GUNMAN’S REPUTATION
Book 2 of 11
BETWEEN HELL AND TEXAS
By Ralph Cotton
Signet, March 2004
After Cray Dawson helps bring down the Talbert Gang, he gains the reputation of a shootist. But Cray doesn’t consider himself a gunfighter. All he wants to do is mosey on home to Somos Santos, Texas, and get back to chasing dogies.
Trouble is, Somos Santos has changed since Cray last walked its dusty streets. There’s a new sheriff by the name of Lematte in town, and the only laws he’ll enforce are his own. With an army of vicious outlaws riding shotgun as deputies, Lematte has the town under his thumb – until Cray decides to make the most of his bad reputation.
The problem with reputations is they get blown all out of proportion and become mythical. This is something Cray has tried to avoid, to play down. Yet others won’t let his past lie and soon Cray is badly wounded. He’s pretty much out of action whilst he recovers, tended to by a whore, Suzzette, who wants to escape her past too. Cray leaves her behind when he rides into Somos Santos to begin rebuilding his old life, but that damn reputation is going to get in the way, that and sheriff Lematte.
Ralph Cotton divides his book into three parts and the previous paragraph outlines the first section of this book. As tension builds between Cray and Lematte, it becomes obvious that the two men will end up facing each other over smoking gun barrels, but what will it take to bring the gunman out of Cray?
Cray spends some time reflection of his unwanted reputation but eventually has to accept that it is now part of him, something he can’t hide from. As beatings, floggings and killings ensue and people Cray cares for fall victim to Lematte’s brutalities, he begins to realise he’s probably the only one who can stop Lematte. The trouble Cray finds himself facing becomes much worse when Lematte brings his own gunman into town with just one mission, and that’s to kill Cray.
Cotton created some excellent characters for this story, not least Lematte and his gunman Mad Albert Ash, who is as cool as they come. There are strong and memorable roles for women too, Suzzette, Carmelita, Angel being just three of them.
Even though this book has its roots in the first Gunman’s Reputation novel, Gunman’s Song, you don’t need to have read it before reading this one as the author gives you all the information you need to know from that story to understand what drives the characters that are either in both books or at least get mentioned.
Between Hell and Texas proved to be another great read from Ralph Cotton, with a dramatic and violent ending that had me wondering how Cray could possibly survive the showdown against superior odds. It also left me looking forward to reading the next book in the series soon.
