SHERIFF OF BIG HAT

 

SHERIFF OF BIG HAT
By Barry Cord
A Wagon Wheel Western, 1958

Three men rode into Del Rio on three different trails. They were known as the Unholy Three – and they deserved their nickname. Doc, Jackson, and the Kid, were their names. They had nothing in common – except a willingness to hire out their guns.

Barry Cord packs a lot into this short western. Questions come at the reader from the first pages. Who are the Unholy Three being the main one to start with. They ride together but know little about each other. It seems they’ve been hired to stop a range war, but it soon become evident there’s a lot more at stake than that. 

It’s not long before the Kid’s past is revealed. Del Rio is the town the Kid grew up in. It’s to town he fled with the accusation of murder hanging over his head. Soon his relationships with various townsfolk cause more problems, especially when the Kid rips the badge of the town’s sheriff and pins it one his own shirt. What of the girl the Kid left behind? She’s the daughter of the old sheriff and the sister of the man the Kid is supposed to have killed.

As the tale races through its many twists and turns it becomes evident there isn’t going to be a happy ending for many of the characters, if any. There’s a dark tone to the proceedings. Men make promises that they’ll kill each other. Bullets fly thick and fast. Some of the bad guys are obvious but the author keeps some a secret, such as who killed Ann’s brother and who murdered the Kid’s father. 

I’ve read a quite a few books and short stories by Barry Cord and I can’t remember his descriptions of violence and torture ever being quite so graphic as they are in a couple of scenes in this book. 

Barry Cord is a pseudonym used by Peter Germano and I was once more thoroughly entertained by one of his books. This may not be the best of his work, but it is certainly worth reading. 

Arcadia House, who put out the Wagon Wheel Westerns really let the author down and it really makes me wonder if they employed a proof reader. For instance, a word that should finish a sentence isn’t there, but it does turn up at the end of the previous page all by itself. There are also words with missing letters or they are badly printed so it’s hard to read them. The gaps between words and sentences vary in size too. None of this makes it unreadable though. I do have one or two other Wagon Wheel Westerns and I am now intrigued to see of they are as badly printed as this one. 

DEAD SHOT

 

LUKE JENSEN, BOUNTY HUNTER 2
DEAD SHOT
By William W. Johnstone with J.A. Johnstone
Pinnacle Books, July 2013

Luke Jensen brings a body to Rio Rojo. After all, it’s his job, and he’s going to get paid. But before he can collect the bounty for killing a killer, two notorious criminals hit the Rio Rojo bank. Now Luke can’t get paid unless he catches professional bandit Gunner Kelly and his Apache sidekick Dog Eater. Unfortunately, a would-be man hunter is after the money-toting outlaws too, and young Hobie McCullough is mostly a menace to himself. With a green kid to protect, renegade Mexican soldiers, and a beautiful runaway bride crossing Luke’s trail, the blood hunt takes one deadly detour after another…until Luke ends up smack dab in a nest-of-vipers outlaw hideout. There, he discovers the true identity of Gunner Kelly, what kind of ungodly terror he has planned, and just how dangerous being a bounty hunter can be…

Even though this book reads like a number of different incidents that see Luke Jensen fighting for his life, each of the story threads is held together by the hunt for Gunner Kelly and Dog Eater. The need to sort out each crisis Luke finds himself in quickly so he can continue to track the outlaws, glues everything together well. Each segment has its own strong storyline and is filled with memorable characters, some of which will turn up later to cause even more deadly problems for Luke.

Luke is a determined man. A man who won’t let anything get in the way of his goal. He’d happy ride around the troubles he comes upon so he can just get on with his task of taking down Kelly and the Apache. But Hobie doesn’t let him as he feels it’s his duty to help people in distress and Luke has no choice but to help.

The lengthiest part of this book is the story of the runaway bride. Why is a band of gunmen trying to kill her? Luke is not sure that is what they are trying to do and is soon proved right. This section of the book features as dramatic stagecoach ride before Luke, Hobie, the bride-to-be and other stagecoach passengers find themselves trapped in a dead-end canyon which provides an exciting how are they going to get out of that situation. In fact, the book contains a lot of cliff-hanger endings to chapters and scenes that ensure the reader will keep turning the pages. 

Action sequences come regularly and the fights are fairly brutal at times. Characters are nicely fleshed out making you care about their future or want to see them get their just rewards. Pacing is excellent too. Even though some of the story threads were resolved as I expected, there were also some surprises that caught me off-guard. 

Hopefully it won’t be as long before I read book three, Bloody Sunday, as it was between reading the first book and this one. 

THRILLING WESTERN - SUMMER 1950

 

THRILLING WESTERN

British Edition, Vol. IV, No. 1

Atlas Publishing, Summer 1950

This is a shortened edition of the American November/December 1949 edition of Thrilling Western. The British edition only reprints four of the originals nine stories along with the short quiz. 

The opening novelette is The Coffin Riders by Bradford Scott. This is a Walt Slade tale that sees him take on a lawless killer band that holds the Sin Cajo country in a grip of fear. Bradford Scott is a pseudonym for A. Leslie Scott, a prolific writer for the pulp magazines who also wrote many of the Jim Hatfield stories as Jackson Cole. The Coffin Riders didn’t really offer anything new, just followed a typical storyline for a Slade or Hatfield tale. Slade rides into the area, keeps his identity a secret for a while, has a fist fight (which is beautifully depicted by Orban in a full-page illustration), talks to his horse and himself a lot, uses his guns, before explaining who the bad guys are, what they’d been doing and why along with the mistakes they’d made that enabled him to bring them down, then rides off strumming his guitar and singing. This was an ok predictable read that felt like it was just going through the motions which is why I’m moved say this isn’t one of the best stories I’ve read from Scott. 

A Man Like General Custer by Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson is next. This is another novelette by a new author to me. This story felt like one long battle between the U.S. Army and the Apache which tests the characters of Lieutenants Beck and Carney in a fiery crucible of war and danger. Yes, we’ve met similar characters in countless stories before – the ambitious man who doesn’t think things through so endangers his men often as he hunts for glory and the more level headed Beck who covers for Carney’s mistakes when he can. Of course, there’s the Major who is at his last straw with Carney. Things aren’t helped by the Major’s daughter being sweet on Carney. There’s plenty of action and a seemingly endless supply of Apaches to be killed. The ending left a smile on my face. Wheeler-Nicholson’s prose kept this tale fresh and exciting and for me it is the best story within this issue and it certainly left me looking forward to reading more of his work sometime assuming I can find more as he only wrote just over twenty western pulp tales and I don’t have any more. 

