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Pronto, Riding the Rap, Fire in the Hole
New York Times bestselling author Elmore Leonard's U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens is the mesmerizing hero of numerous books and the hit FX series Justified. Now the first three Raylan books—Pronto, Riding the Rap, and Fire in the Hole—are together in one ebook, along with an excerpt from Raylan, the brand new novel in the series.
657 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 14, 2012
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864 people want to read
About the author
Elmore Leonard
215 books3,733 followersElmore John Leonard lived in Dallas, Oklahoma City and Memphis before settling in Detroit in 1935. After serving in the navy, he studied English literature at the University of Detroit where he entered a short story competition. His earliest published novels in the 1950s were westerns, but Leonard went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into motion pictures.
Father of Peter Leonard.
Father of Peter Leonard.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
June 17, 2020
Pronto is another great Elmore Leonard novel, perfect for our current lock-down. Leonard never wastes a comma, never! Good guys, bad guys; morality, immorality; smart guys, stupid guys; braggadocio, humility. The lines are so clear, unfortunately as they are now in real life too.
Reading Riding the Rap, I worry that Raylan Givens seems curiously muted, perhaps depressed, maybe even a little lifeless. Raylan, Raylan, what’s happening to you? Do you yearn for Joyce’s undivided attention? Are you jealous that she still devotes so much time and energy to chauffeuring Harry Arno, who’s old, alcoholic, but curiously resilient? Do you regret that your sometimes archaic moral code prevents you from hooking up with that weird, new age Reverend Dawn Navarro, who’s a certified medium and spiritualist? Whatever it is, Raylan, I hope that you return to form soon.
Short stories, as in Fire in the Hole, beautifully reveal Elmore Leonard's prose: concise, natural dialog, quick character sketches, with regular plot surprises.
Reading Riding the Rap, I worry that Raylan Givens seems curiously muted, perhaps depressed, maybe even a little lifeless. Raylan, Raylan, what’s happening to you? Do you yearn for Joyce’s undivided attention? Are you jealous that she still devotes so much time and energy to chauffeuring Harry Arno, who’s old, alcoholic, but curiously resilient? Do you regret that your sometimes archaic moral code prevents you from hooking up with that weird, new age Reverend Dawn Navarro, who’s a certified medium and spiritualist? Whatever it is, Raylan, I hope that you return to form soon.
Short stories, as in Fire in the Hole, beautifully reveal Elmore Leonard's prose: concise, natural dialog, quick character sketches, with regular plot surprises.
June 3, 2021
My reviews of Pronto and Riding the Rap are elsewhere. I got this as a three book bundle; this review is for Fire in the Hole only.
Rather than a single story, this is a series of very short stories, almost as if Leonard had a bunch of books started then published the first chapter or two of each as a little vignette.
The Raylan Givens story that gives this collection its name is essentially the first season of Justified, although with added scenes in the TV show. There are some differences, some of which would be spoilery, but for example, Ava is in her 40s and a brunette.
Overall its solid Elmore Leonard stuff but if you're looking for a novel, this ain't it.
Rather than a single story, this is a series of very short stories, almost as if Leonard had a bunch of books started then published the first chapter or two of each as a little vignette.
The Raylan Givens story that gives this collection its name is essentially the first season of Justified, although with added scenes in the TV show. There are some differences, some of which would be spoilery, but for example, Ava is in her 40s and a brunette.
Overall its solid Elmore Leonard stuff but if you're looking for a novel, this ain't it.
January 11, 2021
I picked this up without having seen any of Justified, so I can't speak to the quality of FX's adaptation or Leonard's inspiration. Frankly, I was looking for credibly dialogue-driven fiction that featured coal miners or coal mining, and Leonard is among the best in the business at fast-paced repartee.
Readers of this collection (or its individual components) won't be disappointed, but I would like to call out some oddities on a book-by-book basis.
