Customer Reviews

Bounty Hunters

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It isn't very often that I get time to read fiction anymore, but when I read a good book I feel a certain responsibility to let people know about it. I'm James Drury, and I've played in plenty of Western shows myself. For those of you who don't know me I portrayed The Virginian on NBC television for many years. So I hope that qualifies me to leave a review on a Western book. Of course I could say the same thing about any Elmore Leonard book I've had the pleasure of reading, but the Bounty Hunters was great. It was short and to the point, but Leonard has this way of giving you such a great feel for the country and old West settings it just makes the book pleasant. He excels at making us see what he does in very few words. I have read all of the Western novels of Kirby Jonas on audio, and while I of course think he is my favorite author of Westerns, I have to say I have never read a bad Elmore Leonard book, and The Bounty Hunters is no exception. I don't know Leonard's history as far as how he does his research. I know Kirby Jonas lived in southeast Arizona when he was working on his first books, however, and it seems to me that Leonard has done a large amount of work in getting the facts about the Arizona and Mexico country down pat. I guess I've gotten into the habit of comparing every Western author not to Louis L'Amour but to Kirby Jonas, and although I would never put Leonard above Jonas I would sure say his books would "do to ride the river," with Jonas', so to speak. Give the Bounty Hunters a try. Right now I'm starting into Escape from Five Shadows, and it already holds great promise!

Dave Flynn is sent to bring the Apache Soldado Viejo out of Mexico and to Arizona. He is ordered to take a new Lt., R D Bowers wtih him. Viejo will be hard to find and harder to bring back. They are sent by Colonel Deneen. He has a grudge against Flynn from years ago. They are aided by Joe Madora, a scout friend of Flynns. Besides Viejo they run into Curt Lazair, a scalp hunter. He takes Mexican scalps and swears they are Apache, in order to get the bounty. There is also a crooked Lt. with soldiers under his command. This Lt. is buying the scalps from Lazair. It all comes together pretty quickly at the end. Does Bowers come through? Will Flynn and company find Viejo and Lazair? What finally happenes to Deneen? The book is fairly fast moving, it will hold your attention. If you like a western with a lot of gun fights, Indians and good and bad Mexicans, you will like this.

Besides writting great modern day novels Elmore Leonard can and does wirte great Westerns. "The Bounty Hunter" is a great read. I believe this was one of his frist novels if not the first. Keep up the good work Elmore. It is a pleasure to read anything you write.

This is actually the first Elmore Leonard novel I've read despite having been a fan of several films based on his crime novels rather than his westerns (e.g., Out of Sight, Jackie Brown, Get Shorty). I was in the mood for a western, however, so I picked this one up. For a novel released in 1953, I certainly wasn't expecting something this dark and violent. The Bounty Hunters seems to anticipate the spaghetti westerns of Sergio Leone by over a decade. The story is fairly simple, but it's handled so capably that it still feels fresh over fifty years later. The only problems I had with the story were the stereotypical representations of the Apaches and the Mexicans. What helps to offset this, however, is that the titular bounty hunters are, in fact, the most evil sons of guns in the entire book. They're characters you can't wait to see get their bloody comeuppance. Honestly, by the end, I was cheering for the Apaches,--lead Apache Soldado is such an intelligent and capable character that I found it hard not to cheer for him--and I believe Leonard has a bit of admiration for them himself. (Whether or not that admiration translates into a balanced depiction is another matter entirely.) I highly enjoyed this book, and I look forward to reading more of Leonard's western fiction. Who knows; maybe I'll eventually get around to reading some of his crime novels.

The Bounty Hunters was Elmore Leonard's first novel. He had published a number of short stories in Western magazines before this. As a writer of westerns he was brilliant. The love of character is evident from this first novel.

The Bounty Hunters follows Dave Flynn, former cavalry officer turned scout as he leads a young lieutenant into Mexico on the trail of an Apache war chief. Along the way they encounter American scalp hunters who work for the local Mexican commander. Trouble with these scalp hunters is that they aren't particular with whose scalps they take. A young woman, the daughter of a friend, is taken by the scalp hunters and Flynn goes after them.

All the classic western themes are here. The rugged individual, the dangerous situations. We have good guys, we have bad guys, and in the end both the good guys and bad guys get their reward. Bounty Hunters delivers all that could be expected from a western written by Elmore Leonard.

Mr. Leonard's first novel, originally published in 1953, is a solid story with many twists and turns as the two protagonists, Bowers and Dave Flynn, set out on their assignment to catch an old Apache leader named Soldado Viejo. The experienced cowboy, Flynn, agrees to take on this odd, freelance job with the young, greenhorn Bowers, because of his hatred of Colonel Deneen who offers him the assignment. The book isn't an indepth study of the different characters, but more a series of challenges they face against the Apache, the bounty hunters, Colonel Deneen and a Mexican Lieutinent named Lama Duro. The assorted heroes and villians are one-dimensional and about as introspective as dirt. I never warmed up to any of the characters or cared if they bit the dust. However, the pleasure in reading Mr. Leonard's book is wondering how or if the people will survive different confrontations. Everyone in the story, with the exception of the Apache, seem to be flying by the seat of their pants as they stumble into different episodes. This tightly written little story is nowhere near in the same league as Larry McMurtry's epic "Lonesome Dove," but still a very entertaining way to kill some time. The ending was a little too neat and tidy for my tastes. If you like western novels, then you'll likely be pleased with Mr. Leonard's story.

I had recently read two of Leonard's other Westerns (Hombre and Valdez is Coming) which I very much enjoyed, and compared to those this was a bit disappointing. This is understandable as the Bounty Hunters was his first novel, but overall the story seemed longer than necessary and the characters not as well developed as the other novels, which barely wasted a word. Some flashes of the author's talents come through in scenes such as the first chapter, but often I found the story dull and wandering.

About the Bounty Hunters...let's just say that Elmore Leonard got a lot better as his career as a writer developed.

I have been a Elmore Leonard fan for quite awhile and never saw this book available anywhere. As it turns out, it's his first, and I found it a very good read.

This is one of those books that distinguishes itself within the genre. It's nice to read a book that's so character driven, in a category famous for its gunfights, outlaws, and stories that blend in to one another.