Barry Scobee’s One Barrel of Water is the third yarn. This short story tells the tale of hard-bitten men who clash over that precious fluid in the desert heat. It’s not just a story of the fight for water as there is a little more to it than that. Namely some lost treasure. I wasn’t sure about this one as I began to read as it didn’t really hold my attention but I’m glad I persevered as it picked up and became an entertaining tale that had some well written action scenes. This was the first story I’ve read by Scobee and I’ll certainly give him another go. 

The last story is a third novelette. The Son of Shiftless Joe by Bruce Douglas. He’s another author that I haven’t read before and this story is the only one I have by him. Bruce Douglas is a pseudonym for Theodore Wayland Douglas and he wrote just over eighty western pulp stories. This one tells the tale of young Tad Jamieson as he sticks his neck out for trouble when he decides to raise sheep in cattle territory. To complicate matters, Tad is sweet on the daughter of his cattleman neighbour, so that is a romance that is seemingly doomed. Even though it is the kind of story the seasoned western reader will have come across many times Douglas’ writing kept me interested. Threats are made, sheep escape onto public land and a range war is on the horizon. The tough talk is lightened occasionally by comments from Tad’s two hands, Buck Bailey and Half-Pint King. Overall, this was a fun read even though it played out exactly as I expected it to.

If you haven’t guessed already, my favourite story within this issue of Thrilling Western was A Man Like General Custer. One-Barrel of Water and The Son of Shiftless Joe kept my attention and I enjoyed reading them. It’s just a shame The Coffin Riders was a bit of a let-down. 

KLAW

KLAW
By W.L. Fieldhouse
Tower Books, 1980

When John Klawson returned from the War to Great Ford, he found his parents dead, victims of a phony “Indian raid,” and their property confiscated by banker Warren T. Jennings. And the rest of the town was under the control of Jennings and his hired guns. Klawson vowed revenge, but Jennings struck first, sending his hardcases after the ex-soldier. In a violent battle Klawson lost his right hand and was left for dead. But he survived and was hidden by friends until his arm healed. A blacksmith fitted him with a gleaming steel claw for a hand, and Klaw, as he became known, learned all over how to use a revolver and a rifle. Soon he was ready to exact vengeance on Jennings and his crew. One by one they would die – painfully – if Klaw had his way!

Whilst America tried to inject new life into the western with the introduction of explicit adult content, the British produced books that were filled with graphic violence and brought the anti-hero more into the limelight. Some of these series such as Edge and Apache became massive successes in America too, so much so that American publishers jumped on the bandwagon and launched their own series with similar content such as Kilburn, Cutter, Hawk (not to be confused with the British series with the same name), and The Loner. I believe the three Klaw books was another of these, as was the equally violent Six-Gun Samurai series that Fieldhouse wrote alongside two other authors as Patrick Lee. 

This book has a slow start as the author fills the reader in on the Klawson’s backstory – events that lead to him facing Jennings in Great Ford. The momentum picks up after Klawson loses his hand and the blacksmith creates the claw for him. This claw is detachable and Klawson can fit other attachments in place of it, such as a modified handgun. This is where the pace of the story begins to move forward at a gallop. Revenge is all that Klawson lives for. As the death toll mounts Klawson becomes know as Klaw. Yet, unlike those anti-heroes of the British westerns, Klaw keeps some of his compassion which, at times, makes him seem like a bit of a contradiction. One minute dishing out death in a completely cold-blooded way, then showing his tender side, such as when he meets Elena and when he helps those back in Great Ford. This makes him a somewhat complex character, a man who clings onto some of his humanity. 

The action scenes are well described in all their graphic brutality. There are some excellent set pieces such as the ambush in a fort that sees both Gatling guns and cannon used effectively. The author often switches between the various groups of characters so he can include more vicious violence as we follow the men Klaw is hunting for. As you’d expect, everything comes together for a savage conclusion.

Throughout the story there is mention of an organization, one that Jennings worked for. Who they are, and what their ultimate aims are is kept vague. On finishing Klaw I was left to wonder if they will be part of the plot of the second Klaw book. I guess I’ll have to read it to find out which is something I aim to do very soon.

I started this review with my thoughts on how some American western series seemed to have been created to cash in on the success of some of the British series. I’ve always wondered if one of the British authors read the Klaw books and used them as an inspiration for his series Claw? He even seems to give a nod of acknowledgement by naming the leader of the outlaws, who are responsible for the loss of the hero’s hand, Jennings. If he didn’t, that’s one hell of a coincidence. 

FOLLOW THE LONESOME TRAIL

FOLLOW THE LONESOME TRAIL

A Wild West Anthology complied by Allison Tebo

Published by KDP, August 2025

A trapper discovers he’s been left a poke of gold—but there’s a safe and a greedy bartender between him and his inheritance. The residents of a mining camp join forces to protect children who may or may not be royalty in disguise. And a pair of bandits get more trouble than they bargained for when the cargo they were hired to steal turns out to be somebody’s mail-order bride!

Find all this and more in this anthology, and prepare yourself for a wild West you only thought you knew as six authors go off-trail and blaze a new path.

Contents:

1. Safekeeping by Rachel Kovaciny

2. Two for the Trail by Allison Tebo

3. A Peculiar Kidnapping by A. Hartley

4. Gold is Where You Find It by Allison Tebo

5. The Princess of Flat Rock by Elisabeth Grace Foley

6. The Man with the Long-Barrelled Gun by Emily Hayse

7. Blaze of Memories by Allison Tebo

8. The Trouble with Rubies by Hannah Kaye

This just released collection of short stories offers a refreshing take on the western. All of them have strong roles for female leads. There are plenty of twists, many of which I didn’t see coming. There’s a bittersweet ending but most finish with an uplifting conclusion. There’s a lot of humour with a couple of the stories bordering on being outright comedy tales. Most of the stories have a light-hearted tone although you will find some thoughtful messages within the stories too. There are crazy situations that need fast thinking to resolve. The misunderstanding of an overheard conversation drives the plot of one of the stories. Another seems to follow a more traditional western storyline; that of a new widowed young mother about to lose her ranch until a lone man steps in to deal out justice because that is the right thing to do.

All of these stories captured my imagination and kept me turning the pages to see what happened next. I wished some of them were longer. A couple left me wondering if the lead characters would return in future tales. 

Yes, I have my favourites but I can honestly say I’d be happy to read more western stories by any of the authors in this collection – I’ve only read Elisabeth Grace Foley before. The three tales by Allison Tebo are much shorter than the others.

Overall, this is a strong collection of short stories from a group of talented authors. Recommended.

American readers can get a copy here

British readers can get a copy here

VENGEANCE TRAIL

VENGEANCE TRAIL
By Bill Brooks
Leisure Books, January 2009

Johnny Montana has racked up a lot of enemies in his days as a gambler, road agent and killer. And it seems the law has finally caught up with him. Shooting a U.S. senator was the last straw. But it’s a long way across Indian Territory to get Johnny to “Hanging” Judge Parker. And plenty of others are looking to exact their own vengeance. The Biggs boys have given up their successful hog farm to hunt down the man who shot their father between the eyes. Eli Stagg, a hard, cruel tracker, has been hired by the senator’s family to make sure their own version of justice is done. And the Comanche will kill just about anyone on their land.