Pronto - This is the book that introduces the character of Deputy Marshal Raylan Givens. It's a bit weird in two ways. First of all, it reads a bit as though Leonard was figuring out his plot as he wrote, beginning as a Hitchcock-style paranoid thriller about an aging bookie in trouble, abandoning bookie Harry to swerve into a mafia crime tale, before discovering Raylan and deciding that perhaps this might be the most interesting character to follow after all. From there, the rest of the story reads a bit like Leonard's exploration of what Wyatt Earp in the present might be like, setting events in motion to conjure up a climactic High Noon showdown. It's an entertaining, lurching mess. So, three stars.
Riding the Rap is better than its predecessor, most likely because Leonard now understands his characters and can allow them to behave in a self-consistent fashion. It's a straight-up detective story that revisits the previous Pauline-in-peril plot, this time with the bookie as a kidnap victim for Deputy Marshal Givens to rescue (or not). Once again, the story seems geared around variations on the theme of the pistol-duel showdown, and Leonard gives us another pair of these (in fact, the author uses this book to substantially hype the events of the first). Considering that the author makes a point of telling us modern-day law officers should not be pulling their guns, let alone firing them, it appears odd in retrospect that Raylan should have waited until his 40s to indulge in the satisfaction of killing in the name of justice. Perhaps he just needed an ice breaker. As enjoyable a read as this book is, it does peter out quickly, almost as though the author hit an internal word limit and decided to wrap Rap up rather than introduce new complications that would have resulted in a more intricate tale. I won't fault it for opportunity cost, though: four stars here.
It would take Leonard another 7 years to return to Givens with his book of short stories Fire in the Hole, but the eponymous story is the only one that features the Deputy Marshal. That alone is worth the price of admission, even though it starts to feel somewhat formulaic. Again, we're winding up to a showdown, again we're hyping the events of the first book, and again, Leonard seems to tire of his plot and moves quickly to tie up loose ends. In that sense, this story would likely adapt easily to a movie script.
In that same vein, fans of the George Clooney/Jennifer Lopez film Out of Sight will enjoy being reunited with another of Leonard's marshals, in this case Karen Cisco in his story "Karen Makes Out." As with Deputy Marshal Givens, Leonard leans into male fantasy, although with Cisco it's less about inhabiting an aloof hero that all the women want to bed then about ogling a hot, tough babe who keeps a gun tucked in her skivvies. Here again, we have Leonard starting up a plot, seemingly tiring of it, and expeditiously dispatching it. In fact, most of the stories in this book read a bit like scenes or explorations that Leonard has tried, dropped, and collected for purposes of publication. It's very hit-or-miss, but die-hard Leonard fans will presumably find resonances between individual stories and many of his full-on books (I haven't read Cuba Libre, but there are at least two tales in this collection that turn in the direction of the Spanish American War, which I would not be surprised to learn had characters in common). So three stars, juuuuust barely.
Readers of this collection (or its individual components) won't be disappointed, but I would like to call out some oddities on a book-by-book basis.
Pronto - This is the book that introduces the character of Deputy Marshal Raylan Givens. It's a bit weird in two ways. First of all, it reads a bit as though Leonard was figuring out his plot as he wrote, beginning as a Hitchcock-style paranoid thriller about an aging bookie in trouble, abandoning bookie Harry to swerve into a mafia crime tale, before discovering Raylan and deciding that perhaps this might be the most interesting character to follow after all. From there, the rest of the story reads a bit like Leonard's exploration of what Wyatt Earp in the present might be like, setting events in motion to conjure up a climactic High Noon showdown. It's an entertaining, lurching mess. So, three stars.
