REVIEW: Spirit of Steamboat

 Spirit of Steamboat
Author: Craig Johnson

I love the Longmire series! I have been slowly meandering my way through these books since I discovered there were books. I watched the first two seasons of the Netflix show before I  found out it was based on a book series. There were so many changes between the two that I didn't rush to binge the books but read slowly, savoring each story instead. Now that the show has ended, these books are my Longmire fix, so I'm happy to keep the slow pace. I read a book or two....then move on to other things before coming back to Absaroka County again.

Johnson has written several short stories/novellas for this series. Spirit of Steamboat is one of them. A Christmas story! This one jumps back in time a bit....to when Lucian Connally was sheriff. A blizzard is raging, but a young burn victim needs to be flown to Denver. The problem is there are no planes available that can make it through the storm. Except one...Spirit of Steamboat....an old World War II bomber. This story flashes back to World War II and 1988 when Connally flew the old B-29 into a blizzard to save a girl's life. There's a lot of story going on! And as usual, just a touch of supernatural to spice things up. 

Great story! And George Guidall is a wonderful narrator! He does a superb job each time! The audio book is 3 hrs 20 minutes long -- so an easy listening length. 

There is plenty of action and story in this novella. It kept my attention riveting for the entire time. I like Lucian as a character. He's rough, opinionated, stubborn and sometimes a real curmudgeon. BUT....he was a damn good sheriff in his day. And I enjoy it when other characters feature in a Longmire story. Walt is still a central figure in this story, but Lucian gets some time to shine.....and cuss, and drink, and belly-ache....   :)

Loved it!