Take CROSSFIRE TRAIL for example. There is plenty of action here but it is painted much more subtly on L'Amour's canvass than, let's say, on those of Larry McMurtry or on Clint Eastwood's or Kevin Costner's movie screens. Frankly L'Amour or his readers would not have tolerated the raw, often harsh violence of today's western s offerings.
L'Amour wrote with a clear sense of nostalgia and romance about the west. He was much for the kindred spirit of John Wayne and John Ford than of McMurtry, Eastwood or Costner.
I thoroughly enjoyed CROSSFIRE TRAIL, a tale of revenge, deceit and, as is the case with all L'Amour tales, of ultimate white-hatted triumph and justice. The fan of the movie of the same title, starring Tom Selleck, should note that there are some differences between the screenplay and the book. But all in all the story is the same and is just as enjoyable in print as the story told on the big screen. Read it in the correct mindset and you have a masterpiece.
Douglas McAllister