Blast to Oblivion

By Chap O’Keefe

Rough Edges Press, September 2016

In Denver, a shotgun blast brutally ends a man’s life and sets in motion a deadly chain of events that threatens Joshua Dillard, drifting detective and former Pinkerton agent. Hired by a beautiful woman to untangle the mystery of her brother’s murder and bring the killer to justice, Joshua’s investigation takes him to the raw and dangerous mining town of Silverville, where he finds a web of deception, greed, lust, and violence. Aided only by an eccentric hermit, Joshua will need all his cunning and gun-skill to avoid being blasted to oblivion himself!

Originally published by Robert Hale as part of its Black Horse Western line in 2009, Blast to Oblivion is the seventh (of nine) books following the adventures of Joshua Dillard. Included in this revised edition for Rough Edges Press, Chap O’Keefe has added an afterword titled From Deerstalker to Stetson that explains how this story was inspired by the classic Sherlock Holmes novel The Valley of Fear.

Having read many other Chap O’Keefe books I knew I would be in for an entertaining read with this one, and as it turns out it is one of the authors’ best. You don’t need to have read any of the other Dillard books as it is a self-contained novel that is full of twists and turns, great characters of both sexes, and moves forward at a terrific pace.

The mystery elements will keep you guessing as Dillard has to sort deception from the truth before a final dramatic shoot-out in a location that could become a death-trap for all involved.

If you missed this book the first time it was published then now is your chance to rectify that by grabbing a copy immediately as I’m sure all who enjoy well-told westerns stories will find much to appreciate in Blast to Oblivion and will then be on the lookout for the other Joshua Dillard tales.

Availabe as an ebook too.

Misfit Lil Rides In

By Chap O’Keefe

Black Horse Extra Books, August 2015

Originally published by Hale, July 2006.

A band of Apache bucks led by a charismatic hothead abandons reservation life to go on a bloody rampage. In pursuit with Lieutenant Michael Covington’s cavalry detail is civilian scout Jackson Farraday. But a showdown looms between the pair when Jackson is misled by Lilian Goodnight, a harum-scarum youngster who boasts the handle “Misfit Lil, Princess of Pistoleers.” After a clash with the Apaches and the slaughter of an Army paymaster and his escort, Jackson is fired. But his troubles are only just beginning when he’s framed for murder by crooked Sheriff “Wheezer” Skene. Can Misfit Lil make amends by saving her reluctant hero? 

This is the first in the Misfit Lil series written by Keith Chapman under the pseudonym of Chap O’Keefe, and it introduces the reader to a number of characters that will return in later books.

Even though Misfit Lil is the main character of the series this one features, and follows, Jackson Farraday’s misfortunes as much as it does Lil’s. Her infatuation with Jackson is a joy to read as are his attempts to keep her at arms-length and out of harm’s way.

There’s plenty of action and one or two surprises as Lil attempts to prove Jackson’s innocence and you’ll certainly share her frustrations as Covington always sees the worst in her and would rather slap her in jail than believe anything she has to say.

Keith Chapman also includes moments of humour, particularly evident in the explanation of how Lil got her Misfit name.

Misfit Lil Rides In is a very entertaining read that will make you want to read the rest of the series – there are seven books in total.

Keith Chapman also includes a bonus feature, Heroines of the Wilder West, which makes for a great read too.

The Lawman and the Songbird

By Chap O’Keefe

Black Horse Extra Books, November 2014

Originally published by Hale, November 2005

Pinkerton detective Joshua Dillard went undercover to a lawless Montana boom-town peopled by avaricious gold prospectors, ruthless bandits, fancy-pants rogues, and scheming dance-hall girls. In Cox City, he set his sights on arrogant, skull-faced Blackie Dukes and his bunch. But Alvin "Aces" Axford's safe at the Magnet saloon was robbed right under Joshua's nose. Who had spirited away Axford's haul of gold? Joshua had to buy that plucky songstress Kate Thompson had double-crossed the dangerous Dukes gang, luring him into a futile dance in a raging blizzard across the Bitterroot Mountains. It was one of luckless Joshua's most conspicuous failures. Not until seven years later did he return to Cox City, as town marshal. The time had come to solve the mysteries ... and to lay the ghosts of failure with a blazing six-shooter!

