It never ceases to amaze me how a storywriter of the caliber of Louis L’Amour was able to create stories of the west with so much realism and western lore to immediately get the reader locked into the story and drives the reader to the conclusion of it.
In this book the main character Milo Talon a relative of the Sacketts on his mothers side, had been riding the wild side and enjoying the country but always on the alert for the things that can get an unwatchful man killed. Joining a man’s fire and taking his food was to Milo a commitment only he was able to totally understand. Conflict comes quickly and sides are drawn as the story begins to unfold. Here we have a wealthy rancher in Milo Talon who takes a forty a month job as a cow wrangler for a man who he knows got his start off of the Talon range and stock. The question is he still a rustler or is he now being the person whose cattle are being rustled?
The story moves quickly with some hidden questions and people that he should know but he really can’t place the hidden face with a name. Three women are involved in the story but Milo ends up with only memories and dreams of things that could have been.
I recommend this story not for its expertly worded phrases or plot intricacies but just for the realism of a story told well.
