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Chisos Mountain Sunset
Career criminal Lionel Wayne Sturgis is traveling from Florida to California to visit his dying mother. The only problem is that he has to steal a string of vehicles to get there. His plan goes horribly wrong when he takes a truck in Louisiana and is later pulled over outside of Alpine, Texas. Sturgis starts shooting, killing a police officer in the process. Faced with a jury trial, Sturgis works with Garrison Trask, a criminal defense attorney with 25 years experience. An anti-death penalty advocate, Trask defends the surly Sturgis who appears to have no remorse and no redeeming qualities. Sturgis ultimately battles more than just a jury of his peers, and learns that the rugged Big Bend region of Texas is no place to be taken lightly.
252 pages, Hardcover
First published April 28, 2011
3 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
June 18, 2012
Full disclosure: the author is a friend of mine. That is the main reason I read this book. Because how many times do you get to read a published novel by an author you know personally?
Jimmy is such a stand-up guy, though, that he never urged a copy on me or asked for a review of any kind. I think he mentioned it on his facebook page, so I bought a copy.
There was another reason for reading that was also important: I've made two visits to Texas but have never been to the Big Bend country that serves as the setting for important sections of the book. Jimmy has urged me to visit the Big Bend a number of times, and this book constitutes one more.
Patterson treats the landscape and what I'll call the spirit of the place with reverence and respect in his book. That's also the way he treats his characters. His main character is not the nicest guy in the world but by the time we're finished with the book, Lionel Sturgis is a full human being. All the characters, Lionel's mother, his lawyer, the cops who pursue him, even the prosecuting attorney are allowed to have mixed motives, kind and unkind thoughts, questions about what to do, and questions over what they did in the past. In other words, these people are real even though they're not. In the foreword, which I would recommend reading only after finishing the book, Patterson discusses the various inspirations for the characters and story.
That story is structured so well that every time I thought I had the end figured out (a terrible habit of mine when reading), something would happen to keep me guessing. The narrative jumps back and forth in time quite a bit. This kind of thing often leaves me confused. And although this structure did keep me from guessing the end, I never got lost or confused. Well, I lost myself in Chisos Mountain Sunset, but only in a good way.
Jimmy says he's working on another novel. I'll read that one too. Though this time the main reason will be that I'm looking forward to reading another book by an author I like.
Jimmy is such a stand-up guy, though, that he never urged a copy on me or asked for a review of any kind. I think he mentioned it on his facebook page, so I bought a copy.
There was another reason for reading that was also important: I've made two visits to Texas but have never been to the Big Bend country that serves as the setting for important sections of the book. Jimmy has urged me to visit the Big Bend a number of times, and this book constitutes one more.
Patterson treats the landscape and what I'll call the spirit of the place with reverence and respect in his book. That's also the way he treats his characters. His main character is not the nicest guy in the world but by the time we're finished with the book, Lionel Sturgis is a full human being. All the characters, Lionel's mother, his lawyer, the cops who pursue him, even the prosecuting attorney are allowed to have mixed motives, kind and unkind thoughts, questions about what to do, and questions over what they did in the past. In other words, these people are real even though they're not. In the foreword, which I would recommend reading only after finishing the book, Patterson discusses the various inspirations for the characters and story.
That story is structured so well that every time I thought I had the end figured out (a terrible habit of mine when reading), something would happen to keep me guessing. The narrative jumps back and forth in time quite a bit. This kind of thing often leaves me confused. And although this structure did keep me from guessing the end, I never got lost or confused. Well, I lost myself in Chisos Mountain Sunset, but only in a good way.
Jimmy says he's working on another novel. I'll read that one too. Though this time the main reason will be that I'm looking forward to reading another book by an author I like.
December 26, 2011
I enjoy courtroom dramas and tales of escape. This one combines both. There are two simultaneous stories. One is the story of the pre-trial activities and the trial itself. The other is a "flash forward" where we read about the defendant's escape across the West Texas desert in the Big Bend area. The stories converge at the end of the book.
The book is inspired by a real-life incident, which happened in Fort Stockton, Texas. The attorney, Tom Morgan, asked Jimmy Patterson to write the book and gave him interviews and materials to help create the story.
As a Midlander, let me tell you that the settings and depictions of life in West Texas are accurate.
The antagonist character (the defendant) is a very unlikeable character. Yet as we learn more about his background, it would be easy to have some sympathy for him. But make no mistake; he's a bad dude.
The protagonist (the attorney) battles between his ethical responsibilities as a lawyer and his convictions as a Catholic.
All in all, it's a good, entertaining read. And if you're from or familiar with West Texas, I suspect you'll especially enjoy the descriptions of the area.
The book is inspired by a real-life incident, which happened in Fort Stockton, Texas. The attorney, Tom Morgan, asked Jimmy Patterson to write the book and gave him interviews and materials to help create the story.
As a Midlander, let me tell you that the settings and depictions of life in West Texas are accurate.
The antagonist character (the defendant) is a very unlikeable character. Yet as we learn more about his background, it would be easy to have some sympathy for him. But make no mistake; he's a bad dude.
The protagonist (the attorney) battles between his ethical responsibilities as a lawyer and his convictions as a Catholic.
All in all, it's a good, entertaining read. And if you're from or familiar with West Texas, I suspect you'll especially enjoy the descriptions of the area.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews