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Talon and Chantry #5
North to the Rails
When Tom Chantry comes west to buy cattle, he quickly runs into trouble. During a drunken scuffle in a bar, Dutch Akin challenges Chantry to a gunfight. Leaving town rather than face Akin, Chantry is quickly branded a coward. He hires French Williams, a shrewd and ruthless cattleman, who will take the herd unless Chantry can finish the drive.
168 pages, Leather Bound
First published February 1, 1971
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652 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 100 reviews
August 24, 2020
"Tom Chantry lay that night, looking up at the stars and, tired as he was, there was little sleep in him . . . he suddenly felt very much alone, but he remembered something his father had said: 'Don't ever be afraid of being alone, boy. The strongest man is he who stands alone.'" -- on pages 40-41
Fairly standard western, set in the 1880's lawless New Mexico / Colorado frontier, that starts out with an interesting premise - an young Easterner named Chantry, who does not much care for or even carry firearms (although he is comfortable on horseback), takes point on a cattle drive to bring in some money for his widowed mother and fiancee. Also, Chantry stands a bit in shadow of his late father, a respected small town marshal who was gunned down in the line of duty with the suspects never apprehended. Inexplicably, the GR synopsis and/or rear cover blurb will have the potential readers think that the story is about a probable showdown between Chantry and a drunk town bully he runs afoul of in the opening pages. However, the plot soon diverts from that and - especially in the latter half of the book - gets caught up in curves / contrivances, plus introducing a few too many minor villainous characters, that it reduces some of the enjoyment after the first 150 or so pages.
Fairly standard western, set in the 1880's lawless New Mexico / Colorado frontier, that starts out with an interesting premise - an young Easterner named Chantry, who does not much care for or even carry firearms (although he is comfortable on horseback), takes point on a cattle drive to bring in some money for his widowed mother and fiancee. Also, Chantry stands a bit in shadow of his late father, a respected small town marshal who was gunned down in the line of duty with the suspects never apprehended. Inexplicably, the GR synopsis and/or rear cover blurb will have the potential readers think that the story is about a probable showdown between Chantry and a drunk town bully he runs afoul of in the opening pages. However, the plot soon diverts from that and - especially in the latter half of the book - gets caught up in curves / contrivances, plus introducing a few too many minor villainous characters, that it reduces some of the enjoyment after the first 150 or so pages.
December 15, 2020
Tom Chantry is a fish out of water. Born in west but after his father is killed in a gunfight he is take East by his mother. He comes back as an adult to save his fiancee family from bankruptcy by bringing in a cattle herd. He fights a hidden enemy and through ambushes, a stampede and the greed of a nasty woman he battles on.
A very readable story.
A very readable story.
May 4, 2022
3.75/5
There were some pacing issues and it was a bit repetitive but overall this was a fun fast-paced tale. The ending was also a little mean-spirited and unexpected but left me feeling satisfied.
There were some pacing issues and it was a bit repetitive but overall this was a fun fast-paced tale. The ending was also a little mean-spirited and unexpected but left me feeling satisfied.
November 10, 2024
I Enjoyed Reading This Series.
June 8, 2011
Excellent western by the master of tales, Louis L'Amour. Man thought to be a coward takes up the fight when necessary.
March 28, 2019
A young man comes west to buy cattle to sell at a profit to the demands of the eastern markets, but right when he is supposed to be meeting with a rancher about his cattle, he finds himself confronted with a drunk cowboy who picks a fight over accidentally bumping into each other. Tom doesn't carry a gun and refuses the challenge over such a little thing and rides away rather than get caught up in a gun battle. He has no idea that in the eyes of men in the west, he's just shown himself a coward rather than a man of sense. He can't get men to sell to him or get men to ride with him on a cattle drive so he is forced to make a bet with the cunning French Williams. French and his men will throw in and help drive the herd north to the railroad cars, but Tom Chantry has to be there at the end or French gets the whole herd profit. Tom learns that French is not opposed to helping him lose when the first man French hires is the one Tom backed down from in that saloon.
But French's tricks are only one of Tom's concerns when he has rustlers, Kiowa, and someone else who wants him dead after the herd. Oh, and then there are the men still out there who killed his pa when he was young and think he's back out west for revenge now that he's a man. When this much money is at stake, people will do a great deal to get it.
I am always impressed how the author writes a compelling character like Tom and surround him with several other fascinating characters. Tom comes into his own in more ways than one during this cattle drive. Seeing his father brought home and shot up bad from an ambush, left an indelible mark on him and pair that with his mother's hatred of the west the whole time she lived there and Tom was a tenderfoot easterner when he encounters the tough code of the western frontier right away. But, that was the easier part. Then he faces derision, shunning, and men set to bully him because they saw his actions as weak. Tom was not weak nor incapable. He remembers a great deal of what his dad taught him and sees it all in a new light now that he is a man and facing hard and dangerous circumstances. It becomes obvious the way Tom works the cattle drive, faces troublemakers, his conduct with the war-like Kiowa, and his determination to see this venture to the end that he is far from a coward and, in the end, he is far from the tenderfoot with high ideals who came west and didn't get that evil men were not going to play fair.
Like other books by this author, Tom becomes surrounded by a colorful cast of characters. Some choose to ignore the talk and work with him, others come to respect him after he earns it, others are obvious mean and hard enemies. But, then there are a few characters that are shades of gray and keep the reader curious what their end game is. I enjoy getting to know the characters as much as the frontier setting that comes alive under the author's pen.
I did have one niggle. There is a woman introduced early on. It took a while for things to unveil with where she fit into it all. Her presence confused me. Not her existence or what she was doing in the present situation. That was fine. It was when the story was finished that I was left wondering some why questions that never get answered. How does she come to be in the area when the person she has connections with is from a great distance off? How does she discover the news of the cattle drive and have time to arrange all the things that she did? And, where her animosity came from? One or two sentences of explanation would have sufficed. I felt like the author was trying to be so mysterious about her, but never came back to fill in the dots for the reader/listener. But, other than that, the rest was riveting in Tom's gritty cattle drive adventure and the big showdown.
Michael Crouch is not a new to me narrator. In fact, I recently enjoyed a very different genre and book he narrated so I can vouch for his versatility. I thought he did well telling young Tom's story with a smooth and thoughtful eastern voice, but also voiced the gruffer or more casual western accent, too. There were a few female voices that he did great. He caught the pace of the story and the tone during each type of scene whether it was Tom pondering western ways or a stampede that is life and death. I would definitely listen to more of his work.
All in all, this was a wonderful blend of western adventure, mystery, and coming of age that I can heartily recommend to those who want a rousing good listen in a western setting.
My thanks to Penguin-Random House Audio for the opportunity to listen to this book in exchange for an honest review.
But French's tricks are only one of Tom's concerns when he has rustlers, Kiowa, and someone else who wants him dead after the herd. Oh, and then there are the men still out there who killed his pa when he was young and think he's back out west for revenge now that he's a man. When this much money is at stake, people will do a great deal to get it.
I am always impressed how the author writes a compelling character like Tom and surround him with several other fascinating characters. Tom comes into his own in more ways than one during this cattle drive. Seeing his father brought home and shot up bad from an ambush, left an indelible mark on him and pair that with his mother's hatred of the west the whole time she lived there and Tom was a tenderfoot easterner when he encounters the tough code of the western frontier right away. But, that was the easier part. Then he faces derision, shunning, and men set to bully him because they saw his actions as weak. Tom was not weak nor incapable. He remembers a great deal of what his dad taught him and sees it all in a new light now that he is a man and facing hard and dangerous circumstances. It becomes obvious the way Tom works the cattle drive, faces troublemakers, his conduct with the war-like Kiowa, and his determination to see this venture to the end that he is far from a coward and, in the end, he is far from the tenderfoot with high ideals who came west and didn't get that evil men were not going to play fair.
Like other books by this author, Tom becomes surrounded by a colorful cast of characters. Some choose to ignore the talk and work with him, others come to respect him after he earns it, others are obvious mean and hard enemies. But, then there are a few characters that are shades of gray and keep the reader curious what their end game is. I enjoy getting to know the characters as much as the frontier setting that comes alive under the author's pen.
I did have one niggle. There is a woman introduced early on. It took a while for things to unveil with where she fit into it all. Her presence confused me. Not her existence or what she was doing in the present situation. That was fine. It was when the story was finished that I was left wondering some why questions that never get answered. How does she come to be in the area when the person she has connections with is from a great distance off? How does she discover the news of the cattle drive and have time to arrange all the things that she did? And, where her animosity came from? One or two sentences of explanation would have sufficed. I felt like the author was trying to be so mysterious about her, but never came back to fill in the dots for the reader/listener. But, other than that, the rest was riveting in Tom's gritty cattle drive adventure and the big showdown.
Michael Crouch is not a new to me narrator. In fact, I recently enjoyed a very different genre and book he narrated so I can vouch for his versatility. I thought he did well telling young Tom's story with a smooth and thoughtful eastern voice, but also voiced the gruffer or more casual western accent, too. There were a few female voices that he did great. He caught the pace of the story and the tone during each type of scene whether it was Tom pondering western ways or a stampede that is life and death. I would definitely listen to more of his work.
All in all, this was a wonderful blend of western adventure, mystery, and coming of age that I can heartily recommend to those who want a rousing good listen in a western setting.
My thanks to Penguin-Random House Audio for the opportunity to listen to this book in exchange for an honest review.
October 14, 2019
Louis Lamar’s “North to the Rails” is an action/ adventure novel. It is a fictional book focused on the character Tom Chantry, and his journey through the Wild West over a deal on some cattle. They face Indians, thieves, and a whole lot of danger. Tom Chantry is an honorable man, strong and tough, learning to adapt to the wilderness. French Williams is another character. He is mysterious and tricky. There are a few other characters that play a big role, but stating who they are can reveal plots in the book.The time period is never stated but can be understood to be during the time period when railroads are being built. It takes place in Las Vegas and the Wild West. The narrator is speaking from an outside perspective. The writer does a very good job of keeping the reader engaged and painting an image in the reader’s head. Overall, this novel was very entertaining. I would recommend it to someone who likes action and adventure books, as well as anyone who enjoys westerns.
October 11, 2020
A cute little Western with lot of horse riding, gunfights and to my delight, no romance coz the book only had about 190 pages. I'm glad Lous kept it simple and stupid without losing the focus. Adding a love story to this would have made things more complicated. Most of the authors who write Westerns do it though. Completely unnecessary if you already have a good story. North to the Rails is no Lonesome Dove, but it made a strong impression on me. I'm looking forward to read more of Louis L'Amour. He's a no-nonsense guy.
May 22, 2020
There's nothing quite like the sincerity, simplicity, and truth of a good 'ol western. 🥰
June 13, 2021
Il romanzo è una storia di formazione, nella quale il figlio dello sceriffo Borden ChantryBorden Chantry, cresciuto nell'est, torna al west prima in senso reale, poi in senso figurato. Deve recuperare una mandria per il suo futuro suocero, e affronterà molte avversità che lo porteranno a cambiare idea sul portare armi e anche sull'usarle contro le persone, fino a diventare quello che sarebbe stato se sua madre non lo avesse portato a crescere nell'est dopo la morte, in un agguato, del padre.
Farà i conti non solo con chi lo considera un codardo, ma anche con chi uccise suo padre a tradimento, e con chi pensa solo a se stesso in quell'inno all'individualismo che è la storia degli USA.
4 stelle.
Farà i conti non solo con chi lo considera un codardo, ma anche con chi uccise suo padre a tradimento, e con chi pensa solo a se stesso in quell'inno all'individualismo che è la storia degli USA.
4 stelle.
March 26, 2025
A good story and I enjoyed it. Danger, tension, suspicion of characters, a cattle drive, and a man determined to do his best to get the job done no matter what came his way. There are Indians and outlaws, good guys, and bad, some people get killed, but it’s not gory.
Someone said something in here that might as well have been said now because it fit so perfectly.
“You can make laws against weapons but they will be observed only by those who don’t intend to use them anyway. The lawless can always smuggle or steal, or even make a gun. By refusing to wear a gun you allow the criminal to operate with impunity.”
Not a Christian book and there are a few swear words.
Someone said something in here that might as well have been said now because it fit so perfectly.
“You can make laws against weapons but they will be observed only by those who don’t intend to use them anyway. The lawless can always smuggle or steal, or even make a gun. By refusing to wear a gun you allow the criminal to operate with impunity.”
Not a Christian book and there are a few swear words.
October 21, 2019
.
North to the Rails
• by Louis L'Amour
(First pub. 1971, under 300 pages)
OVERVIEW:
When Tom Chantry comes west to buy cattle, he quickly runs into trouble. (At the saloon a hostile drunk named)...Dutch Akin challenges Chantry to a gunfight. Leaving town rather than face Akin, Chantry is quickly branded a coward.
Later, when hiring men to take his herd to the railroad, Chantry faces a dilemma: No one wants to make the long, dangerous ride with a leader of questionable courage. So when French Williams, a shrewd and ruthless cattleman, makes Chantry an offer, Tom reluctantly accepts his unusual terms: Tom must remain with the drive from start to finish. If he fails to do so, the entire herd will belong to French.
Tom quickly learns that life is not going to be made easy for him. The first man French hires is Dutch Akin.
•
Dutch turns out to be the least of his troubles. When sober he's reasonable and friendly and acknowledges Tom's decision kept them both alive. When Tom was still a lad his father (Borden Chantry) served as town marshal for six years, until he was ambushed and murdered by the outlaw Frank Ruff and his two cohorts. Since then Tom has taken his mom's warning to heart (live by the gun and you'll die by the gun). He's now a pacifist, doesn't carry a gun, avoids violence and believes "...a lot more can be done by reason then by guns."
The story discusses unarmed pacifism, versus the reality of armed criminals acting with impunity and the responsibility to be armed for self defense and the defense of others.
In his civilized East Coast city living peacefully without firearms was easy for Tom. Now he has entered the gun-carrying wild west where he's expected to deal in cattle to keep Earnshaw and Company solvent. Doris Earnshaw is his fiance and her father Robert Earnshaw needs the money a quick cattle transaction would generate. With the assistance of cattlemen French Williams and his team of drovers, Tom soon has 2200 head of cattle headed towards the nearest railroad / railhead, about a month-long journey.
Tom eventually proves he's not a coward: he can shoot; hunt and defend himself as a skilled boxer, putting surly cowpunchers in their place; he's Western born, is a horseman and a tracker. He just doesn't want to carry a gun and has no desire to kill anyone or to be killed--a desire that becomes increasingly difficult to maintain. In addition to wild Indians and rustlers, French's homicidal niece Sarah is in the area. Sarah has hired a band of outlaws to steal the herd and kill Tom.
