RIO RUIDOSO
Three Rivers Trilogy, 1
by
PRESTON LEWIS
Genre: Historical Western
Publisher: Five Star Publishing
Date of Publication: February 19, 2020
Publisher: Five Star Publishing
Date of Publication: February 19, 2020
Number of Pages: 299
2017 Elmer Kelton Award from the West Texas Historical Association:
Best Creative Work on West Texas
Scroll down for the giveaway!
Rio Ruidoso offers a gripping blend of history and story as two-time Spur Award-winner Preston Lewis explores the violent years before the famed Lincoln County War in New Mexico Territory. Seamlessly weaving fact with fiction, the author details the county’s corruption, racism, and violence through the eyes of protagonist Wes Bracken, newly arrived in the region to start a horse ranch with his alcoholic brother.
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Amazon Barnes and Noble Indiebound
Amazon Barnes and Noble Indiebound
HALL WAYS REVIEW: Rio
Ruidoso is the first pure western I have ever read, and it’s my
dad’s fault I hadn't read one until now. (Sorry, Dad.) He loves a good western and had
shelves of them when I was growing up (now virtual shelves of them), but HIS
westerns didn’t appeal to me. The graphic shoot ‘em up, hang ‘em up, and “he-ing
& she-ing” Dad gushes about always solicit an eye-roll. The cowboys seem like
cardboard cutouts: loners who are introspective and smarter and more cunning
than the average Joe; and the women are doe-eyed, dumb, and good for only one thing.
Why bother?
Then, about two years ago, I
read Preston Lewis’s The Fleecing of Fort Griffin, which is a western
but it’s a caper, reminiscent of The Sting, clever and laugh-out-loud
funny at times, and I loved it. For Preston Lewis, I was willing to take a dive
into pure western, and I will admit – I hated when the book ended, and I had to
crawl out of Rio Ruidoso. Reading it was a totally immersive experience.
“The country was open and
honest, not holding secrets from anyone.”
From the very start, Lewis
masterfully describes the sweeping views and terrain of Lincoln County, all through
the eyes of Wes Bracken. Coming from Arkansas, Wes talks of his relief at
getting out of country “where the woods held the secrets and animosities of
enemies,” and into country where growth more bush-like than tree “pimpled the
slopes.” Lewis’s rich descriptions
coupled with his gift for penning a sentence make reading Rio Ruidoso a
real pleasure.
“Thirsty weeds sprouted around
it like beggars by a bank.”
By using figurative language
and robust descriptions of people and place, readers are drawn into the setting
and mind-set of the communities within Lincoln County. The visuals summoned by
the words on the page show not only the beauty and bounty of the land, but
those words also show the neglect and differences between those who have and
those who have-not and the tensions between them.
“Feelings ran high, and emotions
didn’t die, just kinfolks.”
Rio Ruidoso combines
historical fact and fiction to remind readers of many ugly truths to the period
leading up to the Lincoln County War in New Mexico Territory. The characters
include John Chisum, Jesse Evans, and Lawrence Murphy – all real men involved
in the war – and themes of greed, pride, racism, and revenge, which are all
real motives that fueled the feuds. Lewis doesn’t shy away from any of it, and
it’s uncomfortable in its honesty. The blatant racism and disregard for lives-other-than-white is embarrassing and hurts my heart and boggles my brain.
I wish it were fiction, and I wish it were fully a thing that was only found in
history books.
“By hard work a man could earn
his dollars back, but he could never regain lost hours.”
An element that is mind
boggling in a different way is the work ethic of the people. Regardless of skin
color, gender, or purity of heart, everyone had to work to live. Feuds were put
aside during planting season or harvest or in preparation for winter. For most,
this wasn’t pansy work; the work was backbreaking and physical from dawn to
dusk and later. I simply cannot fathom living that way, but thanks to Preston
Lewis’s writing, I certainly can envision it. (Side note: this ARC is one of
the cleanest I have ever read – another nod to the level of writing readers
will enjoy. Top notch.)
While the ending resolves
little, it gives readers a much-needed breather and reason to smile after the
tension, intensity, and action of the story. And there is a little cameo that’s
dropped in that makes me more excited than ever for the next book in the Three
Rivers Trilogy. More good stuff’s coming, y’all. (But I am STILL not going to
read any of my dad’s westerns.)
Thank you to Lone Star Book
Blog Tours and the author for a print ARC in exchange for my honest opinion –
the only kind I give.
Preston Lewis is the Spur Award-winning author of thirty novels. In addition to his two Western Writers of America Spurs, he received the 2018 Will Rogers Gold Medallion for Western Humor for Bluster’s Last Stand, the fourth volume in his comic western series The Memoirs of H. H. Lomax. Two other books in that series were Spur finalists. His comic western The Fleecing of Fort Griffin received the Elmer Kelton Award from the West Texas Historical Association for best creative work on the region.
GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!
1ST PRIZE: Signed Copies of Rio Ruidoso & Bluster's Last Stand
2ND PRIZE: Signed Copies of Rio Ruidoso
2ND PRIZE: Signed Copies of Rio Ruidoso
FEBRUARY 18-28, 2020
(US ONLY)
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