I think I’m right in saying this is the fifth book in Chap O’Keefe’s nine book series about Joshua Dillard, but you don’t have to have read any of the previous tales to fully enjoy this one.

In this story it seems Dillard has more than met his match in Kate Thompson, who makes for a very strong female lead character who seems to be one step ahead of everyone else. Having said that the robbery she masterminds doesn’t quite go according to plan and the chase is on.

Chap O’Keefe once more presents the reader with a fast paced book that is filled with action and a twisting storyline. Never was it obvious how this tale would end and the conclusion does come as a fitting surprise.

As with all of Chap O’Keefe’s books I’ve read this one left me eager for more. If you’ve not read one of his books yet then may I suggest this as an excellent introduction to his extremely readable writing.

If you'd like to find out more about Keith Chapman - the man behind the pseudonym of Chap O'Keefe - then a great interview can be found in two parts here: Part 1 Part 2

Shootout at Hellyer's Creek

By Chap O’Keefe

Black Horse Extra Books, June 2013

Paid to mind other folks’ business, Joshua Dillard did it with a .45 Colt Peacemaker. But he also had a mission of his own, and when Butch Simich and his bunch stuck up the stage from Tucson he swung into vengeful action. 

Stirring it along came Dorothy-May Pennydale, spirited daughter of a whiskey-soaked way station boss. And in the thick of it from the start was Clement P. Conway from New York City, hack writer of dime novels – a greenhorn with guts plunging out of his depth. 

The fight led into treacherous territory, up against rogue marshal Virgil Lyons and saloonkeeper Dice Sanders, whose greed for women and money produced mayhem ... and the most violent gun battle the one-horse town of Hellyer’s Creek had ever seen!

Chap O’Keefe has assembled a terrific set of characters for this Joshua Dillard novel that begins with a stagecoach robbery and then never lets up with action until the end, which includes an excellent fight between two women.

Dillard isn’t above making mistakes, and after being captured by the stage robbers he’s left in a how’s he going to get out of that situation that will keep any reader turning the pages to discover the answer.

It’s assumed that Dillard is working for Wells Fargo throughout the story and this fact makes for a neat twist ending that also leads to a humorous reason for Dillard to ride on to his next adventure.

Shootout at Hellyer’s Creek should appeal to all those who enjoy traditional westerns filled with non-stop action, and at just under $3.00 / £2.00 how can you afford not to give this a try? 

Doomsday Mesa

Chap O’Keefe

eBook, 2011

Ex-cavalryman Yale Cannon rode to Antelope for two very different reasons: in search of an old sweetheart and to bring out Red Effingham, a gunslick killer the sheriff had locked up in the ranch town’s jailhouse. After a confrontation with two cowpuncher brothers on the outskirts of town, Cannon decided to move more warily, and to use one mission as cover for the other.

His delving for old time’s sake quickly met opposition, but introduced him to suffragist schoolteacher Kate McDowell. Kate revealed that hatred between the cowmen and a settler community led by Abel Pryor, religious fanatic, was coming to a showdown. With Effingham busted from jail, the clash was set to be violent and bloody!

Chap O’Keefe has created an excellent set of characters for this book, from tough, hard men to equally as strong women. All out to get what they want whatever the cost.

As expected from a Chap O’Keefe book nothing is quite what it seems. As the story develops so do the schemes and doubt is thrown on the identities of some of the characters – are they who they say they are? Surely the plot can’t be quite as simple as cowmen v a religious group? I can answer this last question with nope! But that’s all I’m going to say, as I don’t want to spoil this plot twist.

Being as this was originally published by Hale as a Black Horse Western it’s a fairly short read, and due to it’s length there is no space to waste, so the reader gets a fast paced, action packed book, one that I found difficult to put down before the end.

And what of that end? All I will say is that Chap O’Keefe has yet another surprising revelation waiting, a sting-in-the-tail if you like, that finishes the book with a powerful bittersweet ending.

The Sheriff and the Widow

By Chap O’Keefe

ebook, 2011

First published by Hale in 1994.

As dangerous as unstable dynamite . . . that was Sheriff Ross Kemp's assessment of Jessica Blackwood. She was darkly beautiful, and she was married to the richest rancher around. Mysterious notes, a bizarre accusation and the bushwhack murder of her madly jealous husband shoved Kemp into the biggest trouble of his life. Tried and convicted on a trumped-up charge, Kemp was sentenced to ten years of living hell in the state pen. His only hope was Jessica's lovely stepdaughter, Ellen, but as Ellen began to uncover the truth she fell into deadly danger from Orson Rymer, gambler and blackmailer, and Snake McClay, evil-minded gunslick. It looked as if justice would never be done!

The fast flowing, easy-to-read story, proves to be a very entertaining book. Descriptions of action and landscape paint vivid imagery and the characters will soon have you shouting for them to be triumphant, or for their demise.

The story is fairly straightforward, with the good and the bad being clearly defined, yet there is an air of mystery too, as when the time comes for the Boyd Blackwood to die the author carefully avoids telling the reader who actually squeezed the trigger, therefore making you wonder if it was who you’d think it would be.

The book contains some excellent set pieces, such as a prison break that leads to a massacre. In turn these events become a race against time, although those involved never know this. There is also a surprising – and somehow fitting – death for one of the main characters, a type of death that you don’t read about that often in westerns.

Everything comes to a violent conclusion that ties all the plot threads up neatly.

The Sheriff and the Widow is available now a great, giveaway price, so how can you not afford to add this to your collection?  (At the time of posting this review the book is being sold for $0.99 or £0.86)

Liberty and a Law Badge

as by Chap O’Keefe
A Black Horse Extra book, January 2010

Crazy Bob McGill played Peeping Tom at Devil’s Lake and his old heart was pierced. The young woman Sheriff Dan Vickers had brought to share the isolation of his fishing retreat was McGill’s sweet daughter, Liberty. What McGill didn’t learn was that Liberty had been blackmailed. Her self-sacrifice was to preserve the dubious security of marriage to a spineless rancher Tom Tolliver, caught changing a cattle brand with a running-iron.

Meanwhile, Joshua Dillard, ex-Pinkerton agent and range detective, came to Montana working undercover for Vickers’ boss, cattle baron Barnaby Lant. He quickly clashed with Vickers’ deputies, supposed allies, and Vickers’ wife Sophie, on her own vengeance trail.

Then lynching and gunplay muddied the picture. Could Joshua bring justice to the range and save Liberty?

This is Chap O’Keefe’s 9th Joshua Dillard book, the previous eight being published by Hale under their Black Horse Western line, and the second book the author has published as a Black Horse Extra book, the first being Misfit Lil’ Cheats the Hangrope.

From the very beginning this book moves at speed and then races along like a runaway train heading for a collision and destruction. As Chap O’Keefe introduces more and more characters, so the plot deepens through twists and turns, and all sides are brought together for a final, exciting, clash of wits, guns and knives.

Chap O’Keefe’s writing style is very readable and soon sucks you into the plot making this book very difficult to put down. There are plenty of strong male characters and a couple of memorable women, namely Liberty and Sophie, who take two of the leading roles in this tale. And if it’s action you want, this story is brimming with it.

Liberty and a Law Badge can be bought directly from the publishers here. Fans of Chap O’Keefe’s work (real name Keith Chapman) – in particular those who follow his Joshua Dillard series – will be pleased to know that the end of this month also sees the official release of the eighth Dillard book, published as a Black Horse Western by Hale, titled Faith and a Fast Gun; this should be available from all the usual Internet book sellers now.

Interview: Keith Hetherington

My latest interview is with an author who has had a very impressive number of books published (with more to come), mainly in his homeland of Australia, some of which have been published in America too. These days Hale, in England, publishes his westerns under their Black Horse Western banner. The man in question is Keith Hetherington, so over to Keith…

First I want to thank you for agreeing to answer my questions.

Thanks for asking me to do the interview.

When did you decide you wanted to be a writer?