It's not clear how Sarah found out about the small fortune to be made selling a herd of over 2,000 cattle or if her uncle French put her up to it. She's determined to get this money for herself and head to New York, then Paris--living out her life in style.
While out scouting Tom is shot, robbed and left for dead. After that he starts carrying a gun, which he's forced to use a few times against would-be killers set on doing him in. As they get nearer the railroad, Tom wakes one night to a mystery: French and his men have left, leaving Tom alone with the whole herd. I don't believe the story clarified why this happened, but soon rustlers move in. The nearby Kiowa tribe, originally befriended by Tom's dad, now helps gather the herd and drive them on to the railroad town.
At the railhead, Mr Earnshaw and Doris are there in a private train car and the cattle are sold for bags of gold. Sarah is there as well, she's given up on the herd and now plots to take the gold and soon does just that. Her gang steals the train and the car holding the Earnshaw's and the gold. Tom and his allies (Bone, Mobile and others) give chase. They end up at the Chantry's old ranch house, where French shows up as well. Mr. Sparrow is there. He's been helping Tom and hired a man to watch over him. It turns out Sparrow, in his reckless youth, was one of the men that helped gun down Tom's father (marshal Borden Chantry) and he sorely regrets his crime.
Sparrow, French, Bone and others have a shootout with Sarah's gang: the Ruffs, Hank and Bud Talrim, etc leaving some dead and some wounded. Sarah slipped away on horseback during the gunfight, leading a packhorse loaded with the gold. Five days later they locate the the packhorse with the gold, but no Sarah. Being unfamiliar with the area, carrying no water and missjudging the distances involved on her crude map, she's soon lost in the vast, dry prairie.
With all the gun-toting and violence when Tom first arrived in the west, he couldn't wait to go home. Now he's learned to survive and even made friends with the dangerous Kiowas. He can make good money as a cattleman, there's land to be had and Doris agrees to move west with him.
•
Mostly well done and intriguing.
However, some questions seemed to be left unanswered: did French bring in Sarah; why did French and his men quit the herd and seem to go into hiding; what happened to Tom's trusted scout, the Pawnee named Sun Chief; where did Tom live back east and what exactly did he do for a living?
I'm not sure of the time period. The railroad is still being built and they're laying track westward at a rate of a mile a day--probably during the second half of the 19th century.
.
.
The Chantry Book Series in Chronological Order
Fair Blows the Wind (1978)
Borden Chantry (1977)
● North to the Rails (1971)
Over on the Dry Side (1975)
The Ferguson Rifle (1971)
..
North to the Rails
• by Louis L'Amour
(First pub. 1971, under 300 pages)
OVERVIEW:
When Tom Chantry comes west to buy cattle, he quickly runs into trouble. (At the saloon a hostile drunk named)...Dutch Akin challenges Chantry to a gunfight. Leaving town rather than face Akin, Chantry is quickly branded a coward.
Later, when hiring men to take his herd to the railroad, Chantry faces a dilemma: No one wants to make the long, dangerous ride with a leader of questionable courage. So when French Williams, a shrewd and ruthless cattleman, makes Chantry an offer, Tom reluctantly accepts his unusual terms: Tom must remain with the drive from start to finish. If he fails to do so, the entire herd will belong to French.
Tom quickly learns that life is not going to be made easy for him. The first man French hires is Dutch Akin.
•
Dutch turns out to be the least of his troubles. When sober he's reasonable and friendly and acknowledges Tom's decision kept them both alive. When Tom was still a lad his father (Borden Chantry) served as town marshal for six years, until he was ambushed and murdered by the outlaw Frank Ruff and his two cohorts. Since then Tom has taken his mom's warning to heart (live by the gun and you'll die by the gun). He's now a pacifist, doesn't carry a gun, avoids violence and believes "...a lot more can be done by reason then by guns."
The story discusses unarmed pacifism, versus the reality of armed criminals acting with impunity and the responsibility to be armed for self defense and the defense of others.
In his civilized East Coast city living peacefully without firearms was easy for Tom. Now he has entered the gun-carrying wild west where he's expected to deal in cattle to keep Earnshaw and Company solvent. Doris Earnshaw is his fiance and her father Robert Earnshaw needs the money a quick cattle transaction would generate. With the assistance of cattlemen French Williams and his team of drovers, Tom soon has 2200 head of cattle headed towards the nearest railroad / railhead, about a month-long journey.
Tom eventually proves he's not a coward: he can shoot; hunt and defend himself as a skilled boxer, putting surly cowpunchers in their place; he's Western born, is a horseman and a tracker. He just doesn't want to carry a gun and has no desire to kill anyone or to be killed--a desire that becomes increasingly difficult to maintain. In addition to wild Indians and rustlers, French's homicidal niece Sarah is in the area. Sarah has hired a band of outlaws to steal the herd and kill Tom.
