Lonely on the Mountain

The Sacketts #17

by Louis L'Amour

In Lonely on the Mountain, Louis L’Amour’s solitary wandering Sackett brothers make a stand together—to save one of their own.The rare letters Tell Sackett received always had trouble inside. And the terse note from his cousin Logan is no exception. Logan faces starvation or a hanging if Tell can’t drive a herd of cattle from Kansas to British Columbia before winter. To get to Logan, he must brave prairie fires, buffalo stampedes, and Sioux war parties. But worse trouble waits, for a mysterious enemy shadows Sackett’s every move across the Dakotas and the Canadian Rockies. Tell Sackett has never abandoned another Sackett in need. He will bring aid to Logan—or die trying.

Genres: Westerns, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Adventure, Classics, Historical, Action

226 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1980

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

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not one of the best Sackett novels. It starts well but the ending is disjointed. To me it appears the author decided to cut the story short with many loose ends not tied together.

I reread this story and I enjoyed the description of the cattle drive to Saskatchewan through wild untamed country. The stampede was good but the love story was all over the place and I came away thinking it was still fragmented with a lot of loose ends.

[Jeff Dickison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a standard L'Amour western. Sackett brothers are driving a herd of cattle to a gold mining operation in Canada. Along the way they fight Indians and bad guys. When they get there they fight bad guys. Quick read, quick ending. Recommended to L'Amour fans.

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good book! But I thought the ending was rushed and hastily put together. The entire book was about the Sacketts and their friends driving a herd of cattle to British Columbia and then the last four pages covered their arrival and the defeat of the bad guys. It was a little confusing and like I said: rushed. I would have liked more details about in the ending.

[Dru83 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book I've read a few times now. It is #17 in L'Amour's classic western/historical series The Sacketts. It follows brothers William Tell, Tyrel, and Orrin Sackett as they lead a cattle drive north to Canada to support a cousin, Logan Sackett. The story starts off being told from William Tell's perspective as he and Tyrel gather men and cattle and start north. Midway through the novel, the perspective switches to Orin's point of view as he gathers men and supplies in a different area and plans to meet up with his brothers. Later on, the story switches back to William Tell's perspective. The point of view switch serves to create a lot of tension in the story as we are left with cliff hangers right before the switches and they aren't resolved for several chapters. As the cattle are driven closer to their destination, the Sacketts come across many attempts to cause them to turn around and give up. I really enjoyed this classic western cattle drive story. I really liked the wide variety of characters. In addition to the Sacketts, the cattle drive includes Cap Rountree, an old friend of the Sacketts, Brandy, a young kid trying to make money to support his mother and sisters, Gilcrist and the Ox, a pair of tough cowboys who might be more trouble than they're worth, Little Bear, a young Native American boy who helps out the Sacketts, Devnet Molrone, a young woman traveling West to find her brother, and Kyle Gavin, a man who is traveling with Orrin, but seems to know more than he should about the Sackett's cattle drive. This story is part of a big series spanning many eras in time and many members of the Sackett family, but it can be read as a stand alone as it doesn't mention too many things that happened in earlier books.

[Steven · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having finished this book, I can now say I've read all the Sackett novels.

[Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love all of the Sacketts, but the brothers Tell, Tyrel, and Orrin might be my favorites (other than Flagan and Galloway, of course). If there's anything to dislike about this book, though, it's the weird shifting back and forth between first and third person narrative. L'Amour does this from time to time, and I never like it.

[Michael O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this quite a bit. A very readable tale about the Sacketts' effort to save one of their own up in western Canada by driving cattle from the Dakotas into British Columbia, definitely a very tough route in the 1870s. Being from North Dakota, L'Amour does a good job using that knowledge as he relates this tale!

[Allen · Rating 1 out of 5]

I started this book 30 years ago and couldn't finish. Now that I am old and mellow, I tried again. No one knowledgeable of western Canadian history or geography should read this book. Now, if you can't find Winnipeg on a map, think Louis Riel is pronounced Lewis Reel and that Barkerville is a cool name of a dog kennel, go ahead and read it. Likely wont kill you.

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Logan Sackett is in trouble in Canada. He has promised to provide a herd of cattle to the mines before winter. Tell, Orrin, and Tryel start a cattle drive to aid Logan but someone doesm't want the herd to reach the mining camps. Usual action packed L'Amour Western.

[Rudy.S.Tapani]

This book was good. the main character was tell sackett. the conflict was they had to bring cows from texas to canada, because tells cousin needed them or he would get hanged, and tells cousins enemies didn't want the cows to get very far. so tell and his two younger brothers with some other people who are helping them bring them all the way to canada. and there's trouble when they get there.

[*Stani* · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the last one in the Sackett saga and it was a bit of a doozy.

Part was cool, part didn’t make much sense but since it’s the last one, I just rode with it, sort to speak.

******

The Sackett brothers receive a letter from their cousin Logan, stating that he is in trouble and owes a herd of cattle up in Canada. If he fails to replace it, he’ll be hanged.

So of course the Sacketts don’t hesitate one moment and off they go, through the treacherous Dakotas where Indian tribes are the least of their problems.

The winter is slowly arriving and they need to be in Canada before the first snow arrives.

But there is a group of bad guys that will try everything to prevent them ever reaching Canada or Logan.

*******

It was not a bad story, if a little drawn out. And after all these books and being invested in their stories, all of a sudden now they have all this troubles like Orrin not practicing law or Tyrel being an indebted rancher. What?

With all the gold that they have found in previous books it’s definitely hard to believe, but like I said, it’s the last one so I just rolled with it.

Although it would have been nice have them instead doing well for themselves and simply went on this final last adventure to help a cousin in trouble, instead of making them still struggling all these years afterwards.

[Judge · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the first Sackett's book I've read. I had seen the TV mini series so going in I was familiar with the Sackett Family. It was a quick read, not an action packed read, but a good story that quickly gets wrapped up in the last few pages.

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Sackett book. Most of the Sackett series is pretty darn good, and this one is too, even though it's not among my favorites in the series.

[Paulette Kirkham · Rating 5 out of 5]

All of L'Amour's books are great reads, but some more than others. This was one of the "some." well written plot, believable characters, set in historical Canada and the Dakota's. Great read.

[Matthew Stanfill · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy just about any Louis L'Amour book but the Sackett books are a fav.

[Lyndon · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of the weakest L'Amour novels I've read. Sputters along and then fizzes out at the end.

[Vincent Darlage · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the last Sackett novel, but it was the most disappointing of the lot. It deals with Tell, Orrin & Tyrel, my favorite Sacketts, trying to move cattle to help out Logan Sackett out of some kind of unknown trouble. The switch from Tell's first person to Orrin's third person kind of pulled me out of the story and I never really got back into it. The whole thing was wrapped up in the last four pages (or the last five minutes of the audio) and it was kind of unsatisfactory - it just kind of wrapped up and left it at that.

[Lori Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent Sackett story with Tell, Orrin, and Tyrel all present!

[Michael Wiggins · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought I had finished Louis L'Amour Sackett series. I am happy I was wrong. 'Lonely on the Mountain' places several Sackett men in the somewhat chaotic Canadian territory in the 1870s. They face wolves, grizzlies, and thoroughly bad men as they move around 1,000 head of cattle to still-untamed gold prospecting country. The descriptions of the frontier are enough to take one there, if only for a moment.

[Joel Thimell · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Sacketts series by Louis L'Amour are some of my favorite Western novels. Unfortunately, "Lonely on the Mountain" did not live up to the earlier books.

The plot was good, but the action became very repetitive, and the ending felt very rushed.

[Mason Marquette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Personal Response
I really liked the book Lonely on the Mountain. I thought it was a good book because it always had something going on. It also had a really good story behind it, and it was hard to stop reading because you never knew what was going to happen. The author is also really good with detail, and that makes the book easier to read. The book was a little difficult to follow at times because it switched point of view without warning although it made the book much better, and it gave you a better idea of what was going on.

Plot Summary
The book first started out while Tell and Tyrel where driving the cattle to the north. They then got caught in a stampede and scattered all the cattle. Orrin worked his way west to where he was supposed to meet them, but he was told that everyone was dead. He still went west, and he started gathering cattle that was lost. He then started finding people, including his brothers that did not die from the stampede. They pushed the remaining cattle north where they lost some on the way. Once they got to the camp to save Logan, Shorty was shot and killed. So the next morning they fought the guys who wanted the mine to themselves and saved Logan. Finally they brought the cattle into camp, and the people who lived there had food.

Recommendation
I would recommend this book to anyone high school and older. Sometimes this book is hard to follow, and there is some high vocabulary words. There is also a lot of violence in the book. Some younger kids could read it also if they are high level readers. I would recommend reading this book because it is very good.

Characterization
The character Tell changed a lot while he was alone. When he was alone he did not feel as safe as when he met up with Orrin. He was always second guessing himself when he was alone, and he felt more confident later on. I think this was because he was a Sackett, and they grew up together. Orrin also changed because at the start of the book he was fighting a lot, but when he met Nettie he acted a lot better. I think he did this because they are not used to a lot of women, and when they are near one they treat them kind.

[Aaron Toponce · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story is another Tell Sackett story, along with his younger brothers Orrin and Tyrel, and their distant cousin Logan Sackett. Cap Roundtree is with them, along with some new faces.

Somehow, Logan got himself into trouble, and Tell and Co. need to bring in a whole herd of cattle to settle some sort of debt. However, as they're moving northwest across the U.S.-Canadian border and into British Columbia, they are constantly hammered with all sorts of trouble actively working to prevent them from delivering the herd.

