Reviews for An Obvious Fact

by Craig Johnson

Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

Wyoming sheriff Walt Longmire seems to be spending less and less time in his own jurisdiction of Absaroka County: here he's been asked to consult on a hit-and-run near Devil's Tower in the northeast corner of the state. Conveniently, longtime friend Henry Standing Bear is competing just across the border in the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally, and, coincidentally, Henry's old flame Lola is the mother of the victim. With biker madness as the backdrop, the twelfth Longmire novel (following Dry Bones, 2015) ambles along through a convoluted case with a large cast, plenty of clues, and a heaping helping of the jocular interplay fans crave. (Naturally, undersheriff and love interest Vic Moretti flies in to assist.) It's certainly no mere hit-and-run or biker feud otherwise, why would the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms be involved? There's no supernatural element here, as is common in Johnson's novels, and Longmire is never truly tested, but readers who wish they were deputized in this particular posse will be eager to go along for the ride.--Graff, Keir Copyright 2016 Booklist


Publishers Weekly
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In Johnson's thrilling 12th Walt Longmire mystery (after 2015's Dry Bones), the Wyoming lawman and his longtime friend and sidekick, Henry Standing Bear, look into the circumstances that led 22-year-old Bodaway Torres, now in a coma, to run his motorcycle off the road during the country's largest annual motorcycle rally, held in Sturgis, S.Dak. Much to Walt's surprise, Bodaway's mother turns out to be "the" Lola, namesake of not only Henry's beloved car but also Walt's infant granddaughter-and there's a history between Henry and Lola that's anything but pleasant. When it becomes clear that Bodaway's crash was no accident and that ATF has its eye on the victim-was he running guns, or even drugs?-Walt is glad when his undersheriff, the always fiery Victoria Moretti, shows up, fresh off investigating her brother's murder in Philadelphia. Whether he's squaring off against biker gangs or teasing out long-simmering feuds involving his closest friends, Walt Longmire is always the man for the job. 15-city author tour. Agent: Gail Hochman, Brandt & Hochman Literary Agents. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.