With all hell about to break loose across the roughest territory in the state, Texas Ranger Henry Dollar is the only one who can prevent an utter bloodbath – if he can stay alive long enough himself.

Although the blurb seems to indicate that Henry Dollar is the central character in this book he isn’t. Neither is anyone else. The story switches regularly between those mentioned above, and more, as it builds in intensity. This allows the author to flesh out his characters, explaining their reasons for hunting Montana, sharing the emotions that drive them. As death and injury befall them, I soon began to wonder if any of them would be alive at the end.

Brooks’ descriptions of time and place are well written and the action scenes are hard hitting. His characters are memorable, both good and bad. Although the story has a pretty straight-forward plot Brooks tells it in a compelling way that makes the book difficult to put down until the end is reached. 

Having read other books by Brooks that all had a dark tone throughout I was surprised to find this one didn’t. This means it should appeal to a wider readership – those who don’t like too much graphic violence, explicit sex, or depressing themes in their reading. 

I found Vengeance Trail to be an enjoyable read and I’m now wondering where my other yet to read books by Bill Brooks are as I was left wanting to read more of his work soon.

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 JURY ON SMOKY HILL

THE JURY ON SMOKY HILL

By Jack Curtis

Cover art by Lino Saffioti

Pocket Books, February 1992

Sheriff Dave Cromwell was chosen to stop the gun-happy, liquor-fuelled Texas cowboys who were tearing up Ellsworth, Kansas. But when the good and proper townspeople reached the end of their patience, they decided to take the law into their own hands.

Dave had four prisoners in his jail when the men with white sacks over their heads came bursting in. A few hours later the four captives were hanging from the railroad trestle just outside of town. Knowing each of the twelve “jurors,” Dave turned in his badge. But the killings would not leave him alone.

One by one, the members of Ellsworth’s hanging party began dying. Dave Cromwell thought the executioners were getting pretty much what they deserved. The trouble was, now no one was safe in Ellsworth. Not until the cycle of vengeance was stopped… 

It's been a long, long time since I last read a book by Jack Curtis, an author who wrote for a variety of television series including Big Valley, Gunsmoke, Have Gun Will Travel, The Rifleman, and Zane Grey Theater. Why it’s taken so long to get around to reading him again I can’t say, especially when I really enjoyed the previous book I read by him, Texas Rules. Curtis put out both stand-alone titles and a five-book series about a man called Sam Benbow.

The Jury on Smoky Hill is a fast-moving story that blends western and murder/mystery seamlessly. There is very little gunplay but there are plenty of killings. Most of the deaths take place off-screen but by doing this the author doesn’t give any clue as to who is murdering the hanging party. Those so-called jurors begin to point the finger of accusation at Cromwell who is trying to get a ranch up and running after handing in his badge. A gunfighter brought in as Ellsworth new lawman seems quite happy to take orders from the men behind the hangings. The main strengths of this tale come from the author’s ability to create a suspenseful storyline, tension in his characters and anticipation within his readers as we await the next death. Who will it be? Will the vengeance seeking killer succeed in taking out all the hanging party?

Even though the author doesn’t name his killer until the final scenes are ready to be played out, most readers shouldn’t have any difficulty working out who it is. This doesn’t ruin anything though, as you’ll still want to discover if this person kills all his targets or gets stopped before doing so.

The end of the book didn’t quite turn out as I expected as the author had a neat little twist waiting, one that finished the story in the best way possible for me. 

Hopefully, it won’t take anywhere near as long before I pick up another Jack Curtis book as it did between this and my previous Curtis book. 

HELL PASS

 

HELL PASS
By Lance Howard
Cover art by Sebastià Boada
Linford Edition, 2008
First published by Robert Hale, April 2007 as A Black Horse Western

The circus comes to the town of Angel Pass, but does it bring simple pleasure for the hard-working cowboys and wide-eyed children of the community – or something more sinister?

Fresh from a mission to discover the fate of his lovely partner’s long-lost brother and faced with a series of bizarre kidnappings and jewel robberies, ex-manhunter Hannigan endeavours to find out. But will the secrets of the past prove more disturbing than the revelations of the present?

This is the fifth book of seven that Lance Howard wrote about Jim Hannigan. You don’t need to have read any of the others to get full-enjoyment out of this one as it reads like a stand-alone novel. As far as I could tell, there wasn’t any mention of Hannigan’s previous adventures. 

Lance Howard fills this book with fascinating characters – how could you not when having the plot revolve around a circus that sees dwarves, snake dancers, strong men, fortune tellers and more play important roles in the story. A circus into which Hannigan’s partner, Angela del Pelado, will go undercover to try and find trace of the stolen children.

The story contains a flash-back to Angela’s life as a small child going fishing with her brother, Alejandro. It is he who goes missing later. After Angela and Hannigan try to find him, Angela gives up on the hope of ever seeing him again. But we, as readers, know what happened to him and one of the gripping storylines this book contains is wanting to know how Angela will react when she finally comes face to face with him.

Another story-thread that hooked me was the mystery of the missing children. Where were they? Why were they being stolen? 

Although Hannigan is billed as the main character it is Angela who seems to have the larger role in this fast-moving tale. Her need to find her brother. Her desire to be more than a partner in righting wrongs with Hannigan, she wants to be his lover. These, and more, are main features of the plot, as is the horror she will surely have to face by the end of the book.

Howard’s writing is smooth-flowing and easy to read. His plot moves forward at an ever-increasing pace. There’s plenty of action that includes gunplay and assassination attempts. There’s emotional turmoil that makes you share his characters feelings. There are different storylines that are on a collision course, and when everything comes together Howard brings it all to a satisfying conclusion. 

Lance Howard is a pseudonym used by Howard Hopkins, an author whose work I’ve always enjoyed. Hell Pass proved to be another very entertaining read which left me wondering why I’ve left it so long since I last read a book by him.

THESE MEN CHOSE HELL

FORT MISERY

THESE MEN CHOSE HELL

By William W. Johnstone and J.A. Johnstone

Pinnacle, July 2025

Welcome to Fort Misery – where the lowliest dregs of the U.S. Army defend the driest patch of lawless desert against the most sadistic killers in the Wild, Wild West. Sometimes it takes a bad man with a gun to stop another bad man with a gun . . . 

They’re not what you’d call “the good guys.” They’re a mangy pack of despicable deserters, thieves, mutineers, and worse. But as condemned soldiers in an overstretched army, they were given a choice: death by hanging or serving out their time in a hell on earth.

