remember the author...sorry) and liked it, too. Still puzzled about the use of chloroform book vs. film--but then, silly details like that stick in my craw sometimes. 

Yeah, Five, I'm aware of McMurty's reputation. I should probably give him another chance. It's just that that novel was such a waste of time IMO.


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## kae (May 3, 2010)

LeeGoldberg said:


> Richard Wheeler's Spur award winning book MASTERSON is now on the Kindle. ...












Wheeler's FLINT series will be on Kindle later this month. 

Two other Wheeler titles: AFTERSHOCKS










AND THE BUFFALO COMMONS -- although this takes place in 2000. Not a real "western".


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## toj (Aug 2, 2010)

vikingwarrior22 said:


> I agree great reads and the setting and discriptions take you to the "reservation" ...


I've never really went looking for a western to read, but the Tony Hillerman books are really good.


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## Travis haselton (Jul 24, 2010)

well in my mind a western can get away with being set in modern times if it is done right. Just look at the movie "The last of the dogmen"


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## Rye (Nov 18, 2008)

MachineTrooper said:


> I liked _Apaloosa_ too, Camille. A real pleasant surprise was the movie _Open Range_. I'd never heard of it--just caught it on Cable one night.  Found the book it was based on in the library (can't remember the author...sorry) and liked it, too. Still puzzled about the use of chloroform book vs. film--but then, silly details like that stick in my craw sometimes.


I love Open Range. I was not aware it was based on a book. I'd always thought it was an original script that Costner took on.


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## Rye (Nov 18, 2008)

Travis haselton said:


> well in my mind a western can get away with being set in modern times if it is done right. Just look at the movie "The last of the dogmen"


I'm not usually that fond of Westerns in modern settings. I do admit I liked Last of the Dogmen, though it's probably in part because Tom Berenger is one of my favorite actors.


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## Travis haselton (Jul 24, 2010)

I do say it does have to be done right. I dont know if I did it right but I could be done I think.


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## pdallen (Aug 3, 2010)

If you want to tour the darker side of the western, Cormac McCarthy's backlist will be available soon on kindle. Stay away from his more recent book, though. They are really more like script treatments than novels.


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