The Longmire Defense
A Longmire Mystery
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4.6 • 25 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
Sheriff Walt Longmire uncovers a cold case that hits very close to home and forces him to put his life on the line with implications that some people would kill to keep buried forever
The hit drama Longmire is now streaming on Paramount+
Sheriff Walt Longmire and Dog are called on a routine search and rescue to Wyoming’s Bighorn Mountains, where Walt finds himself on a rock outcropping remembering when his father told him about the first time he saw a man die. In the late forties, Bill Sutherland was shot but the investigation was stymied because no member of the elk camp—where he was found—was carrying the caliber rifle that killed the state accountant. When Dog discovers the missing weapon, the sheriff of Absaroka County is plunged headfirst into a cold case. His investigation quickly finds ties to a hidden mineral fund that someone is willing to kill to keep secret. The embodiment of the fair-minded detective, Walt is pushed to his ethical boundaries. In his relentless pursuit of the truth, he discovers the rifle in question belonged to none other than Walt’s infamous and uncompromising grandfather, Lloyd Longmire.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
The search for a missing woman unearths a crime scene tied to Walt Longmire’s family in this engrossing entry in Craig Johnson’s long-running series. The dogged sheriff dives deep into an investigation despite its ties to some potentially dangerous political power players—and his own grandfather. Johnson is an absolute master, and he crafts another spellbinding crime drama set against Wyoming’s stunning wilds. Longmire is getting longer in the tooth, but he’s as sharp as ever and ornery as a mountain lion. We especially enjoyed learning more about his family history during the Cowboy State’s transition from frontier days to modernity. The Longmire Defense will grip first-time listeners and longtime fans alike.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A standard rescue mission reopens an old mystery in Johnson's standout 19th outing for Wyoming sheriff Walt Longmire (after 2022's Hell and Back). While responding to a 911 call from a woman lost in the mountains, Longmire spots a 1940s-era rifle stuffed among some nearby rocks. He retrieves it and confirms it's the same type of weapon that killed Bill Sutherland, Wyoming's state accountant, in 1948. Sutherland had been hunting elk with a party including Longmire's grandfather, Lloyd, the state treasurer, the treasurer's chief clerk, and hunting guide Clarence Standing Bear. Contemporary local reports speculated that Sutherland either took his own life or suffered an accident, but rumors spread that he was intentionally killed by someone he'd been hunting with—possibly Lloyd. Longmire's discovery spurs him to try to close the cold case and, hopefully, exonerate his late grandfather. The whodunit, which presents a dizzying number of red herrings, is one of Johnson's trickiest, keeping readers deliciously off-balance throughout. Series newcomers will have no problem jumping into the action, and longtime readers will relish the dive into Longmire's family history.
Customer Reviews
Classic Longmire story
A great story! Complex but connects together at the end. Finally some development in the long running storyline of Walt and Vic. I have always loved the mystery that the Longmire stories have but the romance line really humanize the adventures and I loved there was more of that in this story. It is something Mr Johnson has left out of past books and the books felt a bit dry without it. But he great with this novel combining Walt’s personal and professional journeys. More stories like this one please !