GALLOWS GHOST

GALLOW GHOST

By Barry Cord

Ace Books, 1967

The man Hell rejected. When the cold swept over the Texas Badlands, it brought something even more deadly with it: a force so violent and evil that even the harsh winter was nothing compared to it

A lone rider came out of the infamous outlaw hideout in the Tenejos hills. That rider called himself by the name of a man who had been hanged twenty years before – and he was riding now to bring vengeance and terror on those who had brought him to the gallows.

This slim, strangely dapper gunman rode into the rangeland and left death and destruction on his trail – but there was one man he especially wanted. That was young U.S. Marshal Colby Jackson, the son of the man who had done the hanging.

But how could Colby shoot it out with a man who was already dead?

This very fast-moving story begins with a one-man massacre, and it’s not just people he kills. Livestock is slaughtered too and a line shack destroyed. And the killing spree doesn’t end there. One of the acts of this dead man is to kidnap a young woman to bring Marshal Colby Jackson to him and it isn’t long before Jackson is gunned down – but he survives and wants answers. Who is this mystery gunman and why does he want to kill Jackson and others? Is he really a spirit returned from the dead wanting revenge? Will the lawman be able to find and free the kidnapped girl? 

Barry Cord’s tale becomes more and more gripping as the lawman tries to track down a ghost. At times the story takes on a very dark tone as some of the scenes depict cruelty in very visual prose. The author switches between characters regularly often leaving them in dangerous situations when changing to someone else. Cord does let the reader know what’s going on partway through the story but that seemed to add more tension to the tale rather than giving away too much. At no time did I predict the outcome of the story and I was never quite sure who would be left alive at the end of the book.

Barry Cord is a pseudonym for author Peter Germano and Gallows Ghost is an excellent example of why I like his work so much and once again I was left looking forward to reading another of his books very soon.

My copy of Gallows Ghost is part of an Ace Double and it is backed by Room to Swing a Loop by Stephen Payne. 

NEW WORK ON A. LESLIE SCOTT

 

NEW WORK ON A. LESLIE SCOTT

by Anders N. Nilsson and James Reasoner

Towards a Bibliography of Alexander Leslie Scott, Focusing on Jim Hatfield, Walt Slade, and the Reprint of Pulp Stories as Books distributed as free PDF for reading online at, or downloading from:

https://archive.org/details/lesliescott_bibliography_nilssonreasoner_2024/mode/1up

Alexander Leslie Scott (1893-1974) was a very productive American western writer best known for his stories about the Texas Ranger known as Jim Hatfield or Walt Slade. The 206 novel-length Jim Hatfield stories were published in the Texas Rangers pulp magazine 1936-1958 under the house name Jackson Cole. 69 of Scott's Walt Slade novellas were published in the Thrilling Western pulp magazine 1940-1951.

Many of the Hatfield stories were reprinted as Popular Library paperbacks, whereas a large number of Walt Slade stories were published as Pyramid paperbacks. Many of Scott's pulp stories were also reprinted as hardcover remakes. Other authors studied here are Tom Curry, Peter Germano, Roe Richmond, Claude Rister, Lin Searles, and the two pseudonyms Buck Billings and Tex Holt.

TEXAS RANGERS - October 1956

TEXAS RANGERS
British Edition, Vol. X1, No. 12
Atlas Publishing, October 1956

This issue of the British Edition of Texas Rangers takes all its stories from the American issue published in March 1956. The British Edition only contains four stories, compared to eight in the original American publication. The same cover art by Sam Cherry was used on both editions but the border and lettering were changed somewhat. I’ve posted the American cover at the end of this review so you can compare it for yourselves.

The Jim Hatfield tale Guns Across the River by Jackson Cole is the opening novella. Jackson Cole is a pseudonym used by a number of authors. This time around it’s Peter B. Germano writing behind the penname. I believe he wrote 16 Jim Hatfield adventures out of the 205 or so Hatfield stories that appeared in the pulps.

Hatfield, known as The Lone Wolf, was caught square in the crossfire when the ghost of a dead man and the invasion of sheep brought war to Peaceful Valley. Germano includes quite a large cast of characters in his twisting plot that makes you wonder how he can possibly tie up all the story threads in such a short tale. This is something I’ve often marvelled at when reading other books by Germano under his pseudonym of Barry Cord, yet he always succeeds, and this novella is no different. There’s also some female interest for Hatfield but we know the Ranger is never going to settle down, don’t we? Guns Across the River is packed with action and told in a hard-boiled style and proved to be a very entertaining read and is right up there with the very best Hatfield stories I’ve ever read. 

