In this outstanding first novel, Craig Johnson draws on his background in law enforcement and his deep attachment to the American West to produce a...
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Aug 09, 2008
Lourdes
rated it: 
The crimes reported in Absaroka County are not the usual: a kid chasing horses with his snow machine (turns out he was herding livestock with it), someone sliding off an icy road and hitting a yield sign; and someone stealing Old Lady Grossman’s snowman (a practical joke by her nephew). So when someone reports a dead body, Sheriff Walt Longmire figures it’s probably dead sheep. But the body is that of Cody Pritchard’s, one of four young men who two years earlier received a light sentence for the
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Dec 17, 2009
LJ
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THE COLD DISH (Police Proc-Wyoming-Cont) – VG
Johnson, Craig – 1st in series
Viking, 2005 – Hardcover
Sheriff Walt Longmire is in charge of a small, but quirky group of law enforcement officers in Absaroka County, Wyoming. When the body of Cody Pritchard is found dead of a gunshot wound, they need to determine wither it is a hunting accident. But Cody, along with three others, is recently released from serving time for the brutal rape of a young Indian girl. If the killing is r More...
Johnson, Craig – 1st in series
Viking, 2005 – Hardcover
Sheriff Walt Longmire is in charge of a small, but quirky group of law enforcement officers in Absaroka County, Wyoming. When the body of Cody Pritchard is found dead of a gunshot wound, they need to determine wither it is a hunting accident. But Cody, along with three others, is recently released from serving time for the brutal rape of a young Indian girl. If the killing is r More...
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Oct 19, 2011
Mike
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When starting this book as a result of my daughter's recommendation, I didn't think a murder mystery set in sparsely-populated Wyoming would hold my attention. When finished, I realized this was one of the most enjoyable books I've read this year, I marveled at how well-written it was, and I wondered how Craig Johnson's books had heretofore escaped my attention. This is the first of a series and I'm definitely looking forward to the remainder of the series. Johnson has created several intrigu
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Nov 10, 2010
Keri
rated it:
Craig Johnson is a NTM author. I am going out today and get the rest of his back list. What an awesome read!
Walt, the Sheriff in Absaroka County, Wyoming, just got a call about a dead body in his county. His blood runs cold as he is informed of the name of the victim. A couple of years ago, Cody was one of 4 high school boys that coaxed a young girl with AFS down into a basement, where they brutally raped her. The boys got very little time for the crime and were all free as of Cody's m More...
Walt, the Sheriff in Absaroka County, Wyoming, just got a call about a dead body in his county. His blood runs cold as he is informed of the name of the victim. A couple of years ago, Cody was one of 4 high school boys that coaxed a young girl with AFS down into a basement, where they brutally raped her. The boys got very little time for the crime and were all free as of Cody's m More...
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Aug 03, 2008
Jen
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Walt Longmire is the sheriff of Absaroka County in Wyoming, a place where everyone knows your name and probably your business. Walt's been a widower for three...no four years now. His home is worse than a bachelor pad, his deputy Vic is forever giving him a hard time about being overweight, and there's mouse droppings on his cooking utensils.
Despite the fact that Walt's life seems to be in a shambles, the people of Absaroka County like Walt, especially his good friend and Cheyenne In More...
Despite the fact that Walt's life seems to be in a shambles, the people of Absaroka County like Walt, especially his good friend and Cheyenne In More...
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Dec 28, 2008
J.D.
rated it:
Craig Johnson has a gift for making even walk-on characters seem real and three dimensional and that's what really drives this murder mystery set in rural Wyoming. A definite keeper.
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May 18, 2011
Travis
rated it:
I really liked this book. I picked it up on the recommendation of my brother, and I was not disappointed. The only thing I didn't like was the swearing. So, if you have a problem with multiple F words, you might want to avoid this one. But, other than that, I really liked it. It kept me guessing the whole time, and I was totally surprised when I found out who the killer was.
I think it was a really well-written novel, and I especially liked all of the literary allusions to classica More...
I think it was a really well-written novel, and I especially liked all of the literary allusions to classica More...
May 01, 2011
Jon
rated it: 
This book had some beautiful descriptions of nature, some very good characters, some of the best macho bantering I've read since early Spenser vs. Hawk, some very interesting lore, and a real sense of placiness. So I have trouble putting my finger on what I didn't like about it. I think it was the pace. If you're in a hurry and not prone to skipping, this is not the book for you. It just moseys for a long, long time. Very early on there is a murder, and a hundred pages later there is another one
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Mar 29, 2011
Leslie
rated it:
The first installment in The Walt Longmire Mystery series. I'd read The Dark Horse about a month ago. Enjoyed the characters. Decided to start with #1 to get caught up on Walt and the other cast of characters.
Small town Wyoming sheriff, Walt Longmire, gets thrown into a multiple shooting case in Absaroka. Characters introduced and backgrounds uncovered.Meanwhile,Walt is trying to track down what appears to be a sniper taking out some of the town's young men, one by one with a Sharps More...
Small town Wyoming sheriff, Walt Longmire, gets thrown into a multiple shooting case in Absaroka. Characters introduced and backgrounds uncovered.Meanwhile,Walt is trying to track down what appears to be a sniper taking out some of the town's young men, one by one with a Sharps More...
Sep 16, 2010
Steve
rated it:
Somebody told me this was a good series of books by Craig Johnson, and they were right.
The characters (small town Wyoming sheriff, his best friend, his wise-cracking female deputy) and the settings (small town Wyoming near the Big Horn mountains, Cheyenne Reservation, backwoods, etc.) are drawn with care. And with great humor:
"I did my best work when I wasn't thinking, sometimes considering my mind to be a body of water that worked best once things had settled to th More...
The characters (small town Wyoming sheriff, his best friend, his wise-cracking female deputy) and the settings (small town Wyoming near the Big Horn mountains, Cheyenne Reservation, backwoods, etc.) are drawn with care. And with great humor:
"I did my best work when I wasn't thinking, sometimes considering my mind to be a body of water that worked best once things had settled to th More...
Mar 02, 2010
Lynne
rated it:
Walt Longmire has been in a rut for years, knows it and could care less. His wife died about four years ago and his time as sheriff of a hard-core Wyoming county, where only the tough only hope to survive, is winding down.
Then a young man is shot long-range, a kill only a sharpshooter could hope to accomplish. Maybe it's a coincidence he was the worst of the bunch in a quartet that raped a mentally incapacitated Indian girl. Although the four were convicted, they got the lightest sen More...
Then a young man is shot long-range, a kill only a sharpshooter could hope to accomplish. Maybe it's a coincidence he was the worst of the bunch in a quartet that raped a mentally incapacitated Indian girl. Although the four were convicted, they got the lightest sen More...
Nov 01, 2009
Tony
rated it:
Great book. I am a a fan of CJ Box who writes about a Wyoming game warden and someone suggested Craig Johnson. Craig just brings it to another level! C.J. is a great potboiler writer. Quick and easy. Just a good fun read while on the airplane or at the beach. I am not trying to belittle CJ at all. I am a fan. Craig is more about prose and incredible dialogue. This book takes place in Wyoming and the protagonist is a Sheriff in a small county. Great characters and dialogue. I laughed ou
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Jan 09, 2012
Rochelle
rated it:
As a fan of such characters as Harry Bosch, Jack Reacher and the like, I was delighted to discover the Walt Longmire series.
In addition to endearing main character Sheriff Walt Longmire, Author Craig Johnson has painted a strong sense of place with his descriptions of rural life at the foot of the Big Horn mountains in Wyoming. He has created a supporting cast of interesting and sometimes eccentric characters including Walt’s best friend Henry Standing Bear, Deputy Victoria Moretti More...
In addition to endearing main character Sheriff Walt Longmire, Author Craig Johnson has painted a strong sense of place with his descriptions of rural life at the foot of the Big Horn mountains in Wyoming. He has created a supporting cast of interesting and sometimes eccentric characters including Walt’s best friend Henry Standing Bear, Deputy Victoria Moretti More...
Oct 13, 2011
Judy
rated it:
The Cold Dish by Craig Johnson is one of the "new" genre of a mystery set in the west, in this case in Wyoming. The real place is Buffalo, WY; the fictional place is Absaroka County, WY.
In this first of the series, Longmire is faced with discovering who is killing the boys who were convicted of raping a Cheyenne girl with fetal alcohol syndrome. The boys were given light sentences of no consequences, really.
The plot is well developed, the characters well develo More...
In this first of the series, Longmire is faced with discovering who is killing the boys who were convicted of raping a Cheyenne girl with fetal alcohol syndrome. The boys were given light sentences of no consequences, really.
The plot is well developed, the characters well develo More...
Dec 17, 2011
Trevor
rated it: 
94 pages in, that's as far as I'm going, and we know that a morbidly obese old widower with no particular charm or looks is the hottest piece of ass in town. We know that Indians are all strong and beautiful and do not use contractions and sometimes suffer fetal alcohol syndrome. We know that women are smarter than men and white people are bad. We know that clumsy attempts at poetically describing sunsets and trees mean we are in Wyoming. Oh, somebody got shot. Also, that sexy at sixty basta
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Aug 11, 2007
Patty
rated it:
Set in a small Wyoming town this book hits all the right notes, the sheriff who shares his life with friends but avoids other close relationships, the astounding details of the mountains and small town life in Wyoming and the almost painful mix of friendship and racial tension between the sheriff and his best friend, a Native American. The mystery is compelling as is the storytelling of the author. Highly recommended.
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Jun 15, 2011
Jim
rated it:
If James Lee Burke had decided to base his Robicheaux series in Wyoming, one can imagine the result coming out something like COLD DISH, which is no way to diminish Johnson's accomplishment. This was a wonderful, entertaining read with fully developed characters that were believable and interesting. You had the damaged, widowed ex-Vietnam vet lawman, struggling with loss and trying to repair his personal life while faced with a crime that had personal meaning; a tough, supportive, intelligent si
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Feb 12, 2011
Elizabeth
rated it:
I thoroughly enjoyed THE COLD DISH and its protagonist, Sheriff Walt Longmire of Absaroka County, Wyoming. It combines a page-turning "who-done-it" with intelligent humor, a completely flawed but likable protagonist, his wise and patient native American friend Henry Standing Bear, and wonderful evocations of the setting in the West.
I laughed out loud at some of the dry dialogue between Longmire and Henry. Henry, a Vietnam vet, is deeply spiritual and steeped in native Amer More...
I laughed out loud at some of the dry dialogue between Longmire and Henry. Henry, a Vietnam vet, is deeply spiritual and steeped in native Amer More...
Feb 21, 2010
Michael
rated it:
2 1/2 stars.
Four white high school students lure a female American Indian high schooler to a meeting and rape her in a cruel and brutal manner. The woman, Melissa Little Bird, suffers from fetal alcohol syndrome and her reasoning powers are impaired.
The trial ends with a rediculous sentence of two years suspended and then probation. The Indian community is incensed with the light sentence.
Two years later, the ring leader is found dead. Sheriff Walt Longmere is attem More...
Four white high school students lure a female American Indian high schooler to a meeting and rape her in a cruel and brutal manner. The woman, Melissa Little Bird, suffers from fetal alcohol syndrome and her reasoning powers are impaired.
The trial ends with a rediculous sentence of two years suspended and then probation. The Indian community is incensed with the light sentence.
Two years later, the ring leader is found dead. Sheriff Walt Longmere is attem More...
Mar 22, 2008
Amelia
rated it:
I rediscovered just how much I love the West and all of the self-selected people who are out here deciding to be off the beaten track. Craig Johnson's characters are a great fictional group. As they interact together they remind me that flawed people unafraid to live life by their own slightly warped codes are the ones with whom I most like to hang out.
