THE LAW OF BEN HODGE

 

THE LAW OF BEN HODGE
By Matt Chisholm
Cover art by Walter Popp
Panther, July 1959

The town simmered with hate between the north and the south, between the townsman and the drover, between the law and the lawless.

Hodge tramped the streets of the old town with a star on his vest, knowing the mob would kill him so that they could hang his prisoner…knowing the Texas drovers would kill him to rescue the murderer.

Hodge knew that there could only be one law now…his law – The Law of Ben Hodge.

This is the third and final book Matt Chisholm wrote about Ben Hodge. The previous stories are briefly mentioned but you don’t need to have read them to fully enjoy this tale. In those earlier books, Hodge was trying to save himself from being hanged. In this one Hodge is trying to protect a guilty man from lynch law.

Hodge finds himself reluctantly wearing a star when the towns’ lawman is laid up. A drunken cowboy has accidently shot and killed a child. The townsfolk want his neck stretched immediately. The drovers want to free their friend. Everybody wants Hodge out of the way so they can do what they feel is right. Both sides prepare to fight each other so they can get to the man they want.

Once Hodge accepts the badge, he intends to enforce the law. He soon has his suspicions about the killing. Was it accidental or done on purpose? If the latter, what is the motive? Behind his back, powerful townsmen plot the death of Hodge’s prisoner and professional gunmen prepare to carry out their boss’s orders. 

Chisholm builds the tension well as the story swiftly moves towards its violent conclusion. Along the way there are plenty of bursts of action. Hodge takes some punishment too. As the plot becomes more complicated it is hard to see how any of the main characters will survive. Hodge’s wife Rose has a part to play, although she is unaware of the danger she is in and Hodge doesn’t know either. 

I did feel this story wasn’t as strong as the previous Hodge books. That may be because I’ve read many more tales about a lawman trying to protect his prisoner from a mob than I have where the protagonist literally has a rope around his neck and has moments to somehow free himself from the noose. Having said that, The Law of Ben Hodge was still a very entertaining read and left me looking forward to reading more from this author very soon.

Matt Chisholm is a pseudonym used by Peter Watts, a British writer who has long been one of my favourite western authors. 

HANG A MAN HIGH

 

HANG A MAN HIGH
By Matt Chisholm
Panther Books, June 1959

They found him standing with a still-warm gun in his hand . . . his brother dead, shot through the back of the head; his brother Marve . . . whom everyone liked and trusted. 

The gold was gone from its hiding place, and now the finger of suspicion was pointed in Ben’s direction.

In that country, for that crime, they would demand that the Law HANG A MAN HIGH.

This is second of three books Matt Chisholm would write about Ben Hodge. As if the man didn’t go through enough troubles in the first book, the author plunges Hodge into more deadly danger which could see him with a rope around his neck again. 

Events of the earlier book, Hodge, are mentioned quite often in this one, and a number of characters from that story return for the sequel. Due to that I would suggest reading the first book before this one to get the greatest enjoyment from it. Hang a Man High can be read as a stand-alone title though as the author includes all the background you need to understand the relationships between the characters and the problems Hodge had to face in that story.

This is a tough tale that is filled with non-stop action. Hodge has to endure a number of brutal fist-fights that leave him a battered man. Even he doesn’t know where he finds the energy to go on, but he does know that if he doesn’t, he’ll be swinging from the gallows. Handguns, rifles and shotguns are all used regularly too. 

Hodge and his two friends, Pete and Ned, loyalty to each other is admirable, all ready to die for each other as they struggle to discover just who killed Marve. What’s equally puzzling is where the gold came from. Hodge certainly didn’t know it was hidden in his home and neither did his pards. It isn’t long before all three begin to wonder if they can trust anyone else as more and more people seem to be involved in whatever it is that is going on.

There’s a lot of blood and death before Hodge gets a break and begins to work out who is behind the death of his brother. Hodge, Pete and Ned will all have their parts to play in bringing down the culprits and will suffer whilst doing so before everything comes to a conclusion in a confined space. 

Peter Watts is the author behind the pseudonym of Matt Chisholm and he’s long been a favourite writer of mine and this book strengthens that thought. Hang a Man High isn’t as goog as the first Hodge book but it comes very close and is a western that I think all fans of the genre would find an entertaining read. Me? I’m looking forward to reading the third Hodge book, The Law of Ben Hodge, as soon as possible.

