Ride the River: The Sacketts

A Novel

By: Louis L'Amour

Narrated by: Jamie Rose

Length: 5 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

Alone in the big city, a fierce young frontierswoman must outsmart a dangerous con man before she can stake her claim to the family fortune.

Sixteen-year-old Echo Sackett has never been far from her Tennessee home - until she makes the long trek to Philadelphia to collect her inheritance. In the wilderness Echo can take care of herself as well as any man, but she never imagined the challenge that awaits: a crooked city lawyer who intends to take advantage of her by any means necessary. Echo will need all of her wits to best this scoundrel and make it back home in one piece.

Don't miss other titles in The Sacketts series.

©1983 by Louis L'Amour (P)2000 Random House, Inc.

great story

love it the narrator does so good with this story the way she speaks is very addictive to listen too

Change of pace. A female narrator for Louis L’Amour. Turned out great!

I almost didn’t listen to this because of the female narrator However, it kept tugging at my mind, so ... I gave it a chance. Boy, am I glad that I did. It was perfect. I will admit her voice threw me a bit

A Woman of Worth and Loaded For Bear!

A large inheritance, a conspiracy to steal it, and a young mountain woman who aims to bring home to her needing family has need of come hell or high water. Louis L'Amour is a favorite author and his western and adventure stories especially his Sackett family saga has fired my imagination for decades. L'Amour has always represented the women in his stories with the same care that he takes with his male heroes- frontier tough, but to my knowledge this is the only story with the primary character being a women. And, what a gal she is, but, then again, she's a Sackett.

Ride the River is the fifth book in the Sacketts series. This is a series of standalones organized chronologically. The books that come after this one tend to be all grouped around the same time frame with Ride the River bridging the gap between the old Colonial era Sacketts to the post-Civil War generation.

In 1840, Echo Sackett is sixteen and ready for her first adventure away from her Tennessee mountain home. When the traveling Tinker shows their family a notice in an obscure Pennsylvania newspaper that the youngest descendant of Kin Sackett has an inheritance coming, she knows she must go. Her family doesn't have much and her widowed ma and her uncle aren't getting younger so off she goes.

In Philadelphia, Echo encounters the shyster lawyer who is handling the estate and he has no intention of a backwoods hick to get so much money. But, he's not the only shark circling around such a large inheritance. Echo might be confused about big city ways, but she knows her varmints when she sees them and she contacts Finian Chantry, a renowned trial lawyer to help with the legal issues and Finian sends his nephew along to watch her back on the treacherous journey home with a carpet back full of money.

Dorian Chantry reluctantly follows Echo and shakes his head over a slip of a girl carting all that money and traveling alone. He's used to polished debutantes and idling his time with gentlemanly pursuits, but out on the frontier that cuts no ice ad he must step it up to prove to his uncle and to himself that he's capable. But, then he starts to see Echo is something special and takes the shine out of all those girls back in Philadelphia. She knows they are in trouble with killers on their trail, but calmly tells him that they just need to hold out until her kin can get there- and they will come.

I enjoyed this slice of adventure told during a time period that isn't common for most American historical fiction or romance. The nation is young, but growing in this time of expansion. River travel is king. The 1840's are still a time when the frontier started just beyond the cities in the east. L'Amour paints the settings so vividly that I felt I was there.

As to the characters, it is a given that they are colorful and diverse from several stratas of American society and race. As to personalities, Echo was a sparkling young woman who is confident without being arrogant. She lets the snobs in the cities think she's naive hick from the hills, but she's smart and educated in the way of survival and reading people like she reads sign while out hunting. It was fun when she takes a shine to Dorian even when he pretended not to notice the pretty young woman with his uncle. And, it was more fun when she taught the villains a few lessons about underestimating a gal particularly when she was armed with her own hunting knife, pistol, and rifle and had grown up rough and lean in the hills of Tennessee with mostly men. She knows those men are strong and cunning, but she works to outwit them and stay alive and keep Dorian alive once he joins her in her element.

The narration work was done by Jamie Rose who is new to me. She had a great rustic voice for Echo and voiced the others so that their gender, class, and character came out as clearly as the words describing them. I thought she matched well for this style of story and would definitely listen to her work again.

All in all, it was exciting and fun with a great blend of historical, adventure, and romance by a master storyteller. The family saga set against the American frontier was just the thing and I look forward to listening to more Sackett stories. I can definitely recommend this one to historical, western, and adventure fans.

a home run!

loved it! full of action and interesting characters - the narrator is a perfect match for the story

Such a great story.

I’m so pleased that a woman was used for the narration of this story. Would be great if a woman could be used in all the female parts of Mr. Lamour’s audible productions. This book has a very stalwart and even flow to it. Echo, as she travels has little chance to rest and the listener may even begin to feel a part of her exhaustion as she fights to regain what is hers. Great listen. Definitely recommend this!

My wife's favorite L'Amour book!

This is another example of a book that has been thoroughly researched and written with great accuracy based on actual facts, places with a clear understanding of the times being written about. Being born in that area of East Tennessee and having hunted the woods in that area in the 1950's it was like being at home in the woods acting like our hunting dog for my father and older brothers. Great memories for sure!

Highly Enjoyable

If you love westerns but would prefer a woman's point of view for a change, this is the book for you. Excellently written, exciting from beginning to end. Rich characters. Also wonderfully narrated.

Wow!

Can't believe I haven't picked this one up before. Absolutely loved it. Wanted it to go on. Reader kept me riveted. You'll love it.

Great book

Great book I can't wait to hear more. I will listen to it again in future.

can't get enough sackett

I'll be sad when I finish all the whole series. I'll miss this family when I'm done