Germano re-wrote Guns Across the River as War in Peaceful Valley which came out as one half of an Ace Double in 1959 as by Barry Cord. Jim Hatfield became Deputy U.S. Marshal Matt Vickers. 

The first short story is Moment of Violence by George Roulston. This tells of Matt Strombo’s return from prison after being sentenced for stagecoach robbery and killing the driver. As the tale unfolds, we discover it wasn’t Matt who pulled the trigger but his partner in the hold-up. Of course, Matt’s return to Dandy Crossing arouses many emotions in the townsfolk and more violence ensues. I enjoyed this tale a lot and found it to be a great introduction to this author. I have one of Roulston’s other stories, Court Day, in another issue of Texas Rangers that I hope to read very soon.

Next up is Miguel’s Private Miracle by H.G. Ashburn. An Indian boy had thoroughly believed in the white man’s God till the scalp-hunters came… This short story has a strong religious theme that I found a bit overpowering. It is very well-written though, but it does contain something that I found hard to believe. Different, but not really to my taste. 

The third and final short story is The Reluctant Hangman by John Jo Carpenter, which is a pseudonym use by John Reese. With the sheriff ill it’s up to his deputy, Hiram Cutler, to perform a hanging. This is something Cutler has little stomach for and so he struggles psychologically with the task he’s been called to perform. This proved to be a gripping tale with a well-thought-out ending that I devoured eagerly. I can’t remember reading anything else by John Reese, and this tale left me wanting to try more of his work as soon as I can. 

Overall, I’d not hesitate in recommending this issue of Texas Rangers, if you can find it, as it contains some very strong storytelling indeed. 

WESTERN STORY MAGAZINE - December 1961

WESTERN STORY MAGAZINE
British Edition, Vol. XV, No. 8.
Atlas Publishing, December 1961

This collection of nine tales contains work by eight authors I’d never read before, the exception being Barry Cord, so I was looking forward to trying some new writers to me. Yes, I recognized the names of a few of them but had no idea of what to expect from them when I picked up this issue of Western Story Magazine.

The contents page says none of the stories had been published in Great Britain before, but like all British Editions of western pulps the tales were all previously published in American Pulps. Seven of the stories originally appeared in the December 1940 issue of New Western Magazine, Vol. 2, No. 3. No Law for Die-Hard Cowmen! was taken from Vol. 1, No. 1 of New Western Magazine, March 1940, and Samaritan of Hell’s Half-Acre came from the October 1940 issue of .44 Western Magazine, Vol. 5, No. 4. You can see the covers of these magazines throughout the review.

No Law for Die-Hard Cowmen! by Ed. Earl Repp is the lead story. From what I can gather Repp got other authors to ghost a lot of the work that was published under his own name, and not having read anything by him before means I can’t pick up on any writing styles to help me identify whether it was him or not that wrote this tale. The story follows Clay Anson, who’d turned in his Texas Ranger badge for the chance to deal justice beyond the law and claim his bloody heritage. It was never explained how Anson knew so much about the wrongs he came to set right, and who was behind them. This gave me a few ‘huh?’ moments as I wondered how he knew about certain revelations and made the story somewhat unbelievable. Anson is also a super confident man who never doubts his abilities to take down the badmen. This was probably my least liked story in this magazine.

The second yarn, Barnyard Billy’s Conscript Army by Jim Kjelgaard, was not what I was expecting. This is a tale told from a goat’s point of view and doesn’t contain any humans. Slow starvation awaited the billy goat as he was trapped on top of a barren rock. Below was certain bloody death at the fangs of a huge, snarling dog. Could a second goat help save the day? I was quite surprised at how much I enjoyed this tale, even though I find it hard to accept that animals think like humans. It was well written and the author soon had me wondering if the goat could escape the dog. I’m now curious to find out if Kjelgaard wrote other stories that featured only animals. 

The Broken-M Adopts Trouble by Cliff M. Bisbee uses the age-old plot of the failing ranch that the bank is about to claim if the owners don’t pay off their debt. The Mexican partner decides to steal what they need but he doesn’t pick his victim well, and robs the sheriff. There’s a neat side plot of a missing baby that turns up at the ranch making the owners wonder how it got there. It couldn’t have crawled twenty miles, could it? On the strength of this short story, I’d certainly read more by Bisbee.

Hector Gavin Grey’s There’s Gold in Boothill is next. With a title like that it’ll come as no surprise to discover this is a gold mine tale. An old-timer partners up with a young fast gun who may or may not be who he says he is. They take on a job to get back a mine for a man who has a bad reputation. There’s a couple of plot twists as the characters set to double-cross each other and everything pretty much plays out as expected. Entertaining enough to ensure I’d read another story by this author if I find one, although I wouldn’t go looking specifically.

An Outlaw Town Hires a Badge Toter by H. Charles McDermott. Frontier marshal Bob Fury arrives in town to solves a mysterious series of murders and pilfered caches on the request of Laughing Jake Tilby. This is an action-packed tale involving a gold mine that sees Fury taking on the man who hired him. It has a neat ending which involves an unloaded gun. One of my favourite tales in the magazine making McDermott an author I’ll definitely be keeping an eye-out for more of his stories.

The author of Powdersmoke Quarantine, C. William Harrison, wrote under a few pseudonyms too. This story is about Jim Callert who has the difficult task on making Jan Edwards believe he hadn’t killed her brother whilst upholding a quarantine law that will plunge her ranch into poverty. Callert and Jan were an item at one time, but the death of her brother had changed that. If Callert could prove he was innocent, would they become lovers once again? The was an ok read that had an easy to work out plot and of course involved a cattle stampede. This story didn’t make me want to go and search for more of the author’s work.

Barry Cord is a pseudonym used by Peter B. Germano and he has long been a favourite author of mine and his story in this magazine, The Things Men Die For, was another excellent read by him. It’s about a broken old whiskey-bum to whom a small gold medal meant only another bottle … until the sight of a youngster going out to die fanned to living flame a forgotten spark of manhood. Like in his full-length novels, Cord includes intrigue and a great twist ending to this dark toned tale. Definitely the best story in this publication.

Samaritan of Hell’s Half-Acre by Le Roy Boyd features a plot often found in westerns, that of a lawman and outlaw having to team up to fight off greater odds. Stranded by a waterhole without horses, desperado Lafferty and sheriff Parsons find themselves under attack by a gang of Mexicans. This is packed with action and has a terrific twist ending. This story is my second favourite and I’ll certainly be looking for more work by this author.

The final story is I. L. Thompson’s Doom Waits for Barbwire Rebels. Jeff Mainess, a gunless prison outcast won’t line up with either side in a range war so he becomes fair bullet-bait for both. This is your typical cattleman wants all the range and starts driving out the farmers. Soon people die, and Mainess takes on the job of lawman to try and stop the killings. There’s plenty of action, including a siege and assault on the jail. Mainess is pretty much indestructible, taking a number of bullet wounds but is able to shrug them off and carry on as if nothing has happened. There’s also a delicate girl who will show her strengths by the end of the tale and is the love interest for Mainess. This was a readable story but not very memorable.

Don’t be put off by the incredibly dull cover this magazine has as the stories it contains are all worth a read. I never considered giving up on any of them and found a couple of new authors to me that I’d like to read more of. Overall, this is a fun collection of short stories that kept me entertained for a few hours. 

TRAIL BOSS FROM TEXAS

TRAIL BOSS FROM TEXAS

By Barry Cord

A Belmont Tower Book

On his first night in the Timberlake County Larry Brennan fought in a street brawl with a young tough, discovered a corpse in his hotel room, struggled frantically in the dark for his Colt .45 and found himself accused of murder.

Brennan had come to Timberlake to deliver six hundred head of cattle to Jeff Halliday, only to find Halliday clubbed to death, and Halliday’s nephew the prime murder suspect.

Caught in the killing crossfire between ranchers and unscrupulous land barons, Brennan made a desperate bid to save the Halliday ranch and the future of the whole valley.

I’m not sure when Belmont Tower published this book as all it says inside is that it was first published in 1948 by Phoenix Press. I bit of internet research reveals that it appeared in Better Publications pulp West – Vol. 69, No. 1, May 1948. The pulp story was titled Boss of the Tumbling H. Whether the paperback version was expanded I don’t know. I do believe it was the first paperback to appear as by Barry Cord, which is a pseudonym used by Peter Germano.

