West of Dodge

by Louis L'Amour, uncredited (Narrator)

WHERE THE REAL FRONTIER BEGINS

A young cowpuncher stakes a claim that can only be sealed with fists and a .44 Colt. . . . A gunfighter, tired of violence, finds himself pushed down a trail of bloody revenge. . . . From purple sage to gambler’s gold, from a señorita’s tempting smile to a splash of blood in the dust, here are stories with a distinctive L’Amour twist. A quiet farmer defends his honor in a moment of panic and luck . . . only to find true courage on the run from the dead man’s brothers. A young drifter defends a lady’s honor . . . and finds himself the quarry of a hanging posse. An aging marshal with a reputation as a crack shot faces a stranger who knows his secret. With relentless suspense and unforgettable drama, Louis L’Amour once again paints a vivid portrait of our western heritage that will live forever.

Audible Audio

Published November 4, 2008

About the author

Louis Dearborn L'Amour was an American novelist and short story writer. His books consisted primarily of Western novels, though he called his work "frontier stories". His most widely known Western fiction works include Last of the Breed, Hondo, Shalako, and the Sackett series. L'Amour also wrote historical fiction (The Walking Drum), science fiction (The Haunted Mesa), non-fiction (Frontier), and poetry and short-story collections. Many of his stories were made into films. His books remain popular and most have gone through multiple printings. At the time of his death, almost all of his 105 existing works (89 novels, 14 short-story collections, and two full-length works of nonfiction) were still in print, and he was "one of the world's most popular writers".

Reviews

[Vincent Darlage · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is part of his Kilkenny series, and is presented as more of an audio presentation with sound effects and a full cast rather than a straight reading by a narrator, which makes these Louis L'amour stories easy to listen to. The story itself is fairly simple: a stranger comes to town. Lance Kilkenny is that stranger. There is already a plot afoot with two factions and a sheriff who is threading the needle between them, doing his job but pleasing no one because he doesn't wipe out one faction or the other. And there is a girl, who runs a restaurant in town, and also owns a small ranch. One side tries to kill the sheriff and get Kilkenny blamed, but Kilkenny manages to turn the table on everyone. It was a fun story, with interesting characters, and I actually enjoyed the twist regarding the sheriff.