Some novels seem to be more than the sum of their parts. Clyde Edgerton's “Redeye” (1995) somehow seems less.

With outlandish characters, a love triangle of sorts, a murder, a determined dog with an eerie red eye and loads of outrageous comedy, you might think the novel would offer satisfaction. Instead it falls flat. It's less than 250 pages long, and when you finish it you may find yourself asking, "Is that all there is?"

It's 1891 along the Colorado-Utah border where ancient cliff dwellings are discovered and immediately viewed as a possible tourist attraction. Other parts added to the mix include a would-be mortician who thinks blowing up a corpse is an ideal way to promote his business, a young woman from the East pursued both by a handsome Englishman and a Mormon bishop (who may or may not have several other wives), a mute old woman who's convinced a mummified baby from the cliff dwellings is her own dead baby and a stranger plotting to kill the bishop in revenge for his part in the Mountain Meadows massacre (a true event in which Mormons are believed to have plotted with Indians to wipe out a wagon train).

So that sounds interesting doesn't it? Maybe there's just too much going on, or perhaps the novel is too short to develop the possibilities. Whatever the case, “Redeye” is at times a pleasurable ride, but it goes nowhere. ( )

It would take real effort and skill to make this story horrendously boring. Unluckily for us, Mr. Edgerton has that skill ( )

This one was a lot of fun. Set in the late 1800s it tells of pioneers and revenge over a religious massacre. A man and his dog, seeking retribution for long forgotten wrongs. Edgerton suffuses the tale with great humor, and my only complaint is that it ends too soon, in an anticlimactic fashion. A quick and satisfying read. ( )

Very droll: exactly what you'd expect from the cover-art. Only reason I didn't give it the fifth star was this: despite my enjoyment of it, I find that I have managed to live almost twenty years without re-reading it, and I believe that five-star books should invute abnd re-pay constant re-reading. Now, please excuse while I check all my other listings to make certain that I've been consistent in applying that standard! ( )

I think this was the only book that was assigned reading in high school that I remember enjoying. It also wasn't directly assigned, the teacher gave us a list of books or authors (don't remember) and since I didn't know any of them I showed my mom and she picked one.It was pretty cool cause before that point I guess I really didn't know that i could really enjoy reading the same kinds of books as my mom (we still maintain very different tastes in books, but there is some overlap).That said... I really don't remember a whole ton about this book, other than the converging plot lnies/characters and the dog, but i do remember liking it a lot! ( )