A Bullet for Lawless

By Steve Hayes

Hale, October 2014

When ex-lawman Ben Lawless took a bushwhacker’s bullet that almost killed him he knew the man who’d shot him and he knew that the bushwhacker never missed: so why was Lawless still breathing?

With rancher Veronica Ketchum to thank for his life, Lawless decides to return the favour and back Veronica in her battle with land-grabbing cattle-baron, Stillman J. Stadtlander. Their paths have crossed before and Lawless is no fool: he cannot take on Stadtlander’s gunhawks alone. He enlists old friends, Drifter and the enigmatic Gabriel Moonlight, and just for good measure calls in Latigo Rawlins, the very man who had bushwhacked him….

This is the latest book in Steve Hayes Santa Rosa Saga and readers of this excellent series will have met all the main players in this story before, and this time it seems as though Stadtlander might finally be made to pay for his crimes.

Steve Hayes builds the tension well, not just for the coming showdown between Lawless and Stadtlander, but also for the future of Moonlight who is now riding on the wrong side of border, the side that has him named as an outlaw with a future at the end of a rope.

When Lawless and friends finally face Stadtlander and his gunhawks the results are unexpected and provide a terrific twist to the tale. This in turn means Lawless has more problems to solve, not least one of the heart.

I can’t really say any-more about the storyline without spoiling it so will finish by saying that if you have read any of the Santa Rosa Saga books before then make sure you don’t miss this one, and if you’ve yet to try any of Steve Hayes work then this could well be a great place to start.

Many of the Santa Rosa Saga books are also available as ebooks.

The Devil's Anvil

By Steve Hayes

Hale, May 2014

The news wasn’t good: the kill-crazy McClory brothers had busted out of Yuma Pen and where headed for Indian Territory. Somebody would have to bring them in and the job falls to Liberty Mercer, a US deputy marshal who also happens to be a woman. And she was getting mighty tired of having her abilities questioned time and again.

Liberty sets out to run the outlaws to ground, knowing it is going to be tough. But even she never anticipates just how tough it is going to be. As she follows a trail of bodies clear across the desert known as The Devil’s Anvil, she forms an uneasy alliance with the Dunn brothers, Bill and Bee. Along the way she almost gets herself killed for trusting the wrong person, but by the time the gunsmoke clears she will learn something about herself that will change her whole life.

The Devil’s Anvil is another book in Steve Hayes series revolving around Santa Rosa and its surrounding area. The story involves a number of characters who have appeared in those past books and there are numerous references to those tales and their outcomes, so in some-ways this story contains spoilers for those books so some readers may prefer to read the earlier books first. Having said that, The Devil’s Anvil is a self-contained tale and not having read the previous books won’t stop you enjoying this one.

Liberty is a complex character, struggling to come to terms with just who she is and her past. People she meets add further doubts and it’s one of these that adds a neat twist-to-the-tale as to their motives.

The book is very easy to read and contains plenty of action as it builds well to its surprise ending that makes you wonder who, or what, the next book in this excellent saga will be about, and that’s something I’m very much looking forward to discovering in due time.

The Devil's Anvil at Amazon.com

The Devil's Anvil (Black Horse Western) at Amazon.co.uk

Latigo

By Steve Hayes

Hale, March 2013

Bounty hunter Latigo Rawlins was looking to start a whole new life with young Emily Mercer, but Stillman Stadtlander had other plans for him. Latigo had given evidence to prove that Stadtlander had paid to have some rival Mexican ranchers killed, and now Stadtlander intends to see him pay for his betrayal, at the end of a rope.

It doesn’t matter to Emily that Latigo is wanted for more than a dozen killings of his own. She is in love, and because of that she’ll move heaven, earth and everything in between to save the life of the man she plans to marry.

She might just do it, too, for she had powerful allies in a man known only as Drifter ... and his gun-swift friend, Ezra Macahan. Then there was a lady marshal named Liberty, who was to influence Emily in a way no one could have foreseen.

I’ve not read any of Steve Hayes books before, other than a shared authorship title written with David Whitehead, and this story makes me wish I had. Latigo seems to be a continuation of his previous book, El Diablo (not that you need to have read that before this to enjoy it), and further checking seems to point to all his westerns being linked by various characters or places.

Steve Hayes has a background as a screenwriter and has worked on some of the classic TV western series such as How the West was Won, The Westerner, Gunsmoke and High Chaparral. Check here to find out more about Steve.

As one would expect from someone with so much experience this story proves to be well structured, moves forwards at a terrific pace, throws in a surprise or two – for instance the death of one of the main characters that leads to an excellent twist – and is filled with action. All this written in a very easy to read style.

On finishing this book I was left looking forward to his next, She Wore a Badge, which comes out in July and I'm also eager to dig out the other books by Steve I have in my collection.