Devil's Canyon: The Sundown Riders (Compton, Ralph. Sundown Riders (Oklahoma City, Okla.).)

Rating:
Summary: Cliche Canyon
Review: I picked up this book because it was about the land from Santa Fe to Utah via southwestern Colorado. Lands that I live in, have lived in, and haved camped and hiked. Instead I found a book that failed to describe these beautiful and often harsh lands, brought in a cast of characters that added nothing to the nothing plot, and was discriminatory to the Ute Indians. I tried to count all the "cliches" used, but lost interest as fast as I lost interest in the book. The book is labeled a historical novel; try hysterical novel. Glaring errors like building a bridge over the Colorado River in Utah with fir trees. Maybe that's why you can't find any now, they were all used for this bridge. Some books you just can't put down. This book I should never have picked up.

Rating:
Summary: Not the best Ralph Compton.
Review: Not the best Compton I have ever read, but his Trail Drive series books I highly recommend.

Rating:
Summary: Whoops, where are we now?
Review: Unfortunately, Ralph Compton's writing is being compared to Louis L'amour but whoever is making the comparison forgot one important characteristic of L'amour: he knew what and where he was writing about. For example, Compton would have the reader believe that the Colorado River in the deep canyons of Utah can be bridged in one-two days with (in reality) non-existent timber and that the Green River seems to run east-west. The dialogue is terribly simplistic. The characters are poorly developed and often inconsistent. The ending reveals no satisfactory (believable?)tension or resolution in the story line which practically dissolves before you can even turn the pages.