Review: Fine Hardboiled Action Yarn
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 4, 2014
Wayne Dundee gives readers his version of the Drifter Detective, Jack Laramie, in the new novella WIDE SPOT IN THE ROAD. As expected, it's a highly entertaining yarn. Jack, pulling the horse trailer that's his home away from home, is on his way through the Texas Panhandle when he stops at a roadside diner for a bowl of chili. Just as he comes in, a rejected suitor of the pretty waitress running the place storms out. Jack is the only customer, the chili is good, the waitress is easy on the eyes and friendly...who knows what might happen.What happens, of course, is that all hell breaks loose, and Jack finds himself facing off against an entire motorcycle gang in a scenario reminiscent of a Western, which is fitting since he's the grandson of legendary Old West marshal Cash Laramie.As always, Dundee's prose is tough and assured and keeps things moving along at a brisk pace. He has a knack for creating fully rounded characters, both heroes and villains, and he does so in this tale, along with capturing the time and place perfectly as well. WIDE SPOT IN THE ROAD is a fine hardboiled action yarn and gets a high recommendation from me.