HODGE

 

HODGE

By Matt Chisholm

Panther Books, 1958

The stranger rode into the dusty cowtown . . . and there was Cass, who should have been dead! But he wasn’t, he was the sheriff, and the feud which had simmered in years gone by, blazed out with renewed violence. Cass was now backed by the law and in no time at all he had planned a ‘legal’ killing . . . and the noose hung ready.

This was Matt Chisholm’s second book, and his first to feature characters he would write about again. Matt Chisholm is a pseudonym for author Peter Watts, who also wrote westerns as Cy James and Luke Jones. Altogether, he had about 100 books published and was one of the UK’s best selling western authors.

The opening chapters are extremely suspenseful as Hodge comes across a cabin outside of town where a young girl lives. Inside are two hurt men and it appears they are waiting for her father to return home. Hodge is soon held at gunpoint and it is obvious there’s something very wrong here. Hodge turns the tables and it isn’t long before he rides into town and gets the shock of his life when he discovers a man he thought he’d killed still lives. He’s also taken aback when he finds a woman, Rose, living in town too that he was once sweet on. Seems she’s promised to Cass’s brother, Geoff. From then on Hodge’s life only goes downhill and deadly confrontations came one after another with barely a chance to take a breath between them.

Like most of Chisholm’s characters, Hodge isn’t infallible and his mistakes put him in very dangerous situations. Chisholm often ends his chapters, or scenes, with cliff-hangers, making it very difficult to put the book down as you’ll need to know what happens next. Once Cass works out how to get rid of Hodge legally, the author really builds the tension as a beaten Hodge is taken to jail and is soon standing in a wagon bed awaiting the fixed outcome of the townsfolk trying him which will surely result in his hanging. This is truly a great how-is-he-going-to-get-out-of-that moment. 

Even at this early stage in Peter Watts’s writing career the author’s strengths are very clear. Superb characterization, excellent plotting, and none-stop action that all combine to provide edge-of-the-seat reading. 

BRASADA

BRASADA

By Luke Jones

Consul Books, 1962

The Civil War was lost, and he was sheriff in a Texas beaten to her knees by the North. The Texans called him a Yankee-lover; the Northerners called him Texas trash. So he lived alone, and walked a lonely road alone, acknowledging no master but justice.

He was in a cleft stick. If he went after his quarry he would be accused of siding with the Yankees, and the thought made him sweat. Bitterness had cut deep into the South. The temptation to throw in his badge and clear out was strong in him, for a sheriff in these parts was in a very dangerous position. But he kicked his horse into a trot, dreading the ride ahead of him, his only support his gun and his courage.

This is the second, and last book that English author Peter Watts wrote as Luke Jones. Watts wrote many other westerns under two more well known pseudonyms; Matt Chisholm and Cy James. Altogether, Watts had around 100 westerns published.

One thing Watts is known for is that his books are action packed. After reading the first two or three chapters of Brasada I had to wonder if this book was going to be the odd one out. Watts uses the opening chapters to flesh out his characters, especially that of sheriff Wake Hopshaw as he contemplates old-age, his secret admiration for the Mexican girl Consuelo who seems out of his reach, and struggles with his duty to the law or the people of Texas. Northern soldiers order Wake to bring in an outlaw who seems to still be fighting the war. Wake argues that Bob Masters hasn’t committed a crime in his jurisdiction and until he does, he won’t track him down. This, of course, cause animosity between Wake and the soldiers and finally leads to Wake being on the run from them too.

The story goes through many twists and turns including murder, a secret meeting between a mystery man and woman, Wake fighting for his life against known and unknown enemies, and much more. It isn’t long before Wake’s desire to see justice carried out his way can only have one outcome; his death, and I was soon thinking this was how the book would end. 

The book is fast paced, has an intriguing plot, touches of humour, tough characters, and plenty of violent action. It’s a story of one man against the rest told in very readable prose. It is a product of its time though and it does occasionally include terms that people of today might find offensive when referring to characters of certain races. 

Perhaps not one of the best books to come from Peter Watts, but it is still a very entertaining and it left me wanting to read another of his books very soon. 

THREE CANYONS TO DEATH

THREE CANYONS TO DEATH

By Luke Jones

Consul Books, 1961

The three men had been friends for only a short time, but they had formed a strong bond. When Jed Saunders, youngest of the trio, was brutally murdered, Limey and George swore to have revenge. The trail led them to a town living in fear – a town where only one man, Marshal Gruman, dared to speak his mind; and to Old Man Prescott, cattle-king and law unto himself; his weak and crooked son, Johnny; and the beautiful and unpredictable Elvina, who had inherited all her father’s wildness.