It's not clear how Sarah found out about the small fortune to be made selling a herd of over 2,000 cattle or if her uncle French put her up to it. She's determined to get this money for herself and head to New York, then Paris--living out her life in style.
While out scouting Tom is shot, robbed and left for dead. After that he starts carrying a gun, which he's forced to use a few times against would-be killers set on doing him in. As they get nearer the railroad, Tom wakes one night to a mystery: French and his men have left, leaving Tom alone with the whole herd. I don't believe the story clarified why this happened, but soon rustlers move in. The nearby Kiowa tribe, originally befriended by Tom's dad, now helps gather the herd and drive them on to the railroad town.
At the railhead, Mr Earnshaw and Doris are there in a private train car and the cattle are sold for bags of gold. Sarah is there as well, she's given up on the herd and now plots to take the gold and soon does just that. Her gang steals the train and the car holding the Earnshaw's and the gold. Tom and his allies (Bone, Mobile and others) give chase. They end up at the Chantry's old ranch house, where French shows up as well. Mr. Sparrow is there. He's been helping Tom and hired a man to watch over him. It turns out Sparrow, in his reckless youth, was one of the men that helped gun down Tom's father (marshal Borden Chantry) and he sorely regrets his crime.
Sparrow, French, Bone and others have a shootout with Sarah's gang: the Ruffs, Hank and Bud Talrim, etc leaving some dead and some wounded. Sarah slipped away on horseback during the gunfight, leading a packhorse loaded with the gold. Five days later they locate the the packhorse with the gold, but no Sarah. Being unfamiliar with the area, carrying no water and missjudging the distances involved on her crude map, she's soon lost in the vast, dry prairie.
With all the gun-toting and violence when Tom first arrived in the west, he couldn't wait to go home. Now he's learned to survive and even made friends with the dangerous Kiowas. He can make good money as a cattleman, there's land to be had and Doris agrees to move west with him.
•
Mostly well done and intriguing.
However, some questions seemed to be left unanswered: did French bring in Sarah; why did French and his men quit the herd and seem to go into hiding; what happened to Tom's trusted scout, the Pawnee named Sun Chief; where did Tom live back east and what exactly did he do for a living?
I'm not sure of the time period. The railroad is still being built and they're laying track westward at a rate of a mile a day--probably during the second half of the 19th century.
.
.
The Chantry Book Series in Chronological Order
Fair Blows the Wind (1978)
Borden Chantry (1977)
● North to the Rails (1971)
Over on the Dry Side (1975)
The Ferguson Rifle (1971)
..
July 11, 2017
I wish there was a rating higher than five stars for this book. Every page kept me in suspense!
March 26, 2020
A story of Tom Chantry, a now adult son of Borden Chantry from the previous book.
His father was murdered in cold blood and after that his mother moved them back to East Coast.
Now Tom goes back West to buy cattle for his future father in law, who is also a business man.
When he arrives West, a run in the with a local mean guy proves almost deadly, as the guy challenges him to a duel, which Tom turns down. As it turns out, he doesn’t believe in guns and refuses to use them.
But his actions make it almost impossible for him to buy a herd, as all the local ranchers now believe him a coward. He will have to employ a lot of wit and learn to forget his dislike for violence, because his courage and his fast draw are the only things standing between his failure and death out in the West.
******
Again, very well written story of a person raised in the East and the stark contrast of the life on a Western frontier.
Very engaging and entertaining.
His father was murdered in cold blood and after that his mother moved them back to East Coast.
Now Tom goes back West to buy cattle for his future father in law, who is also a business man.
When he arrives West, a run in the with a local mean guy proves almost deadly, as the guy challenges him to a duel, which Tom turns down. As it turns out, he doesn’t believe in guns and refuses to use them.
But his actions make it almost impossible for him to buy a herd, as all the local ranchers now believe him a coward. He will have to employ a lot of wit and learn to forget his dislike for violence, because his courage and his fast draw are the only things standing between his failure and death out in the West.
******
Again, very well written story of a person raised in the East and the stark contrast of the life on a Western frontier.
Very engaging and entertaining.
October 13, 2020
I liked North to the Rails. It’s a fun book to read and it is interesting. The general idea of the story is that there is this guy, Tom Chantry, who used to live in the west and now lives in the East, has to go back to the West to get cattle for the guy he is working for and sell them. His father was a marshal and was killed so now Tom refuses to carry a gun. The setting of the book is all throughout the west as they drive the cattle back east. I think the book is very engaging and I like the way it starts with the reader knowing little and learning more about Tom’s past as the story progresses. The story is mostly told from Toms’s point of view but is told a few times from other people’s perspectives as well. I thought it was a fun book to read and I recommend it to people who like westerns or action books.
November 19, 2012
http://ebookstore.sony.com/ebook/loui...
Tom Chantry has all his future father-in-law's money to buy cattle and ship back East by rail. But in Las Vegas, he backs down from drunken Dutch Akin, and refuses to wear a gun. He buys stock from French Williams, of questionable morality, and hires French to lead the herd, on a bet Tom can stay the distance to the railway station. But most consider Tom a coward who cannot last. The familiar L'Amour Western, loner hero fights nature and villains for sweetheart and success, always has new twists I have not tired of yet.
