Obtain Nevada Penned By Zane Grey Version

example of this genre, I'm a little fuzzy on the details of the story, though I do recall that it read like a "B" western movie, . . cowboy works under cover in a gang of rustlers, and identifies and eliminates same, Of course there is a wholesome girl involved, and her brother, who also seems to have a mancrush on the hero, All very unlikely fare but decently written,

I do have a problem with the book, or at least the edition I read, and the issue is with the cover, It bothers me to the point that I have never forgotten this book, and on occasions when I could get anyone to listen to my ravings I would rail at great length about the atrocity committed in the name of cover art.
A cowboy is shown firing what are clearly two cap and ball percussion revolvers, suspended in the smoke are six cartridge casings apparently ejected from the revolvers, The artist is clearly oblivious to the fact that a, these revolvers do not utilize cartridges or b, even if the revolvers were converted to take cartridges they would not, could not, eject casings like a flippin' machinegun!!! Jerk, still pisses me off! Nevada could have been a straight forward story of an affair between a bad man and a cattleman's daughter, but Zane Grey offers more.
Lavish panoramas best describes his approach to the Arizona landscape, and he does justice to his characters, Nevada and Hettie Ide, who are deeply in involved in a romantic relationship that is tested by passing years and distance and only a hope they will meet again.
A deep friendship between Hettie Ides brother and Nevada is treated with the same respect and intensity

Zane Grays command of the language in setting his words on the page do stand the time.
Yes, there are a few hiccups which a present day read may find out of date, but then again, Greys people make love and never take their clothes off.
Physical relationships arent paramount while emotional ties are the ones which are tested,

The read is solid, while the story goes beyond the gun slinging shootouts which do occur, but happen offstage, Nevadas true identity is feared by Hettie Ide, but is revealed in a way which allows readers realize it themselves without feeling mislead,

A great deal of time and story tension is presented by Zane Grey and the novel is rewarding, To the pleasant surprise of this reader, who learned that Nevada is a sequel to Forlorn River, A book Ill have to go back of course, Fairly good western, but he's no Louis L'Amour, Emotional rating
Merit closer to

This story, about Nevada/Jim Lacy having to choose between his honorable new life and in revisiting his past life in order to save his friend and the woman he loves, gripped me right off and didnt let me go until I reached the end.
Nothing was as I predicted and I really enjoyed the fastpaced journey, If this book was written today it would be banned as inappropriate, politically incorrect, sexist and racist, But it was written in, in a time when the sensitivities we have today couldn't have even been dreamt, It was written about an old west time when the phrase "making love" meant "to pay amorous attention as part of courtship, or to woo", or the word "greaser" was used without pause.
Just a different era.

Zane Grey had such a way with words and stories, And this story was such a good one, The main character had three names: Jim Lacy, Nevada because his original name was infamous, so he needed to become someone else, and Texas Jack when he was a ranch hand.
He loved Heddy with deep emotion, a selfless love that wanted only the best for her, But as he rode away, having cleared her brother's name, he mourned a life he would never have with her, entering an uncertain future as someone else.


Did I like it Yes, Couldn't stop listening all day, Cleaned my kitchen after two days of cooking for a large group and listened to it in my earbuds, Listened to it as I edited photos the rest of the day, Yep. It was good. It also gave me such fond memories of my dad who loved westerns, I've no doubt he read this one and loved it, This book has had five on my ratings ever since I joined Goodreads, That's because for the

pastor so years, it has ranked among my list of alltime favorites,

Sadly, rereading it after a twodecade absence, I see that it's not a fivestar book, even by Zane Grey standards,

The firstpages are interminably slow I remember struggling with the early chapters even in my first reading, There are a couple of key action scenes in that span, but they both happen off camera, and the reader only gets details secondhand or from the aftermath.
In one such scene, the chapter ends when it seems that disaster is imminentand the next chapter flashes forward several years, The "action" is referenced later as something that happened long ago,

The second key scene is, in my opinion, the best and most memorable part of the book, and it is genuinely thrilling even on a third reading.
However, looking at it now, I see that it includes a character whose only role in the book was to show up at that moment and be killed.
It doesn't seem like it would have been too much for an editor to ask for a rewrite that drops this poor sap's name earlier in the book, sprinkling in details here and there to make the action seem more like fate than a contrived spectacle.


Finally, without going into detail, the plot, when viewed in hindsight, is perplexing, The extensive machinations of the title character, though entertaining, are apparently completely unnecessary to achieve the plot's satisfying conclusion,

Based on this review, I could go three or even two, but I won't, Because in, this book rocked, and that memory still holds some influence, My first ever delve into Zane Grey has opened my eyes onto a whole new ironically "old/dated"'s fiction realm of written beauty! I'm an instant fan of this classic famous artist! Story was great, extended along expertly with truly marvelous characters, many and varied.
I must have MORE! Lovely and masterful, . . and not just for Colonel Potter of MASH fame and which was referred to endlessly!,