In the UK, Robert Hale published the book as part of its Black Horse Western line in 1995, but used the original title for their version. In 2003 BBC Audiobooks published it as one of their Gunsmoke Western hardbacks under the new title of Gun Boss of Triangle. For some reason the lead character, Larry Brennan had a name change to Jim Carmody. As far as I can tell all the other characters remain true to the original.

The story is very traditional in its plot and you can probably guess how it’s going to conclude. Having said that, the author does spice it up by adding some mystery into the tale, such as the true identity of the town lawman McVail and how he knows the Ace of Spades ranch owner, Allison. These elements of the story I didn’t work out before the author decided to reveal all, and they lifted the book from just being another land-grab tale. Cord’s writing style gives the book a hardboiled tone and the action scenes are particularly well told. 

I’ve always enjoyed Barry Cord’s westerns, and Trail Boss from Texas proved to be just as entertaining as the others, although I wouldn’t say it was his best work, but it is definitely worth a read. 

GUN JUNCTION

By Barry Cord

Cover art by Giorgio Tubaro

Chivers Press, 2001 hardback

Originally published as part of an Ace Double, 1964

Three men rode into Fulton, three loners with one this in common – a way of life built around a gun.

One was a U.S. deputy marshal, one a discredited ex-Ranger, one a hired killer. They had all come to do the same job: avenge the death of one man and restore law to the territory.

Or so they all said.

One of them rode with honor, one with guilt, and one with lies. And, in a short time, two would be dead and one left alone to fight for his life.

Like many books written by Barry Cord, this one has a twisted storyline that moves forwards at a breathless pace. The author gives enough information about the plot to make you think you know what is going on, but will then surprise you with revelations that will make you realize things aren’t as straight-forwards as you think.

The three central characters are all fascinating in their own rights, as are some of the people they come up against. The struggle to discover just who hanged Sheriff Tom Billens and who is blowing up trains makes for a gripping read. Just as I expected really, as I’ve been a fan of this authors work for a long time. However, there was one scene that stretched my belief just a little too much. A horse rescuing its owner from a situation I don’t believe a horse would go anywhere near. Other than that, this book did turn out to be a fun read and I will certainly be reading more of Barry Cord’s books soon.

Barry Cord is a pseudonym used by Peter B. Germano.

As is mentioned above, Gun Junction was originally part of an Ace Double western published in 1964, paired with A Man Called Ragian by John Callahan. You can see the artwork for Gun Junction below which was done by Gerald McConnell.

THE GUNS OF HAMMER

By Barry Cord

Pearson’s Western Library, 1957

Originally published 1956

Miles North’s father had suddenly saddled up and ridden away without a trace or explanation. At the same time, just as young Miles found himself in a showdown fight to hold the mighty range, a group of ornery strangers rode into the land, lined themselves up alongside Hammer’s foes, and started to close in.

But Miles was no quitter. He knew that even though the odds against him had doubled, there was at least one way to save his hide and his father’s holdings. It would involve taking a backtrail into the distant past – one that would lead either to utter disgrace or to the kind of discovery that would bring all the guns of Hammer into thundering action!

As expected from Barry Cord, this tale is a tough, hardboiled read that gallops forward at a tremendous pace. Full of hard men who will stop at nothing to achieve their aims, which is to either take control of Hammer or defend it. 

From the opening scene we find that Miles North can be as vicious as any of the cold-hearted killers he'll come up against as the fairly straight-forward tale progresses. I say fairly straight-forward, as Barry Cord includes a couple of neat plot twists that keep what is essentially an often-used storyline in westerns interesting and fresh. This mainly revolves around the content of a mysterious letter that Miles’ father has left behind that no-one knows about other that the sheriff who is killed before he can read it. Of course, this letter becomes the central point around which the plot revolves.

Barry Cord is a pseudonym used by Peter Germano and I’ve read quite a few of his books and enjoyed them all. Whilst The Guns of Hammer might not be right up there with his very best, I did find it to be entertaining and would say that most fans of western fiction would find it a satisfying read too.

THRILLING WESTERN October 1953

THRILLING WESTERN OCTOBER 1953

British Edition, Vol. 5, No. 10

This edition contains three novelettes and four short stories, all of which appeared in the earlier American publication of Thrilling Western dated March, 1949. The same cover art was used for both.

