TALES FROM DEADWOOD

TALES FROM DEADWOOD

Book 1 of 4

By Mike Jameson

Berkley, November 2005

It’s 1876, Dan Ryan, formerly of Custer’s 7th Cavalry, is leading a party of prospectors to the Black Hills – Sioux territory – where gold was discovered two years before. Although off-limits to whites, the region is overrun by so many fortune-seekers that the U.S. Army is powerless to stop them. Besides, what’s a paper treaty worth next to gold-rich land?

In nearby Deadwood, men raise hell all night after prospecting all day. An outlaw town with no right to exist on Indian land, Deadwood is a lawless cesspool where those who strike it rich can lose everything – including their lives. Possibly the meanest man in the Dakotas, Al Swearengen sells liquor that can poison a man when gold is involved. And now, even Calamity Jane and the legendary Wild Bill Hickok – losing his eyesight but still finding trouble – are coming to stake their claim.

Dan Ryan is going to have to fend off roaming gunmen, angry Sioux, ruthless gamblers, whores and thieving prospectors in order to protect his claim, because in the Badlands of Deadwood, trouble always comes at you from behind… 

The author introduces a whole lot of characters, both real and fictional, that will form new relationships and destroy others and this was one of the elements of the story that kept me glued to the pages. There are many incidents that befall these people such as drinking some of Swearengen’s potent whiskey and suffering from doing so. There’s falling in love and losing one’s virginity to deal with too. Calamity Jane’s pursuit of Hickok and his attempts to avoid her add some humour to the tale. There’s plenty of gunplay and fistfights, twisting schemes, suspense and a mysterious relationship that’ll hook you into the story along with seeing how the characters deal with the news of the massacre of Custer and the 7th Cavalry.

If you like the television series Deadwood, starring Timothy Olyphant and Ian McShane you’ll want to read this book. Even though the books aren’t tied into the TV series in any way, they both share a number of characters, as many of the people were real. The author also includes others than those mentioned above, such as Charley Utter and Buffalo Bill Cody. Characters such as Swearengen only make brief appearances, thus distancing the book from the TV series and in my opinion doing this was an excellent decision by the author. Like the television show, the book does have its fair share of bad language, but nowhere near as much as the TV series, and it also contains some fairly explicit sex scenes.

The pacing of the book is superb and the author, James Reasoner writing as Mike Jameson, certainly knows how to create characters you’ll want to read more about. As you get deeper into the story it soon becomes clear that the author has introduced a number of plotlines that will continue further into the series and I, for one, am eager to find out what happens with these so I will be picking up book two very soon because if it’s anywhere near as good as this book I know I’ll be in for an exciting read.

SUDDEN-GOLDSEEKER

By Oliver Stranger

Cover art by Michael Codd

Corgi Books, 1977 (nineteenth edition)

Originally published by George Newnes, 1937 

It was a roaring boomtown filled with men who lived, talked and dreamed only of finding gold; a gaudy town where killings were frequent; a hell town where desperate men were prepared to go to any lengths to achieve their ends: wealth and power.

Paul Lesurge was one such man; and he had many men and women under his thumb. But he had a major obstacle to his plans too. A quiet-spoken Texan named Green, otherwise known as Sudden!

When Oliver Strange wrote the first Sudden book, The Range Robbers (1930), it was intended to be a standalone novel and the only western Strange planned to write. The books’ massive success taking author and publisher by surprise so a sequel was soon being written. The series continued for ten books; all being reissued numerous times. The final book carrying the author’s name of Oliver Strange, Sudden Plays a Hand (1950), is a pale shadow of those that went before and there is some doubt as to whether Strange wrote it. 

In the 1960’s the books were published as paperbacks and a new audience was found. Sudden became a must-read westerns series once again and in 1966 a brand-new story appeared, Sudden Strikes Back, from a new author; Frederick H. Christian (real name Fred Nolan). Four more stories followed by this author, the last being published in 1970. The Christian books were also republished a number of times, the last being as hardbacks under the Black Horse Western line with different titles.

