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Appaloosa Audiobook
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(3.01) - 2,492 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
A richly imagined novel of the Old West, as spare and vivid as a high plains sunset, from one of the world's most talented performers.
It was a long time ago, now, and there were many gunfights to follow, but I remember as well as I remember anything the first time I saw Virgil Cole shoot. Time slowed down for him. Always steady, and never fast . . .
When it comes to writing, Robert B. Parker knows no boundaries. From the iconic Spenser detective series and the novels featuring Sunny Randall and Jesse Stone, to the groundbreaking historical novel Double Play, Parker's imagination has taken readers from Boston to Brooklyn and back again. In Appaloosa, fans are taken on another trip, to the untamed territories of the West during the 1800s.
When Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch arrive in Appaloosa, they find a small, dusty town suffering at the hands of renegade rancher Randall Bragg, a man who has so little regard for the law that he has taken supplies, horses, and women for his own and left the city marshal and one of his deputies for dead. Cole and Hitch, itinerant lawmen, are used to cleaning up after opportunistic thieves, but in Bragg they find an unusually wily adversary-one who raises the stakes by playing not with the rules, but with emotions.
This is Robert B. Parker at his storytelling best.
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"The first book with Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch in which they meet. More of that laconic dialog which reveals the iron in the characters. I think Robert B. Parker lost a bit of it in the Spenser series, but it's back. A novel of the old West with gunslingers and a town hiring the two to keep the peace. A fascinating look at a code of honor. There's a shootout similar to the OK corral, an Indian fight, a gunfight. With sparse words Parker bring the old West is brought back to life."
— Les (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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Like the Spenser books, it’s a study of Parker’s enduring themes: buddy relationships, the weight that honor and responsibility put on a man, the consequences of violence, the way good can shade into bad and vice versa…a melancholy and sometimes moving tale of a lost but fascinating era.
— The Seattle Times“Dryly amusing…a conclusion that had to make Parker smile as much as his readers will. -
[Parker] takes total command of the genre, telling a galloping tale…[a] classic western… magnificent. As always, the writing is bone clean. One of Parker’s finest.
— Publishers Weekly (starred review) -
For…readers with a hankering for the Wild West, including a high-noon shootout and all the accoutrements.
— USA Today -
Beneath the trappings of this gunfighter novel, Parker really has something to say about the nature of men and women in the Old West. Highly recommended.
— Library Journal -
As always, [Parker] is a master…his plot gallops to a perfect, almost mythical ending. Like a great gunfighter, Parker makes it look easy.
— St. Petersburg Times -
If Spenser and Hawk had been around when the West was wild, they’d have talked like Cole and Hitch. Wonderful stuff: notch 51 for Parker.
— Kirkus Reviews -
Like the Spenser books, it’s a study of Parker’s enduring themes: buddy relationships, the weight that honor and responsibility put on a man, the consequences of violence, the way good can shade into bad and vice versa…a melancholy and sometimes moving tale of a lost but fascinating era.
— The Seattle Times -
Dryly amusing…a conclusion that had to make Parker smile as much as his readers will.
— Los Angles Times -
[Parker] takes total command of the genre, telling a galloping tale…[a] classic western… magnificent. As always, the writing is bone clean. One of Parker’s finest.
— Publishers Weekly (starred review) -
For…readers with a hankering for the Wild West, including a high-noon shootout and all the accoutrements.
— USA Today -
Beneath the trappings of this gunfighter novel, Parker really has something to say about the nature of men and women in the Old West. Highly recommended.
— Library Journal -
As always, [Parker] is a master…his plot gallops to a perfect, almost mythical ending. Like a great gunfighter, Parker makes it look easy.
— St. Petersburg Times -
If Spenser and Hawk had been around when the West was wild, they’d have talked like Cole and Hitch. Wonderful stuff: notch 51 for Parker.
