To the Far Sierras

By Will DuRey

The Crowood Press, May 2017

Tom Belman has been drifting west since the end of the civil war, lured by tales of wealth and verdant valleys in the territory beyond the far sierras. In the Texas panhandle, however, close to the Canadian River, his progress is interrupted when his horse is stolen. His pursuit of the young thief leads to an unfriendly reunion with a former soldier in Tom’s unit, Lou Currier, who is now sheriff of a small town called Ortega Point. A subsequent lynching compels Tom to find and return to her home an unknown girl who is also being sought by Currier’s posse. But the girl is not easily dissuaded from her investigation into the affairs of businessman Andrew Willis and when she returns to Ortega Point she puts herself and Tom Belman into a deadly situation.

Will DuRey hooks his readers right from the beginning of this fast paced story with a number of questions that you’ll be eager to find out the answers to, such as why does the young man try to steal Belman’s horse? Why is Currier’s posse so desperate to see that same young man hang and why are they chasing the young girl? What does she suspect Willis of doing? 

Belman could easily ride away from these troubles but a hint of guilt sees him stay the distance, and in doing so gets himself involved in all kinds of deadly situations that result in a lot of gunplay. The backstory of Belman and Currier seem to be leading to a confrontation too, that might or might not have something to do with Ortega Point and the secrets some of its citizens hide. I’m not going to reveal the outcome here, but I will say everything resolves satisfactorily if not with some kind of poetic justice.

I’ve read a number of books by Will DuRey and this one is equal in quality and entertainment value with any of those and I will certainly be looking out for more of his work.