OUTLAW DESTINY

 

OUTLAW DESTINY
a.k.a THE LAST DAYS OF WOLF GARNETT
By Clifton Adams
Tandem, 1975
Spur Award Winner for Best Western Novel, 1970

To most Texans, Wolf Garnett was a notorious outlaw, a man to be feared. To Frank Gault, he was a relentless obsession, a man to be killed. Gault had spent more than a year tracking him down to avenge the brutal, senseless murder of his young wife.

And now Wolf Garnett was dead. At least, everyone said so. But Gault wasn’t satisfied. How could he have seen Garnett in Indian territory four days earlier if he’d been dead for two weeks? Was the rotting corpse buried in New Boston Cemetery really that of Garnett?

Whether for revenge, justice, or satisfaction, Frank Gault was driven to find out how Wolf Garnett died – or get killed for trying.

In Frank Gault, Clifton Adams created a character that had nothing else to live for but tracking down Wolf Garnett. Even when all the evidence points to Garnett being dead, Gault has to continue with his fixation on being satisfied that what everyone tells him is true as he has no purpose for carrying on, for living. Garnett is a driven man, a man who won’t let anyone or anything stop him finding out the truth.

Adams’ tells a gritty tale that is infused with darkness. His characters are tough men who only seem to care about their own needs. There’s a woman too. Beautiful. A woman who just about every man is in love with. Does she know what has really happened to her brother Wolf Garnett? 

As the story progresses, Gault’s queries lead to more questions not answers. More characters are introduced, all reluctant to speak of what they know. People die and Gault is still at a loss and the mystery behind Wolf Garnett deepens.

Adams’ superb storytelling easily pulled me into this book. His harsh, bleak prose gripped me instantly and its hook never let go. There’s a noir tone throughout and the story seems to be heading for an unhappy ending for all his characters. Is Gault riding a trail of self-destruction? 

This book won a Spur Award for best Western Novel and it is easy to see why. It’s powerful characterizations and twisting plot will stay in my memory for a long time and make this a book I’d recommend to any western reader. This was Adams’ second Spur Award as he had already won one the previous year for his novel Tragg’s Choice which I have yet to read. I’ve now moved Tragg’s Choice towards the top of my to read pile. 

This book was originally published in America as The Last Days of Wolf Garnett in 1970. In 1972 it was published in the U.K. by Robert Hale under the title Outlaw Destiny and Tandem ran with that title too. 

THE SABER BRAND

By Herbert Purdum

Tandem, 1976

Originally published by Doubleday, 1966 as My Brother John

Spur Award Winner for Best Western Novel, 1966

John Niles could get into more trouble without even trying than a dozen hardcases could get into on purpose . . . 

Frank Niles sometimes wished he’d never promised to look after his unpredictable younger brother . . . 

Colonel Belknap reckoned he owned Concho Basin and every man, woman and child who lived there – especially the women . . . 

When the Niles brothers rode into Concho, they collided head-on with Belknap’s outfit. That was when John Niles forgot he was a preacher and turned to more forceful methods of converting the wicked. Niles had plenty of guts and nerves like chilled steel, and he needed them when he tangled with Belknap’s Saber bunch. 

Even though the plot is similar to many other westerns, the rich man who rules the town and surrounding land with an iron fist and a small army of gunmen, Purdum’s storytelling keeps it fresh and exciting.

Told in the first person through Frank Niles, the tale is laced with humorous observations about everything that happens. There are many comic situations too, which give the tale a light-hearted tone, without turning it into a full-blown comedy western. 

Frank is a wonderful character, a frustrated man, a man not lacking in bravery, who is constantly being admonished by his brother for his use of bad language and for wanting to kill their enemies. His brother John, being a circuit-riding preacher, would rather resolve things peacefully, but isn’t opposed to using force when he has to. 

Purdum does write a lot of speech in slang and spells words how his characters say them, so some of it took a bit of careful reading to understand. Scottish, Irish and cowboy are all in the mix, but it didn’t take long for me to get used to, and I found it added a nice flavour to the story.

There are many well described action scenes as the Niles brothers attempt to stop Belknap from forcing a woman to marry him. Belknap has the town lawman in his pocket too. It seems to the best way to rid Concho of these men is to hold an election and remove the sheriff, but this doesn’t quite go to plan, although it does evolve into a very different candidate stepping forward who the townsfolk are right behind, especially the ladies of the town. The final showdown is dramatic, fun, and uses children to bring about the downfall of Belknap. 

