Now I haven't read any of the Spencer mystery novels by Mr. Parker, so I can't do a comparison, but I can say this; Appaloosa is a Western with two buddies and a gal, some shootin' and some horses. These best buds do not let the woman come between them, thank goodness. I hate those kinds of stories, kind of like a really really bad romance. (As you may guess from my other blogs my favorite stories are romances, so I know of what I speak). Anyway, Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch ride into the troubled town of Appaloosa and present themselves as peace officers. They are quickly hired to neutralize the bad guy and his henchmen. Cole has a list of rules that the townsmen must follow or there is no deal. In essence it makes Cole in charge of the town. But the town is desperate, so the two are hired and right away they start work cleaning up. Of course it isn't easy and Cole is determined that they follow the rules, without the rules they are no better than the crooks. To me the best parts of this western are the conversations between Hitch and Cole, they understand and respect each other. However, the wisest person in this story is Hitch's favorite "naughty lady" Katie. She knows how men and women think and she succinctly explains this to Hitch. After all she says, "I spend my working time with men, but my social time is with women." Appaloosa isn't a typical western although it does have a couple of pretty good shoot-'em-ups. It talks of relationships with friends, the opposite sex, laws and even talks about the life of an Appaloosa stallion and his harem of mares. A mighty fine read, pardner.
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