Riding the Rap is better than its predecessor, most likely because Leonard now understands his characters and can allow them to behave in a self-consistent fashion. It's a straight-up detective story that revisits the previous Pauline-in-peril plot, this time with the bookie as a kidnap victim for Deputy Marshal Givens to rescue (or not). Once again, the story seems geared around variations on the theme of the pistol-duel showdown, and Leonard gives us another pair of these (in fact, the author uses this book to substantially hype the events of the first). Considering that the author makes a point of telling us modern-day law officers should not be pulling their guns, let alone firing them, it appears odd in retrospect that Raylan should have waited until his 40s to indulge in the satisfaction of killing in the name of justice. Perhaps he just needed an ice breaker. As enjoyable a read as this book is, it does peter out quickly, almost as though the author hit an internal word limit and decided to wrap Rap up rather than introduce new complications that would have resulted in a more intricate tale. I won't fault it for opportunity cost, though: four stars here.
It would take Leonard another 7 years to return to Givens with his book of short stories Fire in the Hole, but the eponymous story is the only one that features the Deputy Marshal. That alone is worth the price of admission, even though it starts to feel somewhat formulaic. Again, we're winding up to a showdown, again we're hyping the events of the first book, and again, Leonard seems to tire of his plot and moves quickly to tie up loose ends. In that sense, this story would likely adapt easily to a movie script.
In that same vein, fans of the George Clooney/Jennifer Lopez film Out of Sight will enjoy being reunited with another of Leonard's marshals, in this case Karen Cisco in his story "Karen Makes Out." As with Deputy Marshal Givens, Leonard leans into male fantasy, although with Cisco it's less about inhabiting an aloof hero that all the women want to bed then about ogling a hot, tough babe who keeps a gun tucked in her skivvies. Here again, we have Leonard starting up a plot, seemingly tiring of it, and expeditiously dispatching it. In fact, most of the stories in this book read a bit like scenes or explorations that Leonard has tried, dropped, and collected for purposes of publication. It's very hit-or-miss, but die-hard Leonard fans will presumably find resonances between individual stories and many of his full-on books (I haven't read Cuba Libre, but there are at least two tales in this collection that turn in the direction of the Spanish American War, which I would not be surprised to learn had characters in common). So three stars, juuuuust barely.
May 16, 2018
Rayland Givins was a memorable but relatively minor character in Elmore Leonard’s fictional world, but with the success of the FX television series “Justified,” Leonard’s publisher jumped on the bandwagon, reissuing the two short Givens novels (and one short story) under one cover.
Yes, the Givens stories are as good as I remembered, and one can pick out various plot lines that inspired the TV series, but the two Givenses differ. The literary Rayland, to my mind, more resembles a minor character from the TV series, Season #5’s US Deputy Marshal Greg Sutter, played by actor David Koechner. Literary Rayland’s personal life differs significantly from TV Rayland’s as well. Fans of “Justified” coming to the books for the first time will definitely notice the difference. In all important ways, though, Rayland is Rayland, and there’s a lot more to him than the hat.
The third section of this book contains several non-Rayland Givens short stories, including a great one about US Marshal Karen Sisco, who could inspire a TV series of her own, and some of Leonard’s earlier Western-themed tales, equally great.
All in all, the book is a delight to read, and now I’m tempted to re-read the rest of my Elmore Leonard collection.
Yes, the Givens stories are as good as I remembered, and one can pick out various plot lines that inspired the TV series, but the two Givenses differ. The literary Rayland, to my mind, more resembles a minor character from the TV series, Season #5’s US Deputy Marshal Greg Sutter, played by actor David Koechner. Literary Rayland’s personal life differs significantly from TV Rayland’s as well. Fans of “Justified” coming to the books for the first time will definitely notice the difference. In all important ways, though, Rayland is Rayland, and there’s a lot more to him than the hat.
The third section of this book contains several non-Rayland Givens short stories, including a great one about US Marshal Karen Sisco, who could inspire a TV series of her own, and some of Leonard’s earlier Western-themed tales, equally great.
All in all, the book is a delight to read, and now I’m tempted to re-read the rest of my Elmore Leonard collection.
September 14, 2012
Aside from a short story or two, this may be the first Elmore Leonard that I've read. I can see why he's popular.