The British edition begins with the novelet Haunted Forest by Bradford Scott and is one of sixty-five plus tales that appeared in the pulps starring Texas Ranger Walt Slade who is also known as El Halcon (The Hawk). Slade keeps his identity a secret as he takes on a spectre in a fight for lumber lands. As usual Slade is really good at figuring out what is going on and solves everything with ease. This tale was filled with action, although it was slowed down a little when Slade explained how a hydraulic ram worked which I thought went on too long and became tedious. This was an entertaining story as have been other Walt Slade tales I've read. Bradford Scott is a pseudonym used by A. Leslie Scott.

Next came the short story Red Creek Showdown by Peter B. Germano writing as Barry Cord. Lin Peters has to face death as he tries to figure out who’s trying to stop him driving a stage and why. Like in many tales by Germano this one has a couple of neat twists, although the main reason as to why the culprit wants to stop the stage isn’t explained, it’s just left for the reader to decide. Very enjoyable, but could leave some readers frustrated. 

Novelet Six-Guns Sing at Night by John H. Latham is the third tale. I believe this is the authors real name and that he also wrote for the pulps as Tom Brand too.  Peter Weaver blames the death of his dad on Big Joe Brady but has never been able to prove it. The truth comes out when rancher Lon Gentry springs a trap to capture Brady who he accuses of being a rustler. There are some nice moments of humour in this tale and this was my favourite story in this issue and it left me eager to try some more of Latham’s work.

Trouble Talk takes just over three pages to tell. It’s written by Tex Holt, which is a house name, and I’ve not been able to discover who the real author is. This is the story of Sheriff Bill Lowell of Cottonwood, a man who didn’t think he needed a deputy as he hunts for a killer known as the Gray Ghost. It has a twist ending that was easy to work out, but the tale did hold my attention throughout.

Another short story follows, this one being Death Grins in Moonlight by Dupree Poe. Poe is the authors real name and he also wrote pulp tales as Roger Rhodes. This is the most gruesome story of all those in this issue and I was quite surprised by how graphic it was, especially during a vicious attack on a wolf. This animal will eventually get its revenge as it helps bring a scoundrel to retribution. Perhaps a little far fetched but it certainly made for an excellent ending that left me curious to try more of Poe’s tales.

The Doordevil of Humpwallips is a novelet by Sly MacDowell, which is the author’s real name, and it stars his series characters Swap and Whopper in a whole load of trouble as they get tagged as oyster pirates. I don’t think I’ve read any other stories about oyster rustling, so that added an interesting angle to the tale. The setting is a bit more modern than the other stories as people drive trucks whilst others ride horses. There’s some fun humour sprinkled throughout as Swap and Whooper try to talk themselves out of trouble only to dig themselves in deeper. I won’t be rushing to read another tale about Swap and Whooper but I won’t skip another story when I pick up another pulp that contains a tale featuring them. As far as I can tell they appeared in 73 pulp tales and I have four or five more in my collection.

The final tale is the short story Six-Gun Jamboree by Lew Martin. This is a pseudonym shared by Norman A. Daniels and Donald Bayne Hobart, but I’ve not been able to discover which of them wrote this. Lasting one and a half pages there’s not a great deal of plot to get your teeth into as two life-long friends suddenly become foes over a lady. 

Overall, I found this to be a very readable issue of Thrilling Western that has introduced me to a couple of authors I’d like to read more of. 

THE RUNNING IRON SAMARITANS

By Barry Cord

Ace, May 1973

Wandering cowmen, Long Jim and Windy befriend troubled cripple Lincoln Fervans and his wife at the V Bar Ranch. Lincoln has received warning notes telling him to leave his spread. Fearful for his and his wife’s life Fervans sells the ranch to Long Jim and Windy and now they become involved in the mystery of "Miguel" whose name is on the note. The men must soon draw on every reserve they have to track down a killer - to save their lives and see the ranch is returned to its rightful owners.

Barry Cord packs a lot into the pages of this story. There’s an excellent mix of characters, all of whom may have hidden agendas, even the Sheriff. And what of the Englishman known as Tally Ho, does he know what his ranch hands are doing and are they working under his orders? Then there’s the ghost of Miguel who seems to have come back from the dead to reclaim the V Bar Ranch, and is pretty handy with a rifle. 

I’ve read many books by Barry Cord and have enjoyed them all and this story is as equally entertaining, perhaps not up there with his best, but very good nonetheless. The story is a little more straightforward than a lot of Cord’s work. It doesn’t contain as much mystery as others or that many twists to the plot. In fact, the reader knows just about everything that is going on throughout, although Cord does spring one or two surprises later in the tale.

