The Last Cowboys Of San Geronimo

By Ian Stansel

“One of the most compelling novels I’ve read in a long time.” —Eowyn Ivey
 
“Shares the trail with the likes of Edward Abbey, Cormac McCarthy, and Larry McMurtry.” —Craig Johnson, best-selling author of the Walt Longmire Mysteries, the basis for the hit show Longmire
 
When Silas Van Loy flees home on horseback to avoid capture for his brother’s murder, he is followed by both the police and his brother’s wife, Lena, who is intent on exacting revenge. She reluctantly lets her trusted stable assistant join her in a journey across the wilds of Northern California in the hopes of catching Silas for one final showdown. Stansel follows the chase and shares the story of the brothers’ rise from hardscrabble childhood to their reign as the region’s preeminent horse trainers, tracking the tense sibling rivalry that ultimately leads to the elder’s death.

A “fast-paced, moving narrative in which family loyalty is tested, broken, and redeemed in unexpected ways,”* The Last Cowboys of San Geronimo will satisfy fans of Kent Haruf, Charles Portis, Molly Gloss, and Smith Henderson, and establish Stansel as a new voice in this grand tradition.

*BookPage

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Jul 4, 2017
• ISBN: 9780544963412

Reviews for The Last Cowboys Of San Geronimo

[paperdolllady · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Well-done audio narration, atmospheric, with well-developed characters and interesting details about the unique lifestyle of horsemen/women.

[ethel55_1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Was a little slow/predictable at the beginning,I thought it would be a lot more fast paced since the murder happens quickly and the 'chase' begins. I liked some of the descriptions of the ranch/horses/surrounding area.

[beamis12 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Once upon a time, quite a long while ago, I was a young preteen who spent Saturday nights with her grandfather, watching Westerns on TV. Big valley, Ponderosa, and of course anything with John Wayne. Read Louis L'amour, just to be able to discuss with him what we read. Miss that time and that wonderful man tremendously. That experience instilled a love in me for that genre that still exists to this day. Westerns though are not as popular, have been n short supply, though in the last few years some are once again being published, like this novel billed as a contemporary Western.Northern, California, two brothers on a horse ranch take over their dying father's property, differences ensue, and the brothers become rivals. Each with his own business, tricks are played on each other, some quite nasty, but they are each relatively successful in their own way. Why then after all this time would one brother kill the other and then take off?Beautiful descriptions of the landscape, much horse talk as expected, and that I love, and lastly a chase, a journey and revenge. Classic Western themes, done very well. Brotherly relationships, extremely complicated and competitive. A simply story, hidden motives, and a starting conclusion.