Appaloosa (2005)

Robert B. Parker's powerfully good new novel, Appaloosa — a departure from his Spenser mysteries — takes place in the Deadwood-era American West, where a band of outlaws have been preying on the citizens of the little hamlet of Appaloosa. Enter Marshal Virgil Cole, who reads Emerson, speaks in monosyllables, and never misses a shot. Like the wild stallion guarding his herd in the hills just outside Appaloosa, the manly, enigmatic Cole runs off the bad guys, restores order to the town, and wins the love of a high-spirited woman — at least until a tough new kid arrives. Parker hits you over the head with his alpha-male metaphor, but not so hard as to spoil this straightforward and entertaining yarn.