Doc

"Bein' born is craps...How we live is poker"
At this point it should probably come as no surprise that Mary Doria Russell has quickly become one of my favorite authors. The only sad thing about Doc is that now that I've read it, I actually have to wait for Russell's next book to be released. But the happy part is that her next book is a sequel to Doc, so I'll get to spend even more time in the Wild West with these characters.

Doc follows Doc Holliday for the summer he spent in Dodge City when he met the Earp brothers. But like most of Russell's books, it's about a lot more than that.

Ostensibly, Doc is a murder mystery. Except that the kid who died wasn't white, so no one really cares how he died. Then it comes to light that he was robbed of $2000 and suddenly people want to know where that money went. But it's also about Doc's struggle with tuberculosis, his new friendship with Wyatt and Morgan Earo, his contentious relationship with Kate, and the general social politics of Dodge City.

The book has a whole poker motif, with the story divided into six "hands", plus the ante. Each chapter is named after a poker term, and I'm sure there's more depth there than I picked up on. But the references I did get were cute. "Three of a Kind" cements the friendship between Doc, Morg, and Wyatt. "Stacking the Deck" shows a meeting of the town's politicians and wealthier residents. And of course the "ante" reminds us that Doc is playing for time, not money.

The book ends when everyone decides to leave Dodge City. The Earps are heading to Arizona. Doc and Kate are going to Las Vegas.

The sequel is going to deal with the infamous shooting at the OK Corral. It should be out next year some time, and I'm really excited.

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