Sparrow sells stock too, and secretly assigns Mobile Callahan to help, so I guessed his role in the threesome that killed Tom's sheriff father and caused the boy to be sent East. Tom has to predict how they will plan to take him out, but mastermind villain is a surprise out of nowhere, so is painful final fate. The crisis when, left unconscious, without shoes, weapons, or supplies, Tom has to find safety p120 has no easy deus ex machina, although Kiowa Wolf Walker comes close p223.
Pa said "To just that extent that you lean on somebody, or rely on them, to that extent you are a weaker man" p56. But Tom hires Bone McCarthy and Sun Chief to tag along hidden, so I don't think the advice works. He needs them. The card-hand omen also sucks p147. I preferred when his "sense of survival" finally overrides "what's right" p150 and he takes pistol and rifle to hand.
I like hero's honesty. Sparrow says "The decent people will simply ignore you, the bullies will hunt you down, ... the love of peace and the unwillingness to fight never kept anyone out of trouble. p12 Humor "your cows were the best in the country, giving you four of five calves a year" p60 Chantry. As always, I skip troubling boxing terminology p76 et al; "to the wind" I suspect means in the stomach, put the target out of breath, but can't find proof.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxing see Punches.
Author experience and philosophy naturally seep through. The white man will beat the Injuns with "store-bought things" p87. Tom realizes "money did not seem so important now ... They could start over. Out here that was possible" p327. The final note proclaims optimistic hope.
Typos:
p15 "Las Vagas"
p31 footnote seems unnecessary
p38 "not less tha $50K" is expected, p280 Sara agrees "nearly $50K",
Tom Chantry has all his future father-in-law's money to buy cattle and ship back East by rail. But in Las Vegas, he backs down from drunken Dutch Akin, and refuses to wear a gun. He buys stock from French Williams, of questionable morality, and hires French to lead the herd, on a bet Tom can stay the distance to the railway station. But most consider Tom a coward who cannot last. The familiar L'Amour Western, loner hero fights nature and villains for sweetheart and success, always has new twists I have not tired of yet.
Sparrow sells stock too, and secretly assigns Mobile Callahan to help, so I guessed his role in the threesome that killed Tom's sheriff father and caused the boy to be sent East. Tom has to predict how they will plan to take him out, but mastermind villain is a surprise out of nowhere, so is painful final fate. The crisis when, left unconscious, without shoes, weapons, or supplies, Tom has to find safety p120 has no easy deus ex machina, although Kiowa Wolf Walker comes close p223.
Pa said "To just that extent that you lean on somebody, or rely on them, to that extent you are a weaker man" p56. But Tom hires Bone McCarthy and Sun Chief to tag along hidden, so I don't think the advice works. He needs them. The card-hand omen also sucks p147. I preferred when his "sense of survival" finally overrides "what's right" p150 and he takes pistol and rifle to hand.
I like hero's honesty. Sparrow says "The decent people will simply ignore you, the bullies will hunt you down, ... the love of peace and the unwillingness to fight never kept anyone out of trouble. p12 Humor "your cows were the best in the country, giving you four of five calves a year" p60 Chantry. As always, I skip troubling boxing terminology p76 et al; "to the wind" I suspect means in the stomach, put the target out of breath, but can't find proof.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boxing see Punches.
Author experience and philosophy naturally seep through. The white man will beat the Injuns with "store-bought things" p87. Tom realizes "money did not seem so important now ... They could start over. Out here that was possible" p327. The final note proclaims optimistic hope.
Typos:
p15 "Las Vagas"
p31 footnote seems unnecessary
p38 "not less tha $50K" is expected, p280 Sara agrees "nearly $50K",
January 14, 2021
After heading to the West to buy cattle, Tom Chantry's refusal to take part in a fight gets him labeled as a coward. French Williams, a cattleman with no scruples, is the only one that will help Tom move his cattle, but at a price. Tom must prove that he is no coward to save his herd. North To The Rails has the usual cast for a romantic Western: a hero in conflict, a beautiful damsel, and bad guys committed to a crime.
November 13, 2016
Typical of Louis Lamour, North to the Rails has a solid premise. Slightly less typical is a rather contrived plot. Enjoyable read, but he's done much better.
May 12, 2020
Nobody does a western better than Louis L'Amour.
August 6, 2017
This story was not what I expected. I guess I have a problem with someone not standing up to a bully even if they are drunk. I wasn't impressed with Tom Chantry at first. His mother ruined him in many ways. She was always complaining about people being killed and just never understood that there were really bad men that would kill without hesitation. It was interesting to see how Tom changed over the course of the story. He went from a man raised in the East secure that there was never any reason to kill a man to realizing that if you come into a new cultural you have to adapt to the mores of the area. No one should kill just to being killing but there are times in the West that to protect your family, livelihood and yourself gun play was necessary. I was also impressed with the way Tom handled the Kiowa warriors. Tom is a smart person and it shows over and over as the story moves to it end.