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Aug 05, 2011
Theresa Leone
rated it:
Some books are 'chick lit,' I admit, and some seem written more for men. However, that doesn't stop a man from enjoying Rebecca or Wuthering Heights, and it doesn't stop me from enjoying a Clive Cussler novel. Cold Dish is definitely more of a man's book, with lots of stuff I don't care about concerning guns, or the wilderness, but I nevertheless enjoyed the book, set in Wyoming, with a very likable main character, Walt, who is sheriff of a small town. Dead bodies start piling up and Walt is on
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Oct 11, 2010
Carol
rated it:
Walt Longmire is the Sheriff in this first book of a series of 5 books and he narrates his own life. He is a widower and was in the process of finishing the interior of his log cabin when his wife died about five years ago. Not only did Walt not finish his home, but he still lives out of the cartons along the outside wall. His friend Henry, a bartender, comes in to cook for both of them once in awhile and Henry gets appalled that he always has to clean mouse droppings out of Walt's pans. The
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Feb 05, 2009
The Cold Dish, a multilayered whodunit mystery, stands out in its genre. Shades of racism, mysticism, and revenge give the novel nuance; dead-on dialogue, good-natured humor, and flesh-and-blood characters, including the foul-mouthed deputy Victorian "Vic" Moretti, give it life. Johnson, who lives in Ucross, Wyoming, knows the Western landscape well, and creates stunning and violent scenes (including a raging blizzard) of the Rocky Mountains. Only The Philadelphia Inquirer faulted the
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Jan 08, 2012
Gareth
rated it:
As Sheriff Walt Longmire sits looking at the file of a case that has haunted him for two years the dead body of one the accused is discovered. Cody Pritchard has been shot & was accused, along with three other high school boys, of the rape of Melissa Little Bird, a Cheyenne girl with fetal alchohol syndrome. They are guilty but given suspended sentences and this has left a bad taste in Sheriff Longmires mouth as well as the wider Native American community. As he embarks on finding out whether th
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Jul 23, 2010
Ashley
rated it:
I had never heard of Craig Johnson or his best selling series until I was asked us to come to an author reading. What started as a, "eh we'll see how this goes" moment quickly turned into, "OMG I LOVE CRAIG JOHNSON." I knew if his writing was half as good as his story telling ability then I'd love his books.
AND, I do.
The Cold Dish is set in small town WY surrounding a very small sheriffs department as they attempt to solve a murder that quickly spins More...
AND, I do.
The Cold Dish is set in small town WY surrounding a very small sheriffs department as they attempt to solve a murder that quickly spins More...
Jun 15, 2011
Natalie
rated it:
I was prepared to really love this book based on reader comments from Amazon and Barnes and Noble.com. I must have been impressed since I spent $11.20 to buy it. I was also excited because it is the first in a series of several already published books. I really didn't like it very much at all. I found the division of Spirit characters and real ones not especially well defined. The writing seemed somewhat ponderous to me, despite the interesting action taking place. The Native American character
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Jan 03, 2012
Julie
rated it:
This book is fantastic! It has wonderful humor. Sometimes its subtle and sometimes it's right in your face.
I laughed for 15 mins last night after I read a particular paragraph.
It's kind of like a Western Evanovich novel, with the humor and colorful characters.
Initially, I was going to put off buying the next book, well just for the moment. I figured I could check out the second book from the library and then I could slowly collect the others.
But I c More...
I laughed for 15 mins last night after I read a particular paragraph.
It's kind of like a Western Evanovich novel, with the humor and colorful characters.
Initially, I was going to put off buying the next book, well just for the moment. I figured I could check out the second book from the library and then I could slowly collect the others.
But I c More...
Jan 26, 2010
Pila
rated it:
I liked this book. I thought the author did a great job developing the characters. I really felt like I knew all the major characters with quite a lot of depth. He is a good descriptive writer: I could picture all the scenes in my mind.
The couple of things that bothered me a bit, which cause me to give it just 3 stars, are:
I had a little trouble following the dialog. What I mean is, that when 2 people were having a conversation, in particular, Walt Longmire and Henry More...
The couple of things that bothered me a bit, which cause me to give it just 3 stars, are:
I had a little trouble following the dialog. What I mean is, that when 2 people were having a conversation, in particular, Walt Longmire and Henry More...
Sep 19, 2011
Jan
rated it:
Mr Johnson's ability to set the scene and readily fill my head with the vision of his story impressed me throughout. He never lagged. The story is about a small town sheriff in Wyoming's Big Horn Mountains, so of course there's a case that the sheriff and his deputies must investigate. But the real story is about the characters that live in the Big Horn Mountains and the mountains themselves. They are richly drawn and well rounded. The mystery provides the stage for the various characters to int
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Aug 10, 2010
Ron
rated it:
My wife discovered this author, and I am grateful. Mystery is not her biggest genre but having fallen in love with Wyoming on our last road trip the combination of Wyoming settings and great reviews sparked her curiosity. Craig Johnson has moved on to my favourite authors list. Amazing characters, great dialogue and a good plot, what more do you want. The hero Walt Longmire is older, overweight and living in depression fuelled semi squalor since the death of his wife, starts to get his shit toge
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