This is a set of three books - two novels and a set of short stories, with the novels and one of the stories being about Raylan Givens. Givens, who I (like many people, I'm sure) first encountered in the excellent TV series Justified, is a US Marshall. His job is to transport criminals, and sometimes it happens that is job is to catch them. The stories are mainly about him doing his job; his competence and matter-of-factness about it, and the odd assortment of people he runs into. There's plenty of humor, action, and observations about people and things. I almost feel obligated to use the word quirky too, although there's less than you might expect.
The novels are a lot of fun. The short stories are stand-out too, with some of them being perhaps more serious and more reflective than the novels. I'm inclined to seek out more of both.
This is a set of three books - two novels and a set of short stories, with the novels and one of the stories being about Raylan Givens. Givens, who I (like many people, I'm sure) first encountered in the excellent TV series Justified, is a US Marshall. His job is to transport criminals, and sometimes it happens that is job is to catch them. The stories are mainly about him doing his job; his competence and matter-of-factness about it, and the odd assortment of people he runs into. There's plenty of humor, action, and observations about people and things. I almost feel obligated to use the word quirky too, although there's less than you might expect.
The novels are a lot of fun. The short stories are stand-out too, with some of them being perhaps more serious and more reflective than the novels. I'm inclined to seek out more of both.
December 23, 2013
Leonard creates some very memorable characters. Some of his works didn't translate so well, but these stories, primarily about U.S. Deputy Marshal Raylan Givens (with a few other short stories thrown in), are the basis of the excellent T.V. show, Justified. You will immediately see Timothy as Raylan in your mind's eye, and Leonard even takes care to describe the very hat. In other words, the show nailed it. But Leonard does more, and starts further back in the timeline, so there's a lot of new content for fans of the show as well. And the other short stories are like excellent little literary stocking stuffers.
May 6, 2012
Fans of Justified would enjoy this collection though I prefer the Chili Palmer series.
March 22, 2021
Elmore Leonard really knows how to write and to get you involved in a story before you even realize it. The first two books in this series are deep background on a US Marshall named Raylan Givens, who would be very ably brought to life across five seasons of a television show called Justified. The last book, Fire in the Hole, is a collection of short stories, only one of which features Raylan, but is the premise for the entire television series.
One of the things I've noticed in reading Leonard is how startling and casual the violence is, in part because he's gotten you so comfortable in the story that you can't imagine that someone will die in just a few lines...and that the story will go on, quite naturally.
How to describe this universe conjured by Elmore Leonard? A realistic look at the gritty underbelly of society that we so often fail to see...because we aren't paying attention. But Leonard was.
One of the things I've noticed in reading Leonard is how startling and casual the violence is, in part because he's gotten you so comfortable in the story that you can't imagine that someone will die in just a few lines...and that the story will go on, quite naturally.
How to describe this universe conjured by Elmore Leonard? A realistic look at the gritty underbelly of society that we so often fail to see...because we aren't paying attention. But Leonard was.
November 14, 2019
I didn't know a thing about Elmore Leonard until I saw "Justified." I kept thinking that the series was so similar to Quentin Tarantino's style. I did some research and put it all together. I loved "Justified" so much that I ordered all three of the books related to the character of Raylan Givens. Elmore Leonard does not disappoint. He has a very different writing style, one that takes some getting used to, but one that is very enjoyable to read. I found my Southern accent deepening. The characters are well developed and most of them are hysterically dumb. The plot meanders along to a satisfying conclusion with a lot of fun along the way.
