Junkyard Dogs: A Walt Longmire Mystery (Walt Longmire Mysteries) [Hardcover]

Craig Johnson (Author)

Book Description

Release date: May 27, 2010 | Series: Walt Longmire Mysteries

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A missing thumb and dead developers are only the beginning for Sheriff Walt Longmire

It's a volatile new economy in Durant, Wyoming, where the owners of a multi-million dollar development of ranchettes want to get rid of the adjacent junk-yard. When a severed thumb is discovered in the yard, conflicts erupt, and Walt Longmire, his trusty companion Dog, life-long friend Henry Standing Bear, and deputies Santiago Saizarbitoria and Victoria Moretti find themselves in a small town that feels more and more like a high plains pressure cooker.

Craig Johnson's award-winning Walt Longmire mysteries continue to find new fans, and Junkyard Dogs is sure to create many more devotees. The sixth book in the series is filled with Johnson's signature blend of wisecracks, Western justice, and page-turning plot twists, as the beloved sheriff finds himself star-deep in the darker aspects of human nature, in a story of love, laughs, death, and derelict automobiles.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Johnson's sixth mystery featuring Wyoming sheriff Walt Longmire (after 2009's Dark Horse) will remind readers that a big city isn't necessary for a compelling crime story and enduring hero. One blizzardy February day, Walt and his deputies—Victoria Moretti and Santiago Saizarbitoria—visit the Durant, Wyo., dump, owned by the Stewart family, to investigate a severed thumb found in a discarded cooler. There they discover that the Stewart family patriarch, George, was almost killed after someone dragged him behind a '68 Toronado. Walt winds up playing peacemaker between the cantankerous Stewarts, longtime Durant residents, and the owner of a new housing development bordering the junkyard. When a search of the dump unearths a surprising side business and two deaths follow, Walt realizes he has bigger problems on his hands. Series fans as well as newcomers will cheer the laconic Walt every step of the way. 8-city author tour. (June)
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From Booklist

*Starred Review* After a severed thumb turns up at the dump outside of Durant, Wyoming, Sheriff Walt Longmire ignores the fact that someone has claimed it. He needs a mystery to keep Deputy Santiago Saizarbitoria, who’s suffering from “bullet fever,” on the job until he can think of a way to keep him from quitting. It’s just that sort of kindness that defines Longmire, whose unwillingness to assume the worst leads to him getting pepper-sprayed, bit in the ass, and very nearly shot. Like any good mystery, this depends less on the plot than its depiction of interesting people in an interesting place. But, as the story ambles along, with Walt taking a lot of ragging from the people who work for him (including ex–Philly cop and love interest Victoria Moretti), the severed thumb points the way through a surprisingly twisty mystery that involves junkmen, land developers, and a creepy ex-convict. And, as he proved in last year’s terrific Dark Horse, Johnson—a born storyteller if ever there was one—can do one hell of a set piece in a snowstorm (even with a limping, overweight sheriff). Longmire may be contemplating early retirement, but readers will demand that he serve out his full term of service—and run for reelection. --Keir Graff

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult; First Edition edition (May 27, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670021822
• ISBN-13: 978-0670021826
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (132 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #73,221 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Craig Johnson has received both critical and popular praise for his novels The Cold Dish, Death Without Company, Kindness Goes Unpunished, Another Man's Moccasins and The Dark Horse. All five novels have been made selections by the Independent Booksellers Association, and The Cold Dish was a DILYS Award Finalist and was translated into French in 2009 as Little Bird and was just named one of the top ten mysteries of the year by Lire magazine and won the Prix du Roman Noir as the best mystery novel translated into French for 2010.

Death Without Company was selected by Booklist as one of the top-ten mysteries of 2006, won the Wyoming Historical Society's fiction book of the year. The short story, Old Indian Trick, won the Tony Hillerman Mystery Short Story Award and appeared in Cowboys & Indians Magazine.

Kindness Goes Unpunished, the third in the Walt Longmire series, was number 38 on the American Bookseller's Association's hardcover best seller list.

Another Man's Moccasins, was the recipient of Western Writer's of America's Spur Award as Novel of the Year and the Mountains and Plains Book of the Year.

The Dark Horse, the fifth in the series has garnered starred reviews by all four prepublication review services, one of the only novels to receive that honor and was named by Publisher's Weekly as one of the top one hundred books of the year.

Craig lives with his wife Judy on their ranch in Ucross, Wyoming, population 25.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#69 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Mystery

#90 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Mystery

#69 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Mystery

#90 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Mystery

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars No, you can't put this book down. May 30, 2010

By QueenKatieMae VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

My mom got me hooked on mystery novels and certain writers and I sure wish she was still around so I could introduce her to Craig Johnson and the citizens of Absaroka County, Wyoming. His first novel, "The Cold Dish", enthralled me and I fell in love with Sheriff Walt Longmire, Henry Standing Bear and Deputy Sheriff Vic. And now "Junkyard Dogs" has opened the door, again, to a small part of the world filled with unforgettable characters, humorous interactions and starkly beautiful scenery. His mysteries are always fun to try and untangle before the end. But. it's his writing and sense of the absurd that makes me laugh out loud. When a book starts out with "I tried to get a straight answer from his grandson and granddaughter-in-law as to why their grandfather had been tied with a hundred feet of nylon rope to the rear bumper of the 1968 Oldsmobile Toronado:...well, I know my mom would have wanted to keep reading. Damn good book

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A great read! June 16, 2010

By J. Hawk

Format:Hardcover

"Junkyard Dogs" is Craig Johnson's sixth book in his Walt Longmire mystery series and as always he doesn't disappoint his many fans. In "Junkyard Dogs" we are again reunited with Sheriff Longmire and the citizens of Absaroka County but in the first chapter we are introduced to some new characters and I mean characters! Within the first few pages I was laughing out loud. Craig is a master wordsmith and a natural born storyteller. As you read his books you may find yourself going back over different passages because they are so poetic. In "Junkyard Dogs" Johnson's description of a certain house is reminiscent of works by Edgar Allen Poe. And how many Western Mysteries do you see Rasputin mentioned? In his books Johnson has proven himself to be one of the best mystery writers today. From the first to the last page of "Junkyard Dogs" Craig will take you on a literary ride and then you will eagerly be anticipating his next book.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Once again reluctantly leaving Durant, Wyoming June 22, 2010

By Linda

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

One week a year I get to live in the town of Durant, entertained by Vic, charmed by Henry, and comforted by Walt's warmth, humor and unique way of enforcing the law. I dragged the book out to make my visit last longer, but sadly it's time to leave. Meticulously plotted, an intellectual challenge, funny and thoroughly delightful.