Ray
Foster, who writes westerns as JACK GILES, tells me a favourite of his own novels
is LAWMEN.
Ray
has allowed me to say this: in 1999 he suffered a stroke – which he’s now
recovered from, fortunately - and couldn’t remember the previous thirty years of his
life, including his career as a western writer. LAWMEN was the first novel he attempted after his stroke, and
proved he could still do it! LAWMEN,
he says, 'was a challenge and I'm proud of it.’
Tom Ford,
the sheriff of Stanton, has been gunned down trying to keep the peace between
rival ranches. His son Chris returns home to face his past and to find his
father's killer. The only way he can do that is by taking up his father's badge
- only to discover that not everything is as it seems.
Lawmen
who lost relatives (who were also lawmen) in the real west include WYATT EARP (1848 - 1929) who lost two brothers to violence and had a third one crippled, (I’ve blogged
about Wyatt Earp’s brothers here: https://andrewmcbrideauthor.blogspot.com/2018/11/author-favourites-brothers-of-gun-by-b.html
and
BAT MASTERSON (1853 - 1921) who had a brother – ED (1852 - 1878) - shot and killed on the streets of Dodge
City in 1878.
Wyatt
Earp and Bat Masterson (standing) in 1876
Ed
Masterson shortly before his death at the age of 25
‘This isn't a shoot `em up western, but rather a measured
consideration of character, an honest depiction of the men who didn't flinch
when they had to shoulder the burden of an entire town's survival. Even the bad
guys seemed to end up on the wrong side of the tracks by accident rather than
by any evil notion… The gunplay, when it happens, seems real and tragic….
The writing has style and the characters, complete with
humorous interplay, come alive.'
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