Review: Another Classic Western
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 8, 2014
This is my third or fourth Van Holt western, and he's becoming a favorite I like to come back to now. This one, however, has a slightly edgier feel to it, unlike the others which had a few classic features of spaghetti westerns. Despite enjoying those stories, Dan Hanton is a character you could really sink your teeth into, and although he is the classic loner, which Van Holt seems to enjoy writing about, he's noble, fearless, and comes alive on the page. If you like your heroes bold and brash, then he might not be the protagonist for you, but for me, a quiet, deadly, and honorable man in a ten-gallon hat is just about perfect. The descriptions of the other characters is rich, as always, while Van Holt makes it so easy to hate the Moody and Fink brothers that seeing them get there just desserts nearly makes you stand up and cheer. Rooting for the good guy in the white hat might be what we all grew up with in the westerns of our youth, but Van Holt continues to put some modern flair in his stunningly engaging writing, proving that he is one of the most entertaining and accessible modern authors writing in the genre. It's fun, easy, heartfelt, and entertaining - what more could you be looking for? Like me, you'll end up coming back to Van Holt's work again and again.