There are some twists and turns that many will probably see through easily but I found very interesting. There are the gun battle, fist fights and a stampede that make up so many of the western stories. There are also all the usual players, the indians, the cowboys, cattle buyers, the gamblers and so many more. There is also those looking for redemption. This is a western story and one should not forget what that means. It is a quick read and worth time it will take to finish.
There are some twists and turns that many will probably see through easily but I found very interesting. There are the gun battle, fist fights and a stampede that make up so many of the western stories. There are also all the usual players, the indians, the cowboys, cattle buyers, the gamblers and so many more. There is also those looking for redemption. This is a western story and one should not forget what that means. It is a quick read and worth time it will take to finish.
September 5, 2019
Tom Chantry, the son of Borden Chantry, starts out with the reputation of a coward with a distaste for guns - a character vastly different from the sort usually presented by L'Amour. L'Amour took a strong stance on guns in this book, with the wild west eroding Tom's idealism in an effort to show why guns are sometimes necessary. This story will appeal to advocates for the Second Amendment, serving as a clear example of how criminals don't bother to pay attention to laws.
The story felt splotchy, as though the seams showed in between the scenes. I know L'Amour didn't enjoy editing but this book, like many of L'Amour's books, contains typos and printing errors that I blame on the publishers. It's a missing (conjunctive) word or the wrong tense of a word in a passage not attempting a vernacular dialect; small things that should've been weeded out long ago because these books have been through multiple printings. The errors don't inhibit understanding of the passage but they are a minor annoyance that momentarily distracts me from the story.
My favorite part of this book is the ending because it exemplifies hubris. I'm not giving away more spoiler than that; I just want to note that the ending of this book has been my favorite from any of the books in either the Sacketts or Talon and Chantry series.
The story felt splotchy, as though the seams showed in between the scenes. I know L'Amour didn't enjoy editing but this book, like many of L'Amour's books, contains typos and printing errors that I blame on the publishers. It's a missing (conjunctive) word or the wrong tense of a word in a passage not attempting a vernacular dialect; small things that should've been weeded out long ago because these books have been through multiple printings. The errors don't inhibit understanding of the passage but they are a minor annoyance that momentarily distracts me from the story.
My favorite part of this book is the ending because it exemplifies hubris. I'm not giving away more spoiler than that; I just want to note that the ending of this book has been my favorite from any of the books in either the Sacketts or Talon and Chantry series.
November 12, 2025
This has some shades of the Virginian, or the Man Who Shot Liberty Valance.
The main character is Tom Chantry, son of Borden Chantry, who had his own novel. Tom was taken back East by his mother after his father was killed in an ambush. He's come back West to buy some cattle for Eastern business partners. Thinking life in the west is like life in the East, he refuses to wear a gun. Quick spoiler, he's wearing one by the end of the book.
He buys a cattle herd, and puts together a group of cow punchers and drive them north to the rails. Along the way he encounters problems in his crew--starting with the trail boss--the murderous Tallim brothers, mysterious brother and sister on his trail that he's never met and even the people tied up with his father's murder.
A solid, exciting entry into the L'Amour canon. By the last fifty pages, I couldn't put it down.
This is part of L'Amour's Chantry family stories. His goal was to tell the story of the west by following three different families, the Sackett family from England--his most popular books--Talon family from France and the Chantry's from Ireland. It is unusual because it's not told in first person the way the Sackett and Talon stories are. (Eventually L'Amour gave over to the Sacketts and let the Talon and Chantry family stories slide.)
The main character is Tom Chantry, son of Borden Chantry, who had his own novel. Tom was taken back East by his mother after his father was killed in an ambush. He's come back West to buy some cattle for Eastern business partners. Thinking life in the west is like life in the East, he refuses to wear a gun. Quick spoiler, he's wearing one by the end of the book.
He buys a cattle herd, and puts together a group of cow punchers and drive them north to the rails. Along the way he encounters problems in his crew--starting with the trail boss--the murderous Tallim brothers, mysterious brother and sister on his trail that he's never met and even the people tied up with his father's murder.
A solid, exciting entry into the L'Amour canon. By the last fifty pages, I couldn't put it down.
This is part of L'Amour's Chantry family stories. His goal was to tell the story of the west by following three different families, the Sackett family from England--his most popular books--Talon family from France and the Chantry's from Ireland. It is unusual because it's not told in first person the way the Sackett and Talon stories are. (Eventually L'Amour gave over to the Sacketts and let the Talon and Chantry family stories slide.)
January 14, 2024
This is my 95th Louie L'Amour book.
Although the storyline is a bit convoluted, with several plot lines ranging from improbable to preposterous, the character development of Tom Chantry is one of the author's most extensive I've read. Most of Louie's main characters already come with at least half of the skills, experiences, and stoic personality traits and go from there. Tom has almost none of these gifts at the start of the story, but slowly as he is exposed to the underside of humanity, begins to shore up his arsenal of successful traits with skepticism, reading sign, gun carrying, horsemanship, negotiating with outlaws, friendlies, and the Indians, while solving more and more complex problems.