Knowing that Luke Jones is a pseudonym for Peter Watts, an author much better known for his westerns written under two other pennames, Matt Chisholm and Cy James, I was expecting a fast moving, tough tale filled with action and that was exactly what I got.

The story contains some neat twists and turns, the best of which being when Limey finds himself accused of murder. Just who he is said to have killed coming as a great surprise, one that turns the plot on its head and made me wonder just how Limey could prove himself innocent.

The Prescott family, and some of their ranch hands, are memorable characters too and they prove to be great adversaries for Limey and George. The fact that the son is out to ruin his father by stealing his cattle adds even more tension to the story. Jed is killed when he stumbles across this rustling operation in the area known as Three Canyons. There are two strong roles for female characters, with Elvina stirring strong emotions within Limey. Packed with plenty of lively gunplay, fistfights, and beatings there is never a dull moment throughout the story. 

Having read many books written by Peter Watts I’m aware that he sometimes kills off main characters, be they good or bad, so the possibility of this happening to Limey, George or any of the Prescott’s was always in the back of my mind, making the ending of this book just as unpredictable as Elvina.

Peter Watts only wrote one other book as Peter Jones, Brasada, and I hope to read that very soon.

I don’t know much about Consul books, or their printer, Racecourse Press Ltd, but one, or both, could have used better quality control as many words are missing letters making me have to guess what it was supposed to be. Frustrating a little but easy enough to work out when reading the whole sentence. Don’t let this put you off tracking down a copy of Three Canyons to Death though as it is a very entertaining read that I believe will be enjoyed by fans of the western genre.

HANG McALLISTER

By Matt Chisholm

Cover art by Gino D’Achille

Panther Books, 1970
Piccadilly Publishing, March 2022

Rem McAllister was on one of the toughest missions of his violent career. He rode into Mexico – and found a whole heap of trouble brewing. For one thing, he discovered that there were some mean hombres bent on invading Texas. For another, he found himself mixed up in a vicious war. And soon enough his outsize talent for trouble got him into a situation where two different leaders and a whole army were bent on hunting him down. Even for McAllister, these were fearsome odds . . . 

This book is a must read for fans of Matt Chisholm’s McAllister. His father, Chad McAllister, was always vague about the identity of Rem’s mother, stating she was either a Mexican lady of high birth or a Cheyenne princess, depending on how drunk he was at the time of telling. Rem has never met his mother and now he might just discover who she really is when he meets an old lady named McAllister. That isn’t the only shock for McAllister regarding family as he also finds himself fighting alongside a man who claims he is Rem’s brother. At first McAllister is suspicious of both, even though they know enough about Chad McAllister to make their stories ring true. Could it be that Rem has finally found his mother and at the same time a sibling he was unaware of?

For both McAllister fans and those who just enjoy a good western read, then this book should satisfy all. From the opening scenes this book grabs the imagination, hooks the reader with questions, and creates tension with plenty of how is he going to get out of that situations. The action is almost nonstop, as McAllister battles vastly superior odds. The author doesn’t give his hero an easy time of it either as McAllister is viciously beaten a couple of times and imprisoned. 

Matt Chisholm is a pseudonym used by author Peter Watts, and yet again he’s written a book that is thoroughly entertaining. The story is packed with great characters and has a terrific plot revolving around an invasion of America. Profanity is minimal, and the violence is hard-hitting but not overly graphic. The author also has a neat twist at the end that clears up McAllister’s questions about his new found family members.

The McAllister series ran for 39 books and they can take some finding these days in paper form. If you don’t mind reading ebooks, then you are in luck as Hang McAllister and many others are available electronically.  

THE PROUD HORSEMAN

By Matt Chisholm

Mayflower, 1963

The McDaid’s came down from the high country, ruthless and strong. They killed his brother and invaded his grass.

He was alone, backed by treacherous friends, faced by powerful enemies. A man with sense would have forked his horse and got out of there but he didn’t have sense. He only had cold courage and a gun.

Like all the other books by Matt Chisholm I’ve read, this story moves forward at tremendous speed and is almost non-stop action. It’s a tale of a land grab as a superior force in the shape of the McDaid clan arrive in a valley filled with lush grass which is just what they need for their cattle. Only thing is Si and Jim Deverey live there, as do one or two other people and they won’t be pushed off what they see as their land. Shortly after a stand-off between the McDaid’s and the Deverey’s, Jim is found viciously beaten to death and Si hits the vengeance trail and soon finds himself blamed for the death of one of Lon McDaid’s sons, and the old man screams for revenge. It isn’t long before Si is wondering if there is a third party playing a hand in the killings, and if he is right then who is it and what is their motive?