Always liked writing little vignettes, trying to describe 'action' sequences I saw in a film or the Saturday Afternoon Serial at local cinemas. Used to 'make' my own books when I was about 12, pasting the pages together (no office staplers in those days, though sometimes I removed staples from old comics or books I didn't want and used them.) Had a few essays read out to classes and one went the rounds of the entire school - something called The Dahlia, as I recall: I was amazed, for the last thing I was interested in at that age was flowers and gardening - used to bust a boiler trying to get out of mowing the lawns at weekends. It was wartime, so most stories I wrote were military-oriented, with lots of blood and guts.



What was the first novel you had published and if this wasn’t a western what was your first western?

Had an accident at work in my early teens and spent a week at home. Read a story called "Jailbreak Justice' in a book of cowboy stories and thought I could write as good or better yarn. Filled a dozen or so pages in an exercise book, called it THE TEXAN (very original) and mailed it away. To my surprise (not to mention delight) a couple of months later I received a cheque for six pounds fifteen. Thought I was made: didn't bank that cheque for ages, pinned it to my bedroom door. Anyway, that was the start, they wanted more stories and I began writing fairly regularly and Cleveland Publications bought out the original company and asked for 'novelettes' of about 20,000 words. These gradually got up to 48,000 words though dropped back progressively down to about 40,000. Meantime I wrote short adventure stories for 'men’s magazines', honing the writing skills.

Being Australian what made you choose to write westerns of all the genres out there?

I always liked the bush stories of our famous Aussie author Ion Idriess, full of outback action and bush-craft. I used the Aussie bush for background to my adventure yarns but, influenced by the many Saturday afternoon serials at the local cinema, mostly Westerns with heroes like Buck Jones, Johnny Mack Brown, Dick Foran and so on - if you don't recognise the names it only means I'm older than you are! But I had a Daisy air rifle like most Aussie kids at that time, and it became a Winchester, knocking off the Injuns in every spare minute I could get into the bush with Our Mob - a gang of larrikin Aussie kids out for blood.

Which writers influence you?

At the time, I was influenced by Zane Grey and Walt Slade/Jackson Cole - house names of authors of the Jim Hatfield yarns in the American Western magazines - which we couldn't get enough of. My father was a Zane Grey fan and also influenced me - by way of encouragement to keep on writing.

Which western writers would you recommend?

Which writers would I recommend now? Well, I like Elmore Leonard, both his thrillers and his Westerns - he's got a style all his own, laconic, tough, knowledgeable. I used to read a lot of Frank C. Robertson in the old Collins White Circle Westerns - Dad and I would toss a coin to see who got to read the current one first. Norman Fox and, of course, the Master, Luke Short. Luke constructed his stories extremely well, could make his characters come alive, and wasn't afraid to give his hero a short temper, resulting in some brutal fights. I credit him with saving me from sea sickness in 1953 when I was sailing to see the world: we hit seventy foot waves in the Great Australian Bight - or they hit us, more accurately - and my mate was pea-green (but not with envy) and I happened to be reading HIGH VERMLLION by Luke. There was this tremendous fist fight - went for pages - I parked in a tight corner on deck, nearly freezing, concentrated on that fight and what came after and escaped being sea sick...Thank you, Luke!

Which past western would you like to see back in print and why is this?

Luke Short's stuff is still eminently readable, though mostly out of print. As I mentioned earlier, Elmore Leonard usually comes up with a good yarn. Zane Grey is very dated now though I liked his SHADOW ON THE TRAIL immensely (the book a gift from my father, incidentally).

Les Savage Jnr. wrote a good one called TREASURE OF THE BRASADA, which would probably be worth a re-run, but I can't really nail down any particular title right now.

How many westerns have you had published to date?

I believe I've published over 600 (Keith Chapman thinks it might be closer to 1,000), but I don't really know. Let's just say 'lots'! Sorry if that's a cop-out.

Having written so many books how easy is it to keep coming up with new stories and where does your inspiration come from?

I've never had much trouble coming up with a new storyline. Can't sat HOW, or WHY, but it must just be the kind of mind I've got. I really like constructing a yarn, fitting the pieces in to make it not only readable and coherent but LIKED (or a stronger word if you like!)

Do you work on more than one book at a time?

