SHADOW OF THE HAWK - review, of novel by Ron Honthaner

There are few Western stories burned in the memory. THE BIG SKY, LONESOME DOVE and TRUE GRIT are three that come to mind. The choice few. All three are endowed with vivid settings, memorable characters, and dialogue that rings true. A forth novel may be added to that august list. 

 The story of SHADOW OF THE HAWK is the story Mike McCloskey and the story of the West; from the keelboats on the Ohio, downriver with the steamships to New Orleans, to the coming of the railroad in Montana. It is also the story of men like Mike McCloskey, good and bad, that populate this odyssey and make the West what it became, the good and the bad. We meet McCloskey as he pays the price for a good deed. The sort that never go unpunished. Like every tragic hero a single mistake changes his life and the lives of friends and foe alike. A posse can pursue him with the intent of taking his freedom, but his pride eludes them.

 Mr. Honthaner has constructed a door to the past and invited you to step through. Take that step. You’ll enjoy it. Ron Honthaner now joins the ranks of the likes of A.B. Guthrie, Charles Portis and Larry McMurtry. We can only hope this is the first of many novels.