The author has created a wonderful set of tough characters, both male and female, for this gripping read. One thing I like about Chisholm’s stories, is that you can never be sure of who will be alive or dead by the end, and that is certainly the case in this novel. There’s a couple of excellent twists and plenty of ‘how are they going to get out of that’ situations. I also like that Chisholm’s characters aren’t perfect shots and often miss their targets and that they don’t escape being hit by all the lead that is flying around. 

Chisholm’s work comes from a time when bad language wasn’t used in stories that much, if at all. There aren’t any sex scenes either, although I was surprised by the inclusion of a bit of nudity. The story is told over 154 pages, with 44 lines per page and chapters starting just a few lines below where the previous one finished, meaning you get a decent length read from a fairly slim book compared to those being published today.

Matt Chisholm is a pseudonym for English author Peter Watts, who also wrote westerns as Cy James and Luke Jones, and I recommend his books to all who enjoy action-packed westerns.

PURSUIT IN THE SUN

By Matt Chisholm

Panther, October 1960

Henry McGladdery Forty, United States Army . . . ending his days after twenty years’ service in a shabby frontier fort on the edge of the south-western desert, tempted to quick promotion by a colonel’s daughter with better looks than morals; tempted to civilian freedom by a wild mustanger’s daughter . . . 

Then his thoughts were disturbed by the thunder of the unshod hoofs of Apache ponies, their riders yelling in fury at the soldiers and civilians who barred their way to the riches of the country. Forty knew there was only one way to fight an Apache – fight him alone. So fight him he did . . . 

If you like westerns filled with gunfights then this is the book for you. In fact, the final third of the story is pretty much one long, frantic chase and gun battle between the Apaches and Forty’s small band of men who are determined to bring an end to Correoso’s raids. A lot of the fights involve horses, as the Apaches attempt to steal fresh mounts and Forty tries to stop them.

Although long-time readers of westerns won’t find anything new in this book, Matt Chisholm always keeps the story interesting and gripping and immediately has you wondering what’s going on as his tale begins in the midst of a dangerous situation. His heroic figures will have you urging them on as they battle superior odds. Chisholm’s taut plotting is often laced with mild humour and you can never be sure of just who will be alive by the end. 

Matt Chisholm is the most well-known pseudonym used by Peter Watts and he’s always been one of my favourite British western authors, and even though this book isn’t one of this best as it was a little predictable, it was still very entertaining and left me eager to read more of his work. 

McALLISTER MAKES WAR

By Matt Chisholm

Cover art by Gino D’Achille

Panther Books, 1969

Rem McAllister was the embodiment of his turbulent age. He made his own law. He carried out his own justice. He killed his own snakes. He was a legend in his lifetime.

Vengeance – for his friend, shot down right in front of his eyes. Vengeance – against the toughest, cruellest, all-fired meanest operator the West had ever seen, a man who took what he wanted just whenever he wanted it. Gold, other men’s lives, control of the whole damn’ town, he grabbed it all.

Rem McAllister set out to avenge his friend and clean up the town. All he had to fight with were his two fists, his gun – and his courage. But these were weapons McAllister knew how to handle better than any man around…

McAllister is probably the most successful character Matt Chisholm created. McAllister starred in 39 books, a couple of them being put out under a different pseudonym, Cy James. Those books were eventually re-written and put out under the Matt Chisholm name with different titles. This happened to a couple of the Chisholm McAllister books too. McAllister made brief appearances in other westerns by this author as well. So successful were the McAllister books that they were reprinted time and again. The book featured in this review was reprinted in the same year it was originally published.

Ever since reading my first McAllister book I’ve been a massive fan. Not just of McAllister but of the authors work overall. The authors real name is Peter Watts and he wrote westerns under the pennames of Matt Chisholm, Cy James and Luke Jones. He had over 100 westerns published. I’m pleased to say I own every one of them.

McAllister Makes War is a great entry in the series. As is usually the case with this authors work, this book is packed with action. Tough men, and women, battle it out with words, fists and guns. The plot doesn’t offer any surprises as it moves forward at an extremely rapid pace. McAllister believes he knows who’s responsible for the death of his friend but needs proof. Whenever he arrests someone he hopes to persuade to tell the truth they meet a violent death. Even being locked up in jail doesn’t save them. Frustrated, McAllister pushes hard, alienating himself to many, but that doesn’t bother him, he needs the guilty to make a mistake. It isn’t long before gunmen are set on McAllister and the town erupts in all out war.

If you like fast-moving westerns with a tough gritty edge then this book, indeed this series, is certainly worth looking for. One thing for sure, I won’t be letting too much time pass before I grab another off my shelves. 

THREE FOR VENGEANCE

By Matt Chisholm

Cover art by Carl Hantman

Mayflower, 1963

Reissued 1967

There were three men – unwanted, except by the law.

Arch: the gunman, lover of horses and woman.

Rance: touch as rawhide, wild as a Comanche, steady as a rock.

Jim: young, unpredictable, often frightened – but with guts.

They fled into the desert, three desperate men with all hands turned against them, but they kept their pride and their code.

When they met the woman and saw what had been done to her, they ignored their own danger and offered her the only thing they had – themselves.

Together the three came riding into the open maws of death. They did waver, wanting only that their epitaph should tell those who came after them that they did not step back or flinch in the face of death.

I’ve long been a fan of Matt Chisholm’s writing. His books are packed with action. His characters are tough, heroic when they have to be, and capable of making the wrong decisions too. His stories often contain touches of dry humour. His plots are rarely predictable and he isn’t afraid of killing off some of the main characters. 

This book begins with the three main characters being pursued across the desert. Chisholm’s descriptions of hopelessness, heat, and desperation for water are superbly written. Why these three men are being chased is slowly revealed as is the fact that the posse isn’t exactly law abiding, even though they have the sheriff along who is a drunk and is easily led. It seems their real mission is to kill every Mexican they can find, drive them back over the border.

When the woman, Maria, is introduced to the story, then the plot becomes more complicated. A nameless corpse in a tower also adds intrigue – who was he, who killed him and why? 

It isn’t long before Arch sets out to rescue Maria, alone, against impossible odds. When Arch attempts to free her from her home proved to be one of the highlights for me. I could almost feel the tension as Arch tries to break into the heavily guarded building. 

Matt Chisholm, once again kept me thoroughly entertained with this very fast moving western, reinforcing my belief that he is one of the greatest British western authors.

Matt Chisholm is a pseudonym for Peter Watts, who also wrote westerns under the pen-names of Cy James and Luke Jones. 

Gun Lust

By Matt Chisholm

Panther, 1968

The country was laid waste by the ferocious Apache. Arch Kelso’s ranch was raided. He was ruined. He needed to make a stake.

So he found himself guarding a wagon-train of gold through the devasted land. A tough job – defying attacks by white cut-throats and the onslaught of renegade Indians.

Men died as the desert took its toll. But Arch Kelso was tough . . . 

If you’ve ever read any of Matt Chisholm books, you’ll know you’re in for an entertaining read whenever you pick one up, and this one delivers the goods superbly. It doesn’t have a complicated plot but the quality of the storytelling is what draws you in to this desperate tale of survival.

It begins with Kelso and his men trying to replenish their water barrels as they take much needed goods to Crewsville – a town that readers of Chisholm books will have come across before, especially in his McAllister series. Chisholm’s writing is top class in the scenes that see Kelso approaching the waterhole and attempting to fill the barrels under the nerve tearing tension of the threat of the as yet unseen Apache, and when they attack, you’ll share Kelso’s fear.

Once in Crewsville the author introduces the other major players in the story. Gold thieves and Martha, the woman in his life who adds to his troubles when she insists on joining the wagon-train for its return journey shipping gold, which too many people know about and is certain to draw the attention of outlaws and the Apache.

The return trek takes up a good portion of the book and is one long running fight. One thing I like about Chisholm’s storytelling is that you can never be sure who will survive, and that is the case here as death strikes swiftly and suddenly. Kelso also has a difficult choice to make regarding the gold and this leads to a neat plot twist. 

If you’ve never tried any of Chisholm’s work then this book would be a fine introduction as it highlights all his strengths; gritty, tough, at times savage, strong characters of both sexes, extremely fast pacing, a plot that offers a couple of surprises, and plenty of gunplay. 

Every time I read a book by this author (Matt Chisholm is a pseudonym of Peter Watts) I’m left eager to read another, and I’m sure I will be doing just this very soon.

Head West issue 1

Summer 2018 issue

Piccadilly Publishing

Way back in 1980 the first issue of a magazine appeared on the shelves of UK shops simply called Western Magazine. Sadly, it only lasted for four issues. The consultants for this being David Whitehead and Mike Stotter, the two men who today run Piccadilly Publishing and have now launched a new magazine.

