The Shepherd of Guadaloupe

by Zane Grey

Zane Grey. The Shepherd of Guadaloupe. New York: Grosset and Dunlap, [1930]. Early reprint. Octavo. 335 pages. Publisher's binding, dust jacket.

Genres: Westerns, Fiction, Classics, Adventure, Romance

335 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1928

About the author

Pearl Zane Grey was an American author best known for his popular adventure novels and stories that presented an idealized image of the rugged Old West. As of June 2007, the Internet Movie Database credits Grey with 110 films, one TV episode, and a series, Dick Powell's Zane Grey Theater based loosely on his novels and short stories.

Reviews

[Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not for moments did he remember his physical state, and then he guessed it was just the old revolt of outraged nature, driven to the limit this time. As he realized gradual recovery, he dismissed a vague, dreamy thought of how sweet it would be to die in her arms.

I don't know how I overlooked this novel for so long. Having read almost everything Zane Grey ever wrote, I thought I was long past the point of being surprised by his novels, but this one is very different from his earlier westerns and, in my opinion, is an example of some of his best writing.

Published in 1928, the story is set roughly 10 years earlier and focuses on a battle-scarred veteran, Clifton Forrest, who is returning home to New Mexico to die. Forrest is not your typical Zane Grey protagonist. There are suggestions that he served heroically in the war, but all we see of him for much of the book is a convalescing soldier suffering from physical wounds as well as what we now recognize as PTSD.

The bad guys are the familiarly shallow, completely evil characters from earlier Grey books, but family dynamics add a layer of complexity that makes this one a more satisfying read.

Even though the setting isn't the "Old West," the narrator lavishes the usual attention on the landscape. Set mostly in the area near Las Vegas, New Mexico, the book also features excursions to Colorado Springs (including the Garden of the Gods) and Denver, as well as a trek to the southwest that skirts the White Sands area of New Mexico.

The racial stereotypes and slurs will be offensive to modern readers; the romance is as sappy as ever; and the occasional scenes of violence are shocking in their brutality. Yet there are other moments where violence is anticipated (and expected by Grey readers) that are stifled, replaced by episodes of unusual personal introspection. The two lead characters seem to represent a particular post-War vitality. Morally strong, both seem possessed by a kind of fatalism that places certain moral values above their own fortunes, including their own lives.

[Joel Thimell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zane Grey is my all-time favorite Western author and "The Shepherd of Guadaloupe" is one of his best. What sets Grey apart from most other Western writers is his spiritual connection with nature. In Grey's books, man's ills are caused by his separation from nature. Cities, factories and machines are artificial breeding grounds of hatred, envy, strife and disease. It is only by returning to the land and embracing nature in all its glory and danger that man can reclaim his soul and find peace and purpose.

"The Shepherd of Guadaloupe" is not a traditional Western: the story begins in 1919 and there are no gunslingers, rustlers, Indians, or stagecoaches. What it does have is a gripping story, strong characters, memorable dialogue and a classic romance.

This would have made a great movie. I can see Gary Cooper or Joel McCrea in the lead with Jean Arthur playing the heroine and the great deserts and mountains of New Mexico providing the natural wonder.

[Jay Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

A soldier suffering from wounds received in World War I returns home to Las Vegas, New Mexico given a diagnosis of 1 month to live. Upon his return, he learns his parents have lost all there property except a small portion of land. The story is a love story, but the man must recover the will to live to move forward. The desert is the perfect place. The descriptions of the landscape are exquisite (but I already love the region). The only downside is some derogatory remarks about African-Americans and Mexican- Americans. However, this is a period piece so sometimes expected.

[RW · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent but kind of weird Zane Grey novel. Plenty to like if you like the way he describes the desert and gets into the moody interiority of the protagonists. The plot was a bit weird and seemed forced at times.

This one is really more of a romance with a little western action thrown in rather than the other way around.

[RJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clifton Forrest was on his way home, following the horrors of WWI. His body had endured much pain and injury, his endurance near extinct. On the ship to New York, he exchanged a brief conversation with a girl. The girl was sympathetic and very polite. On the train from New York to Las Vegas, Nevada he met the girl again. She comforted him and cared for him when he hurried to the train, exhausted, and passed out in his compartment. Forrest’s spirit was raised as it had not been in the past two years. Then her mood changed and she became cold to him. Arriving in Las Vegas, he discovered that his home no longer belonged to him and he fainted away. The girl took him to his parent’s home which was now a complete reversal of what he had known before he left six years ago. The Lundeen’s now lived in Cottonwoods, the big house on the hill, and the Forrest’s lived in the small adobe house at the base of the hill. The girl is Virginia Lundeen, who grew up in the adobe house until she was twelve, then left for school, and later overseas for two years. She had no idea what had happened back home between the Forrest’s and Lundeen’s, identical to Clifton. As Virginia investigated her surroundings and what had taken place in her absence, she became angry and suspicious of her father and his business partner, Malpass. Clifton was in a deep depression and denial of Virginia’s honesty and intentions. The love between Virginia and Clifton had existed since they were youngsters but they had been raised experiencing so much hate between the families that their love was forbidden. Will they ever be able to admit their love and share their lives? The story continues as a diabolical triangle between Forrest, Lundeen, and Malpass. The two young lovers are involuntarily, and to some degree unknowingly, controlled and guided by the actions of the triangle. I like this story very much. It’s an authentic and heart-warming tale of lost love, reunited. Beautiful.

[Fred P. Rollins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Immense. Stupendous. Epic.

Zane at his best.
I have spent most of my life in the New Mexico desert he describes but have never before seen it described so well.
The lost soul always finds its cure in the desert.

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 3 out of 5]

The family ranch was stolen when Clifton Forrest was off fighting in World War I. Despite his frail body, Forrest fights to regain his family home and live a peaceful life. First published in 1930.

[Pamela Priest · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first Zane Grey and I loved it. I'll be reading more of his work. I love westerns and I love the southwest landscape. So happy the shepherd and his family won pit in the end!

[Pat Camalliere · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love western novels and expected a lot, since I haven’t read Zane Grey before and he’s said to be the master. Perhaps that expectation is what caused me to be a little disappointed in this book, which read more like a romance that a western adventure novel to me. I know that he is a master of descriptions of the west, but I thought they were overwritten. Some actually went on for pages when a paragraph would do. I also thought the introspection was overdone and repetitive. That being said, I can’t deny that I was wrapped up in the story. I would have said that Virginia, rather than Clifton, was the main character, and she was a remarkable heroine. Clifton returns from World War I a battered man, to find that his family’s ranch has been stolen from them, and in a Romeo and Juliet situation falls in love with the daughter of the villain, only to have an even more evil man try to steal her affections. After a series of increasing disasters, he flees to the desert and becomes a sheepherder, embracing that life. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Virginia fends off the bad guys, awaiting Clifton’s return. He does not take as active a role as one would suspect. It’s still a good book. The writing style and the decisions the characters made did reflect my image of the west.

[David Burnworth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was only the fifth book I have read by Grey. Up till now, I have liked one a lot, one was one of the worst books I have read and the other two once I finished, had a good storyline but were long-worded. This book had me from chapter one. Clifton Forest comes home from WW1 to discover his parents have lost everything to a crooked deal. He goes through hardship, payback, and a marriage that he thinks is only to save the woman who loves him from being forced to marry a criminal. There are so many things going on in this story that it is well worth your time to give this one a read.

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

It certainly is a romance and a melodrama. But the writing in description of the Southwest is beautiful and evocative. The story of a wounded WW I soldier and of his family fortunes won and lost, and of his true love who is part of the enemy rival family is more complex than a simple romance or melodrama, though there is a true villain for whom violence begets violence in the end.

[Ann Deraedt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gelezen in het Nederlands. Leest gemakkelijk.

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like all Zane Grey's stories and this one didn't disappoint

[Kris · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have read one other Zane Grey that I liked, and this one which was so-so. It contains very dated stereotypes, and was more of a romance than a Western.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good western romance. It had a good plot, and I enjoyed the read. The only problem I have is the overt racist language that was common and accepted during the early 20th century.

[Carrie Cantalupo-Sharp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid 4 stars for THIS genre.

[Christopher Lutz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the setting just after WWI, and the “old fashioned” style of writing the love story. Zane Grey just had a way of writing characters, settings and dialogue that really appeals to me.

[Tina]

Very tough book to get through. However you feel like you are in New Mexico because of the very clear definition he gives to the landscape and the beauty of the area.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is dated pulp fiction. Interesting to know what my grandmother enjoyed in her day . I presume she liked this as she had quite a few of Greys books in her collection. This was my first and last book that I would read from the revered gentleman. Positive aspect of his writing is his descriptions of nature in the old west which lends a certain wistfulness to this reader.

[Rosabelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first Zane Grey book I've ever picked up, and the plot really kept me up late reading. I did though find the dialogue to be far too melodramatic, and peppered with racial slurs. That plot was dynamite though.

[Mojca · Rating 5 out of 5]

4 ½ - 5 stars

[Tripp]

Southwest

[Lindsey Lang]

another one i picked up on our beach vacation, this one was only $0.79!! i had no idea what it was about and still don't but it looked intriguing so i figured why not!!

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not certain but I do think I have never given less than 4 stars to any of his books.