I really enjoyed The Saber Brand, a title maybe only used in the UK, its American title being My Brother John. It seems Herbert R. Purdum only wrote one other western, A Hero for Henry, which was published in 1968. Purdum also wrote scripts for many TV shows, including Death Valley Days and Broken Arrow. 

Spur Awards

The Western Writers of America have announced their Spur Award winners and those that apply to fiction are:

Jory Sherman is honored the Owen Wister Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Best Western Short Novel was awarded to Matthew Mayo for Tucker's Reckoning.

Runners up were Lonesome Animals by Bruce Holbert and City of Rocks by Michael Zimmer.

Best Western Long Novel was awarded to Thomas Cobb for With Blood in their Eyes.

Runners up were The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin and Country of the Bad Wolfes by James Carlos Blake.

Best Original Mass Market Paperback was awarded to Larry Sweazy for The Coyote Tracker.

Runners up were Redemption: Hunters by James Reasoner and The Secret of Lodestar by Tim Champlin.

 

Best First Novel was awarded to Brett Cogburn for Panhandle.

Runners up were Wide Open by Larry Bjornson and The Orchardist by Amanda Coplin.

 

A full list of all categorys and winners can be found here.

Big with Vengeance

By Cecil Snyder

Tandem, 1971

First published by Wingate, 1970

Klee had lost out twice – once when his farm was raided by Jeb Stuart’s men, and then again, later, and much harder, when he had to watch helplessly as a thousand Sioux, Cheyenne and Arapaho overran the wagons and his wife and step-daughter died horribly.

He was a man twice filled with hate – and with rage at himself because he had not been better able to defend his own. There was no room in him for anything else. He set himself to hate, and kill, and hate.

But no one really knows how to hate like an Indian…

This is a very powerful book. Klee isn’t a man you’ll like – but he is a fascinating character. Just why is he like he is and what motivates him? When did he become a cold-hearted killer? And what will happen to him?

Cecil Snyder describes landscapes and simple tasks beautifully, sometimes taking pages to paint his vivid imagery. Something that you might think a reader would get bored with, but such is his way with words you’ll find yourself immersed, swept up in his superb storytelling.

A lot of the story is told as flashbacks explaining what Klee was like before the loss of his wife and step-daughter, this savage act that sees him become a hunter of Indians who lives for nothing more than finding and killing them, be they man, woman or child. Yes this is a brutal story that contains acts that will horrify the reader, yet will compel you to read on. Can a new love change Klee back into the man he once was?

Snyder’s technique used for the flashbacks is worth mentioning; the main story is told in the third person, yet the chapters and passages that deal with the past are in italics and written in the second person. The different styles gel perfectly and add to the energy of the book.

There are many fascinating facts to be discovered too, mainly during the scenes dealing with Klee being taught how to survive in the wilderness; what plants he can eat for instance, or how to carry enough bullets to ensure he doesn’t run out in a life and death situation.

As you’ll see from the cover image this book won a Spur Award for best first novel (the book says in 1970 on the cover, but the Western Writers of America lists it as 1969) and it’s easy to see why it won this accolade.

I have no hesitation in saying this book has found it’s way onto my list of favourite westerns of all time. 

The Red Sabbath

By Lewis B. Patten

Tandem, 1976

Originally published by Doubleday, 1968

“The column of dust was like the smoke from a monstrous prairie fire, boiling, yellow. Beneath it was a savage horde, yelling, barbaric in their feathers and brilliant paint, firing into the air out of sheer exuberance, coming in hungry for the vengeance due to them for fifty years of broken promises, for half a hundred savage massacres.”

Sioux, Cheyenne and Kiowa, they longed to wipe out the detested Yellow Hair. But not only the Indians loathed General Custer; many of the men who rode with him towards the valley of the Little Big Horn also hated Custer, and with good reason. He was ruthless and vain and ambitious – and he needed a victory. So he led two hundred and twenty-five men of the 7th Cavalry into one of the bloodiest massacres in American history. With them was Miles Lorette, hard-bitten civilian scout whose life had twice been wrecked, by white men and Indians, and who was to take part in the violent and terrible hours of that blood-soaked Sunday in 1876.

This whole book pretty much takes place over that one bloody Sunday, moving into the next day for the conclusion. The story is told in the first person through Miles Lorette and his back-story is explained through a series of flashbacks during lulls in the battle.

There are many exciting, and tense, scenes throughout, one of the best for me being the desperate attempt to get water. Patten superbly portrays the fear of discovery and the frantic race back to the soldiers’ lines when discovered.

Lorette finds himself with Reno and Benteen’s commands, pinned down and helpless to go to Custer’s aid, hoping for Custer’s death but saddened by the thought of the loss of the men with the General. Lorette isn’t the only man who has these wishes, for most of the characters Patten features in his novel also want to witness Custer’s death for past wrongs.

Lewis Patten captures the atmosphere of the battle and its immediate aftermath in moving and visual prose. Even though the outcome of this savage clash between white men and Indian is well known, I still found myself swept up in the story, eagerly turning the pages to see what happened next, the final scenes of Lorette riding through the masses of dead making for a powerful ending to the book.

The Red Sabbath is a must-read for anyone with an interest in Custer and/or the Indian Wars, and, of course, for fans of Lewis Patten’s work.

This book was the winner of the Spur Award for best western historical novel in 1968.

Nickajack

by Robert J. Conley

St. Martin’s Paperbacks, October 2002

Originally published Doubleday, April 1992

His crime was choosing to stay alive. His fate was to pay with his life…

In the East, his people had lived on the land for thousands of years. Now it was a nation bitterly divided, and Nickajack had decided to leave it behind. But when his country’s broken heart came chasing after him in the West, he found himself with enemies he didn’t choose, forcing him to pick up an old, oiled pistol, and aiming at a stranger in self-defence. A reckoning had begun – as Nickajack faced a law that accused him of murder, and sealed his fate forever.

This is a powerful read. A book that deals with tragedy, that which befalls Nickajack himself and that of his tribe caught up in a political struggle based on corruption and the treatment of minority groups.

Robert J. Conley tells this story in prose that will be long remembered, his tale tears at the heart in its sadness. Much of the story is told in reflection as Nickajack remembers the events that have torn through the Cherokee Nation and swept him up in them, which have ultimately seen him on trial for murder. Make no mistake this is a hard-hitting tale of suffering and betrayal based around true events. The tone, as you’d expect, is dark and is beautifully paced as it builds up to its inevitable ending.

Robert J. Conley won a Spur Award for this novel and it’s easy to see why. It seems such a shame to me that very few readers of westerns mention him when discussing the genre. Conley seems to be a very overlooked writer, and on the strength of this book I’d say that many people have been missing out on some terrific reading. To those I say try this, I’m sure you’ll be impressed.

Crucifixion River

by Marcia Muller & Bill Pronzini

Leisure, February 2010

The dark clouds are gathering, and it’s promising to be a doozy of a storm at the River Bend stage station…where the owners are anxiously awaiting the return of their missing daughter. Where a young cowboy hopes to find safety from the rancher whose wife he’s run away with. Where a Pinkerton agent has tracked the quarry he’s been chasing for years. Thunder won’t be the only thing exploding along CRUCIFIXION RIVER.

The title story in this book is written in the first person, in fact told from the viewpoint of many people, each short chapter being titled by the name of the character who’s thoughts the reader will share. This is just one of the things that makes this story extremely memorable.

Crucifixion River brings together a fascinating bunch of people, a number of whom aren’t satisfied with the lives, those that hide secret pasts, those who are running away, and those who aren’t ready to reveal who they really are before the time is right. Due to this many of these characters soon become suspicious of, and have doubts about, the people they find themselves with. After a sudden burst of violence the opportunity for robbery arises too. This all leads to a well told, and exciting, climax.

After this terrific western tale come a number of other short stories, and here Leisure have crossed genres, all the others falling under the mystery banner. All these stories having been published elsewhere such as in Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine *.

Included in this book are:

Crucifixion River by Marcia Muller & Bill Pronzini

Free Durt by Bill Pronzini *

He Said…She Said by Marcia Muller

Wrong Place, Wrong Time by Bill Pronzini

Irrefutable Evidence by Marcia Muller *

The Carville Ghost by Bill Pronzini *

Pickpocket by Marcia Muller *

The Dying Time by Marcia Muller & Bill Pronzini

All the stories are well-written, gripping, tales. Twists and turns abound. Characters are well drawn and will stick in the mind for a long time. My favourite being Free Durt.

The idea of mixing both western and mystery fiction in one book works well and makes this a must read for those who enjoy both genres. And for those whose preferred reading material is westerns, the strength of the title story should have you hunting this book out, and who knows after reading the mystery tales you may become a fan of that genre too – and vice-versa.

This book was published at the end of January so should be available now.

Bill Pronzini and Marcia Muller are a husband-wife writing team with numerous individual honors, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, the Grand Master Award from Mystery Writers of America, and the American Mystery Award. In addition to the Spur Award–winning title novella, this volume also contains stories featuring Bill Pronzini’s famous “Nameless Detective” and Marcia Muller’s highly popular Sharon McCone investigator.