Like the much-lamented Western Magazine Head West features a mix of articles, interviews and original fiction. Head West has a full glossy cover with everything inside being reproduced in black and white.

For me, the interviews make for superb reading as they feature two of my favourite all-time western authors, namely Keith Hetherington - who writes under a variety of pseudonyms including Kirk Hamilton and Brett Waring - and Peter Watts whose most well-known pen-name is Matt Chisholm.

Original stories come from D.M. McGowen, Jake Henry and new-comer M. James Earl. Henry’s story features his character known as The Drifter and Earl’s being the first published tale about his heroine Barbary Dove. All three of these tales proved to be very entertaining reads.

With an article by Tony Masero on creating cover art, another looking at the making of the film Vermijo along with Linda Pendleton remembering her fathers love for the western, this is a magazine that deserves to be successful.

You can get your copy from https://www.lulu.com/ 

The Indian Incident

BLADE #1

By Matt Chisholm

Piccadilly Publishing, January 2018

Originally published in 1978 by Hamlyn Paperbacks

Blade – Tough, tender and temperamental. Slow to anger, fast with a gun and no slouch with women. A man tempered by the West, dangerous living and a perpetual gamble with death.

The Women – The Indian girl: lovely waif of a grisly massacre. The Mexican girl: mettlesome as a thoroughbred filly and heiress to half New Mexico. Both of them more desirable than the women of men’s dreams.

The Killers – Drawn to gold like steel to a magnet, blind to mercy, indifferent to death, they plundered the living and the dead. The scourge of the West.

Matt Chisholm is an alias for English author Peter Watts, who also wrote westerns under a couple of other pen-names. Matt Chisholm is the name he is best known by though and he wrote both series and stand-alone titles under this pseudonym. He is also one of the authors I actively sought out each new release back in the day. For me, it is great to see Piccadilly Publishing bringing the superb Blade series back into the limelight.

At the beginning of the story we find Joe Blade shoeless, horseless and without weapons, all having been stolen from him. Blade is hunting down those responsible for his current predicament and it’s whilst doing this he stumbles onto the site of a massacre of Indians and discovers the only survivor and the action never lets up from there.

Chisholm introduces a whole load of terrific characters such as Crazy Annie, someone I don’t think any of us will forget quickly. Then there’s the half-breed, George McMasters, and a great selection of outlaws. The story switches between the various groups before they all come together for a prolonged final showdown that offers a number of twists and surprises along with a variety of deadly situations that will have you wondering how anyone can possibly escape with their lives, never-mind the gold.

If you’ve never read any of Matt Chisholm’s books, then this is a great place to introduce yourself to his work. His pacing is excellent, his characters are tough, his plots gripping, his action vivid without being too graphic and he doesn’t include explicit sex scenes and bad language is used sparingly. 

I will also add that to get the best enjoyment from the Blade series you should try to read them in order as a number of characters appear in more than one book.

Top entertainment from yesteryear that more than matches anything being written today.

Man in the Saddle

SAM SPUR #2

By Matt Chisholm writing as Cy James

Piccadilly Publishing, December 2014

First published by Panther Books, March 1966.

Two braves came up to Spur and ripped the remains of his shirt from his body. The sweat poured down him. Then the man wearing the buffalo horns turned and faced him. In his hands he held a hot iron. He was still smiling. He capered a little, dancing nearer and nearer to Spur, hopping on alternate feet, crooning a gentle song.

When he was close to Spur he held the iron near his eyes. The white man dropped his lids against the heat and his heart pounded in his breast like a drum.

It’s going to be damned hard, he thought, to show these boys how a man can die…

The book opens with a frantic attempt by a mother to save her young daughter from Kiowas, a task doomed to failure and the little girl is snatched. After this the story never lets up in the action stakes as Sam Spur tries to find, and rescue, the kidnapped child.

To say Spur is a tough character is an understatement. The threat of death during gunfights or torture can’t dent his resolve to complete his mission. This leads to some very tense confrontations with the Kiowa that also involves bluff and double-cross, culminating in desperate bid for freedom whilst facing vastly superior odds.

Originally published under the author name of Cy James, Piccadilly Publishing have added the writers much more well-known name of Matt Chisholm, which in itself is also a pseudonym. The author’s real name being Peter Watts, an Englishman who at the height of his career was one of, if not the, biggest selling western writer in the UK and he has always been one of my all-time favourites.

