*Read between 1st October and 7th October 2018
In this, the twelfth full-length novel in the New York Times bestselling Longmire series, Walt, Henry Standing Bear, and Vic discover much more than they bargained for when they are called in to investigate a hit-and-run accident.
In the midst of the largest motorcycle rally in the world, a young biker is run off the road and ends up in critical condition. When Sheriff Walt Longmire and his good friend Henry Standing Bear are called to Hulett, Wyoming—the nearest town to America’s first national monument, Devils Tower—to investigate, things start getting complicated. As competing biker gangs; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms; a military-grade vehicle donated to the tiny local police force by a wealthy entrepreneur; and Lola, the real-life femme fatale and namesake for Henry’s ’59 Thunderbird (and, by extension, Walt’s granddaughter) come into play, it rapidly becomes clear that there is more to get to the bottom of at this year’s Sturgis Motorcycle Rally than a bike accident. After all, in the words of Arthur Conan Doyle, whose Adventures of Sherlock Holmes the Bear won’t stop quoting, “There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact.”
It is a joy to spend a short while in the company of Johnson’s dogged, determined and delightful sheriff and to witness his adventures. This is yet another superb read from the pen of the ever reliable and gifted storyteller Craig Johnson and it is, once again, a sheer delight to read.
Pace. Action. Wit. Tension. Great characters and character developments. Absorbing plots. Amazing landscapes. These are some of the elements that I have come to expect from each new Longmire tale. And, “An Obvious Fact” does not disappoint.
This is another cleverly crafted mystery for Walt and his friends to investigate. During the tale, we learn a little more about Henry’s past – in fact, so does Henry! And we get to see the wonderful Victoria as she tries her hand at a new pursuit and annoys the locals in doing so.
All the while, though, a shadow is growing around Longmire.
I cannot emphasise enough how much I have enjoyed each Longmire tale since I, belatedly, discovered them in August of this year; they have proved to be my reading highlight of 2018. I am now nearing the end of my journey through the Longmire back catalogue and will miss being able to finish one book and then immediately pick up the next in this remarkable series.
There are only two more novels for me to read and then I will have to wait until the autumn of 2019 for my next fix of our Sheriff.
Boy Howdy, it’s then going to be a long wait until I’m with Walt again.
Gavin Dimmock. Writer. 