Typical of most of his storylines, the love interest, in this case Doris, is hardly developed at all. Even the queen b***h Sarah is a one-dimensional, cardboard villain. Where Louie always shines is detailing the struggle that young men face in coming of age and fighting thru adversity to emerge with a chance at middle-age success.
Although the storyline is a bit convoluted, with several plot lines ranging from improbable to preposterous, the character development of Tom Chantry is one of the author's most extensive I've read. Most of Louie's main characters already come with at least half of the skills, experiences, and stoic personality traits and go from there. Tom has almost none of these gifts at the start of the story, but slowly as he is exposed to the underside of humanity, begins to shore up his arsenal of successful traits with skepticism, reading sign, gun carrying, horsemanship, negotiating with outlaws, friendlies, and the Indians, while solving more and more complex problems.
Typical of most of his storylines, the love interest, in this case Doris, is hardly developed at all. Even the queen b***h Sarah is a one-dimensional, cardboard villain. Where Louie always shines is detailing the struggle that young men face in coming of age and fighting thru adversity to emerge with a chance at middle-age success.
April 16, 2019
This book starts a bit differently than most Louis L'Amour novels, whit the protagonist a pacifist from the east who begins the book running from a fight. At least that's how its viewed by westerners, he thinks of it as avoiding a pointless conflict that isn't worth killing over. But this easterner has a particular heritage; he's the son of Borden Chantry, a man L'Amour wrote several books about.
The plan is to hire a herd and drive it to the railroad, then ship it east to his fiance's father to save the company. But he runs into quite a bit of trouble, much of it of his own making.
Like many L'Amour novels, this one starts out fresh and interesting then falls into very familiar, comfortable patterns from L'Amour, so its not as great as some of his other work. But still, enjoyable, full of rich description and characterization, and a unique perspective on the west, at first at least.
The plan is to hire a herd and drive it to the railroad, then ship it east to his fiance's father to save the company. But he runs into quite a bit of trouble, much of it of his own making.
Like many L'Amour novels, this one starts out fresh and interesting then falls into very familiar, comfortable patterns from L'Amour, so its not as great as some of his other work. But still, enjoyable, full of rich description and characterization, and a unique perspective on the west, at first at least.
December 16, 2018
I don't know why I don't read Louis L'amour books more often. My Dad read them nearly all of the time when we were kids. They are usually quick reads but excellent stories. The characters in North to the Rails were well-formed, as always in a L'Amour book. I don't consider this book political at all, but one could sure find the age-old argument about the need for keeping a gun handy. Kind of a timeless argument really.
I loved the ending of the book. I couldn't wait to devour the story, and it cost me some hours I should have been sleeping. I am glad I used them for the book instead.
I loved the ending of the book. I couldn't wait to devour the story, and it cost me some hours I should have been sleeping. I am glad I used them for the book instead.
February 12, 2018
I enjoyed this one - like most of L'Amour's work, a nice quick weekend read with plenty of action and an interesting story as long as you don't think too hard about the series of fortuitous coincidences that keep the main character from being killed immediately within the first 10 pages. I particularly liked the large cast of supporting characters, from the enigmatic French Williams to mystery woman "Sarah" to itinerant gambler and cowhand Mobile Callahan.
April 5, 2024
One of the Talon/Chantry series. Son goes west from the east-encounters violence and refuses to participate-buys a herd for a firm back east-sundry folks try to rob him, forcing him to lose his pacifism.
The character development as a plot point didn't really work for me. but the rest of the story is a fine page turner in what I think of as the 1960s Western style. i.e. the plot is less conquering a country and a more ambiguous situation.
The character development as a plot point didn't really work for me. but the rest of the story is a fine page turner in what I think of as the 1960s Western style. i.e. the plot is less conquering a country and a more ambiguous situation.
June 4, 2025
Tom Chantry, the son of Borden, is the main character of this book. He goes West to buy cattle for his future father in law. His father was a famous lawman who was gunned down in an ambush, but after his father’s death, his mother went back East. He refuses to wear a gun at first, but soon realized that if he was to live, he needed it. It seems that everyone is trying to kill him, but he sons has some allies. The story is action packed with Indians and crooks. But he is truly Borden’s son.
January 27, 2021
I ended up reading this in two days. It is fantastic. Instantly sucked me in, and felt like I was watching a great movie the whole time. It’s classic western fun, with mystery, revenge, double crosses, and romance. As with most Louis L’Amour books, there are times when I got a little confused as to who was speaking, but it still remains an entertaining yarn.
November 16, 2021
This is my first book by Louis L'amour and I can see why he earned his success. This western, really more of a novella, is filled with action and tension and bad guys who are extra bad and plenty of twists and turns. Also since I listened to this story being read, I want to say that Michael Crouch did a great job of acting out the roles. Good stuff.
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