This is also the third story I’ve read about Long Jim and Windy and I don’t believe there are any more. It certainly doesn’t matter what order they are read in. In fact, I’m not even sure in what order they were originally published. This one is part of an Ace Double and is backed with another Long Jim and Windy tale, Desert Knights, that has the same publishing date. The other book, The Coffin Fillers, I’ve seen listed as being first published both in 1972, 1973 and 1974. I do think it’s a shame Cord didn’t write anymore books about Long Jim and Windy as they are a couple of likeable rogues. 

Barry Cord is a pseudonym used by Peter Germano and for me he is certainly an author worth checking out.

Starlight Range

By Barry Cord

Ward, Lock, 1961

Originally published 1959

For years Gil Barnes and old Arrant Canady had been partners, ranching together in Montana. Then they had a violent quarrel and Gil had started off to seek new horizons, but within a short distance he had been shot in the back, paralyzed and left for dead. It had taken him years to regain his health, to learn to ride and to draw a gun again. Now he was on his way back to get retribution from the one man he hated above all others.

But Gil arrived too late. Canady had died – and ironically, had left Gil a half-interest in his Starlight spread. The other half was being claimed by a woman who said she was Arrant’s daughter-in-law, the widow of his son. But she had no marriage certificate; there was not even proof that young Phil Canady was no longer living.

I’ve always enjoyed Barry Cord’s books and this one proved to be as entertaining a read as any others. Short and fast-moving this is a tale that sees many characters playing their cards close to their chests. Secrets, mystery and surprising twists and turns easily held my interest and made this a hard to put down read.

Barnes is a bitter and hard man who decides to make a go of the Starlight ranch even though there are others who’ll do anything to own the ranch. Then there’s the puzzles of people who may be who they say they are, or not. If they are imposters, then what is the purpose behind their pretence? To say much more about the plot would have to include major spoilers so this is as much as I’m going to reveal about the storyline.

As expected, by the end everything is tied up neatly and I closed the book feeling very satisfied, thinking I need to read another Barry Cord tale very soon.

For some reason this book was reprinted under another title. In 1961 the book was republished as Slade with Gil Barnes having a name change to Slade. 

Barry Cord is a pseudonym used by Peter B. Germano.

Six Bullets Left

By Barry Cord

Consul Books, 1961

Originally published in 1959

Something was wrong, dead wrong! The Texas Ranger called Solitary felt it before he was ten seconds inside town. Minutes later he knew it for sure – when the honest sheriff who’d sent for him tried to gun him down on sight.

And within the hour Solitary found that almost to a man the whole town hated him, sight unseen . . . even though he was their only chance to survive the terror.

Something was wrong indeed.

And Solitary Jackson was going to find out what it was!

I’ve read quite a few books by Barry Cord and this one was just as enjoyable as any of them. Told in a tough style the story really grabbed my attention from the opening sequence in which a man is killed by a strange arrow that is unrecognized by the townsfolk. So where did this arrow come from? Why was this man killed, after all he was just a tenderfoot Easterner dish washer in the local hotel wasn’t he? What was the note he threw into the Sheriff’s office just before his death? And as the story unfolds these aren’t the only questions that will need answering.

Barry Cord, a pseudonym used by Peter Germano, is a master at writing tense scenes, you share the frustrations, fear, anger and joy of his well-drawn characters who are often hiding their real identities. His pacing is superb as his plots twist their way to their satisfying conclusions. Six Bullets Left contains all these elements and left me wondering if there are any more Barry Cord books featuring Solitary Jackson.

One disappointing thing to note about this particular publication of Six Bullets Left is the amount of typos and the book even has a couple of lines missing in a gunfight that was a little frustrating – although it was possible to work out what had happened by what came next. Of course this isn’t the authors fault but that of the publisher, so you may prefer to find a different pressing to the one shown above and hope it doesn’t contain the typos this one does.

A New Year Western

THE MASKED GUN

By Barry Cord

Chivers Press, 2001

Originally published 1963

Sheriff Mido Peters tensed himself readying for a lawless New Year’s Eve in Labelle. Rich Jake Grady had promised drinks on the house to any man that night, and this, the sheriff knew, would mean nothing but drunkenness and riot.

But the sheriff got even more than he bargained for. He had not expected gunplay, and when the bullets were exchanged between two strangers in town causing death to mark the holiday, it was plain that trouble was brewing – bad trouble.

These strangers would not have been in town alone, the lawman figured, and the shooting looked like the beginning of a night of gun-thunder and violence.

