First Published: 1967
Pages: 140
Okay, so the first thing I should own up to is that I did not read a digital version of this book. Those readers that follow the same Facebook groups as me, may have seen that I was recently able to acquire a fairly large collection of books by L'Amour in the UK Corgi editions. This is the first of those I have decided to read. I don't think I would be exaggerating if I said that the vast majority, if not all, of L'Amour's books are readily available in eBook format. So I don't feel like I am cheating on the premise of this blog by reviewing after reading a paperback edition. And I will say now, that I fully intend to repeat this stance going forward. I am not a 'digital only' proponent - I love paperbacks, I collect them in modest amounts, and cannot ever see that stopping. But the reason I read more digital than I used to is because of a) a lack space in my home, b) to save money, and c) to avoid giving my partner an asthma attack (she can hardly spend much more than 10 minutes in most UK second hand books these days, so having a house full of old books needs to be avoided). I will always purchase a vintage paperback if the price is competitive in comparison to an eBook, and I will mention that in all my blogs. But the overriding principle is that an eBook should be available. In this case, my L'Amours worked out at less than £1 per book, whereas on Amazon UK, a single L'Amour could cost between £1.50 and £4.50 each.
With that out of the way, let's concentrate on Matagorda by arguably the most famous Western writer on the planet (anyone disagree with that?). L'Amour (1908 -1988) was born Louis LaMoore, in Jamestown, North Dakota. Hailing from French ancestry through his father and Irish through his mother, he travelled the world and finally settled in Oklahoma in the early 1930's where he changed his name to Louis L'Amour and settled down to become a writer.
By the time he published Matagorda in 1967 he had already established himself, with over forty novels. This book is a standalone, and does not form part of any ongoing series he created, such as the Sackett family stories. It takes place on the Texas cost, and concerns the attempt of Major Tappan Duvarney (Tap to his friends) to invest in the cattle trade, by entering into a partnership with a former Civil War adversary, Tom Kittery. Their plan is to round up and drive the herd, bankrolled by Taps' investment across Texas to sell for a profit.
Unfortunately, Tap soon learns that the Kittery family have been enmeshed in a violent and long-standing feud with another family, the Munsons. This feud, thought by Tom Kittery to be long settled, has in fact outlasted the War, and Tom has become embroiled in it once again. He has surrounded himself with other like-minded men, who are just as blood-thirsty and eager to fight the Munson clan. Similarly the Munsons, have attracted their fair share of men hungry for the thrill of killing.
L'Amour is clever with how he portrays the leads in this story. Even though it is clear that Duvarney is the central character and hero, his business partner, Tom, has more mystery and the reader is left guessing as to whether he will turn bad or not as the plot unfolds.
We also are introduced to Tom's fiance, Maddy Coppinger, who is a young woman frustrated with being trapped in a small town, and wants to move to the big city, preferably new Orleans. I didn't feel greatly impressed with the way she is written - she comes across as a bit of a stereotypical spoiled brat in places. However, Tap's fiance, who makes an appearance at a later stage, is a much more sympathetic female character and I enjoyed the scenes she has a presence in.
Matagorda Island, is a long barrier island of the coast of Texas, and it is here that the events of the book lead us to. Kittery and Duvarney's herd are guided to this area, so that they can be taken to sell, but on course that will evade any encounters with the Munson clan. Obviously that is not going to happen, so events begin to get complicated and there are ambushes, killings and stand-offs between both parties leading to a hurricane ravaged finale.
This was my first Louis L'Amour book for a very long time. Probably well over thirty years, so any memories of previous books is far too old to dig up now. I enjoyed reading Matagorda, L'Amour was a talented writer, there is no arguing with that fact, and he is easy to read. He handles the storytelling in this book in a way that holds your attention throughout - and barring the slightly outdated portrayal of Maddy - his style is comforting and compelling, its no wonder he went on to sell so many novels.Speaking of style, it must be pointed out that with this L'Amour you are not going to get anything like the ultra-violent themes from other series like Edge, Crow or Steele. L'Amour is from a period encompassing the 40s, 50s and 60s, so think more along the lines of Western movies of those eras, more plot involving cattle rustling, driving etc. There are shootouts of course, but in Matagorda they are swiftly told and the level of graphic description much less. Sex is also absent, I don't know if that is a L'Amour troupe, but in this story, the women worship the men, and the men adore the women, but the furthest we get into a quick embrace and kiss, no more.
In summary, for me Matagorda was good read, short in length, with tight plotting, and a satisfying finale allowing all the main characters plot lines to resolve. Some the background characters could have done with more flesh, however that's a nit-pick. Recommended.