| Notes | Breakheart Pass is a novel by Scottish author Alistair MacLean (1922-1987), first published in 1974. It was a departure for MacLean in that, despite the thriller novel plot, the setting is essentially that of a western novel, set in the western ranges of the Sierra Nevada mountains of the Rocky Mountains in the Western United States in the late 19th century. Fans of MacLean will recognize the usual plots twists, thrill-packed finale, and trademark sardonic dialogue. Unfortunately, for American audiences, MacLean was less successful capturing an authentic tone of the frontier American West, and the 1975 movie version starring Charles Bronson, Richard Crenna, Ben Johnson, and Jill Ireland, proved to be more popular with the public than the novel. |
