A Serpent's Tooth: A Longmire Mystery

I picked up a book, and was immediately back where I grew up at: Wyoming. Mr. Johnson has it down. Lakes, Rivers, Counties, Highway Patrol, Cheyenne, Rawlins, abutting states, where everything is relative to each other in the state... And, it's a great Mystery / Detective Book at that.

This book has many plot lines. The interaction between Henry and Walt is fantastic as always. And Vic's dialogue had me laughing out loud. The story brought intrigue and action. Not only a who-done-it, but WTF did they do that for? I LOVE this book. And the ending left me in just as much heartache as Walt.

A great mystery for Walt to solve, a little complex compared to some of his others. Great interaction between the characters we've all grown to know so well...Vic, Henry, Saizarbitoria, Double Tough, Frymire. Just a great, well-rounded read. If I didn't already love these characters and this series, this book would seal the deal for me.

Craig Johnson has written another excellent, well written story about Walt Longmire and his colleagues.

This story has the same excellent dialogue with tongue in cheek humor with the same cast of characters: Henry Standing Bear and Vick and others.

This time the story starts quite innocently as an elderly lady describes how an "angel" is helping her fix up her house. All she has to do is make a list, have the materials available and leave the house. She returns and the fixes are done.

Walt checks it out and finds a missing boy of 15, with an elderly man as his "bodyguard" in tow. When Walt looks for his mother, the search leads him to a religious cult that is the front for a sinister plan.

From there, the story takes off and the book is hard to put down (even if there are some somewhat unbelievable parts like how Walt and Henry get a 50 caliber sniping rifle with incendiary ammo). In fact, I finished the book in one day.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who enjoys the Longmire show. The books are even better than the show.

My reading of the Longmire novels have been enhanced since I have been watching the tv show. This one did not disappoint. The plot is interesting, the dialogue is impressive. Walt Longmire's ethics and sensibility make him a here for the Millennium.

I very much like Mr. Johnson's Longmire series. He is a " literate" writer, good at his craft. His characters are interesting and I like the information he includes about the Cheyenne tribe and beliefs. His love for Wyoming comes through in his writing.

The writing is becoming smoother and more effective. The author's confidence and skill are growing. The wit is sharp and the social commentary is spot on. A great series. Not the same as the TV show, but that's good also. The plot has taken a different path. A really enjoyable work.

Basically,a good story,just a little drawn out,and is Henry a deuty,or what,is Double Tough on Walts side or with the oil intrests,this was never fully explained. And Walt,for as smart as I think you are,you don,t s*** where you lay.

Here is an "older" main character who handles being a Wyoming sheriff with great ability and the heroics ala Jack Reacher. The setting there in Wyoming is refreshing, too. It's not big city crime, but it takes a great law enforcer to handle what they do have. It's fast and so good. You won't want to put it down until you're done.

As always, the "cast of characters" is well fleshed out with really interesting dialogue and story. I did however think that the plot was overly complicated and the author had to scramble at the end to get all of the subplots resolved. I enjoyed the continued growth of Walt and Vic's relationship. I just hope she doesn't get killed off in future books.

Another good Longmire book from Johnson. So much better than the TV show! The only thing about this book that kept it from the 5th Star was the fact that one really has to pay attention to the various people involved and their names and relationships. Good read nonetheless.

I love these characters so much it almost makes me want to move to Wyoming. Well, except for the snow...and the cold...and there isn't a three-story mall within a five-minute drive. The characters are so well drawn that you feel as though you have known them all your life. Walt's problems start with Cord, a teen who has been kicked out of his Mormon group. It seems most everyone Walt encounters tied to this church group has the last name of Lynear. But there is more than religion connected to this group. Walt runs into one Mormon who claims to be two hundred years old and is armed to the teeth. As usual, Henry Standing Bear is always there to lend a hand as is Walt's deputy, Vic Moretti. Someone once said they wished the TV show was on Showtime so Vic's colorful language could be more appreciated. Her relationship with Walt is turning a corner and I for one cheer it on. Walt needs all hands on deck to deal with the well-armed cult, big oil, and the CIA. Johnson has created a memorable series. I would have never heard of Walt Longmire had it not been for the television series. Unfortunately, the TV series doesn't quite follow the print one. Then again, to do that, Johnson would have to start writing a heck of a lot faster.

I love these books. The characters are so well defined and the humor is great. Also, the descriptions of the Bighorn Mountain area are so vivid. I hope he writes more full books, rather than short stories.

The Craig Johnson style of writing is done beautifully. Always enjoyable, a good read and one that you will call to memory long after the story is finished. What more of a compliment can a writer have? Love his stories.

There are plenty os bad guys but they are violent
is a less direct way. Walt and The Bear are' tge
focus of the story and it is always a great
adventure. Craig Johnson is a great writer.
One of my very favorites.

