It is rare to find a series in which a sequel outshines the book that gave it life, and yet Riding The Rap is, in every way, a superior effort to its progenitor, a cool and graceful work which exhibits every measure of Mr. Leonard's characteristic talent.
Harry Arno, the retired bookie who found himself in such deep water in Pronto, cannot catch a break. No sooner has he settled back into his life in Florida then he's tricked, kidnapped, and held captive by serious men intent upon extorting him of the considerable fortune he spent the last twenty years skimming from his Italian bosses. Raylan Givens, U.S. Marshal and cowboy badass, doesn't have a particular fondness for Harry, but he did steal the man's girlfriend. And so, at Joyce's pestering, he investigates Arno's disappearance, swimming through a world of criminality and mysticism in hopes of uncovering the truth, a truth that will lead him into the proximity of dangerous women and into the orbit of murderous men.
Mr. Leonard has rectified many of Pronto's problems. He's relegated Harry to a secondary role to give his new protagonist, Givens, room to breathe and shine. But while the marshal is a potent force, Riding The Rap's villains are equally worthy. Dopy, nihilistic, and greedy, they captured my interest even while their cruelties went unpunished.
When Mr. Leonard is at the top of his game, as he is here, he combines vivid characters with busy plots to create stories which are as intense as they are entertaining. His Westernness reminds me of a saner Cormac McArthy, capable of imbuing his tales with emotional depth without betraying his Hemingwayan minimalism. In a literary era that celebrates Dan Brown's shallow bloviations, it is pleasing to know that tight, dramatic, pulpy fiction can still be produced and appreciated.
Justified, the FX drama featuring Raylan Givens, inspired me to read the novels that gave it life. Not only was I not disappointed, both Riding The Rap and Pronto made me wish that translating literature to the silver screen was a simpler achievement. Is there anything in entertainment more rewarding than seeing a character on the printed page brought to life by the screen? Hail Raylan Givens. Hail Justified. Hail Elmore Leonard. (5/5 Stars)
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