There have been many debates as to the correct order to read the Sudden books as Strange wrote prequels and sequels to The Range Robbers, and the majority of readers would place Goldseeker into forth place, although it was the sixth book Strange wrote.

Strange mixes cowboy slang and formal English, which takes a little time to get a grip with, but once you do, it is this that adds a certain charm to the tales. The plots aren’t anything special, and are usually foreseeable, but Goldseeker does contain a couple of neat surprises (even though one is easily predictable from early on in the story). Also, Goldseeker sees the appearance of a real Western character, Wild Bill Hickok, and there’s a great scene when Hickok and Sudden decide to find out which of the two is the fastest draw.

Strange includes a lot of humour in Goldseeker, mainly in the form of observations in conversation. Two women have strong roles to play, one who is trying to seduce Sudden so she can get him to do as she wants in an attempt to take control of Deadwood. She’s not the only person setting people up for a double-cross and it seems not many of the characters can be trusted. Everything builds neatly to an exciting and dramatic ending that ties up all the plot threads. 

The Sudden books are definitely a product of their time, and if you can accept the terms that would be seen as politically incorrect today then I would think most western fans would find this series worth exploring as the books are extremely readable. 

COVER GALLERY: WILD BILL

WILD BILL

By Judd Cole

A series of eight books published by Leisure Books from February 1999 to May 2001. Judd Cole is a pseudonym used by John Edward Ames. The books weren't numbered, but are shown in the correct order. 

Marshal, gunfighter, stage driver, and scout, Wild Bill Hickok had a legend as big and untamed as the West itself. No man was as good with a gun as Wild Bill, and few men used one as often. From Abilene to Deadwood, his name was known by all – and feared by many. That’s why he was hired by Allan Pinkerton’s new detective agency to protect an eccentric inventor on a train ride through the worst badlands of the West. With hired thugs out to kill him and angry Sioux out for his scalp, Bill knew he had his work cut out for him. But even if he survived that, he still had a worse danger to face – a jealous Calamity Jane.

Wild Bill Hickok was a legend in his own lifetime. Wherever he went his reputation with a gun proceeded him – along with an open bounty for $10,000 for his arrest. But Wild Bill was working for the law when he went to Kincaid County, Wyoming. Hundreds of prime longhorn cattle had been poisoned, and Bill was sent by the Pinkerton Agency to get to the bottom of it. He didn’t expect to land smack dab in the middle of an all-out range war, but that’s exactly what happened. With the powerful Cattleman’s Association on one side and land-grant settlers on the other, Wild Bill knew that before this war was over, he’d be testing his gun skills to the limit if he hoped to get out alive.

Even among the toughest hardcases in the West, Abilene, Kansas, was known as pure hell on earth, a wide-open wild town that was reined in only briefly – when Wild Bill Hickok was its sheriff. Ever since he rode out of Abilene, Wild Bill had never wanted to go back. But now he had to. A lot of people were dying there. The Kansas Pacific Railroad was laying track where somebody obviously didn’t want it, and bullets were flying thick and furious. The Pinkerton Agency needed their best operative to get to the bottom of it and that meant only one man – Wild Bill. But as hard as it was for Wild Bill to go back, he knew there was a bigger challenge ahead of him – staying alive once he got there.

When the Danford Gang terrorized Arizona, no one – not the U.S. Marshals or the Army – could bring them in. It took Wild Bill Hickok to do that. Only Wild Bill was able to put them in the Yuma Territorial Prison, where they belonged. But the prison couldn’t hold them. The venomous gang escaped and took the Governor’s wife and her sister as hostages. So, it was up to Wild Bill to track them down and do the impossible – capture the Danford Gang a second time. Only this time, the gang’s ruthless leader, Fargo Danford, had a burning need for revenge against the one man who had put him and the gang in prison in the first place, a need as hot as the scorching Sonora sun . . . and as deadly as the desert trap he had set for Bill. 