These men chose hell.

Located at the farthest edge of the Yuma Desert, Fort Grierson is a magnet for trouble. Vicious attacks by marauding Apaches and gunslinging outlaws are practically a daily occurrence – and the men holding down the fort are hardly any better. Hence the nickname Fort Misery. When a group of professors show up at the fort in search of lost treasure, a series of gruesome murders begins. The men of Fort Misery will have to find the culprit before they all meet a terrible end . . .

This second book in the Fort Misery series has been a long time coming. Book one came out in February 2023 and I enjoyed reading it.

Captain Kellerman has a number of problems to deal with this time around, not least keeping his soldiers in line, one of whom believes he is Jesus, and dealing with the daily issues of running a fort. His new challenges include the threat of Apache attack. A group of archologists who are digging up his parade ground with President Grant’s permission. Have they unleashed evil spirits? Certainly, the weather has taken a turn for the worse and people are dying since their arrival. Then there’s the gunslingers camped out in the desert. What are they after? Can Kellerman trust them when he enlists their help to fight off the Apache? There’s also the beautiful girl who’s arrived with the professors who seems to be as attracted to him as much as he is to her. And then the murders begin. All the story threads ensure there is never a dull moment in this book.

The author switches regularly between various characters, although he mainly sticks with the officers within the army. The violence is vicious at times, especially the descriptions of the murders. The author also surprised me with one of the characters he killed off and at how soon he did so. Tensions are described well, particularly whilst waiting for the Apache to launch their assaults on the fort. There is also a fair amount of humour thrown in, mostly in conversation, that lightens the tone of the tale now-and-again. 

For a good portion of the book, the author keeps the identity of the mysterious killer a secret but even when known I found myself waiting with bated breath for the next murder – how would it be done and who would be the victim? 

Everything builds to a dramatic finale that brought a close to all the storylines satisfactory, and in some case not as I thought they would. Like in the first book, the final paragraphs of this story seem to be setting up more problems for the soldiers of Fort Misery to deal with, and I for one am looking forward to reading about them whenever the third book appears. 

American readers can get a copy here 

British readers can get a copy here

LONGARM AND SEÑORITA REVENGE

 

LONGARM AND SEÑORITA REVENGE

Book 415 of 436 + 29 Giant Editions

By Tabor Evans

Cover illustration by Milo Sinovcic

Jove, June 2013

The name makes cavalrymen cower, hard cases head for the hills, and bandidos cry, “Vámones!” They call her Señorita Revenge. Savage and merciless, she and her band of kill-crazy Kiowa have been cutting down soldiers like blades of grass in the Texas Big Bend country north of the Rio Grande.

If any man can declaw this homicidal hellcat, it’s Deputy U.S. Marshal Custis Long.

But when Longarm arrives at the cavalry outpost, he finds a half-mad major, his batty, blond daughter, a horribly scarred captain, and a mouth-watering but mysterious maiden – each of whom is hiding a secret. As Longarm puts the pieces together, he draws ever closer to ending this beautiful buckskin-clad butcher’s reign of vengeance… 

Harsh landscapes and tougher characters – brutal characters in many cases. Seductive, stunningly beautiful women who can be as savage as any man should the need arise, and it does, often. Vicious action scenes. Plot twists that took me by surprise. A breath-taking stagecoach ride. This book has them all, and more. Longarm sure has to keep his wits about him or he’ll end up as one of the deceased. 

The story moves along at terrific speed. Chapters ending on cliff-hangers ensuring I’d keep turning the pages. Great characters, especially Señorita Revenge. Mystery behind her true identity – I had my ideas but I wasn’t quite right. Hard-hitting fairly graphic violence and a couple of descriptive sex scenes – the latter to be expected as the Longarm books are billed as adult westerns, but don’t let them put you off reading this book or you’ll be missing out on a great tale.

I’m being purposefully vague on the plot, and naming characters and their relationships to each other as I don’t want to spoil any part of this book for anyone who has yet to read it. 

The author behind the pseudonym of Tabor Evans this time around is Peter Brandvold and his take on Longarm has always been grittier than most of the other authors who wrote for this series. Think spaghetti rather than Hollywood western. 

After finishing Longarm and Señorita Revenge I was left eagerly wanting to hunt through my collection to dig out another of Peter Brandvold’s entries into this series and start reading it straightaway. Recommended. 

American readers can get a copy here

British readers can get a copy here

BULL'S EYE STAGE COACH

BULL’S EYE STAGE COACH

By Billy Hall

Robert Hale, March 2013

Marshal Dwight Stern and his posse are overseeing the loading of a shipment of gold onto a heavily armoured stage coach when they are ambushed in a surprise attack.

With Stern’s fiancée held in the grip of one of the attackers and a double-barrelled shotgun pointing at her head, there’s no time to play nice. With his hand on his gun and a prayer for the gunman to make a mistake and move the gun from Belinda’s head, all he needs is a split second….

The story starts some time before the incident the blurb outlines. We witness Stern laying the law down in his town and also share his concerns about a number of strangers who are arriving and looking for jobs, especially when one of the tries to befriend Belinda. Then there’s another stranger who implies he’s on Stern’s side, but in what, and can he be trusted?

It isn’t long before the robbery takes place and the outlaws get away with the gold and take Belinda with them. Stern races to save her but will he get to her before she’s ravished and killed? 

Billy Hall was the name Billy Hallsted used for his Black Horse Westerns. He had 39 published before he passed in May 2015. I read quite a few of his books and have always enjoyed them. Bull’s Eye Stage Coach proved to be another entertaining read.

Hallsted paced the story beautifully, moving from one tense scene to another making for some suspenseful reading. There’s plenty of gunplay in this tale too. The stranger who says he’s there to help Stern allowed the author to add some mysterious intrigue into the plot. All this combines to make this a difficult book to put down before I discovered how it all played out.

Luckily for me, I have a few more BHWs by Billy Hall in my collection that I’ve yet to read. On the strength of this one, I’m sure it won’t be too long before I pick up another.

American readers can get a copy here.

British readers can get a copy here.

WESTERN STORY - March 1949

WESTERN STORY

British Edition, Vol. VI, No.5

Atlas Publishing, March 1949

Cover art by William R. Leigh

This publication of Street & Smith’s Western Story is a partial reprint of the American issue from September 1948. The UK version first appeared in 1939 and continued, with slight changes to its title, until 1961. By my count, there were 167 issues. 

We start with the short story Light Up Your Six-Gun by Ralph Yergen. He’s a new author to me who wrote just over 100 stories for the western pulps. This quick paced yarn is about a cigar salesman, Horatio Oberlander Holyoke, who finds one of his best customers, Blaine, in jail accused of murder. Holyoke sets out to prove Blaine is innocent. Whist doing so, we find that Holyoke is very handy with a gun. Holyoke has to save himself from a death trap and the explanation of how he realized he was in grave danger is linked to his profession and that put a grin on my face. I also laughed out loud at the final line of the story, that even though I knew it was coming, I still found it funny. This was a very readable tale that left me wondering if Holyoke appeared in any of Yergen’s other stories cos I’d certainly like to read them if he did.

Peter Dawson’s novella, Retribution River, is next. Dawson is a pseudonym used by Jonathan H. Glidden, who had over 100 stories published in the pulps. His story is a land grab tale. A ranch owning banker, Cavendish, decides he wants more land and sets about driving other ranchers away. The main character is Pete Sarran and he teams up with another couple of men who’ve been driven out. Riding with them is a man named Brazos who none of them know. Brazos talks them into getting back at Cavendish by robbing his bank. The raid doesn’t go according to plan and Brazos rides off with the loot. Sarran was right to mistrust Brazos and sets out to find the double-crosser and there’s a surprise waiting for him when he does track down his quarry. I’ve not read many stories by Glidden, but I’ve enjoyed the handful I have, and Retribution River was just as good as any of them, even though it did have a predictable plot. 

Another novella follows, Mavericks of Moonrock Range by Rod Patterson, who is another author I haven’t read before. Patterson had over 200 stories published in western pulps. Patterson pulled me into his tale immediately with questions that needed answers. Clyde Desbrow sees a note in a newspaper telling him to return to his father’s ranch by a specific date if he wants to claim his inheritance. What he finds at the ranch shocks him but he intends to sort out the wrongs he sees happening in his home. Patterson’s writes well, his prose creating a dark tone to a story filled with tense scenes and intrigue. I can’t really say anymore without spoiling it other than to say I wasn’t a fan of the nick-of-time ending which made me think the author did this as he was running out of pages. This story, for me, would have been much better longer with a bit more explanation as to why certain characters did what they did. Nevertheless, I enjoyed this tale a lot and am eager to read more of Patterson’s work.

Next we have a novelette by Wayne D. Overholser called The Long Haul. Overholser had just over 400 western tales under his own name and a more under a variety of pseudonyms published in western pulps. The Long Haul tells the tale of a decision lawman Lance Gregg has to make: does he take in a wanted man as the law says he should or let him go out in a blaze of glory taking down other outlaws? That’s all there is to the plot, but it was enough to keep me turning the pages to see which choice Gregg would make. The tales ends with a swift shootout that brings everything to a satisfactory conclusion.

Walt Coburn’s Guns Across the Rio Grande is a novella that tells the story of The Rio Kid who has been falsely accused of murdering a Texas Ranger. The Ranger’s Captain, Jess Clayton, doesn’t believe the Kid, whose real name is Carlos McCarty, is the killer. Clayton helps the Kid escape from jail and then they set out to track down and bring to justice the real murderer which involves a cattle drive to tempt some rustlers to steal the herd. This is a fast paced read that includes some great action scenes. I enjoyed reading it, even though it was obvious how things would turn out. I did have to take my time with some of the speech as Coburn writes it as his characters say it, for example the Mexican Pepe says “Por Dios, ees een my blood to be a gon fighter!” I do find this kind of writing adds flavour to these stories so it’s welcomed by me if not excessively done as it can really slow a story down if you have to re-read it to understand what is being said. Coburn was a popular author for the western pulps and had around 800 stories published in them.  

The last tale is a novella by Michael Trent called Badlands Showdown. Trent had nine stories published across a variety of western pulps so is probably the least known of the authors featured in this issue of Western Story. Jim Dunstan, foreman of the Aurora Land & Cattle Company is determined to bring an end to the rustling in the area. Trouble is, it seems a friend is passing on information to the gang of outlaws which, as distasteful as exposing who this will be, Dunstan sums it up by saying “Guilt and friendship don’t go together.” In such a short story it was easy to work out who the bad guy was and who would get the girl, but that didn’t spoil my enjoyment of this story. 

This British issue of Western Story also includes the poem Chuckwagon Menu by S. Omar Barker and the very short column Range Savvy by Gene King, neither of which struck a chord with me.

This pulp magazine also contains a bit of information about cover artist William R. Leigh telling us he was an author as well as an artist. Leigh wrote short stories on Indian life that appeared in a variety of American magazines. The story The Western Pony both written and illustrated by Leigh was named as one of the fifty best books of 1933 by the American Institute of Graphic Arts.

Overall, I thought this was a good issue of Western Story as I enjoyed all the stories it contained. 

HANG A MAN HIGH

 

HANG A MAN HIGH
By Matt Chisholm
Panther Books, June 1959

They found him standing with a still-warm gun in his hand . . . his brother dead, shot through the back of the head; his brother Marve . . . whom everyone liked and trusted. 

The gold was gone from its hiding place, and now the finger of suspicion was pointed in Ben’s direction.

In that country, for that crime, they would demand that the Law HANG A MAN HIGH.

This is second of three books Matt Chisholm would write about Ben Hodge. As if the man didn’t go through enough troubles in the first book, the author plunges Hodge into more deadly danger which could see him with a rope around his neck again. 

Events of the earlier book, Hodge, are mentioned quite often in this one, and a number of characters from that story return for the sequel. Due to that I would suggest reading the first book before this one to get the greatest enjoyment from it. Hang a Man High can be read as a stand-alone title though as the author includes all the background you need to understand the relationships between the characters and the problems Hodge had to face in that story.

This is a tough tale that is filled with non-stop action. Hodge has to endure a number of brutal fist-fights that leave him a battered man. Even he doesn’t know where he finds the energy to go on, but he does know that if he doesn’t, he’ll be swinging from the gallows. Handguns, rifles and shotguns are all used regularly too. 

Hodge and his two friends, Pete and Ned, loyalty to each other is admirable, all ready to die for each other as they struggle to discover just who killed Marve. What’s equally puzzling is where the gold came from. Hodge certainly didn’t know it was hidden in his home and neither did his pards. It isn’t long before all three begin to wonder if they can trust anyone else as more and more people seem to be involved in whatever it is that is going on.

There’s a lot of blood and death before Hodge gets a break and begins to work out who is behind the death of his brother. Hodge, Pete and Ned will all have their parts to play in bringing down the culprits and will suffer whilst doing so before everything comes to a conclusion in a confined space. 

Peter Watts is the author behind the pseudonym of Matt Chisholm and he’s long been a favourite writer of mine and this book strengthens that thought. Hang a Man High isn’t as goog as the first Hodge book but it comes very close and is a western that I think all fans of the genre would find an entertaining read. Me? I’m looking forward to reading the third Hodge book, The Law of Ben Hodge, as soon as possible.

THE MADMAN'S BLADE

RAIDER

Book 13 of 42

THE MADMAN’S BLADE

By J.D. Hardin

Cover art by Miro

Berkley, July 1988

The victim’s father has already been to the Pinkerton Agency twice. Now he’s back a third time to hire himself a detective.

One look at the poor man’s face and Raider is hooked. He’ll track down the dapper-dressing dude who raped and killed the young girl. But finding the cold-blooded killer with unlimited cash and a brilliantly twisted mind ain’t easy. 

All Raider has to go on is the killer’s gruesome handywork with a blade, and a trail of murder that leads to a bloody showdown.

This book reads like a detective novel in a western setting. Raider, riding alongside the grieving father of one of the dead girls, is after a serial killer rapist. The lack of leads makes his task almost impossible. Slowly, little bits of information come to light but can Raider piece them together to track down and stop the killer before other girls fall victim to his blade?

The author, this time Frank Roderus writing as J.D. Hardin, switches between Raider and his quarry regularly. We share the twisted thoughts of the killer and find out why he’s murdering the girls. Raider’s frustration at failing to discover who the killer quickly comes over strongly. Even when he thinks he knows who is after, finding him is one hell of a challenge as the Pinkerton has no idea as to where the killer will strike next. I did feel, at times, Raider was a bit slow in working things out as one clue was very evident near the beginning of the story.

I was surprised to discover thoughts on mental health in a western and how much the story touched on issues we hear a lot about today. Child trauma being used to explain the reason behind the killer’s actions. As the tale developed, I started to think this plot is like something you’d see on TV’s Law and Order: Special Victims Unit – which was fine by me as that is one of my favourite programmes.

The Raider books are classed as being adult westerns so that means the stories contain explicit sex scenes. Surprising, Raider misses out on any of this although he does find himself in a position to indulge in the pleasures of the flesh at one point but turns her down. It’s the killer who enjoys sex, even though his unwilling partners don’t. This makes for some brutal reading at times. This particular story also includes some very crude language, especially in the opening scenes, after that it is used sparingly.

Although Raider doesn’t get involved in much action until the end of the book, I did find his efforts to find and stop the killer made for some gripping reading. Yes, the story did play out pretty much as I expected, which includes who finally finished off the killer but not the how. 

Frank Roderus can always be relied upon to provide solid entertaining reading and this book left me thinking I must read something else by him soon.

ARIZONA HELLCAT

HEAD HUNTER

Book 1 of 13

ARIZONA HELLCAT

By E. J. Hunter

Cover art by Diane Sivavec

Zebra Books, June 1987

A seventeen-year-old girl with green eyes and auburn hair is hardly the kind of law a gunslinger with a price on his head expects to find on his trail. But Charity Rose can ride anything on four legs and shoot as straight as any man. When her father is gunned down by Concho Bill Baudine’s gang – and then the sidewinders take turns with her – Charity vows to take her revenge with gunpowder and hot lead!

There wasn’t a woman born yet who could tough it out with hardcase outlaws, but Charity vowed she’d be the first. All it took was polishing her skills with her double-action handgun and using every trick she knew to get the revenge she wanted. She was a rat catcher and she’d ride hard to blast the deadly vermin that were loose in the territory.

I read a couple of the later books in this series years and years ago and I can’t really remember much about them, so any spoilers they may contain have been long forgotten by me. What I do remember is that there are some story threads that continue throughout the series, so I thought it would be fun to find out how it all began.

Arizona Hellcat is also twice the length of the rest of the books in the series. If I’m honest I reckon it could easily have had a lot of the content cut so it matched the size of the other books without losing anything important to the plot. For instance, Charity’s boyfriend, Tom, tries on numerous occasions to talk her out of going after the outlaws and this becomes very repetitive, especially as later in the book she returns to her home town and Tom tries again using the same arguments. 

The story begins with Charity tracking down and killing one of the men she seeks. We then flashback to the time of her father’s killing and her rape. Seeing how her ordeal affects her made for some compelling reading as does her attempts to better herself in the art of using guns. Later in the book we watch Charity learning to use her feet and hands as weapons in a lengthy scene, yet she never uses this form of fighting in this story, so that is another part of the book that could have been dropped. 

Even though the majority of the story is predictable and at times unbelievable, such as how many men think she’s a he due to how Charity dresses on the trail, two even make this mistake when viewing her naked from behind, I still found parts of it enjoyable, especially that Charity doesn’t always get her man. I also liked how Charity has a large dog that travels with her and obeys her commands to terrorize or kill people if need be.

I must also point out that the Head Hunter books are classed as adult westerns so there is a fair amount of explicit sex within the pages, not as much as I was expecting, but enough to put people off who don’t like that kind of thing in their reading material. 

Did I find enough to like in this story to want to read the next book? I’ll probably give it a go sometime especially as it is shorter so won’t be filled with as much padding as I feel this one was but it won’t be anytime soon.

E. J. Hunter is a pseudonym for Mark K. Roberts.

UNWANTED: DEAD OR ALIVE

UNWANTED: DEAD OR ALIVE

By Gene Shelton

Cover art by Eric JW Lee

A Jove Book, March 1996

Framed for cattle rustling and horse theft by the corrupt banker who foreclosed on their employer’s ranch, Buck Hawkins and Dobie Garrett found themselves out of work, out of cash, and out of luck. So, they decided to try and live up to their reputation as wanted men. An idea easier said than done…

One step ahead of a hanging party, Buck and Dobie bungled a stagecoach robbery – and met Marylou Kowalski, a fiery young woman looking for excitement. She insisted they kidnap her. Soon, she had Buck and Dobie convinced that the three of them could pull off the ultimate heist: robbing the low-down banker who set them up. Now, if only they could learn to shoot…

Having read, and enjoyed, Gene Shelton’s four book series the Texas Horse Trading Co., I was looking forward to reading Unwanted: Dead or Alive, the first of two books featuring Buck Hawkins and Dobie Garrett. 

I was surprised to find that the opening chapter didn’t really grab me. Nothing much happened apart from descriptions of Hawkins and Garrett’s life as cowboys, struggling to find cattle in the snow. I’m glad I continued to read though as with chapter two the story really picked up. Complication upon complication befell our now out of work cowboys.

Our two leads couldn’t be more different. Garrett is impulsive, all for charging into any situation without giving it a second thought. Hawkins is the exact opposite, careful and needing to spend time considering their options. One thing they agree on is the need for money, so Garrett talks Hawkins into becoming an outlaw. Holding up people and stealing their money can’t be difficult, can it? 

What follows is a series of attempted robberies, a trading post run by a woman, a stagecoach and more. Their major problem is that they only have one gun between them and that doesn’t work, so bluff is the name of the game and they soon learn that being an outlaw isn’t easy as none of their robberies go according to plan or result in riches. These attempts at a life of crime are exciting and often comical. In fact, a lot of the book has a humorous tone coming from situations and the banter between the main characters. Once they team up with Marylou, Hawkins and Garrett are forced to realize how useless they are. An attempt to rob a train emphasizing that point as does their lack of shooting skills.

Can they turn their lives around? Will their plan to get even with the banker succeed? Will they continue to be wanted for crimes they didn’t commit? Will Marylou ever see them as more than hopeless? These, and more questions have to be answered before the end of the tale.

After that first slow chapter, the pace of this book really picks up. Dialogue is lively and at times offers laugh out loud moments. The robberies are tense and the build up to the final confrontation with the banker is extremely well told. The final showdown providing some gripping reading that also tied up all the hanging story threads and left me eager to read the second book, How the West Was Lost, as soon as I can.

American readers can get a copy here

British readers can get a copy here

A GOOD DAY FOR A MASSACRE

 

SLASH AND PECOS
Book 2 of 6
A GOOD DAY FOR A MASSACRE
By William W. Johnstone and J.A. Johnstone
Pinnacle Books, July 2020

Life on the straight and narrow is easier said than done for a pair of crooks like Jimmy “Slash” Braddock and Melvin “Pecos Kid” Baker. But these reprobates are doing their damnedest to make an honest go of it. They’ve managed to safely deliver a church organ to a mountain parish when their sometime employer – Chief U.S. Marshal Luther T. “Bleed-‘m-So” Bledsoe – recruits them for a job only fools would take.

Marshal Bledsoe wants them to pick up a shipment of gold in the mining town in the Sawatch Mountains. Here’s the catch: Slash and Pecos’s wagon is just a decoy. When a ruthless gang ambushes the real gold shipment, it’s up to Slash and Pecos to go after the trigger-happy bandits. And they won’t be alone. A lady Pinkerton, Hattie Friendly – who is anything but – survived the ambush and is hellbent on getting the gold back. Even if she has to team up with a pair of ornery old cutthroats like Slash and Pecos….

The author has come up with a very engaging pair of lead characters in Slash and Pecos. They’re tough, they bicker and can get into all kinds of trouble without trying. Their outlaw days are over and they’ve been granted an amnesty, trouble is not many people know about this. Teaming them up with Hattie makes for some lively exchanges of dialogue which often had me laughing out loud.

The story is fast paced and action packed. The body count is high. As well as knives, pistols and rifles, Gatling guns are used to devasting effect. Slash and Pecos get thrown in jail too by a lawman who doesn’t know they are free men now. As well as Hattie, there are other strong roles for female characters. Slash is looking to pop-the-question to one of them….if he can conquer his nerves. Trouble is he might just have a love rival.

Having only read two of the books in this series, Slash and Pecos have already made a strong impact on me and have become two of my favourite characters to come from the Johnstone’s. 

American readers can get a copy here.

UK readers can get a copy here.

.44

.44

By H.A. DeRosso

A Wagon Wheel Western, publishing date unknown

First published in the UK by Mills and Boon, 1957

Originally published by Lion in America, 1953

Dan Harland was a man with a reputation—a reputation earned through killing. He was a hired gun, and the speed of his .44 was the stuff of legend. He never enjoyed his work, but he did it well and the pay was good.

But even the money didn’t help when Harland was hired to hunt down a man who seemed all too ready to be killed. The look in that man's eyes as he died stirred something almost forgotten in Harland's soul...his conscience. All at once, Harland knew he couldn’t rest until he found the mysterious man who had hired him for the job—even if the trail led to his own grave.

H.A DeRosso wrote around 180 tales for the western pulp magazines but only had a small number of novels published. I believe .44 was his second full-length book.

There’s no getting away from the fact that this is a bleak story. It has the feel of a noir crime novel but never forgets that it is a western first and foremost. 

Harland is a reluctant assassin and is sickened each time he has to kill but his reputation is set and there is no turning back from his unwanted profession. When we first meet him, he’s tracking a man called Lancaster. Their showdown proves to be unforgettable. Lancaster is the faster draw yet does not shoot so Harland guns him down. Then the questions come. Why did Lancaster allow Harland to kill him? Who wanted Lancaster dead? Harlan sets out to find out the answers to those questions and to avenge Lancaster’s death.

The tone throughout is dark, very dark. Harland is a bitter man but he’s also determined. The story gets more complicated as we learn about Lancaster’s past and some stolen money. Why do people insist that it was them who hired Harland through a middleman? Harland refuses to confirm whether he did or did not kill Lancaster. There are two attractive females, one of whom is Lancaster’s wife, who both seem to want to see Harland dead. Is Harlan falling in love with Lancaster’s ex-wife and could he find happiness with her? The book contains plenty of action and Harland has to endure torture as he slowly pieces together the truth. 

This is a gripping read. Harland isn’t a heroic figure, he’s not a man you’ll even like. He is a fascinating character though and his grit is to be admired. You’ll want to know if Harland will find the person who hired him and what will happen if he does. The ending is as dramatic as it is bittersweet.

.44 gets a big thumbs up from me.

FAMOUS STORIES OF THE WILD WEST

 

FAMOUS STORIES OF THE WILD WEST

By Leonard Gribble

Cover art by Jack Hayes

A Universal-Tandem Target Adventure Book, 1973 – abridged version

Originally published by Arthur Barker Ltd, 1967

Leonard Gribble had over 200 hundred books published but is probably best known to western readers as Stetson Cody (Cactus Jim Clancy series) and Lee Denver (Cheyenne Jones series). He wrote under a number of other pseudonyms too.

In this collection of ten short stories Gribble writes about real people and events that helped shape the West. All but one of these tales features a full-page illustration by Laszlo Acs in a similar style to those found in pulp magazines.

Most of these stories cover a long period of time. As well as facts and dates, Gribble occasionally includes some dialogue and short descriptive action scenes. When you realize that each story is around fifteen pages long and how much information Gribble fits into each tale you have to praise him for keeping them entertaining as they could so easily have read like a history lesson. 

To people already interested in the American West most of the characters that have their lives, or part of, told in these stories won’t come as a surprise. Having said that, there are a couple of people who I didn’t know much about and Gribble’s story of one of them, Henry Plummer, has me eager to learn more about him. 

Famous Stories of the Wild West is a fascinating and well told collection of short stories that I would think most people who are interested in the history of the American West will enjoy reading.

Contents

The Worst of the Badman Sheriffs
The life of Henry Plummer.

A Great Bunch of Kids
Tells the story of the Pony Express – features a young Bill Cody and others. The cover painting shows the young Cody.

The Coming of the Iron Horse
The challenge to join the Atlantic to the Pacific by rail. Again, features Bill Cody and includes the hunting of buffalo to feed the rail crews. 

When the Daltons Rode
As you’d expect from the title, this story is about the Dalton gang.

There’s Gold in them thar Hills
Tells the tale of John Sutter and the discovery of gold that started one of, if not the biggest gold rush ever.

The Man with the Quicksilver Draw
The life and times of John Wesley Hardin. 

The Legend of Wild Bill
The life and death of James Butler Hickok.

The Cheyenne Ride Out
Tells the tale of when Dull Knife and Little Wolf lead the Cheyenne away from the reservation and the U.S. Army’s attempt to track them down.

Gambler and Gunman
The story of Johnny Ringo. Includes the Earp brothers, Doc Holliday, Buckskin Frank Leslie and others.

Tall in the Saddle
This is about Bill Tilghman and his hunt for the Doolin gang. Heck Thomas features too.

A NOTCH WITH NO NAME

A NOTCH WITH NO NAME

By Walt Beaumont

A Cleveland Western (No. 1470) from Cleveland Publishing – year unknown.

Although I’ve been aware of the author name Walt Beaumont for a long time this is the first story I’ve read by him. I found his style very easy to read and the pace of the tale was excellent as it built to the inevitable showdown and I was never quite sure how it would end.

The story starts with a wedding, one that the families of the bride and groom are opposed to. There is a long running feud between them. The marriage takes place and the expected fight comes when both families find themselves in the same bar.

Beaumont tells his tale through the Brannigan family, with the main character being Scott Brannigan who is doing his best to keep the peace, to end the long running animosity. 

There’s a third family involved too. Frank Haskell wants to buy some of the Brannigan land, but Scott’s mother, Kate, refuses to sell. Scott is involved with Haskell’s daughter Greer which further complicates matters. More problems arrive in the form of two drifting gunhands who see a way of making money out of the troubles revolving around the Brannigan’s, the Allen’s and the Haskell’s. If that isn’t enough, Steve Brannigan is having an affair with the Sheriff’s wife.

At first confrontations are dealt with by bitter words or fists. Then the killings begin and members of both the Brannigan and the Allen families fall victim. Words of unfounded blame see Kate Brannigan lead her family in an all-out assault on the Allen’s. Only the deaths of her long-time enemies will satisfy her. 

A Notch with No Name is a fairly straight-forward feud western that contains one or two easy to predict twists but does include a couple of surprising deaths. The dialogue is lively and the feelings of hate and despair comes across strongly. The fight scenes are well written too. As to who would be alive at the end became impossible to predict.

After reading this book and being thoroughly entertained I was left looking forward to reading more of Walt Beaumont's work soon.

THE GAVEL & THE GUN

 

PREACHER’S LAW 
Book 3 of 7
THE GAVEL & THE GUN
By Dean L. McElwain
Leisure Books, 1987

Blackmailed into working for Isaac Parker, the notorious hanging judge, J.D. Preacher found himself with a tin star on his chest and a whole lot of trouble on his hands. His job: bring in some of the thieving, murderous scum that were raping the territory and the judge would clear his name.

Preacher believed in justice at the end of a rope – but only when he was judge and jury. That was Preacher’s Law.

It took me a long time to track down a copy of this book, so I’d already read the other four books that carried the author name of Dean L. McElwain - the last two books came out under the author name of Barry Myers. By the time I picked up The Gavel & The Gun I was eager to fill in the gap as the books have strong continuation running through them. The books don’t just feature Preacher, there are other supporting characters that appear in more than one novel. This one brings back someone who Preacher believed was dead. 

Even though there is a plotline that runs through the entire book, the story is fairly episodic and a lot of time passes before the end is reached. Although Preacher is the star of the series, he doesn’t take centre stage for much of this story, the author writes about other characters as much as, or more than, Preacher. 

Preacher is a hard man and can come across as quite cold at times. He’s lightning fast with his guns and will stop at nothing to achieve his aims. And for God’s sake, don’t call him the Widow Maker as he really doesn’t like the moniker that he picked up in the first book. 

McElwain includes enough information to tell new readers about Preacher’s past such as why he has a bounty on his head and it is this that Preacher is hoping Parker can remove. There are plenty of people willing to take on Preacher to try and claim that bounty and the identity of one of them comes as a surprise.

As well as Parker, a lot of other real people get mentioned or make appearances in this fast-moving story. The James brothers, Hec Thomas, Doc Holliday, The Earp brothers, and Bat Masterson to name but a few. 

This period of Preacher’s life comes to a fitting and satisfying conclusion and the author uses the last few pages of the book to explain what happened to Preacher and some of the other characters during the last couple of years of the 1870’s. Having already read book four, The Last Gunfight, I can tell you that it picks up not long after the end of The Gavel & The Gun. I will also add that the series is best read in order if you can. 

CANNON'S GRAVE

 

THE BADGE
Book 16 of 24
CANNON’S GRAVE
By Bill Reno
Cover art by Shannon Stirnweis
Bantam Books, April 1990

Emmett Kolfax is as vicious an outlaw as the West has ever seen. Hard as nails and ugly as a bulldog, he hides behind a bandanna and a hail of bullets, leading his gang on bloody killing sprees. But not even Kolfax can hide from the law – when the lawman is United States Marshal Joshua B. Cannon. Fast with a Colt .45, Cannon’s brought down dozens of cutthroats, and figures Kolfax will be just one more…until Kolfax hits on a plan to lure Cannon to his grave, one that puts the woman Cannon loves at the mercy of the ruthless desperado.

Most of the books in The Badge series are only linked by the fact that the main character wears a badge of some kind. One or two of these lawmen do feature in more than one book, but generally they are stand-alone titles, and Cannon’s Grave is one of those.

We’re introduced to Cannon and his abilities in the first chapter. The method he uses to take down some outlaws is something that I haven’t read that often, if at all, in a western and I had to wonder if this skill would be used again to bring Kolfax to justice.

The author switches between his characters regularly so he can reveal just how brutal Kolfax is. Kolfax also treats his own men harshly and it’s impossible to know when his temper will overflow in violence. This man, and his gang, are surely going to be difficult for Cannon to bring down.

Some of the story plays out like many other westerns, such as Cannon going undercover as an outlaw into the Hole-in-the-Wall to get close to Kolfax. Someone there recognizes Cannon but can’t place him. You know this man will remember who Cannon is at some point and this adds some good tension to this part of the book.

Reno does have a few surprises in store though, such as where the title of the book comes from. This is the reason Kolfax heads for the Hole-in-the-Wall only to find he isn’t top dog there and he gets a taste of his own medicine from the man who rules the roost.

The book is paced well, contains a lot of action including a couple of savage fistfights, and throws in a couple of neat plot twist before good triumphs over bad as expected. Cannon’s Grave isn’t my favourite book in the series but it certainly kept me entertained and left me looking forward to reading the next book soon. 

Bill Reno is a pseudonym used by Lew A. Lacy.