A Hap and Leonard Novel (1) (Hap and Leonard Series)

Joe Lansdale's sharp Texan wit combined with the hilariously compelling relationship between the two protagonists Hap (a white, disenfranchised 60's idealist) and Leonard (a black, homosexual Vietnam vet) has all the spontaneity of Vincent and Jules in Tarantino's 'Pulp Fiction'. I could have enjoyed reading 200 pages about these two going for burgers and a trip to the grocery store - the comedic and biting exchanges between them are that rich - however Lansdale weaves a tapestry of mystery and intrigue that you just know is going to end-up with a body-count which also rivals a Tarantino flick.

'Savage Season' is a quick read that draws you in and doesn't let go. At just under 200 pages, I finished in three sittings and for the first time in a while (have read some far less spectacular books in this same genre lately) felt truly pulled-in to the storyline. My only criticism involves the development of the characters 'Soldier' and 'Angel', whom I felt were introduced perhaps a bit too late in the plot and could have benefited from bit more back story. I found myself wishing the book had gone-on for another 50-100 pages.

I will definitely be checking-out the rest of Mr. Lansdale's catalog and I recommend this book to anyone looking for a tight, engrossing thrill-ride.

- Savage

SAVAGE SEASON by Joe R. Lansdale is the first novel in the "Hap Collins/Leonard Pine" series and clearly demonstrates the path to be taken by these utterly outrageous, yet definably noble characters. As the novel starts out, Hap and Leonard are doing okay. They have steady jobs in the rose fields and are taking a day off to shoot some skeet in the field behind Hap's house. Yep, everything is going pretty good until trouble walks around the corner of the house in the form of Trudy (Hap's ex-wife). Now, I don't know if Mr. Lansdale ever met my ex-girlfriend, but his description of Trudy fits her like a tight pair of spandex pants. Every time Trudy steps back into Hap's life and then leaves him again, it takes several months for him to recover. Needless to say, Leonard hates this lady for the way she treats his best friend. Anyway, Trudy has what appears to be a sweet deal for her loving ex-husband. It seems that one of her other ex-husbands, Howard, was in jail with a man who'd helped to rob a bank of one million dollars. All of the bank robber's cohorts were killed during or after the crime, and he almost bought the farm himself when he crashed his getaway boat into a submerged tree stump somewhere along the Sabine River. The money was never recovered, and the bank robber got life in prison. He gave Howard a general location of where he thought the sunken boat might be, hoping that if Howard were able to find the money, he'd share some of it with him to make his stay in prison a little easier. Since Hap knows the Sabine River like the back of his hand (well, maybe not quite that good), Trudy enlists Hap's help in locating the boat, offering him $200,000.00 for his services. Knowing Trudy as well as he does, Hap immediately gets Leonard to join in so that they can watch each other's backs. It isn't long before our East Texan duo find themselves caught in the middle of a betrayal that surprises neither one of them. The only real question is whether or not they will live long enough to see who actually ends up with the money. SAVAGE SEASON, though not as long or rich in detail as the other novels in the series, is still a fun, fast-paced read. The bantering and interaction between Hap and Leonard is what hooks you into this fantastic series. These two characters come alive in ways that other authors should take a look at. There's a lot to be learned here. Also, this novel offers a good deal of background information on both Hap and Leonard. This is stuff I didn't know because I started reading the series from the middle, then worked forward, and finally finished with the first novel, when I should've started with it to begin with. This sounds like something Hap and Leonard would do. Anyway, I enjoyed finding out why Hap had gone to prison as a young adult, how Trudy came into his life (she's referred to in a number of the other books), how he and Leonard met, and Leonard's background as a Vietnam vet. This information filled in a lot of blanks for me. For me, Mr. Lansdale's prose was smoothly written, offering a glimpse of how he would later develop into the author that he is today. All in all, this was an excellent read for me, and I was sorry to have the story end. I can't thank Joe R. Lansdale enough for this fabulous series. I only wish that he could write a "Hap/Leonard" book every year, while also doing his stand-alone novels. I hope that one of the novels in this series will eventually be done as a movie with Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson in the roles of Hap and Leonard. That would be the dessert after a delicious three-course meal!!

I can't escape reading Joe Lansdale any longer, since I live just down the road a piece. It's not my usual choice of book, but by golly, he can craft a story, and all of the sentences that build it up are exactly the shape they ought to be in order to get the job done. The raunchiness and violence that makes his true fans love him doesn't do much for me, but his characters and settings do; it's clear he knows the community I live in - all sides. I'll bet he's met some of the same low-lifes that I have (when I couldn't avoid it), but he knows that there is honor in the piney woods as well. He appreciates a good dog and a good friend, and, hang it all, I'll end up having to read all of these books just to find out how things go with old Hap and Leonard.

This adventure in stolen money, lost love and lost ideals reminds me of an old story by Raymond Chandler - if Bogie or Mitchum talked with a Texas accent. What a movie that would be!

If y'all don't have roots in East Texas, give these books a try; you'll get a flavor of it, and you'll be wanting seconds - at least.

