Although I have yet to read every single book by Louis L'Amour, I have managed to read quite a number of them, and I have greatly enjoyed all of the ones that I have had the pleasure of reading. I can safely say that Mr. L'Amour is certainly one of my favorite authors and may very well be my all-time favorite.
Kiowa Trail is an incredibly good read. An engaging novel with very interesting characters and a slightly unconventional western hero at the center of the book's narrative.
The story opens with a young cow puncher who has fallen victim to love at first sight, when he sees the girl of his dreams. Unfortunately, the young man has fallen for the wrong girl, her father is one of the most powerful men in town, and he has nothing but contempt for ranchers and cowboys.
The smitten cowboy is Tom Lundy, the younger brother of Kate Lundy. Kate is the widowed owner of the Tumbling B Ranch and when Tom is murdered after he attempted to romantically approach the young lady that he desired, Kate declares out-and-out war on the entire town.
It falls upon the Tumbling B's foreman Conn Drury to call upon all of his fighting skills and abilities with a gun to win this war. All the while using those skills to protect Kate as well, while hiding the love that he feels for her too.
Conn's parents were killed by Apaches when he was a little kid, he was taken captive by the tribe, and raised by them for a few years. Eventually he does escape and befriends a man that helps him with his education until he is murdered, leaving the young Conn to seek out vengeance against the men that murdered his mentor. The family of his fallen teacher bring Conn to Europe, where his education is furthered, but his wild nature brings him back to America, and the frontier.
The story starts out with such a simple premise, but surprisingly builds to near epic proportions. The narrative is told in first person perspective, a style of writing that I sometimes feel can be detrimental to a western tale. Fortunately that choice of style does nothing to harm the novel here and it offers an interesting glimpse into the mind of the hero.
Kiowa Trail is a genuine joy to read. It's heavy on the action front and tells an exciting story.
-W. Jay Pinto
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