In Craig Johnson’s newest novel, “Return to Sender,” we finally get the answer to the question you never thought you had: “When the mail person with the longest route in the country goes missing, where do you look?”
Fortunately for us, Sheriff Walt Longmire’s tenacity and resolve is the perfect guide to this thrilling tale, leading us through the hills and valleys of the 21st installment of this New York Times bestselling Longmire mystery series.
The story begins with some good old undercover detective work, as Longmire pieces together a fuller picture of the missing postal worker, Blair McGowan. His first step is to take her spot on the 300-mile route, where he follows her trail into the desolate environment of southern Wyoming and the treacherous, shifting terrains of the Red Desert. From there, things begin to escalate.
Blair’s garnered a reputation of her own right, so Longmire’s investigation is far from unnoticed by the locals, both helpful and harmful. Yet once he discovers her ties to the Order of the Red Gate, a strange cult seeking contact with alien life-forms, it is clear that things are definitely not as they seem. But with his loyal dog, Dog, at his side and his M1911 on his hip, Sheriff Walt Longmire was never going to go down without a fight.
In “Return to Sender,” Johnson goes out of his way to put the “living” part of the living legend that is Walt Longmire to the test. Enemies abound in the heart of the desert, but Longmire is not unequipped to deal with these challenges.
By now, Johnson has had 20 books to build up Longmire’s toolkit, so when Longmire finally got a cellphone? Nothing could stop him. Kidding aside, “Return to Sender” shows Longmire in his element, dealing with criminal conspiracy, a strange cult, and no shortage of standoffs and gunfights.
In fact, Longmire’s assuredness in acting under threat of death led to the feature I found most intriguing in this book. Longmire is no stranger to walking the fine line of life and death, though people seemed to be determined to challenge his experience this time around. Throughout the novel, he has a knife pulled on him, several guns, and even faces off with a handful of coyote. But throughout it all, Longmire handles it with vigilance and righteous efficiency. Disarming situations — and people — comes second nature to him, so imagine my surprise when the only scene to make this force of nature pause has no weapons or threats of death involved at all.
It’s a side scene, one that is continuing the overarching narrative of the Longmire Literary Universe where Longmire is meeting with the new governor. During their dialogue, Longmire is faced with retirement. Granted, it’s more nuanced than just retirement, some political strong-arming is involved, but that’s the gist.
Now, this is not the first time retirement has come up in Longmire. But this may be the first time we see Longmire consider it seriously. He doesn’t like the idea, but he’s being forced to choose between the two strongest aspects of himself: Sheriff Longmire, the legend of Absaroka, or Good Ole’ Walt Longmire, father and family man.
And here is where I think Craig Johnson’s talent for storytelling really shines.
Because as a reader, I know where Longmire is comfortable. He’s comfortable on the battlefield, chasing down crime and fighting for justice wherever it needs to be fought for. “Return to Sender” is Walt Longmire’s solo act, showing him doing what he does best. So, I know what choice the legend of Absaroka would make when faced with retirement.
But Walt Longmire has not remained the same over the course of this series. Longmire’s pursuit of justice is now equally matched by his willingness to do anything for those he cares for, for Henry, for Vic, for Cady. And now that he’s faced with that conflict, I can’t wait to see how Johnson handles it going forward.
“Return to Sender” is another first-class addition to the Longmire Mystery Series, delivering fans a care package of the familiar action-packed, suspenseful mystery that leaves us wishing we paid for overnight shipping for the next book.
This review first appeared in The Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Wash.