Splendid. Simply layered, deep, visceral, funny, splendid and perfect for what it is. Joe Lansdale has timing, an ear for dialogue, a developed sense of plotting and the utmost humane sensibility. That's some Michael-Jordan-of-crime kind of wrap sheet. I loved every second of the rugged, near-death-experience that was SAVAGE SEASON and like another reviewer said, it knows not to outstay its welcome. It's thick and complex enough it would've dragged on at 250 pages, but Joe Lansdale being who he is, he knows just that and keeps it under 200. The showstopper? The relationship between Hap and Trudy. One of the most realistic broken love stories I've come across. It even echoed some of my own memories and there can't be a bigger challenge for a novel. This proudly goes in my bookshelf and I'm going back to hunt down some more Hap & Leonard.

Reader Phil Gigante gets to the heart of the novel through his performance that spans five CDs and five hours in this unabridged presentation of the first of a planned "Hap and Leonard" series by author Joe R. Lansdale.

The reading - changing voices/accents for the variety of male and female characters - captures the balance between witty humor and vicious existential nihilism surrounding the personalities and adventures of good ol' Texas boy Hap and his best friend, Leonard, who is a gay, martial arts-practicing Viet Nam veteran. They have a plan to pursue some easy money that will take care of all their troubles, but their plot quickly unravels and sends the duo stumbling down a path of great intrigue.

Gigante comes up huge and the listener is the beneficiary as Hap and Leonard bound through their foibles while in pursuit of their variation of the American Dream.

SAVAGE SEASON is a fast-paced, hard-boiled suspense novel about two hardworking friends, Hap and Leonard, who can't resist the opportunity to make a quick $200,000 a piece. All they have to do is find the money that is supposedly buried somewhere in an icy river where Hap grew up. But nothing comes easy for these two and it isn't long before they're not only dealing with vicious weather but also greedy and psychotic humans.
This is a short little book that packs a punch. It is unflinchingly and sometimes painfully graphic but the characters of Hap and Leonard, who both have a really nasty sense of humor, provide much needed comic relief. I don't want to give too much away here but this book isn't going to become one of my favorites, even though I enjoyed most of it, because of a certain horrendous plot twist towards the end of the story that tore out my heart.

...of "Hap and Leonard" on television before picking up the source novel, actually helped this reader. Not that Lansdale isn't an adequate writer... he is... but the TV-assisted visualization helped considerably with these new-to-me literary characters. I look forward to the next installment!

Having read some of Lansdale's short stories, I was acquainted with his somewhat brutal style. I wasn't at all certain he could maintain the pace through an entire novel. In fact, I was prepared to be disappointed. Instead, this book was like driving past one long, bad auto accident. I couldn't look away. I was there - I cared, feared, smelled, tasted and felt it all. Many authors take hundreds and hundreds of pages to convey those feelings and that level of detailed impression. In my opinion it takes talent to do it effectively with such economy. This is not a book for the faint of heart, but it was very engaging. I suggest you put it near the top of the stack.

This book is fun and engaging, and just downright awesome all around. The plot may not be the most original, but what makes it work are the two main characters, Hap and Leonard. Lansdale creates them in such detail and with such depth, that the cliche "springs to life off the page" is very true here. I felt like I knew these guys, and I was willing to follow them anywhere.

Lansdale is a truly unique fiction voice, a mixture of precise craft and down-home storytelling, with keen wit and a flair for describing human failings. Hap and Leonard are a great duo, not always seeing eye to eye but always getting each other's backs. This is one of America's best writers.

I chose to read this book because the cover stated this was a funny book. I didn't find it funny. I didn't like any of the characters. Hap was sort of pathetically weak. And Leonard was more caricature than character. The others were like plug-ins. The stuff about the sixties seemed like a plot contrivance. And all the violence at the end seemed manipulative. And Hap's altruism at the end just didn't match his weak character. There was nothing to make his character arc to that.

The author does have some interesting elements of style in his description - "the cold came in like a bully." I enjoyed that, but I wouldn't choose to read another of his books.

The first in an amazing series involving Hap Collins and Leonard Pine, two most unlikely heroes (though heroes they are). The author performs a powerful magic that transforms a tale with a violent twist about characters that are theoretically undesireable into something unique and hard to put down or forget. Furthermore, should you never laugh out loud when reading this and don't feel moved to buy one of the other Hap & Leonard books I'll be surprised. The story, set in East Texas, is about a treasure hunt, Hap's old girl and much more. Caveat: this is perhaps the weakest of the series - it still rates 5 stars.

"Savage Season" kicks off the six-book series featuring Hap Collins and Leonard Pine against the backdrop of rural East Texas. The writing is gritty and very noir and reminisicent of Jim Thompson. Of the other three I have read so far, this one was the best.

Many are familiar with Lansdale's Hap and Leonard books, but this one sometimes gets overlooked. That's a shame since this is by far the gritiest entry into the series and explains many things only glossed over in the rest of the series. This is one that is an ESSENTIAL for any Lansdale fan. His prose is, as always, fantastic and his dialouge , dead on. It can easily be stated that there isn't a writer working today with a voice as distinct and TRUE as Joe R. Lansdale