THE LONESOME DEATH OF JOE SAVAGE

 

THE LONESOME DEATH OF JOE SAVAGE
By C.J. Sommers
Cover Art by Prieto Muriana
Robert Hale, November 2012

A sense of family duty led Tracy Keyes to search for his cousin, the notorious Wyoming bad man, Joe Savage. His mother wished to know if he was dead or alive – and so did half the lawmen and bounty hunters in the North County.

Tracy hadn’t seen Savage since they were boys and wasn’t sure he’d even recognize his criminal cousin if they met face to face. Carrying the onus of being related to the infamous Savage made things no easier for him, nor did the bounty hunters who dogged his trail, believing that Tracy could lead them to the outlaw. By the end of the long journey, Tracy was convinced that he was only following Joe Savage into his own grave….

C.J. Sommers doesn’t believe in giving his hero an easy time of it. Tracy will be on the wrong end of fists and have plenty of lead slung at him. He soon realizes he can’t trust anyone, and nearly everyone he meets tells him Savage is dead, and good riddance. If he is dead, then where is his grave? This question, and plenty of others such as who owns the land that Savage had bought now that he is dead add some strong mystery elements to this fast-moving tale. It's difficult to say anything else about the plot without including spoilers. 

There’s not as much action in this book as others I have read by this author, but it really doesn’t need it as it’s Tracy’s attempts to unravel the mysteries he’s presented with that easily kept my attention, so much so that I hadn’t realized there hadn’t been as much gunplay as I might have expected until I thought about it. 

I’ve read quite a few Black Horse Westerns written by C.J. Sommers and have found them all to be gripping reads and The Lonesome Death of Joe Savage also falls into that category. C.J. Sommers is just one of three pseudonyms Paul Lederer used for his BHWs; the other two pen-names being Logan Winters and Owen G. Irons and I’ve read many of his stories under those names too and I have yet to be disappointed by any of his books. Lederer didn’t just write westerns for Robert Hale Ltd., he also wrote for some of the American publishers too under a variety of names.

American readers can get a copy here.

UK readers can get a copy here.

Pirates of the Desert

By C.J. Sommers

Hale, December 2015

The locals call the sand dunes of the Arizona Territory south-land a white ocean. One man, Barney Shivers, carries the comparison a little further when he decides to monopolize the shipping industry. Ordering his men to attack any freight shipping that he does not control, goods are stolen and held to ransom on the high seas.

No one dares to fight back until one little old lady Lolly Amos, stands up to the bully. When the local law refuses to help, Lolly contacts her nephew, Captain Parthenon Downs of the Arizona Rangers. Restless to leave his desk duty behind, Captain Downs eagerly takes on the challenge. Little does he realize that his decision will draw him into a war between two bands of pirates, and a young woman with a Winchester rifle….

C.J. Sommers has created a wonderful cast of characters that will find themselves taking part in a lethal game, all due to the price of a bag of sugar.

Good, bad, male or female, the author soon has you rooting for or against them. The plot moves forward at an extremely fast pace and there are a few twists to the tale waiting to surprise the reader with the revelations they bring, not least as to the real identity of some of these characters.

It’s fascinating to see how Parth will bring down these land pirates, even though he knows, or believes he knows, who they are, getting the proof to arrest them is the hard part. Proving their guilt leads to plenty of gunplay as this tale weaves its way to its deadly conclusion.

I’ve read quite a few books by the author behind the C.J. Sommers pseudonym, that person being Paul Lederer who also wrote other Black Horse Westerns as Owen G. Irons and Logan Winters, and I’ve yet to come across one that I haven’t thoroughly enjoyed. If you’ve yet to try anything by this author then this book would certainly be a great place to introduce yourself to his writing, and I’m sure after you’ve read it you’ll be hunting for his other books too.

Longshot

By C.J. Sommers

Hale, December 2014

More than a decade ago the Red Butte boys had been one of the most powerful and deadly gangs in Arizona Territory; pulling off the Big Springs robbery and netting $50,000 in gold certificates, before disappearing. Since then, no sign of the gang or gold certificates had been seen and it was assumed that the gang was living off the proceeds of the heist in Mexico.

But when one of the certificates surfaces in the town of Bisbee, the Bank Examiner’s Office hopes that the trail of the robbers can be traced. And who better to take on this ghost hunt than the tenacious Laredo?

Laredo makes for an intriguing lead character, a man who thinks of retiring after each case, a man who enjoys the chase but not the killing. But this assignment may be too much for him; just how do you find a gang that vanished so long ago?

C.J. Sommers’ story moves forwards at a tremendous pace, filled with action as someone doesn’t like Laredo nosing around. Hidden identities are one of the problems Laredo has to figure out and there’s also a couple of neat twists along the way. And what of the talkative Alicia? How much does she really know and what angle is she playing? Obviously I can’t answer those questions here, but I will say she is part of a surprising ending for someone.

As I’ve revealed a number of times on Western Fiction Review, C.J. Sommers is a pseudonym used by Paul Lederer, a writer who should be on the reading list of all fans of the western genre. If you’ve yet to try his work then this book could well be the ideal starting place.

For some reason I cannot find this book for sale at Amazon.com

The Shoestringers

By C.J. Sommers

Hale, August 2014

Benedict Trout, long-time foreman of the big K/K Ranch, has been cut loose for being old, and Eddie Guest, a new hire, has been fired for being too young. So with nowhere to go, Trout and Guest are riding west.

When they reach the RU Crooked Ranch they discover a place in terrible shape: run by a widow and her young daughter, the women are broke and without expectations. Standing at a crossroads, the ranch is coveted by the boss of a nearby town, Cyrus Sullivan, who is keen to investigate reports of a gold mine on the land.

The four unlikely allies are in this for the long haul, and must sit tight and fight long and hard to defend their shoestring operation against outlaws, thieves, and the greedy gold hunters.

This tale deals with how rumours can get out-of-hand; whispers of gold becoming truth without proof. As the believers gather to take the mine away by force so the tension rises. Just how can two men and two women defend the ranch against such strong opposition?

The story is told mainly through Trout, a man who just wants to ride on, but keeps finding an excuse to stay on the RU for just another couple of days no matter who much he says he wants to leave. This adds a gentle touch of humour to balance the coming threat of violence.

C.J. Sommers is a pseudonym used by Paul Lederer, and he has created some very likeable characters that you hope will all survive, and if they do, will hopefully return in another book. The story builds well, at an ever increasing pace to where Trout decides to take the war to Sullivan single-handedly.

Does Trout survive? Do his allies? Is there a gold mine on the RU? I can’t answer any of those questions here, but I’m sure you’ll be as entertained as I was finding out the answers.  

White Wind

By C. J. Sommers

Hale, April 2014

Spuds McCain is convinced the White Wind brings disaster to all those who sense its message, although Hobie Lee is sceptical. But bad things do happen to the Starr-Diamond Ranch and Hobie is hoodwinked and ambushed into trouble when his charge, Ceci Starr, disappears on a trip to town, and he falls foul of a loud-mouthed bully of a silver miner.

The White Wind blows away the rest of his common sense as he determines to restore the reluctant Ceci to her father, and it takes a maelstrom of death and double-cross before the White Wind blows itself out and Hobie can find peace.

C. J. Sommers begins this story with some of the calamities that befall the hands of the Starr-Diamond Ranch as the White Wind blows. In some-ways these add a light-hearted start to the tale, as does the banter between the hands as to whether they believe in the White Wind or not.

Hobie makes for a great hero, and once Ceci goes missing, he is driven by fear for his job but has no idea how to find her. He does have many questions though but answers are also hard to come by.

C. J. Sommers moves his plot forward at ever increasing speed, piling problem upon problem for Hobie, not least as to the identity of who shoots Hobie and puts him out of action for a while, which in itself might have a silver-lining.

There are some great action sequences, an attack on a cabin being particularly well described.

C. J. Sommers is a pseudonym used by Paul Lederer, and once again I enjoyed reading his book and am left looking forward to his next.

White Wind at Amazon.com

White Wind (Black Horse Western) at Amazon.co.uk

Black Horse Westerns are produced for UK libraries, but some do go on sale through various bookstores and Internet sources, which means getting hold of them can be difficult at times if you’re not quick off the mark. For anyone interested in reading C. J. Sommers’ books but have been finding it hard to get hold of a copy, you may be interested to know that the author has begun putting his older titles out as ebooks.

Skeleton Hand

By C.J. Sommers

Hale, October 2013

It wasn’t aces and eights – the so-called dead man’s hand – that the skeleton was holding, but he was definitely dead. Cut loose from the Domino Ranch, Cody Hawk and his friends are facing a winter without work. So when the cowboys come across the skeleton it leads them to its treasure of gold and right into a deadly game, up against a band of killers and a money-hungry woman.

As they make their way across the empty land it seems that the skeleton isn’t holding the only deadly hand: Cody Hawk will need the luck of the draw, and some help from a wild mountain girl, to survive….

At first the story seems to be a straight-forward tale about finding some gold and then deciding what to do with it and trying to second-guess who the skeleton was and how he died. But C.J. Sommers doesn’t leave it there, he has some surprises waiting, one being a major plot twist that really does complicate matters for Cody Hawk as he meets various characters that have valid claims to  the gold, but can he trust any of them? And not only that, there’s the question of who is the person shadowing him?

The story moves forward at a rapid pace and it isn’t long before Hawk is on the run from a variety of people all eager to get their hands on the gold. Everything leads to a dramatic final showdown that concludes the story neatly.

I’ve read one of C.J. Sommers six, to date, Black Horse Westerns previously and enjoyed both that and this one and will definitely be reading more soon.

As to the identity of Sommers I’m sure I know, and will add that he writes under a number of different pseudonyms and I’ve read lots of his books and found them all to be excellent entertainment. If you want to know who it is then check the comments on the last Sommers book I read, and if you are still unsure then here’s the dedication in Skeleton Hand, ‘To Owen Irons, friend and mentor’. 

The Outlaw's Daughter

By C.J. Sommers

Hale, July 2012

Matt Holiday was riding a dangerous trail. He had a kidnapped boy and a woman to worry about, a quartet of robbers behind him, $20,000 in missing gold to find and an unwelcoming outlaw town ahead of him. With the gunfighter, Frank Waverly, searching for him it would be a lucky day if the gold was ever returned to the Butterfield Stage Company.

And the most dangerous gun on the range belonged to the beautiful Serenity Waverly, Frank’s daughter. She rode with Matt, but he suspected that would last only as long as it took them to recover the stolen gold. She had outlaw blood in her and knew only outlaw ways.

This is C.J. Sommers third Black Horse Western and the first I’ve read, other than that I know nothing else about this writer.

Matt Holiday is an able hero who, at times, puts helping others ahead of his mission to recover the stolen gold. He’s not opposed to getting into a gunfight if needed (and of course it is) but it’s Serenity who comes across as the more devil may care type of person, often acting without thinking, and is ready to gun down those she sees as needing to be killed without a blink of an eye. 

The story moves forwards at an ever increasing pace and you have to wonder how all the problems Holiday faces will be resolved by the end, especially after Frank Waverly arrives on the scene. Holiday has a good idea as to Serenity’s motives, but can he believe Frank’s?

The plot is fairly straightforward but does offer a surprise killing at the end which I didn’t see coming.

The Outlaw’s Daughter proved to be a well-written and entertaining read.