North Chase

The Derby Man #7

By Gary McCarthy

Bantam Books, February 1982

He is the most cruelly dangerous opponent the Derby Man has ever challenged, Wesley Bryant, now crime lord of San Francisco. Darby smashes through the sword-wielding Chinese Tong warriors who protect Bryant’s vicious web of vice but Bryant escapes to launch his most ruthless scheme – stealing the vast wealth of Alaska for his own empire of evil. 

The Derby Man hurls himself into a desperate chase through deadly traps and across Alaska’s brutal tundra until he stands alone in the icy savagery of a wilderness blizzard in his ultimate showdown with a deadly madman.

Following on closely from the previous book in the series, Explosion at Donner Pass, Darby is horrified to discover Bryant is still alive, and this isn’t the only shock for the Derby Man for he is to meet Connor O’Grady, a young man of ambition who will bring his own set of problems for Darby, but to say any more about that will spoil the surprise of just who O’Grady is.

As before the book presents the reader with a mix of real events and people perfectly combined with fiction. The fast pace of the story never slows down as the tale becomes a frantic race against time that sees Darby pursuing his quarry by ship and dog-sledge. Even among all the violence Gary McCarthy still manages to insert moments of humour and you’ll find yourself wondering if The Derby Man and Dolly Beavers will ever find time for themselves or if they even have a future together?

The Derby Man books are certainly worth taking the time to search out in those used book stores as they are now long out of print as paperbacks but if you don’t mind reading ebooks then they are now available in this form and can also be found as audio books. Whatever your preferred method then this series is one that should appeal to all fans of the western genre.

Ride Away

The Corrigan Brothers #1

By Cotton Smith

Pinnacle, January 2016

Deed Corrigan earned a reputation as a gunfighter – the hard way. But now, after forging cattle trails and fighting off the Comanche, he’s setting his sights on a brighter future. With the help of his older brother Blue, a Civil War veteran who lost his arm in battle, Deed turns the homestead into a successful, working cattle ranch. 

But when a land-grabbing banker tries to wipe out the competition – slaughtering ranchers, robbing farmers, and building an army of hired killers – Deed and Blue have no choice but to fight back with everything they’ve got. That means bringing in the big guns. Settling old scores. And taking a chance on a dangerous outlaw named Holt Corrigan – their long-lost brother…

With many publishers ceasing their western lines it’s great to see Pinnacle still publishing new paperback westerns such as this, the first in a brand new series by Cotton Smith. Although a few of Mr. Smith’s books can be found in my collection I believe this is the first one I have read.

The books starts with a lengthy and exciting stagecoach attack by Comanche warriors that spills over into another desperate fight at the waystation. These two confrontations introduce the reader to a number of the main characters, one, who just might find himself on the opposite side to his new friend Deed Corrigan as events unfold.

Deed will also find a reason to stay away from his ranch but is it one he’s ready for?

Cotton Smith weaves his tale together superbly, presenting the reader with a gripping story that offers plenty of action, a couple of surprising twists, and characters you can believe in. Of course being the first in a series there are a couple of storylines that finish in such a way they can be further developed in coming novels, books that I for one am looking forward to reading, it’s just a shame that I’ve got to wait until October to read the next Corrigan Brothers story; Kill Town.

Child of the Dead

THE SPANISH BIT SAGA #23

By Don Coldsmith

Bantam, September 1995

First published by Doubleday, February 1995

It is the time of the annual Sun Dance, but this year the celebration is marred by sadness. On the trail south, the holy man Singing Wolf makes a terrible discovery: an entire village destroyed by the dreaded poch, the spotted death. There is only one survivor, a young girl called Gray Mouse. For the good of the tribe, Singing Wolf knows they must leave the girl behind. Yet the aged and grieving Running Deer will stay behind to care for Gray Mouse. Seeking to join her departed husband and daughter, Running Deer will instead discover a new reason to live as she nurses Gray Mouse to health. Together the old woman and the young girl will begin an extraordinary quest to re-join the People, bearing a powerful vision of courage, hope, and survival.

There is much to admire in Don Coldsmith’s writing of this book. His observations of heart-break, despair, the uselessness of old-age, the humour in not giving a damn how the younger generation see the antics of the elderly, the human spirit to survive, and the power of hope, to name but a few of the feelings that Coldsmith brings to life in such a way you’ll find yourself sharing these emotions with his beautifully crafted characters.

Singing Wolf must also wrestle with the question of how to fight a killer you cannot see, that can strike at any moment without warning.

Don Coldsmith splits this story into three parts. The first dealing with the horror of smallpox; the second the battle to survive the disease and that of Running Deer and Gray Mouses’ trek to find the survivors; and the third part that sees a jump forward of ten years, bringing new heartache for Gray Mouse as she struggles to find out who she is. This takes her on a dangerous trail of self-discovery that could lead to her death at the hands of a tribe first met in an earlier novel in the series; Bride of the Morning Star.

In conclusion this is another excellent entry in this first class series.

Pioneering Press - New Western Publisher

Endeavour Press – the UK’s leading independent digital publisher – has grown at an impressive rate since its inception in 2012. With the digital market on the rise and the demand for e-books at an all-time high, Endeavour Press now publishes 30 books a week across a range of imprints.

As part of its ongoing expansion strategy, Endeavour has recently launched an exciting new western imprint – Pioneering Press – which will cater towards the growing demand for traditional westerns in digital format.

Managed by Georgina Cutler, Pioneering Press is proud to publish both new and classic westerns by authors based in the US and the UK, including award winning author Robert J Conley, E C Tubb, John Russell Fearn and Christopher Kenworthy, to name but a few.

Pioneering Press believes that no book is an ‘old book’. Books can be, and indeed are, rediscovered on kindle every day. Good stories will always grip readers and will therefore always have a place in the market. Great care is taken in the production of our books, with exciting new covers commissioned to combine the traditional with the contemporary.

Our aim is to capture the history and spirit of the Old West by bringing back classic titles for old and new readers alike, whilst also pioneering authentic new material set on the American frontier.

We welcome submissions from both new and previously published authors in the western fiction genre. If you are an author of western fiction where the digital rights are available, and you are interested in discussing the possibilities of digital publishing, please feel free to contact Georgina directly at: georgina@endeavourpress.com

Pioneering Press is always keen to hear from its readers and we are always on the lookout for enthusiastic reviewers for our books. Please do not hesitate to get in touch.

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The Gunsmith is back in print

When Jove decided to stop publishing THE GUNSMITH series by J.R. Roberts with book 399: Death in the Family published March 2015, the man behind the pseudonym, Robert J. Randisi, searched for a new publisher so that the series could continue.

The ebook rights were quickly snapped up by Piccadilly Publishing and April 2015 saw #400: The Lincoln Ransom appear in ebook stores. A new ebook has been published every month since. 

It was hoped that a different publisher would produce paperback versions to tie in with the publication of the ebooks but for reasons unknown to me this never happened.

Almost a year later THE GUNSMITH has returned in print form. Published by Pro Se Productions books 400 and 401 have become available through Amazon in February 2016 (I’m not sure if they can be bought elsewhere). So for those of you who prefer books printed on paper and have missed buying your Gunsmith books in this form then what are you waiting for?

The Kerrigans A Texas Dynasty

By William W. Johnstone with J.A. Johnstone

Pinnacle, February 2014

A strong, beautiful mother of five, Kate Kerrigan has made do since losing her husband in the bloody Battle of Shiloh. Now, two years after the Civil War, there’s nothing left for them in Tennessee but poverty and bad memories. So Kate decides a better life awaits them in far-off West Texas. Thus begins a 1000-mile trek through some of the harshest and most dangerous territory on the frontier. But by pulling together, the Kerrigans discover the conviction to overcome the unimaginable hardships and the strength of spirit that will help them build one of the largest cattle empires in history of the American West.

It’s not that often that a western series has a woman as the lead character and that comes as a welcome change to the usual lone drifter. It’s interesting to see just how far she will go to protect her family. Kate is also a stunningly attractive woman and this has both positives and negatives depending on who is drawn to her.

This book begins in 1907 but after only a few pages the story moves back in time to tell of the ordeals that sees the Kerrigans decide to head to West Texas. So the vast part of this tale is a flashback and even this contains another jump back to tell of Kate’s husbands’ death.

The author doesn’t just stick with Kate Kerrigan, large parts of the book follow the fortunes and misfortunes of her children explaining the events that mould them all into the characters they are that set out to claim and build a cattle ranch.

The opening blurb taken from the book implies that much of the story will take place on the trail but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Most of the travel is glossed over and the story just deals with the meeting of people who will help the Kerrigans build their empire and of course the outlaws that do their best to stop them before they’ve even begun. Having said that there is an excellent section that covers the horror of being caught out in the open by a tornado.

This well-written, exciting and action-packed book ends with the Kerrigans arrival at what they hope will be their new home and the author concludes a number of storylines at this point, but also leaves some story threads dangling to ensure the reader will want to read the next book in the series, and that is something I will certainly be doing very soon.

Outlaw Town

A Ralph Compton novel by David Robbins

Signet, January 2016

Chancy Gantry and Ollie Teal are honest cowpunchers riding herd on fifteen hundred longhorns from Texas to Kansas. Their trail boss, Lucas Stout, is tough but fair. He’s never lost a hand on a drive and doesn’t aim to start now. So when a cowhand needs a sawbones bad, Stout sends Chancy and Ollie to escort the man to a town called Prosperity, which none of them has ever heard of.

At first glance, the town looks deserted – but the saloon is full. The dusty denizens of Prosperity are happy to help the ailing cowboy, especially when they hear about the herd grazing a few miles away. Chancy and Ollie are about to discover that some towns are a lot easier to ride into than to ride out of….

David Robbins presents the reader with a very interesting mix of characters, not least Ollie Teal, a man whom some would label as being backwards, his childlike wonder at everything and non-stop babble get on some peoples’ nerves but his loyalty to the brand and his pard, Chancy, are second to none.

There are other memorable characters too, both amongst the cowboys and the townspeople. The crippled doctor for instance and a handful of fast guns that will have you wondering who will come out on top should they have the need to face each other, something that has just got to happen, hasn’t it?

As one would hope for in a book written by David Robbins you get plenty of cracking dialogue, descriptions that portray the land, town, and emotions perfectly, placing you right there sharing the joys, laughter, horror and fear with the characters. And then there is the action, fast and brutal at times, that becomes almost non-stop when the cowboys realize the true intentions of those living in Prosperity.

There are plenty of edge-of-the-seat situations, surprises too, and it soon becomes apparent that you cannot predict who will be left alive at the end, if anyone. David Robbins ties everything up neatly and to say more would surely spoil the book for those intending to read it. My final thoughts are that this is a western all fans of the genre should enjoy.