— Kirkus Reviews
Appaloosa Listener Reviews
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" This was a well written western. Wish he had more of these. "
— StevenS, 5/24/2020 -
" This book has a terrific narrator, a good storyline, and really awful female characters. I had never read Parker before; his style is well-paced and this was a very quick read. The cool, level-headedness of lawmen plays out against emotional responses to situations... Ought to make a very interesting movie. "
— Lisa, 2/14/2014 -
" The perfect Western. "
— Wayne, 2/9/2014 -
" A pretty good western. And soon to be a movie starring the fabulous Viggo! "
— Rose, 2/8/2014 -
" My sister recommended these books a long time ago (she's responsible for introducing me to the Spencer series many years ago). They have been on my shelf for a month or so, wasn't sure I would like a western. Robert B. Parker's wry writing style from his detective novels carries over to this genre. The third adventure of Hitch and Cole is on the pile, last book about to be picked up at DPL. So sad that there will be no more books from Mr. Parker :( "
— Bethe, 1/31/2014 -
" I really enjoyed the book. The lead up to the ending was great...filled with tension. But I thought the ending was a disappointment. However I do look forward to reading book #2 of this series "
— Chickadee, 1/28/2014 -
" This is the first western I've read and I liked it a lot more than I thought I would--looking forward to reading the second in the series. "
— Allyson, 1/24/2014 -
" A traditional western, with a good guy, a bad guy and a shootout in the street... quick and entertaining "
— Lyra, 1/17/2014 -
" Not a very good book, but it was the basis for quite a good movie. What was good about the book in on screen, without the excesses that made reading this one so annoying. "
— Mike, 1/17/2014 -
" Great series with wonderful Characters, sparse realism with complicated characters who get better with every book. "
— Michael, 12/26/2013 -
" Dengan wanita, semua berubah termasuk pria yang dingin, ga peka, egois... "
— Hasanuddin, 12/3/2013 -
" Parker's gift for dialog was always excellent, and it's shown off to wonderful advantage here. "
— Morris, 12/2/2013 -
" A friend suggested I read Parker to learn how to do dialog. He is a master. And I do love a good western. "
— Shannon, 10/30/2013 -
" Spenser and Hawl go to the old west. "
— Mary, 9/23/2013 -
" Great Parker dialogue. Cannot wait to see the movie "
— Cathy, 5/10/2013 -
" This book was all action, no substance. "
— Elena, 4/11/2013 -
" I haven't read Parker in a few years. This Western was really good. It reminded me of watching Westerns on TV with my dad. As soon as I was done I ordered the other 3 from this series. RIP Mr. Parker, you were a good fiction writer! "
— Patricia, 12/15/2012 -
" Appaloosa , 1982. Robert Parker captures the Wild West and the mangy characters that ignore the law. "
— Sparkie, 12/4/2012 -
" I read this book because the movie was pretty good. I like it. Living in Oklahoma, you gotta read some westerns. "
— Katie, 10/28/2012 -
" Good quick readable western. "
— wanda, 9/29/2012 -
" Pretty darn good book. It held my interest and was entertaining... not a "deep" book but good for a quick read. "
— Cleat, 8/25/2011 -
" This book had a thin plot and ultimately a very predictable ending. Still a fun read if you like the 1800’s style western of good vs. evil settling differences with a colt. "
— Matt, 5/23/2011 -
" It had its good points but overall I'd give it a "meh." I don't think westerns are my genre. "
— Jennifer, 4/28/2011 -
" Got the audio book on this for driving to and fro. <br/> <br/>Gotta love having a well stocked library. <br/> <br/>Its great like others with Hitch and Cole that I've read. "
— C., 3/27/2011 -
" Not the best western I've read, but OK. "
— Paul, 3/17/2011 -
" Western<br/>I almost gave it FIVE stars but it does have "formula" written over it so it gts 4 stars.<br/>can't believe i've now read two Westerns and have 2 more at my bedside.<br/>Virgil Cole RULES are fascinating. "
— Steve, 3/14/2011 -
" Audio book for me, this was a wonderful change from my usual genre!! Fast paced story, great characters, & the reader was fabulous!! "
— Sarah, 2/19/2011 -
" A friend suggested I read Parker to learn how to do dialog. He is a master. And I do love a good western. "
— Shannon, 2/15/2011 -
" Good story. Quick read. An unanticipated ending. "
— Bea, 2/11/2011 -
" This book was all action, no substance. "
— Elena, 2/9/2011 -
" Parker was the master of quick fire dialogue. Fabulous western and kick off to a great series. He will be missed. "
— Rob, 2/2/2011 -
" I did like this book. However, I have read better westerns. Louis L'Amour is my favorite western author. "
— Lori, 1/22/2011 -
" Great series with wonderful Characters, sparse realism with complicated characters who get better with every book. "
— Michael, 1/22/2011 -
" An escaped convict is pardoned and presents himself as a changed man who is now financially thriving. Appaloose refers to a town, not to horses. Good vs. evil. Historical fiction. "
— Diane, 1/16/2011 -
" Great story about men of few words. When men were men. "
— Scott, 1/14/2011 -
" Dialogue is different and was hard to get used to, but after a while it seemed to work well with the book. A very good story. "
— Brian, 12/31/2010
About Robert B. Parker
Robert B. Parker (1932–2010), long acknowledged as the dean of American crime fiction, was the New York Times bestselling author of the Spenser mysteries, as well as the Jesse Stone novels. He was named Grand Master at the 2002 Edgar Awards by the Mystery Writers of America, an honor shared with earlier masters such as Alfred Hitchcock and Ellery Queen. He has more than fifty books to his credit.
About Titus Welliver
Christine Lakin is an Earphones Award–winning narrator and acclaimed television actress, best known for her roles as Alicia “Al” Lambert on the hit family comedy Step by Step and as Joan of Arc on Showtime’s Reefer Madness.