Epitaph
Ratings7
Average rating3.4
I was vaguely dissatisfied with this book, for reasons I can't clearly define. I read (well, listened) to this one immediately after I gave [b:Doc 8911226 Doc Mary Doria Russell https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1320560135l/8911226.SY75.jpg 13787599] a glowing 5 star/favorite review. I was itching to get back to the characters that had been so carefully profiled, and get to know new ones in Tombstone as we did in Dodge City. Doc made me feel things; unfortunately, all I felt after finishing Epitaph was an inability to put my finger on exactly why I was disappointed.For one thing, I feel like this book lacked a soul, or a purpose. Doc, while slow and not really focused on action, did a stellar job of making you feel really attached to its cast, and you felt things when they felt things. Epitaph flipped the script a little because of its focus on Tombstone and the OK Corral and focused more on action than characters. I get that it's an important segment of history, but I was there for the character development I saw in Doc, and I didn't feel that here. There was a lot going on in this book, and I feel like not all of it was done well, and I felt vaguely distracted and bored when it got too far into the weeds of lawman politics (as it does for large chunks of the book). For another, I also feel like the ending was weak. With 10% to go, even the author said “If you want a storybook ending, stop—now—and remember them in that tender moment”, as if even the author knew that the book was going to go places that you probably didn't sign up for. I found myself incredibly bored with the POV of the very last part of the book, and I feel like it would have been stronger to end it before then. I had such high hopes for this book after how much I loved Doc, but it just didn't deliver for me.
[b:Epitaph 18739541 Epitaph Mary Doria Russell https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1404411572s/18739541.jpg 26617057] actually seems to me to be more like a text-based documentary than a traditional work of historical fiction. After reading it I feel that I now finally have an understanding of the events leading up to and following the famous gunfight at the O.K. Corral. It is a story of lawmen and outlaws, sometimes a man is both at the same time. It is a story of wives, whores, and mistresses struggling to survive in a harsh environment. It is a story of desperate chases, deadly fights, merciless vendettas, dirty political dealing, and terrible misunderstandings all fanned by a partisan news media. It is also a story of bravery, love, and friendship. Good book.
The author was trying to do far too much. The narrator changed at least once or twice a chapter and none of the characters were fully fleshed out.
I couldn't finish.
Mary Doria Russell has made me like a western. Didn't think it could be done. But I absolutely devoured her two books about Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, their friends, family, and loves during the time of Dodge, Tombstone, and the OK Coral. Russell has a way of bringing to light the hurts, joys, secrets and dreams of her characters that makes them so memorable you don't want their stories to end. I highly recommend all of her work - even this one, and even if you don't like westerns!