March 27, 2024
Short story collection:
Sparks-woman burns her Malibu Canyon house to commit insurance fraud because she doesn’t like the decor
Hanging Out At the Blue Vista-elderly folks hook up
Chickasaw Charlie Hoke-character and basis of Tishingoo Blues
When The Women Come Out To Dance-woman plots against her husband and it doesn’t work out as well as she had hoped
Fire in the Hole-pretty much basis for the Justified TV show
Karen Makes Out-prequel to Out of Sight
Hurrah For Captain Early-think this became a book too
The Tonto Woman and The Tenkiller-same deal, I think
Good bunch of stuff, helps you see how the great Elmore works
Sparks-woman burns her Malibu Canyon house to commit insurance fraud because she doesn’t like the decor
Hanging Out At the Blue Vista-elderly folks hook up
Chickasaw Charlie Hoke-character and basis of Tishingoo Blues
When The Women Come Out To Dance-woman plots against her husband and it doesn’t work out as well as she had hoped
Fire in the Hole-pretty much basis for the Justified TV show
Karen Makes Out-prequel to Out of Sight
Hurrah For Captain Early-think this became a book too
The Tonto Woman and The Tenkiller-same deal, I think
Good bunch of stuff, helps you see how the great Elmore works
August 8, 2025
Pronto (1993)
Tommy and “the Zip” are the same person which confused this reader. A lot of wasted words. Many times I asked myself “does this topic have a purpose?”.
Uneven writing. Not one of Leonard’s best stories.
2 stars
Riding The Rap (1995)
Reads like an cheap TV movie.
Doesn’t Raylan have a job that he has to attend to? He spends an awful amount of time looking for Harry for Joyce.
Better than Pronto.
3 stars
Fire in the Hole (2001)
4 stars
Many short stories are better for Leonard. Tenkiller is the longest short story; it’s good until ~1/2 way.
Tommy and “the Zip” are the same person which confused this reader. A lot of wasted words. Many times I asked myself “does this topic have a purpose?”.
Uneven writing. Not one of Leonard’s best stories.
2 stars
Riding The Rap (1995)
Reads like an cheap TV movie.
Doesn’t Raylan have a job that he has to attend to? He spends an awful amount of time looking for Harry for Joyce.
Better than Pronto.
3 stars
Fire in the Hole (2001)
4 stars
Many short stories are better for Leonard. Tenkiller is the longest short story; it’s good until ~1/2 way.
June 11, 2022
two short novels and several short stories.
If you are a Justified fan, the two short books are Raylin in Miami. The third book Fire in the Hole has several short stories. A real variety. Good stories too! Only one of them is about Raylin, Boyd, and Ava. I really like Leonard’s writing style. The stories were imaginative and satisfying.
If you are a Justified fan, the two short books are Raylin in Miami. The third book Fire in the Hole has several short stories. A real variety. Good stories too! Only one of them is about Raylin, Boyd, and Ava. I really like Leonard’s writing style. The stories were imaginative and satisfying.
November 1, 2023
I love me some Elmore Leonard, and although I generally dislike short stories, I really enjoyed all of these. Each one could have been developed more into a full novel, and I'd have read almost all of them. My favorite was definitely "Fire in the Hole" because I enjoy Raylan Givens so much as a character.
October 5, 2018
Just got done watching all 78 episodes of "Justified", so it was interesting to read the books that the show is based on. Leonard is fun to read, but you wonder how they got a TV series out of one short story.
February 19, 2022
Two Raylan Givens novels, terse and satisfying in that unique Elmore Leonard way, and a collection of short stories, one of them featuring Raylan. I’d never read any of Leonard’s shots stories before, and he proves himself a master of that form, too.
October 4, 2023
Raylan is an interesting character off and on screen. And Leonard's small collection of short stories are fascinating. Just bought the novel "Raylan" and am watching season 1 of Justified (FX). The Harry Arno stories are compelling. There's an existential quality to Leonard's stories.
November 1, 2017
Has some fine short stories; some with tie-ins to other novels.
June 27, 2019
More Justified!!!!!! Love it!
September 30, 2019
Elmore is the Best!
Nobody writes hard edged crime novel dialogue better than Elmore Leonard in my opinion. Loved Raylan’s deadpan responses sprinkled in with sarcasm.
Nobody writes hard edged crime novel dialogue better than Elmore Leonard in my opinion. Loved Raylan’s deadpan responses sprinkled in with sarcasm.
January 26, 2020
I love Raylan Givens from the past tv series, “Justified”, and love the dialogue and arresting (pun intended) storylines.
