No Country for Old Men

A savage tale of violence and morality in the American West, Cormac McCarthy's No Country for Old Men follows a Vietnam veteran's dark path after stumbling upon a drug deal gone wrong.

Adapted for the screen by the Coen Brothers (Fargo, True Grit), winner of four Academy Awards (including Best Picture).

'A Western thriller with a racy plot and punchy dialogue' – The Times

1980. Llewelyn Moss is hunting antelope near the Rio Grande when he discovers the aftermath of a drug deal turned deadly. Finding bullet-ridden bodies, several kilos of heroin, and a caseload of cash, he faces a choice – walk away or take the money and run. Choosing the latter, he knows, will change everything.

And so begins a terrifying chain of events, as each player in this brutal game seems determined to answer one question: how does a man decide in what order to abandon his life?

'It's hard to think of a contemporary writer more worth reading' – Independent

Part of the Picador Collection, a series showcasing the best of modern literature.

Praise for Cormac McCarthy:

‘McCarthy worked close to some religious impulse, his books were terrifying and absolute’ – Anne Enright, author of The Green Road and The Wren, The Wren

'His prose takes on an almost biblical quality, hallucinatory in its effect and evangelical in its power' – Stephen King, author of The Shining and the Dark Tower series

'In presenting the darker human impulses in his rich prose, [McCarthy] showed readers the necessity of facing up to existence' – Annie Proulx, author of Brokeback Mountain

Part of the Picador Collection, a series showcasing the best of modern literature.

Cormac McCarthy was the author of many acclaimed novels, including Blood Meridian, Child of God and The Passenger. Among his honours are the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. His works adapted to film include All the Pretty Horses, The Road and No Country for Old Men – the latter film receiving four Academy Awards, including the award for Best Picture. McCarthy died in 2023 in Santa Fe, NM at the age of 89.

No Country for Old Men is a compelling, harrowing, disturbing, sad, endlessly surprising and resonant novel. — Robert Edric, Spectator

No Country for Old Men is a severed head and shoulders over anything else written in America this year. — Independent on Sunday

A fast, powerful read, steeped with a deep sorrow about the moral degradation of the legendary American West. — Financial Times

A Western thriller with a racy plot and punchy dialogue, perfect for a lazy Sunday. — The Times

[An] utterly absorbing, chilling tale . . . One of the most sinister characters in modern American fiction. — Herald

It's hard to think of a contemporary writer more worth reading. — Independent