He keeps repeating his bad behaviors. He has insight into his moods and reactions, but doesn't seem to have any control over them, which is very frustrating for the characters in the book as well as the person reading it. How much physical abuse can one person take? And exactly how old is he? That bothers me every book - can't figure out the date or his age. Because if he served in VietNam then he is in his early sixties. Otherwise, love the setting and the writing and the characters.

Another very good read from Craig Johnson. Although there is little mystery to the mystery there are enough twists and turns along the way to keep it very exciting and the ending WOW; Who could see that coming!

I really love these books and characters. There is a depth and humanity to the characters that leaves a lasting impression. I wish the series was more like the books! Please keep em' coming Mr. Johnson!

This author is awesome. I love his books. His characters are deep, thought out, involved and funny.
There just isnt anything I dont love about this series... but that there arnt any books of his that I havent read yet, lol

I have enjoyed all the Longmire mysteries, and can't wait for the next one. A Serpent's Tooth was a page turner. I also like the history and trivia that Johnson includes in his books, as well as his way with words.

Craig Johnson at his best! Great characters - interestingly drawn so you really get to know them and care for them. Great dialogue that is often filled with humor. A wonderfully written book by a real master!

This book is yet another in the successful Walt Longmire series, and even more thrill-packed than most of them. Without giving away too much plot details, there are very life-changing events for most of the main characters in the story, and it leaves the reader chomping at the bit waiting for the next episode in the series. Guess we'll just have to watch the hit TV show in the meantime.

As always, Craig Johnson delivers a story that captures and holds your interest until the last page. He is a great story teller. His characters are so real that you feel like you've known them all your life.

Just finished this book. Love the characters in this series of Mr. Johnson's books. Have read all nine of them now.
Especially love the way he weaves the Indian Lore into Henry's character.

Jean Bolin Teste

Only the setting, the characters, especially Vic - the humor, the banter, and the plot. A couple of months ago I read through the whole series in six weeks. I read a couple of books a week, but since reading this Craig Johnson series, I bring three books home from the library and am disappointed in two of them that I would have enjoyed before reading this series. I only read the other because I have to have something to read and it was better than the two I returned unread.

Intricately plotted, characters you really come to care about, in a melancholy and haunting Wyoming setting. What I really love is the way Craig Johnson challenges his readers...the things that are unsaid being often the more important. A bittersweet, beautiful ending.

This is another fast-paced page turner with Sheriff Walt Longmire in the middle of mayhem and murder. The crusty, aging lawman pits his wits against a religious cult and their illegal activities involving illicit oil drilling and child abuse. Partnered with his sometime lover-deputy Vic and his wise Paiute friend Henry Standing Bear, he plunges headlong into a complicated plot that pits him against the Apostolic Lamb of God polygamist cult and the disappearance of a woman whose son ends up in Longmire's care, busting up counties in two states and quite a few bad guys along the way. The plot takes many twists and even brings in secret CIA operatives and Mexican drug lords. I couldn't put it down until it was finished and even then wanted to know what happened next.

Craig Johnson's well-honed and crafted Walt Longmire mysteries are engaging page-turners that are as fresh and raw as they are multi-layered and nuanced. Furthermore, Johnson doesn't back down from the socio-economical issues taking place in today's West and bringing them to a roaring boil.

Johnson's mysteries keep us turning the pages, but as we do, he gives us glimpses into the contemporary west, the people who live with the imposing presence of the looming Rocky Mountains, and the undercurrents of modern technology, and social ills. Dichotomies abound with cowboys on horseback with I-phones, raging snowstorms and the futility of technology in their midst, western machismo and the women with balls enough to stand up to it.

As you read Johnson's works, he will divulge his characters' souls to you. We learn, bit by bit, about their weaknesses, their wounds, and their paths that led them to inhabit this remote corner of America. We also share in their triumphs and victories -- even if it is small as an ice cold Ranier beer after a day of driving dusty roads.

Craig Johnson's "Walt Longmire Mysteries" series explore our world and our psyches with their imagery, symbolism, mythological archetypes and spiritualism. He does this without stereo-typing or rehashing old cliches, but with spot-on dialogue, engaging characters, and complex suspenseful plot-building. And that is what makes the reading of the Walt Longmire mystery series so very addictive.

We root for Walt Longmire because he fights the good fights that must be fought--no matter what the costs are to him. In "A Serpent's Tooth," Walt must deal with a splinter group of a renegade polygamy group of Latter Day Saints who have built quite the arsenal of weapons and an old vendetta that crosses time-lines and cartels. How Craig Johnson interlaces water rights in the West, Shakespeare, physics, Lost boys, flying saucers, Lamanites, corsages, L.D.S., slow car chases, "My Friend, Flicka," and the C.I.A. into a fast-paced, suspenseful novel is truly a testimonial to his storytelling ability.

"A Serpent's Tooth" by Craig Johnson earns five stars from Chanticleer Book Reviews. Find yourself mesmerized by a great storyteller! Be forewarned: You will not be able to stop at just one Walt Longmire mystery. [Reviewer's note: Not since reading Jim Harrison's works have I encountered writings that are so satisfying to read.]