A new Hap and Leonard novel is always cause for celebration, and not surprisingly, Sugar On the Bones does not disappoint. I’m a big fan of book series—they give you a chance to get to know the continuing characters in a way that a single novel often doesn’t, and not just the main characters. Sugar On the Bones brings back several folks from earlier books, and the fact that you know them, know their backstory, makes the novel an even richer, more satisfying read. There’s a shared history here, not just between the boys and these characters, but between all of them and we readers.

Another thing I love that Lansdale has done over the course of the past few Hap and Leonard books is to let them age—I was going to say age gracefully, but come on, that would be stretching the truth to the breaking point—but they are aging. In Sugar On the Bones, Hap and Leonard are still shit-talkers and shit-kickers, but are at least feeling their mortality. I think a big part of it is that they both now have folks they love to live for. They’re still fearless, still willing to go headlong into the fire instead of away from it, but they at least think about the consequences of their actions. Do they still do stupid, dangerous shit? Absolutely. They wouldn’t be Hap and Leonard otherwise. Part of the fun is watching them consider the odds, then still say damn those consequences.

I don’t really want to dig too deep into the plot—as usual, Lansdale is a consummate storyteller, an unmatched spinner of yarns. This one starts out with a potential missing persons case that quickly turns deadly, with an East Texas crime syndicate out for blood. Also as usual, there are a whole book full of oddball characters that add to both the fun and the danger. Sugar On the Bones is fast paced and violent, with a final set piece that will start your heart rate spiking and keep it there.

Lansdale is working at the top of his game here, with a perfect mix of lovingly described mayhem, lyrical description, glorious turns of phrase, and the best dialogue writing of any author working today. In fact, I’m going to make a bold statement here—I think Lansdale is now a better dialogue writer than Elmore Leonard.

Sugar On the Bones is more fun that a couch full of mice (you have to read the book), and I hope Lansdale keeps writing Hap and Leonard books for years to come. If the boys end up sitting next to each other in rocking chairs on Hap’s front porch, blankets on their laps, solving whatever crimes happen to pass them by, I’m fine with that. Hell, they don’t even have to solve crimes. Just keep shit-talking.