All Wild Bill Hickok wanted as he set out for Santa Fe was a place to lie low for a while, to get away from the fame and notoriety that followed him wherever he went. But fame wasn’t the only thing that stuck to Wild Bill like glue. He’d made a lot of enemies over the years. And one of them, Frank Tutt, has waited a good long time to taste sweet revenge. He knew he was ready for him . . . ready and eager to make him pay. But he was in no hurry. After all these years he could wait a bit longer, long enough to play a little game with his legendary target. Oh, he would kill Wild Bill, all right – but first he wanted Bill to know what it was like to live in Hell.

Deadwood, South Dakota, held a special place in the pantheon of frontier hellholes. Even to a man like Wild Bill Hickok, that was the toughest town in the West, a town where only the strongest and most daring could survive. But that’s exactly where Wild Bill had to go, whether he liked it or not. He was sent there by the Pinkerton Agency to investigate reports of stealing at a particularly dangerous mine, dangerous even by Deadwood standards. The mine guarded by Regulators, vicious hardcases who made sure no one interfered with their plans. Three Pinkerton men had already been killed when they went up against the Regulators – and Bill was determined not to be the fourth.

The U.S. Army needed help. Someone seemed intent on driving the Sioux off their reservation. Someone was slaughtering their animals and poisoning their water. Were these the acts of renegades, like some thought, or something far worse? Whoever was responsible, the army knew it wouldn’t be long before the Sioux fought back and left the reservation for the war path. The army also knew there was only one man who could restore peace before all hell broke loose – Wild Bill Hickok. Bill had to ride point on a dangerous trail drive to bring cattle to the reservation before the simmering Sioux were pushed too far. But this was no ordinary cattle drive – it was a trip through pure hell, with enemies on every side.

Leland Langford, owner of the Overland Stage and Freighting Company, had a dangerous but essential job and he knew there was only one man for it, the legendary Wild Bill Hickok. Leland knew that only Wild Bill could ensure that an important gold shipment travel safely by stage from the Black Hills to the U.S. Mint in Denver. With Wild Bill as driver, the stage had to make it through. But there was an even more important part of Bill’s mission. Bill had to break up one of the cleverest and most vicious rings of thieves ever to terrorize the West, and send one message loud and clear: Steal gold from the U.S. Treasury and you’ll face the harshest law in the West . . . gun law.

Two artists fronted the books, Ken Laager’s work appeared on book one, and probably book seven – I’ve not been able to confirm the later. All the other books used paintings by Shannon Stirnweis – book eight isn’t confirmed though.

WILD BILL'S GHOST

THE GUNSMITH 46
By J.R. Roberts
Charter Books, November 1985

The rumours are flying in Leadville – Hickok is still alive! The way the story goes, somebody else, and not Wild Bill, was killed by Jack McCall in Deadwood.

Clint Adams isn’t one to put much in rumours…but he’s never actually seen Bill’s body and he can’t swear that Hickok is dead. Besides, the Gunsmith and Wild Bill were great friends and if there’s a chance that Hickok is alive, it’s worth the trip down to Mexico to find out. Will the Gunsmith find Wild Bill alive, will he find an imposter – or will he find Wild Bill’s ghost?

This fast paced tale sees Clint Adams become involved in a Mexican revolution, or at least a planned uprising. The story goes that Wild Bill has been hired as a mercenary by the revolutionaries. Turns out those plotting to overthrow the Government are nothing more than bandits, but this doesn’t stop Adams making it known his gun is for hire too as a way to joining the mercenaries and discovering whether it really is Bill or not.

There’s a great selection of well-drawn characters for Adams to deal with. Gunrunners, bandits, Federal troops and an assortment of other toughs. Wild Bill isn’t the only real person that features in this tale, Luke Short has a part to play at the beginning. Then there’s the women, and there’s plenty of them in this story, all eager to jump into bed with The Gunsmith. As this is an adult western series the sex scenes are explicit. 

