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    Robert B. Parker's Ironhorse: A Novel
    Unavailable
    Robert B. Parker's Ironhorse: A Novel
    Unavailable
    Robert B. Parker's Ironhorse: A Novel
    Audiobook7 hours

    Robert B. Parker's Ironhorse: A Novel

    Written by Robert Knott

    Narrated by Titus Welliver

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    For years, Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch have ridden roughshod over rabble-rousers and gun hands in troubled towns like Appaloosa, Resolution, and Brimstone.  Now, newly appointed as Territorial Marshalls, they find themselves traveling by train through the Indian Territories.  Their first marshaling duty starts out as a simple mission to escort Mexican prisoners to the border, but when the Governor of Texas, his wife and daughters climb aboard with their bodyguards and $500,000 in tow, their journey suddenly becomes a lot more complicated.

    The problem is Bloody Bob Brandice.  He and Virgil have had it out before, an encounter that left Brandice face-down in the street with two .44 slugs lodged in him.  Now, twelve years later on a night train struggling uphill in a thunderstorm, Brandice is back - and he's not alone.  Cole and Hitch find themselves in the midst of a heist with a horde of very bad men, two beautiful young hostages, and a man with a vendetta he's determined to carry out.


    From the Compact Disc edition.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateJan 8, 2013
    ISBN9780307989345
    Unavailable
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    Reviews for Robert B. Parker's Ironhorse

    3.5/5

    53 ratings8 reviews

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      Robert B. Parker's Ironhorse was an entertaining western novel about a train robbery gone awry. It features U. S. Marshal Virgil Cole and his deputy sidekick Everett Hitch, who narrates the story. Apparently, this is part of a series featuring these two characters, as indicated by their past history with the villains. It's an entertaining, fast-paced story with plenty of action. However, unlike L'Amour stories, there is no obligatory fistfight, and the gun battles are kept to a minimum as Cole and Hitch rely on superior strategy, tactics and the threat of violence more than actual brutality. The map on the inside covers of the book comes in handy to follow the action over the course of the story. The laconic dialogue between our heroes is pure gold. The author has done his homework about train technology of the era. The story is named for the old locomotive that Virgil and Everett use to get ahead of the villains who are holding two girls for ransom. Could one of them be a potential romantic interest? And do our heroes valiantly ride off into the sunset after saving the day?
    • 3/5
      his is the first Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch outing for Robert Knott, the Robert B. Parker Estate's successor to the great man for this series. I listened to the audio version, performed by Titus Welliver, who was simply wonderful. The story is pure Western Romance. Train Robberies. Damsels in Distress. Good Guys vs. Bad Guys. Good Guys Win. Bad Guys Bite the Dust. Damsels are Rescued. Nothing too complicated or surprising. Well, there were a few nuances: some of the damsels can take care of themselves; there's only one Indian, and he's one of the good guys; the whores don't have hearts of gold. Knott got Virgil's laconic manner down pat, and then he overdid it a little. Other than that, it was fine entertainment for the commute.
    • 4/5
      Pretty decent take on Parker's Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch series. Robert Knott was able to mimic Parker's style for the most part, his downfall was writing a book full of description instead of letting the dialogue move the story forward like Parker would have. This resulted in a book that was overlong by Parker's standard. A good editor who could excise some of the unnecessary verbiage would really have improved this book.
    • 3/5
      While I've read all of Parker's Spencer books, I hadn't read any of the Cole and Hitch novels. However, there's no question that Knott nailed Parker's style. Cole talking to Hitch is exactly like Spencer talking to Hawk; the supposed villain turns out to be basically good; and SPOILER ALERT, Cole ultimately lets him go off and become a productive person - all classic Spencer moves. The major complaint I had was that Knott overdid the drama and action. Parker always allowed some break in the action - through discussions of cooking or food, a strong female presence,and humor - this book had none of that. It was constant action (at one time I remember wondering if they'd eaten for 2 days,) the women in the book were totally superficial and only briefly appeared - it was somewhat exhausting (it was quite long) and one-dimensional. So while I enjoyed reading it well enough, I would not be tempted to read another one unless the story was rounded out.
    • 3/5
      Robert B. Parker, who died in 2010, is best-known for his crime novels featuring a tough, but literate, detective named Spenser. He was a master of lean prose and snarky dialog who had only in his later years tried to write westerns. He finished four such novels, which feature U.S. Marshall Virgil Cole, a tight-lipped dead shot with his Colt revolvers. The Parker Estate along with the publisher commissioned actor and screenwriter Robert Knott to continue the series with Ironhorse.I haven’t read the other Virgil Cole novels, but I have read about ten of Parker’s crime novels. The characters in Knott’s version of Parker are men of fewer words than Spenser or Parker’s other protagonists. They are also not as literate or literary, but I’m not sure I want my cowboys to be making veiled references to Shakespeare or Dostoyevsky. I half expected the author to keep me guessing who the real bad guys were, but there is not much ambiguity in the plot of this novel. Cole and his deputy, Everett Hitch, are riding back home on a railroad train when the train is commandeered by a gang of robbers. Cole and Hitch manage to take back some of the cars of the train (killing a few of the robbers on the way), but then their cars are disconnected from the engine. The remaining robbers make their escape, taking with them the two pretty young daughters of the governor of Texas as hostages. Cole and Hitch go off the rescue the girls and settle some old scores with various members of the robber gang. There are several opportunities to complicate the plot, for instance by having the governor be complicit in the kidnapping of his daughters to have state money pay the ransom, but all the characters are just who they appear at first to be. Despite the simplicity of the story line, the book manages to keep the reader’s attention. The author has mastered the details of 19th century railroading and teaches us a lot about the functioning of the telegraph. Perhaps his attention to the fine details of each character’s actions brings the story to life. Evaluation: I enjoyed the book enough to plan to read one of Parker’s westerns written by Parker himself.
    • 4/5
      I was so happy to see the continuation of this series. I knew it couldn't be quite the same as Robert Parker's voice, but I still enjoyed it, and I thought the author, Robert Knott did a fine job. I adore the characters of Virgil and Everett, and I thought the writing for them was spot on. I thought the book went on a little long, like they weren't sure how to end it. That's why I didn't give it 4 stars. Overall, if you've enjoyed the series in the past, you'll probably enjoy this one, too. It did set up for more titles. For example, they mention Allie in Ironhorse, but she isn't in any of the scenes. I'm guessing she'll turn up next time.
    • 3/5
      I had problems right with the title: This book was not written by Parker. It's a cheap ploy to suck you into thinking that unit you read the fine print; by Robert Knott. Knott tried hard to sound like Parker but failed. He tried too hard and it just didn't come off - neither in dialogue or plot. And the book was was too long to boot!
    • 4/5
      This fifth book in a series of westerns started by Robert B. Parker featuring Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch. This one was written by Robert Knott, it is his first novel. Robert Knott, along with Ed Harris adapted the first in this series, "Appaloosa" into a screenplay and movie. Robert Knott is not the first author to pick up one of Parker's series and continue it with another book but I do think he has done the best job of knowing the characters he has written about. I suppose that having had a hand in writing the screenplay for Appaloosa gave him some insight into the Cole and Hitch characters. I enjoyed this book very much, it's good to read a well written, action packed and quick paced western and that is what this novel is. I think Mr. Parker would have been proud of Knott's handling of the continuing adventures of Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch.