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The Dark Horse Audiobook
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(4.01) - 1,689 listener ratings
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Plot Summary
It's a dark day when Sheriff Longmire takes his newest case. A woman, a husband, six horses burned alive in a barn. Something seems off. He can't quite put his finger on what it is...but he had a funny feeling that woman didn't actually shoot her husband. Call it intuition, but something about this case was missing something.
As his investigation digs deeper, though, Longmire starts to discover that the truth may be deeper than anything he could have possibly imagined. He dresses up as an insurance agent and goes looking for trouble...but trouble finds him. It turns out that Wade the horse killer's wife wasn't the only one that wanted him dead--there are other figures at play, like the bartender with a shaded past or the alcoholic rancher who sees nothing good in the world but himself.
The questions burn and linger as Longmire digs to find out the truth...but the question is, does he really want to find it? Did Mary kill her husband? Did someone put her up to it? Is she being framed? The truth will only be revealed with time.
Craig Johnson is an American author and playwright. Born in the west, he takes a great deal of his inspiration from that area. His Sheriff Walt Longmire novels have won much critical approval, including a Publisher's Weekly prize. His books have also been turned into the popular A&E television show Longmire.
"An excellent outing with Sheriff Walt Longmire and his crew. When another sheriff dumps a prisoner on Walt, it isn't a case of keeping the jail cell locked for a week or two. We follow his train of thought as he begins to wonder whether this prisoner really was the murder she is accused of being. Though the case is "open and shut" with her own confession Walt picks away at the layers and discovers something about himself as well. Highly entertaining with that special Western taste."
— HBalikov (5 out of 5 stars)
Publisher Summary
The Denver Post hails Craig Johnson's Walt Longmire mystery series as a must-read. Joining the four previous novels-all of which have been Book Sense picks-The Dark Horse puts a unique Wyoming twist on the classic British village mystery. When Longmire meets a woman jailed for her husband's death, he travels outside his usual haunts to discover the truth behind this unusual murder case.
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Quotes
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“Series fans will delight in seeing Walt return to his cowboy roots as he mounts a horse and navigates the sparsely populated state.”
— Publishers Weekly -
“Johnson’s regional focus—particularly his ability to evoke the austere, mysterious landscapes of Wyoming—and a noirish attitude toward crime recalls writer James Lee Burke and the long-running Dave Robicheaux series.”
— Bookmarks magazine -
“Longmire’s shoulders are more than broad enough to carry a book.”
— Booklist -
“Johnson’s descriptive writing make for an entertaining yarn.”
— Audiofile
Awards
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A 2010 Dilys Award Nominee
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Selected for the June 2009 Indie Next List
The Dark Horse Listener Reviews
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Howard Brookshire, 4/26/2022
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Ingelore Mezger, 1/1/2022
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Codename Eric, 4/23/2020
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" I have put off listening to this one until I knew that another Walt Longmire saga was coming soon (and it is). I am relishing every word and phrase. "
— Janet, 2/14/2014 -
" Wyoming spaces, gritty characters, horses, a dog and a good mystery. "
— Max, 2/7/2014 -
" Another great read in the 'Walt Longmire" series. "
— Kate, 2/4/2014 -
" Finished this book so long ago and forgot to mark read...have read all in this series..what a great find Craig Johnson is. "
— Jennifer, 2/3/2014 -
" Loving this series. Only thing wrong: not enough of Henry Standing Bear. "
— Sharon, 1/26/2014 -
" Nothing like starting a series with the fifth book. Loved it though - mystery set in Wyoming horse country - and am going to catch up on the rest! "
— Hella, 1/20/2014 -
" Ejoyed reading this book. Did not care much for how the story was written because it did not keep the time of events in sequence. I did not find it confusing, and it certainly kept you guessing about who committed the murder. "
— Betty, 1/15/2014 -
" I love all of these books!! "
— Karen, 1/7/2014 -
" it was a bit long, but interesting. such a fine horse. "
— Judi, 1/6/2014 -
" The 5th Walt Longmire book by Criag Johnson is worth reading! A great series. "
— Tom, 12/19/2013 -
" My favorite Longmire mystery since the first one, The Dark Horse exemplifies Walt's inability to leave any damsel in distress while making so many literary references that each page is like a little Easter egg hunt! "
— Lark, 12/15/2013 -
" Walt Longmire goes undercover to find out why the woman in his jail confessed to murder. There's more than one dark horse here. "
— Diana, 12/10/2013 -
" The 5th of the series, dealing with drugs, horses and several people not who they seem. "
— Sara, 11/23/2013 -
" Best work yet(More to read) I particularly like the treatment of horses in this book.Johnson knows and loves them. "
— Charles, 11/19/2013 -
" The read is like a Dashiell Hammett meets the plains. Johnson makes sure that Walt Longmire never loses his timbre as a human character. His description of Wyoming is enough to make some one want to move there. "
— Ben, 11/5/2013 -
" Been working my way straight through the series and am enjoying them immensely. Strong characterization. These are people I'd like to know and that I care about - I'm a fan. "
— Readingroo, 10/22/2013 -
" I like a bit more of "The Cheyenne Nation" in the mix - but this was still a great read. "
— Bruce, 10/6/2013 -
" Man these just get better and better "
— Bryan, 10/2/2013 -
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linda Bepko , 4/18/2013
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" While it wasn't the most enthralling mystery I've read, the author is a good writer with likeable characters. "
— Vicki, 3/6/2013 -
" I think Craig Johnson, especially as read by George Guidall, just keeps getting better and better. "
— Nicholle, 3/3/2013 -
" The fourth in this series by Craig Johnson. A great new mystery writer. "
— Lucy, 2/26/2013 -
" I have a new policy on keeping books. I only keep books if I think I will either 1) read them again, or 2) loan them out to people. About 75% of all books get sold after reading now. This series stays on my bookshelf. Hoping there'll be more. "
— Megan, 7/12/2012 -
" Super! Great plot in this Walt Longmier mystery! "
— Teresa, 7/7/2012 -
" My first time to read this author, and I will read more. This was a western mystery but with an entirely new concept in westerns I really like the sheriff...a book with characters who were most entertaining. I laughed out loud! "
— Carol, 9/6/2011 -
" This is my first Walt Longmire novel, but I will go back to the beginning and read them all. The descriptions of Wyoming make me want to visit! "
— Terri, 8/21/2011 -
" Longmire is the best of the "sherrif procedurals" (category of a few). You will be glad to know that the horse in this book reappears in the most recent book, As the Crow Flies. "
— Joyce, 8/18/2011 -
" Loved this Longmire story based around a horse of mythical proportions. Great twist. "
— Colleen, 7/9/2011 -
" This was a fun read and kept me guessing right up to the end. I loved the picture he paints of stark Wyoming county. I did find the deputy's language bothersome.<br/> "
— Cauleen, 4/9/2011 -
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Laura Hill, 2/27/2011
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" This is number 5 in a great series by Craig Johnson. Makes me want to head to Montana or Wyoming in hopes of running into him at the local restaurant. Walt Longmire is again on the case and I enjoyed all the twists and turns. Can't wait for the next one. "
— Carol, 12/7/2010 -
" I continue to really enjoy Craig Johnson's sense of humor and sophisticated writing style "
— Susan, 12/4/2010 -
" I had a harder time with the print version since I was so used to the narrator on the audio version. "
— Sarah, 12/4/2010 -
" While it wasn't the most enthralling mystery I've read, the author is a good writer with likeable characters. "
— Vicki, 11/15/2010 -
" Did not disappoint. Another gooder in a fun series. Don't read this Walt Longmire series if the F word offends you. Myself it does not, since its a favortie of mine. Didn't have it figured out till the end "
— Mary, 9/25/2010 -
" this is the first of this series that I have read, and I will read more. This is the story of a woman accused of murdering her husband after he kills her beloved horses. Sheriff Walt Longmire ends up with her in his jail, and makes it his business to find out what really happened. "
— Martha, 7/24/2010 -
" This has to be my favorite so far in the Walt Longmire series. It has a nice noir feel to it as the sheriff goes undercover. "
— Chris, 7/4/2010
About Craig Johnson
Craig Johnson is the New York Times bestselling author of the Longmire mysteries, the basis for the hit Netflix original series Longmire. He is the recipient of the Western Writers of America Spur Award for fiction, the Mountains and Plains Booksellers Award for fiction, the Nouvel Observateur Prix du Roman Noir, and the Prix SNCF du Polar. Death Without Company was selected by Booklist as one of the top ten mysteries of 2006 and won the Wyoming Historical Society’s Award for fiction book of the year. His novella Spirit of Steamboat was the first One Book Wyoming selection. He lives in Ucross, Wyoming, population 25.
About George Guidall
George Guidall, winner of more than eighty AudioFile Earphones Awards, has won three of the prestigious Audie Award for Excellence in Audiobook Narration. In 2014 the Audio Publishers Association presented him with the Special Achievement Award for lifetime achievement/ During his thirty-year recording career he has recorded over 1,700 audiobooks, won multiple awards, been a mentor to many narrators, and shown by example the potential of fine storytelling. His forty-year acting career includes starring roles on Broadway, an Obie Award for best performance off Broadway, and frequent television appearances.