So, if you’ve yet to try any of Watts’ work, then this book could be just the place to start if you enjoy hard-hitting, non-stop action westerns.

Riders West

THE STORMS #3

By Matt Chisholm

Piccadilly Publishing, June 2013

First published by Mayflower, 1971

Having quit Civil War devastated Texas, the Storm family – father, mother, three sons, two daughters – found their promised land in Colorado. But Colorado was then the American West’s furthest frontier, rich in fertile land but dangerously short on law and order. There were wild animals and Indians – but wildest of all were the desperadoes on the lookout for easy pickings …

Colorado’s Three Creeks country was a hard land indeed, where the strong took whatever they wanted to satisfy their greed and the weak were gunned down if they got in the way. Ed Brack ruled supreme in this brutal territory, thinking he could scare the Storm family off. But the Storms didn’t scare easy. They stood their ground. So the cattle king burned their house… and took their women.

Mild Will Storm, his brother Mart and black Joe Widbee saddled and rode against Brack, guns in their hands and a murderous hatred in their hearts …

Matt Chisholm almost gives this book a light-hearted tone to begin with. There’s the believable feeling of joy and anticipation of finding a new place to settle down and that of family love, of sticking together no matter what. But I did say almost, for Chisholm also includes hints to the harshness of the land and then there’s the hanging man and the questions this discovery brings such as who was he and why was he killed this way?

There are other questions too, such as can the Storms settle on their chosen spot successfully? Does someone else claim the land? It’s the latter that leads to dispute with Ed Brack and this soon turns violent and the Storms decide to take the battle to the rancher. This is where the story takes on a darker tone and becomes a long struggle to stay alive.

Matt Chisholm (real name Peter Watts) really excels when it comes to writing action scenes, he creates tension well and you can never be sure just who will come out of any exchange of gunfire in one piece, be they good or bad. It’s this uncertainty of whether Chisholm’s characters will survive that give his stories a hard edge of reality and make his books such gripping reads.

For anyone reading this series Riders West is a must read as it sets up some situations that will play important parts in coming books and I’m sure it won’t be too long before I read the next one, One Notch to Death.

Amazon.com                      Amazon.co.uk

The Storm Family Saga #2

HARD TEXAS TRAIL

By Matt Chisholm

Panther, 1971

Eight young men rode homewards, home to Texas, across the rolling Kansas plains – right through the heart of Indian country. It didn’t worry them. Then they rescued a beautiful girl from the Indians. And that meant they also had to take on the ruthless killers who’d trailed her from the East.

But Clay Storm wanted this woman. Wanted her bad enough to face a vicious shoot-out with the killers. The showdown came in a grim contest of guns, wits and courage where Death was the only judge…

This is the second of a nine book series written by English author Peter Watts under the pseudonym of Matt Chisholm, an author perhaps better known for his McAllister series.

Hard Texas Trail is a well written, fast moving, traditional western that is all action from the opening page to the last. It is a well told story that holds the readers attention with ease. This book once more shows that one of Peter Watts greatest strengths is his ability to create believable characters. People who are flawed, make mistakes, that see them finding themselves in very dangerous situations from which very few – including the heroes – come out in one piece, if indeed they do manage to escape death. They are tough men and women who don’t back down even if the odds are against them.

The Storm series sees a different member of the family being the focus of each book, each tale being a self-contained story that links with previous books. For instance this tale was set up at the end of the first in the series, and takes place shortly after that book.

Perhaps not the best book I’ve read carrying the Matt Chisholm name, but certainly not the worst. Hard Texas Trail should appeal to all who like tough tales about hard men, where you know good will win over evil, yet you are never quite sure as to who will be left alive, on either side, at the end.

Joe Blade

as by Matt Chisholm
Panther, May 1959

Joe Blade had two passions in life: Sarah, and his horses. Joe and Sarah were the kind of people who started a legend on the flaming frontier of the Old West; Joe was a man who stuck to his word, while Sarah was a woman who stuck to her man.

When someone from her past was crazy enough to touch her and Joe’s horses, it was the beginning of a long and relentless search. Joe was a man who did not know what it was to give up, especially when he was riding in company with Pierre Duclos, the greatest scout the West ever knew.

Joe searched for his horses, his enemies, and for justice. And he found them all.

Matt Chisholm wrote this book in the first person, but not from just one person’s point of view. The book is divided into four parts with the first and last sections being told through the voice of Sarah Blade, the second part through Joe Blade and the third portion as Pierre Duclos. This way of telling the story helps make the book stand-out from any others I’ve read for a long time.