I don't intentionally work on more than one book at a time, but more often than not, while writing one, something will strike a spark for another idea and I quickly make a note (has to be MIGHTY quick, now I've turned 80!) and I may start developing it a little more after I've done the day's work on the other.

Have any of your Cleveland characters appeared in a Black Horse Western?

I don't think I've used any of my Cleveland characters in books I've written for Hale. Maybe used the same name unintentionally, but I never carried forth any series character.

You’ve written stories about Bronco Madigan under two different Black Horse Western pseudonyms, and fans of Madigan may not realize there are other books out there under a different authors name. Why did you decide to put them out under two names?

The two different names for the Bronco Madigan series came about through my own laxity. I picked the wrong one to head up the title page (twice!) but there was no real reason for it.

Over the years what changes have you seen in what you can or cannot include in a western?

There's not much that hasn't appeared in Westerns over the years, including clinically described sex and graphic violence. I think Cleveland toned-down a couple of my more violent descriptions but I haven't really noticed any big taboos - you can still find Westerns with a sex scene or two (and why not? Those guys were 'real men' and anyone knows real men have sex! ) Who with, is maybe another thing - recall BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN? Didn't believe a word of it. Incest would be out, I think, but I don't know: it's just that I haven't encountered it in any Westerns I've read. (And wouldn't want to.) Hell, in this day and age you never know what you'll find in print, but on a personal note, I just try to stick to the fist fights and shootouts, but I have been known to mention the odd rape or two...I don't feel that's a very satisfactory answer to your question, but don't seem to be able to come up with anything else.

Which of your westerns would you recommend to someone who hasn’t read any of your work yet and why?

LONER FROM LARAMIE was my first Western for Hale. It's more or less an indication of my style and content and, even if I do say so myself, it's not a bad yarn. (But I never think what I write is anything out of the ordinary - I just enjoy doing it, and maybe what comes across is my enthusiasm.

Is there still a big market for westerns in Australia?

There is no market for publishing Westerns in Australia that I know of. Cleveland still run mostly on re-issues (some of mine as far back as the late 60's or early 70's) with an occasional 'new’ one - which I suspect is a manuscript Cleveland bought from one of its writers some years ago and had been filed away and finally unearthed. They still sell well here - but there's no other Western publisher that I know of.

What do you think of the western genre today and what do you think the future holds for the western?

I'm optimistic: I truly believe the Western genre is one genre that will keep on keeping-on (as they say in a certain TV paint commercial). That and Romance - I think both will always find a ready audience - mind, I'm not so sure it'll be the written word (on paper, that is) maybe only electronically. How that will affect writers like you and me and our other compadres I'm not sure.

You haven’t just written westerns, can you please tell us a little about your other books, both fictional and non-fiction.

I like to write thrillers, always have, the 'private-eye' type. Heavily influenced by Raymond Chandler or course, and I like writing the occasional adventure story. Hale have published some of mine over the years. A few come to mind JUDAS COAST; DRAGON OUT OF THE SOUTH; THE NAKED NEMSIS, HAMMERHEAD REEF.

I wrote one boys' adventure book way back in 1966, was published in England and the U.S. as well as Australia: THE SCUBA BUCCANEERS under the pen name of James Keith. My Christian names reversed. I've done a lot of short stories as mentioned earlier, worked as a TV scriptwriter for 5 and a half years, all Aussie shows: HOMICIDE; MATLOCK POLICE; DIVISION 4; SOLO ONE; THE BOX; THE SPOILER; CHOPPER SQUAD, ETC. I did one film script for a spy yarn set in the Philippines, but the company went broke before it was filmed.

Also wrote a book about metal detectors when I was treasure hunting for a while, mostly on beaches, but some outback stuff; as well. BEACHCOMBING WITH A METAL DETECTOR. Sold pretty well, but too dated now what with all the high-tech machines around.

Worked as a journalist for 11 years for the Queensland Health Education Council, writing weekly articles for newspapers on health subjects and Radio Plays dramatising same. (Must have been mad, but can still remember belting out a series on Smoking and Lung Cancer with a packet of cigarettes beside my typewriter - and going through them mighty fast!)

Do you think paper produced books will ever be replaced with electronic books?

I don't think electronic books will ever completely replace printed books, but they're bound to have a wide appeal - and it might not be so easy to make a crust, as we say in Oz, because the whole deal will be changed: copyright will be up the spout, for sure; publishers won't get much of a look-in - so where does that leave the author? Poorer than bloody usual! Just hope the idea never takes on in stampede mode!

What is your favourite western movie and why?

WESTERN UNION was my favourite Western movie for over forty years and is still way up there - but it has company now, SEVEN MEN FROM NOW. Both star Randolph Scott (my favourite cowboy - and I'm still occasionally guilty of describing my heroes as having some Scott attributes) But SEVEN MEN FROM NOW has a terrific opening, great dialogue and editing - and facial expressions, also attention to detail, like Randy, casually changing the coffee mug from his gunhand to his left hand and nudging back his rain-drenched slicker.... Not a 'big' western, budget-wise, but a tough story and great characters - including Lee Marvin doing the honours as a likeable villain.

Finally what do you read for pleasure?

I read just about anything I find interesting - fiction, true adventure, historical - I can always enjoy a 'good' book of whatever genre as long as its well written and has a plot that interests me.

Misfit Lil Robs the Bank

as by Chap O’keefe
A Black Horse Western from Hale, September 2009

Misfit Lil’s misalliance with the reckless Texan cowboy Luck M’Cline began while her true friend, mature frontiersman Jackson Farraday, was away in the Henry Mountains. Lil’s crackshot skills saved M’Cline from the claws of a wounded man hating cougar but her actions earned her the enmity of M’Cline’s former sweetheart, Virginia Whitpath. An unladylike fighting showdown with Virginia on Main Street, plus shooting pranks in a saloon with M’Cline, put Lil at the mercy of another arrival. Mesmerist Dr Francois Guiscard, late of a Paris hospital infamous for the experimental treatment of madwomen, was entrusted with curing Lil of her behaviour problems.

Lil had wanted only fun. Could she regain her freedom when Dr Guiscard had devilish plans to capitalize on her unique abilities?

Chap O’keefe (Keith Chapman) pushes the boundaries of the traditional western in this, the sixth Misfit Lil story to be published by Hale. As expected the book moves forward at tremendous speed and sees Lil attempting to bring down Guiscard without the help of her hero Jackson Farraday. There’s plenty of action that includes a well- written catfight between Lil and Virginia.

There are two elements to the plot that provide extra interest, that move the story away from the traditional western tale. The first is the art of hypnotism, and Keith Chapman includes some fascinating facts about the history of the mesmerist. The second is the use of drugs to remove resistance and thus enable rape.

And what of Lil’s relationship with M’Cline? Sorry I’m not going to reveal how that ends – if indeed it does – but will say that the story ends with an exciting showdown in a setting that painted vivid imagery in my mind, and brought to mind those old horror films from Hammer.

So a western that blends the traditional with more challenging subject matter in a well paced plot that once more proves the Misfit Lil series is definitely worth reading.

Misfit Lil Robs the Bank is officially published on September 30th, but is available now from Internet booksellers, and as Chap O’Keefe westerns usually sell-out quickly, I’d suggest you order your copy as soon as possible.

Misfit Lil Cheats the Hangrope

as by Chap O’Keefe
A Black Horse Extra book, July 2009

The irrepressible Misfit Lil was riding for a fall. She'd chosen to intervene in the fortunes of a wagon train of emigrants led on wrong trails by Luke Reiner, their incompetent guide. And Reiner, hiding an outlaw past, didn't care to have Lil messing with his reputation. Lil's first mistake was in saving a bunch of buttons when the wagons were caught in a ferocious blizzard. Then she recommended her hero, frontiersman Jackson Farraday, to help out, which pitched him into a bloody fight with Reiner. Tangles tightened when the wagonmaster's pretty daughter, Honesty Petrie, took a flirtatious hand. . . . But worse was to follow. Jackson was accused of murder! Could Lil save him from the noose into which she'd run his neck?

The first book from Black Horse Extra is the never before published Misfit Lil Cheats the Hangrope. Misfit Lil has appeared in six other books and has become a favourite leading character for fans of Chap O’Keefe’s work.