August 17, 2021
If you liked FX's tv series Justified you will want to read this and other EL.
November 10, 2021
I didn't love the book version of Raylan. I can see where the tv character originated, but there was a lot of development, so the book version fell a little flat to m e.
March 27, 2023
If you like the TV Series "Justified", you will like these stories. Interesting characters, a bit of humor, and an entertaining detective story plot.
November 13, 2016
I read this while about two-and-half seasons into the FX series, so can't really review independent of that. Riding the Rap and Fire in the Hole formed the basis of a first-season episode and the pilot, and the events of Pronto predate the start of the series, though it dropped most of the particulars from that story.
On the whole Olyphant and the show capture Leonard's written voice well. It's a bit of an adjustment to start with two Raylan stories set in gangland Florida (and for a significant chunk of the first, in Italy). I think the show (particularly the second season) really draws its strength from Raylan's tangled Harlan roots, and coming from that perspective, Fire in the Hole is the best of the three books here. The first two books are much more about Raylan as a man out of place and out of time, and the larger cast of characters in each often seemed more fleshed out. (As Leonard's villains can be.) I'm saving the fourth Raylan novel until after I finish the tv series.
Some of the non-Raylan short stories in Fire in the Hole were also very good bits of distilled Elmore Leonard - Hurrah for Captain Early may have been my favorite of the bunch, and When the Women Come Out to Dance definitely the darkest.
On the whole Olyphant and the show capture Leonard's written voice well. It's a bit of an adjustment to start with two Raylan stories set in gangland Florida (and for a significant chunk of the first, in Italy). I think the show (particularly the second season) really draws its strength from Raylan's tangled Harlan roots, and coming from that perspective, Fire in the Hole is the best of the three books here. The first two books are much more about Raylan as a man out of place and out of time, and the larger cast of characters in each often seemed more fleshed out. (As Leonard's villains can be.) I'm saving the fourth Raylan novel until after I finish the tv series.
Some of the non-Raylan short stories in Fire in the Hole were also very good bits of distilled Elmore Leonard - Hurrah for Captain Early may have been my favorite of the bunch, and When the Women Come Out to Dance definitely the darkest.
June 4, 2016
I began reading Elmore Leonard a few years ago and am very much enjoying making my way through his back catalog. I love the westerns, as well as the crime thrillers, and this Raylan Givens series contains much of the best of both. For anyone who's grown all too tired of today's metrosexual man archetype, Raylan Givens is a great character who's also no Neanderthal. He's a man's man, putting the bad guys (and girls) away, and has some fun doing it. I'm now reading "Raylan" so you know I enjoyed it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 23, 2015
With Justified all wrapped up - great show - I decided to read the stories Leonard wrote that featured Raylan Givens. The first two stores in this book introduce and flesh out Givens and provides his back story. The third book is a set of short stories, one of which - Fire in the Hole - is the story on which Justified is based. The creators of Justified really got Givens right - hat, boots, sense of humor, even physically. Great stories.
June 13, 2013
This rating is only for the 1st book in this collection: Pronto.
Marshall Rylan Givens comes across much cooler on the TV show Justified. However, you can read where the writers got several of the plot lines from this book. I'll read a few other books before I come back to the 2nd book in this collection: Riding the Rap.
Marshall Rylan Givens comes across much cooler on the TV show Justified. However, you can read where the writers got several of the plot lines from this book. I'll read a few other books before I come back to the 2nd book in this collection: Riding the Rap.
April 1, 2013
Interesting to see how the book and the TV show differ. The third book is a collection of short stories, only one of which includes Rayan. That said, I liked them the best. They had ironic endings, twists and turns and well developed characters
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April 15, 2012I enjoyed this series since I have been addicted to the FX series, I imagine the voice of Timothy Oliphant.
March 2, 2013
Loved Pronto & Riding the Rap. Fire in the Hole was good too, just not enough Raylan.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews