LATE FOR GETTYSBURG

 

LATE FOR GETTYSBURG
By Vance Tillman
Robert Hale, December 2013

Eugene Wyeth doesn’t seem to realize that the Civil War is over, and even his family can’t persuade him to surrender. With a price on his head, he assumes there is a bounty hunter around every corner. 

But, when his old comrade-in-arms, Rattlesnake Jack, is shot, Wyeth must risk exposure and ride into town to seek help. With the powerful Kirby Taylor and his gang of gunslingers determined to stand in Wyeth’s way, there is trouble looming, and Wyeth must examine all he has stood for and put his very identity to the test.

After the first attempt on Wyeth’s life the author hooked me well and truly with a mystery, that of a small black skull the would-be assassin carried. What is the meaning of this item? But, a few pages later the author explains all, which I found a shame, but it did allow Tillman the opportunity to switch to other characters to explain their motives and actions. 

As the title references a battle during the American Civil War it came as no surprise that there were a few mentions of combat and manoeuvres during that conflict. Events at Gettysburg being the reason behind the plot of this book. It was also interesting to read about the Ketchum hand grenade that one of the characters had in his possession and I looked forward to seeing it used. Unfortunately, I was let down as this never happened.

The story has a fast pace, building well to its final showdown. There’s plenty of gunplay along the way and a couple of robberies. The book includes a particularly tense scene depicting the escape of a young woman from her captor’s home. 

Overall, this was a readable story but not one that will make me hunt through my collection for the other Vance Tillman book I have yet to read. 

Late for Gettysburg was the third and last book Robert Hale Ltd put out under their Black Horse Westerns banner from the author named as Vance Tillman.