Barry Cord tells this fast moving tale from the viewpoints of several characters thus enabling him to develop their very different personalities. It soon becomes apparent that each character is going to have an important part to play in the outcome of the story, particularly one of the outlaws who has most people believing he’s a U.S. Marshal, and, of course, the main character, Ben Codine, a well known bounty hunter who has been set up as an outlaw.

The plot is fairly complex and the main reason for the outlaws to be in Labelle is kept a secret for quite a while, and this is where the fact that the story mainly takes place on New Years Eve becomes an important factor to the plot.

It wasn’t long before I was wondering how the story would be resolved, due to Barry Cord’s superb ability to lead the reader – and his characters – into believing one thing and then adding a twist to completely throw you off track.

Barry Cord is the pseudonym Peter Germano preferred to write his westerns under and here he again proves he’s an author worth reading.  

The Third Rider

 as by Barry Cord
Trojan, not dated – originally published 1959

The first rider had vanished.

The second filled a pine box in the mission graveyard.

The third was Mel Rawlins, and he wasn’t going to let anything stand in his way. He had left the Stirrup ranch a boy and came back a tough, bitter man. But the Stirrup had changed more than he had. His father was murdered, his two brothers gone, and the lawman who had married Mel’s sister carried a warrant for his arrest.

Now Mel rode for vengeance. He meant to find the vicious El Patrone, whose outlaw band had swept up from the South, burning barns, killing and slaughtering the cattle they did not steal in a senseless orgy of violence.

Peter Germano, writing as Barry Cord, creates some superb atmosphere throughout this book. Many scenes end in such a way that the reader shares the feelings of bitterness, loneliness, despair, and the sense of impending danger with Mel Rawlins, Germano’s choice of words vividly painting haunting images within my mind.

The story is filled with fascinating characters from the bad, the evil, and the innocent – the latter beautifully portrayed in the young girl Loan. Germano also hints that some, if not all, of these people may, or may not, be who they claim to be. The plot is filled with twists and turns, lies, treachery, mistrusts, and gripping action. Germano has Rawlins struggling to discover the hidden truths of what is going on in this small coastal town. The answers are kept from the reader too, and I never guessed what they were. Just what was the secret of the ship that unloaded only undercover of the fog? Who were behind the attempts on Rawlins life and why? Just what part did Loan have to play? And what had happened to the first and second riders?

All this is told at tremendous pace in a fast flowing style that makes the book difficult to put down. Once again Peter Germano proves to be up there with the very best western writers. And of the few Barry Cord books I’ve read so far, this has to be one of my favourites.

The Coffin Fillers

 as by Barry Cord

Gunsmoke, 2004

Two old-timers ride into Apache Wells looking to visit an old friend who’s prospecting in the area only to be told he’s gone missing, possibly dead as his ghost is haunting the Mesa. Sheriff Caulkins is nervous as the bank is holding a substantial amount of money and he suspects all new arrivals as possible bank-robbers. It’s also rumoured that outlaw Bighead Nevens is aiming to steal the money. Then the sheriff’s deputy goes missing too. Another new arrival in town is Professor Eccleston, he’s selling an elixer called Tigro and has brought a real live tiger to help promote it. Looks like Zachary Stack, the town undertaker could have a lot of business coming his way...

This is a reprint of a short novel originally published in 1973 and is the third story by Barry Cord (real name Peter Germano) featuring his heroes Long Jim and Windy. I’ve enjoyed all the books I’ve previously read by Germano and had high expectations of this one.

There are quite a few more characters involved in this story than those mentioned above, most of who could be something more than meets the eye, and you soon start asking yourself just what is going on?

The fast pace of this intriguing tale drew me in and all too soon I’d reached the last page. As I neared the end I began to wonder how Germano could tie everything up in so few pages (the book is only 111 pages long), but I needn’t have worried as he did so magnificently, once again proving to me that he’s a writer worth looking out for.

The Gun-Shy Kid

as by Barry Cord

Belmont Tower, 1957

Looking for his missing brother, Kip Nunninger rode into dangerous Antelope Valley, and nothing was going to stop him. But he was a boy on a man’s errand, and the Valley watched him, knowing that he’d be gunned down before he grew to be a man. Kip was sure that Antelope Valley held the truth to his brother’s disappearance. He didn’t know that it also held a bullet and a gravesite, both with his name on them!

This is your typical youngster out of his elements plot who you know will be picked on but he’ll eventually come out on top – or is it?

Barry Cord is a pseudonym for Peter Germano and he always has a few tricks up his sleeve to throw the reader off track, although here I did work out the main twist to the story early on.

As well as strong male characters Germano includes a very strong female lead too.

This is a story filled with greed, love, jealousy and murder. A story that doesn’t end as you’d expect for some of the characters.

Perhaps not the best Barry Cord book I’ve read but certainly worth a look.

Hell in Paradise Valley

 as by Barry Cord

Trojan, publication date unknown

When Jess Riley agreed to drive a herd into Paradise Valley, he didn’t know it was a herd of sheep. Jess was a cattleman from way back, and shared the cattleman’s contempt for sheep and sheep herders. But he’d given his word, and he’d have to follow through.

Trouble was, to reach the valley, he’d have to tangle with a lot of angry, gun-toting Texas cattle ranchers who were willing to kill rather than let sheep onto their land. Jess didn’t worry too much about that – he could take care of himself. But there was Luisa to consider, the beautiful Mexican girl who was married to the owner of the herd – or was she?

This promised to be the most unusual trail drive. Jess just hoped they’d all come out of it alive!

Barry Cord’s fast moving storyline is hiding more secrets than that of whether Luisa is really married or not, it also seems that Owens isn’t who he says he is. Paradise Valley has its own secrets too, centering on the ranch Owens has bought. There’s a lot more to this tale than just stopping the arrival of the sheep.

The book itself is short, easily readable in a couple of hours. Most of the gunplay isn’t written about, only its aftermath. So if action aplenty is what you’re looking for then you may be disappointed. If you want an entertaining story with a twisting plotline and interesting characters then you shouldn’t let this one slip past you.

Me? I’ll be looking out for other Barry Cord books at every chance I have.

Desert Knights

as by Barry Cord

A Black Horse Western from Hale, 1995

Windy and Long Jim weren’t looking for trouble, they just wanted to hand over a corpse to the local law. But the law in Goliath didn’t seem too interested, and when it turned out the dead man was a friend of Windy’s nephew, Quincy, they decided to take the matter into their own hands. Suddenly they found themselves in the middle of Mexican bandit, El Porcito’s, plans for a revolution.

From Windy and Long Jim’s discovery of a corpse strapped to the back of a camel you know you’re in for an entertaining read. Barry Cord (rn. Peter Germano) writes a fast paced and tough story that I found impossible to put down, in fact finished it the same day I picked it up.

As the mystery surrounding Quincy and why he was in Goliath gets more and more complex, more characters are introduced and it begins to look like Windy and Long Jim will never find Quincy. Even the local law want them out of town.

Cord seems to be a master of letting the reader think he knows what’s going on and then introducing someone else to further complicate matters. Here this is dramatically done with the arrival of Quincy’s wife Linda whose attitude is superbly written, her comments and treatment of those around her having me laughing out loud.

Linda isn’t the only strong woman in the book, there’s Maria, but what is her role in the story? And what of Felipe, the boy thief? All of Cord’s characters will play important roles in the outcome of the book.

If you haven’t read a Barry Cord book yet, then maybe it’s time you did.

 

Get a copy here.

Last Stage to Gomorrah

as by Barry Cord

Stoneshire, 1983
reprint of a 1966 Tower publication

Frank Hayes was a stagecoach guard. When Hayes, the stagecoach and a quarter of a million dollars of gold disappear without a trace, Wells Fargo find themselves with an insurance claim on their hands.

Jeff Carter owes Sturvesant, Wells Fargo’s boss, a favour and heads for Gomorrah to find the missing gold. Trouble was three previous investigators had already been shot dead and it soon looked like Carter would be joining them.

Having enjoyed reading a Barry Cord book before I had high hopes for this one and once again the author delivered the goods. Plenty of mystery and well-drawn characters grabbed my attention straight away. Other events began to tangle the plot line too, such as a woman from Carter’s past being in Gomorrah, just what role did she play in the disappearance of the stagecoach? The young Indian Topah, whose parents have been killed by four gunmen, these killings being witnessed by Carter, what role would he have to play in the story?

This is a book that is filled with action and moves to its climax at a gripping fast pace. All the story threads come together in a dramatic finale that answers all questions.

If you’re a fan of westerns and have never read anything by Barry Cord then maybe its time you did.

Barry Cord is a pseudonym for Peter Germano.