The story builds well to its final showdown that involves all the different groups of people during which Adams discovers the truth about whether Wild Bill is alive, is an imposter or a ghost. Of course, I can’t answer that here, but I will say anyone reading this book is sure to have fun finding out.

THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF JAMES BUTLER HICKOK

GUNSMITH GIANT EDITION #16

by J.R. Roberts

Jove, April 2013

Clint Adams does not do interviews. So, when a writer from New York tracks Clint down in Denver for a story, he refuses to talk. That is, until he learns that the writer is looking to report on Clint’s old friend, Wild Bill Hickok – and to paint Bill as a coward.

The writer is claiming that most men Wild Bill killed were shot in the back, making Bill sound like some no-good snake. Clint won’t stand for Bill’s reputation to be dragged through the mud. He’d rather break his own rule and sit down with the writer to tell the true story, for once and for all. But to preserve the legacy of one James Butler Hickok, Clint might have to open some old wounds and share some tales he never thought he’d tell…

For all fans of the Gunsmith series, particularly those who’ve read the early books, this giant edition is a must read as it tells the tale of how Clint Adams first met Wild Bill Hickok.

J.R. Roberts switches neatly from the present to various times in the Gunsmith’s past to relate incidents in Wild Bill’s past that Clint Adams also found himself involved in, such as Hickok’s first time on Buffalo Bill’s stage. 

Of course the present day story has its own troubles as it seems there are people interested in the writer and the book he is working on, but why?

The story is told in the fast paced style we’ve come to expect from J.R. Roberts (author Robert J. Randisi), being dialogue driven, with bursts of quick-fire action. Chapters are short, two or three pages long on average, and switch regularly from character to character.

Overall, I’d say this is a book that should be enjoyed by all western fans who like their stories to contain real people and don’t mind a bit of graphic sex in their reading material. Me? I’m looking forward to the next giant and in the meantime will be digging out some of the regular sized books I’ve yet to read. 

Macklin's Women - audio book

THE GUNSMITH #1:

MACKLIN’S WOMEN

By J.R. Roberts

Speaking Volumes, December 2011

Ex-lawman Clint Adams makes his living as a travelling gun trader, a job which takes him all over the West. In a sleepy Missouri town he finds a trio of beautiful women who will do anything – pay any price – to be reunited with their former “protector,” Con Macklin.

The Gunsmith agrees to take them to him and rides out on the dirty and dangerous trail to Mexico. He delivers the women but faces an army of hardcases led by Macklin – who wants his women back and The Gunsmith dead.

This story first appeared as a paperback book way back in January 1982 and has now become available as an ebook, a paperback, and an audio book produced by Speaking Volumes, and it’s the latter I’m looking at here.

Mackin’s Women is presented on 5 discs (it can also be bought as MP3s) and has a running time of approximately 6 hours. Each disc is divided into a number of short tracks so if you have to stop listening part way through it is very easy to find your place again. After hearing a few of these tracks there is a brief interlude of music that I presume signals chapter ends – I didn’t have my copy of the original book handy to check if my assumption is correct.

The story is read by Barry Campbell in clear and easy to hear speech; he alters his tone for dialogue and often lowers or raises his voice to differentiate between characters.

As many readers will already know The Gunsmith books are billed as an adult western series and the difference between the amount of sex in this story and those being published today is dramatic. Gunplay is a regular occurrence too, with Clint Adams often finding himself outnumbered, his superb ability with a gun keeping him alive as he kills an impressive number of hardcases. Along the way Clint finds himself backed by his old friend Wild Bill Hickok and meets a man called Earp. There’s also a few puzzles for Clint to ponder on, such as trying to discover just what Macklin’s treasure is and where it’s hidden, along with what Macklin is planning to do with his small army of outlaws, and who is sending gunmen to kill Macklin’s women.

Listening to this story proved to be a pleasurable experience and I’m now looking forward to hearing the second book very soon.