This book is a winner of the Tony Hillerman prize, the Spur Award for Best Western Contemporary Novel, a finalist for the Edgar Award Best First Novel, and a finalist for Shamus Award Best First Novel. I really enjoy books set in the American West, but... It's a hard-boiled noir mystery featuring an ex-rodeo cowboy turned private detective. Noir isn't my favorite, but I would have read it even so, if not that the author doesn't use quotation marks for dialogue. I tried, but after 25 pages that was still driving me nuts. So I quit. Just in 25 pages I can see why this book received so much praise, but I couldn't get past the style. It isn't really fair to give it a low rating since I think it's going to be a very "love it or hate it" kind of book...but I just couldn't force myself on.

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