Bad Apple

By Lancaster Hill

Pinnacle, March 2020

John Apple is a simple man. A gardener and preacher who lives a quiet life in Ohio. Then a broken heart sends him south. A chance encounter with a very drunk Jim Bowie leads him to join the Texian Army. And the struggles for independence from the brutalities of Mexican President Santa Ana teaches Apple a valuable new skill: Killing.

Working with Bowie, Sam Houston, Stephen Austin and their ragtag army, Apple becomes a secret courier and bloody advocate for the cause. As a calling card, he plants apple seeds in the chests of every soldier he slays – and sparks fear in the hearts of Santa Ana’s men. But nothing could prepare him for the fate that awaited them at the Alamo Mission. Nothing could save his brothers in arms from the devastating slaughter that would go down in history. And now, for John Apple, nothing would be sweeter than revenge . . . 

Lancaster Hill tells this gripping and enthralling story in the first person through the viewpoints of two men, more or less alternating chapters between them. John Apple and Ned, a bar owner. Apple seems to need to tell his story of events leading up to and including the massacre at The Alamo, and has something else to do, but what? A third character is soon introduced into the books present, reporter Hulbert.

Can Ned and Hulbert believe what they are hearing as Apple tells his tale of horror? Is Apple really who he says he is? Did he really fight alongside Bowie and Crockett, and how did he survive the slaughter at The Alamo? Hulbert certainly needs proof and this leads to some tense situations as he challenges Apple’s story.

Gun-running plays a major role in this book. Someone is stealing American rifles and is selling them to the Mexicans. The author keeps this person’s identity a secret until the final chapters. I had my suspicions but they where totally wrong, so the revelation came as a great surprise and added a neat twist to the tale.

Lancaster Hill mixes fiction and real events seamlessly. He includes a lot of fascinating facts about the proceedings that lead to the massacre at The Alamo and the eventual downfall of the Mexican Army. 

There is a dark tone to much of this story and the violence is brutal at times. Apple’s anguish is well described and I was soon sharing his feelings, caring about his fate, whether he was good or bad. The planting of apple cores with the dead added an original touch to this excellent tale.

After all the bloodletting and gloom the final chapter – a second chapter one (you’ll need to read the book to find out why), provided some welcome light-heartedness that in my mind was the perfect ending.  

Lancaster Hill is a pseudonym used by Jeff Rovin. 

War Valley

By Lancaster Hill

Pinnacle, March 2019

Hank Gannon grew up on a Florida plantation. He fought alongside his brothers-in-arms in the Civil War. Then he joined the Texas Special Police to help build a more peaceful union – and a future for his beloved Constance. That was the plan. But when a prisoner dies in his custody, Gannon is forced to leave Austin and head into Comanche territory. Alone but undaunted, he meets Roving Wolf- who has just slain a former soldier from his unit. Gannon can’t let the killing go unpunished. Even here, in this godforsaken valley, the law must be upheld… 

On the one side is a bloodthirsty war party of Indians, heading for the white man’s capital. On the other side is a makeshift army of Texas Special Police and the Texas State Guard, ready to meet the threat head-on. In the middle are Hank Gannon and Roving Wolf, waging their own blood feud. Two men trapped in a war. Fighting to survive their mutual hate. Killing to get out alive…

Lancaster Hill is a pseudonym for Jeff Rovin, an author known for his Tom Clancy: Op-Center series, and this is his first western.

The author’s writing style is extremely readable and includes some great, tense, life or death scenes.  Battles, be they between two sides or individuals, are described well, and are quite brutal at times and the author isn’t above killing off some main characters, which came as a welcome surprise, as is what happens to Constance, and how this is dealt with by her and Gannon and those who know her. Relationships between friend and foe are equally well-crafted and the author did have me caring what happened to some of them.

Gannon gets kicked out of the Texas Special Police due to possible political problems centered around racial unrest, even though it is entirely unjustified. This, of course, creates tension between Gannon and his now ex-employer, Captain Keel. Racial prejudice is a theme this tale often touches on and at times slowed the story down too much for me, as did the regular flashbacks that explained Gannon’s character (and others) that repeatedly interrupted the tale just as some deadly action was about to erupt. Having said that, the rest of the story was strong enough to keep me eagerly turning the pages.

War Valley is billed as being the first in a powerful new series, and yes it has some hard-hitting storylines, but will there be another Hank Gannon western? The Epilogue seems to imply that this is a stand-alone tale but I’m sure it would be possible to bring out further books featuring Gannon and I for one would look forward to reading them.