Unfortunately, Louis forgets about some characters. Gilchrist and the Ox come grinding against Orrin and Brandy. It ends up in a fist fight between Orrin and the Ox, they leave the team, and that's it. Nothing more of either of them. Brandy too, just sort of disappears after that moment. Another character, Flemming, disappears when they reach a sign scratched onto a rock about Logan. Flemming also is never heard of again. Of course, it wouldn't be a Louis L'Amour story without the Good Guys getting the gold at the end, and without the story coming to a very abrupt halt.

However, this felt more like a "cowboy story" than many of the others he wrote. Cowboys pushing cattle across the country, battling Mother Nature, battling each other, and using their wits to survive. Louis has his own idioms, which makes for some delightful reading, which helps against the slow chapters.

This is the final book in the Sackett series. After reading the entire series, I'm ready for something new. Let's see how Talon & Chantry hold up in comparison.

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The last of the Sackett series - I'm finished. This one didn't leave the series on a high note, sadly -- I found the next to last, Ride the Dark Trail, much stronger. This book features the 3 Sackett brothers, Tell, Orrin & Tyrel, who I like reading about, and also features some of the geography from where I grew up - all of which I enjoyed.

But. The narration flips between first person and third person in varied chapters, and between characters. It's a bit discombobulating, and the whole book is a lead-up to the solution of their cousin Logan's problems...but then it is all over in 4 pages, without a clear explanation of anything. Feels quite rushed, and that's too bad for the very last Sackett story.

Also, the geographical descriptions were a bit confusing; I couldn't quite tell where they were half the time, and in the "last days of July" they are worried about snow coming. This isn't the Artic Circle, guys, just Southern Saskatchewan/Alberta. Anyhow, not a bad book but not the strongest in this 17 book series. Still loved the series.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classic L'Amour. Have always loved his imagery and the way he weaves his stories. The Sackett stories have always been my favorites from his offerings, as well. I seldom read western novels anymore, but I loved them as a kid and young adult; and if that is the genre you are seeking, Zane Gray and several others have done good work - but Louis L'Amour has always been the at the top of that heap in my opinion.

[Jay Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a Sackett novel. Logan is in trouble in western Canada and his brothers drive a herd across Montana into Canada and Sioux territory. There is a concerted effort to stop the herd and Tyrel and William Tell are almost killed. Orrin is in love again after his previous disastrous marriage and he reaches his brothers in time to finish the drive. His descriptions of Canada are very good and he describes a turbulent time in Canadian history.

[Keith B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read everything Louis wrote as my father did and his father before him. Cut my teeth on my first L'Amour western at the age of 6 (truth). The Sackett's are just great stories. Had to look at the copyright date of this and compare it to Lonesome Dove as many plot points and situations are similar. L'Amour wins.. 5 years BEFORE Lonesome Dove.

[Kaj Samuelsson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first time i read the entire Sacketts series in sequence. This is an amazing series of boks and combined they are the best westerns ever written.

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

+
just needed to read something light and this certainly was. Not up to the standards of most of L'Amour's books. ending a bit rushed leaving some things not to a conclusion.

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Narrated by Tell but Orrin takes a huge role in this one.

The Sackett bros Rush to help cousin Logan in Canada

[Cole Hunt · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars, I loved this book. I’ve always been a fan of westerns and grew up watching them; this book perfectly captures the western idea. From the plains, to the mountains, to the gunfights and stampedes, the Sackett’s are the perfect Western heroes. They are tough, strong willed, skilled and smart people. They are exactly what I think of when I think western.
The book was exciting, and kept me on the edge of my seat with the cliffhangers. The plot for most of the book was really good; it was well planned and very good for all of the book up until the end. The end felt a little rushed and didn’t feel like it was fully finished, and it felt like Louis was in a time crunch to get the book done. It also flips between points of view a lot which can be confusing at first until you figure out who’s narrating.
“There are two kinds of people in the world, son, those who wish and those who will. The wishers wish to be rich, they wish to be famous, they wish to own a farm or a fine house or whatever. The ones who will, they don't wish, they start out and do it. They become what they want to or they get what they want. They will it.” -Louis L’Amour- This quote is one of my favorite quotes from this book because it still holds true even today. If you don’t put your mind to getting things done and heading in a direction you want you’ll never get there.
The book starts off with Tyrell and Tell getting a letter from their brother Logan, who is up in Western Canada. He is in trouble and in danger of being hanged, and they must drive a herd of cattle to him. Orrin is to meet up with them, but gets sidetracked when he meets a young girl. The trouble Logan is facing tries to stop them the whole drive, but they persist and make it eventually. The book ends with them getting the cattle there and a quick fight.
In the book I believe there are themes of good family relationships, resilience, and teamwork. Throughout this book they are doing all of this for family. They risk their lives just to help their brother Logan. They stick together through thick and thin and near death experiences on their drive North. They all work together to make it there and they do. This book has really good examples of what having perseverance, having good relations, and working together can do for you. This book has been one of my favorites I’ve read and kept my attention despite being easily distracted and not a huge fan of reading. I would recommend this book.