The book is filled with action from beginning to end that makes for some edge of the seat reading, as it often seems impossible for Chisholm’s heroes to survive the dangerous predicaments they find themselves in. And it’s during one of these gunfights, early on, that Chisholm cripples the main hero of the book, Joe Blade, which results in him losing a leg. For a horseman this is devastating, and how this loss of limb is overcome proves to be one of the strong points of the story.

Chisholm’s descriptions of action and landscape are superbly told, you can see events unfold before your eyes, share his characters fears, desperations, and jubilations. You can feel the cold, the heat, and taste the dust. Feel the tension in such life threatening situations as attempting to trade for ponies with Indians.

As the story’s circular path returned to where it began, to finish with yet another brutally savage fight that tied all the plot threads up neatly, I realized I’d once more really enjoyed a book by Matt Chisholm (author Peter Watts), and must again recommend this writer to all fans of the western.

Note: In the late 1970’s and early 1980’s Matt Chisholm had a series of twelve books published called Blade, about a man called Joe Blade. At first I thought all these books were about the same man, now I’m not so sure, as the time periods don’t fit, and the series hero has two legs.

The Storm Family Saga #1

STAMPEDE

as by Matt Chisholm

Panther, 1970

The Civil War was over. The South, and Texas, had lost. The losers were destitute and without hope.

Then Will Storm got word of a possible deal at Abilene railhead a thousand miles north in Kansas. On a shoestring, he gathered himself a bare handful of greenhorn riders, whipped his all-wild mustangs into the semblance of cow ponies, his half-wild steers into the semblance of a herd, and headed north for Kansas.

A few days out, the mother of all thunderstorms dispersed the maddened cattle. They rounded them up. Then a band of amateur rustlers tried their hand – and badly burnt their fingers. Three dead and the rest of them on the run. The Red River was in furious spate. They got across without losing a steer. Indian country of sinister reputation lay ahead. They paid the old chief a toll of ten cows and went through like a dream.

At last the Kansas line and Abilene is only a few days ahead. Then…trouble came; very quietly, and terribly…

Matt Chisholm is really English author Peter Watts, a writer who I enjoy very much. Having already read four books from this nine book series I looked forward to reading ‘the beginning’.

Stampede is pretty much your usual cattle-drive tale but well written with plenty of pace and thrills filled with courage and grim tenacity that builds up to a twist ending, which leads to the family members heading off in different directions thus setting up the storylines for the following books.

Definitely worth picking up if you can find a copy.

Cash McCord

 as by Matt Chisholm

Panther, June 1966

It was the sun-blasted border country, hell on an honest man and paradise for a thief. Alone Cash McCord faced a power-hungry tycoon and his cohorts, was robbed of his cattle, ambushed and burned out. He challenged treachery with courage and power with his gun.

Matt Chisholm (real name Peter Watts) starts this story with Cash McCord as the town drunk, this is what he’s become after losing his ranch. It’s now down to Ben Daniels to help McCord regain some self-respect, and once McCord is back on his feet he goes looking for some answers.

Like many of Matt Chisholm’s books this one builds slowly as the reader is introduced to the various characters and plot twists of the story, one of which is that Ben Daniels is one of the tycoon’s men.

As the tale unfolds towards it’s final explosive confrontation, Chisholm neatly ties up all the threads of the plot.

I must admit I have read better books by Matt Chisholm, but even so would say this is worth reading if you can find a copy.

McAllister: The Hard Men

as by Matt Chisholm

Mayflower 1963

One of the very first books in Matt Chisholm’s series featuring McAllister.

Land hungry rancher Sickert dams the water that supplies the valley thus cutting off the ranchers who live there. McAllister is one of those now without water and it isn’t long before those desperate for water are banding together to take on Sickert and his hired guns.

At first McAllister tries to take on Sickert the legal way but after being brutally beaten and thrown in the dam to drown he comes out fighting.

So a book about a range war, Sickert trying to force the valley ranchers out so he can claim the land for his expanding ranch. Those that don’t leave he’ll burn out and kill if needs be. Trouble for him is that McAllister’s more than tough enough to stand upto him.

Chisholm (real name Peter Watts) writes an excellent tale here. A fast paced story full of hard men, and equally tough women. A book filled with characters that’ll do anything to achieve their wants, even take on overwhelming odds.

The Hard Men is literally filled with action, the second half seemingly one confrontation after another that leads to an exciting climax.