As the Crow Flies
Sheriff Walt Longmire, #8
Craig Johnson

Viking
May 2012 / ISBN: 0670023515
Police Procedural / Wyoming/Montana-Contemporary
Amazon

Reviewed by LJ Roberts

First Sentence: “I wanna know what Katrina Walks Nice did to get kicked out of a joint like this for sixty-one days.”

Sheriff Walt Longmire and Henry Standing Bear witness a young woman falling from a cliff, but the Sheriff’s dog, Dog, finds a baby fell with her and is, remarkably, still alive. Was it suicide, an accident or murder? Who is the baby’s father? The event happened outside Longmire’s territory and must work with the new, inexperienced, tribal police chief, a female veteran of the war in Iraq. Longmire has until his daughter Cady’s impending wedding to find the answers.

Johnson’s distinctive voice and humor come thru from the opening sentences while also eliciting a sense of dread. What sets Johnson apart is that where a lesser author might include a portent of bad things to come, Johnson accomplishes the same goal without that blatant and unnecessary device.

It is remarkable that Johnson creates fully-developed characters without providing detailed backstories, yet we know enough of the salient points of their past for their present to make sense. Johnson shows respect for his characters by having the relationship between Walt and Henry work as equals. The author also has the gift of taking the inhuman (Dog) and inanimate (Henry’s car Rezdawg) and imbuing them with personalities in a very relatable, “I-do-that” way. The wonderful juxtaposition of Walt’s job and personality provide realism to the character and the story.

The naturalness and quality of dialogue makes such a difference to a story. Johnson know how to write dialogue. Whether during tense—“I picked u the tarnished, encrusted lighter. Across the front was SAIGON, 67-68, 101st AIRBORNE, and on the back, WHEN THE POWER OF LOVE OVERCOMES THE LOVE OF POWER, THE WORLD SHALL KNOW PEACE. I handed it back to him. “Thoreau?” “Hendrix, Jimi”… --or humorous situations, such as Walt’s conversations with Dog.

It was fascinating to learn about the Cheyenne Nation, the Old Man Chiefs and the peyote ceremony. Once very slight concern I do have is whether it has become so expected that Johnson include Indian spiritualism in each of his books, their inclusion is starting to feel forced.

“As the Crow Flies” is a well-written, well-balanced story that keeping you reading, and guessing, until the very end. It’s another great book from Craig Johnson.