Last of the Breed

Does it need a sequel?

If you are a serious Louis L’Amour fan you probably realize that Louis often used to rush things when he got near the end of a story. Occasionally, he was so excited to start the next one that he sometimes gave short shrift to what he was finishing. Dad did not originally intend to write a sequel to “Last of the Breed.” He considered the story to have come full circle … it starts with Colonel Zamatev receiving a particular package and it ends with him opening it and realizing what has happened. The warning implied by the package was enough for him — meaning Dad — to feel the story was over. It is clear that Louis intended for Zamatev to survive to the end of the story … the story is a flashback that starts with him.

As fans clamored for more, Louis began to consider writing a sequel. No details ever solidified other than he imagined it would be fun to have Joe and Zamatev both appear at some sort of arms reduction conference in Europe. In my opinion even that would have been problematic. Zamatev’s fault is hubris … the story sets up other Soviets who want to see him brought down. He created an ambitious plan to capture Joe but Joe got away. I assume that he ended up in some radar station on the arctic circle with plenty of time to realize where he went wrong. That’s the perfect punishment because it’s the exact opposite of what he wanted in the beginning.

Beau L’Amour
http://www.louislamour.com/novels/lastofbreed.htm