The plot is very fast moving and features some superbly written set pieces, such as an breakout that’s made possible due to the use of a rat, and an ingenious method of escaping from a hangrope. The book has plenty of the more traditional action you’d expect to find in a western, which includes an exciting gunfight with outlaws set on wiping out the wagon train Lil finds herself involved with.

The main plotline, of murder, sees Chap O’Keefe explore a different type of killing than one would normally expect to find in a western, proving that there are still new storylines to be found in the genre. Even though I did suspect the right person of this killing I was way out with the how and why and the answers definitely provide a memorable conclusion to this book.

Misfit Lil Cheats the Hangrope can be bought directly from Lulu or Amazon US or Amazon UK (Amazon perhaps the cheapest option as it qualifies for free postage) and I’d urge you to consider buying a copy, not least because you’ll receive a well written and very entertaining western but if this book is successful then Black Horse Extra will publish more quality westerns helping to keep this genre alive.

Misfit Lil Cleans Up

 as by Chap O’Keefe

A Black Horse Western from Hale, 2008

A senseless killing stopped Jackson Farraday from investigating an odd situation in the raw mining settlement called Black Dog. For answers he tricked Lilian Goodnight into spying at the High Meadows cattle ranch.

Lil was dismayed to find range boss Liam O’Grady running a hatwire outfit crewed by deeper-dyed misfits than herself. Then she was obliged to save ex-British Army major Albert Fitzcuthbert – sent to investigating High Meadows by its owners – from renegade Indians.

Everybody had secrets: Lil’s childhood friend Liam; his spouse Mary, and Fitzcuthbert’s cruelly humiliated young wife, Cecilia. Lil was facing problems only her savvy, daring and guns could settle!

Chap O’Keefe definitely knows how to tell a good yarn, he immediately hooks the reader by introducing a number of questions, the answers to which Misfit Lil will have to struggle to find.

There is plenty of action in this fast moving tale and Misfit Lil makes for an engaging lead character. O’Keefe also includes brief mention of her past adventures – this being the fifth Misfit Lil book – that makes me want to find those books and discover just how she and the other characters, already known to her, came to like or dislike each other.

It is also unusual to find the main character, in a Black Horse Western, being female and, for me, this made a pleasant change.

Mention must also be made of the excellent cover painting – the artist sure knows how to use light, shadow, and hints of colour to great effect. This scene ties up nicely with an exciting chase of a stagecoach by Indians within the story.

For those of you inspired enough by my comments about this book that you now want to go out and buy a copy, I have some bad news. The book was released on October 31st and sold out in twelve days! This must be some indication to how popular Chap O’Keefe’s westerns are.

I always like to follow bad news with good so I’ll remind you that Black Horse Westerns are first and foremost produced for libraries so there’s nothing to stop you going there and requesting a copy. I’m sure you’ll find it worthwhile.

The Outlaw and the Lady

 as by Chap O’Keefe

A Black Horse Western from Hale, 1994

Tod Larraby was a deadly shot, an ex-Confederate guerrilla with a reputation to match. But when he was tricked into shooting a crooked gambler in a Colorado mining town, a dubious price was set for his freedom. Lord Buckhampton, a bull-headed British capitalist with investments in the state, needed Larraby to guide him to his delinquent son, who’d vanished into the wildest parts of the Rockies with a half-breed whore from a Leadville bordello.

Against Larraby’s advice, Buckhampton insisted they take along his second wife Julia. But would Tod be able to complete his task and win his liberty faced as he was with death and deception?

Chap O’Keefe, really author Keith Chapman, has created some excellent characters in this book, Lord Buckhampton really comes across as a pompous man who you will be hoping will get his comeuppance soon after you meet him.

The book moves quickly from beginning to end, and has many action packed scenes. Throughout the tale there is a growing attraction between Tod and Julia but this can’t possibly become anything more than that can it?

There are plenty of surprises along the way too, some of the characters not quite being who they say they are, and a savage gang of outlaws add further hardship to the task of finding Buckhampton’s son.

For once we have a Black Horse Western with a cover that almost matches a scene within the story.

Definitely worth picking up a copy, if you can find one.