AUTHOR FAVOURITES: KILLER OF WITCHES by W. MICHAEL FARMER

W. Michael Farmer tells me KILLER OF WITCHES is probably his best work to date. It’s a Native American epic told first person by Yellow Boy, who we first meet as a 5 year old, one of the Mescalero Apaches fleeing their New Mexico reservation in 1865, and follow into manhood.

KILLER OF WITCHES mixes historical-based adventure with the supernatural. The Apache God Ussen, Creator of Life, gives to the boy gifts of power that include an ability to slay witches. Yellow Boy uses his gifts in his search for a witch called Blood of the Devil, whose head looks like a skull, and whose body is covered with black spiral and flame tattoos.

An Apache witch-woman

The Mescalero Apaches, ranging from central New Mexico to the Texas Big Bend and deep into northern Mexico, had elements of both the western (wickiup-dwelling, desert-living) Apaches and Plains (tipi-dwelling, buffalo-hunting) Indians in their culture.

They ate the roasted fruit of the mescal plant, and made liquor from it, which is why Spanish colonists named them the Mescaleros.

During the American Civil War the union army under GENERAL JAMES CARLETON fought against the Mescaleros.

His most effective field commander was KIT CARSON, the legendary mountain man and trail-blazer, who helped defeat them and corral them on the bleak Bosque Redondo Reservation – from which they fled, (as depicted at the beginning of KILLER OF WITCHES.) Some Mescaleros remained at large until the early 1880s.

KIT CARSON (1809 - 1868)

REVIEWS of KILLER OF WITCHES:

‘Michael Farmer gives voice to a new American hero - Yellow Boy, an Apache warrior whose riveting story from boyhood to manhood is fresh, passionate, and totally believable. With deep sensitivity and understanding of Apache culture, Farmer presents Yellow Boy, his family, and friends in all their rich, multidimensional complexity. What a pleasure to read a book from a Native American hero's perspective… Vivid details transport the reader to the novel's southwest setting.’

‘The characters are well-drawn and believable.’

‘A true joy.’

‘Wonderful read! Fascinating presentation of this story from the Apache point of view… Enjoyed this book immensely.’

‘Great read! I don't read historical fiction very often, but I loved every minute of this book.’

‘The history never overwhelms the story, and there was never a dull moment as the story built toward a satisfying conclusion.’

‘Terrific read. Very interesting and suspenseful.’

https://www.amazon.com/Killer-Witches-Yellow-Mescalero-Apache-ebook/dp/B015ESSHWK/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1504881707&sr=1-1

AUTHOR FAVOURITES: HOMBRECITO'S WAR by W. MICHAEL FARMER

W. Michael Farmer tells me his favourite of his own novels is HOMBRECITO'S WAR, which was a WWA (Western Writers of America) Best First Novel finalist and a New Mexico Book Award Finalist for Historical Fiction. In writing it, Michael says he ‘discovered the pure joy of writing, learned there were infinite subtleties to balance in writing a good story, and that fiction really was a way to find the truth behind a historical story.’

In HOMBRECITO'S WAR Michael writes about the ‘Fountain murders.’

COLONEL ALBERT FOUNTAIN (1838 -?1896) had a colourful, adventurous life before coming to a mysterious end.

In 1860, working as a journalist, he narrowly escaped a firing squad in Nicaragua. Later, serving in the American Civil War brought him to New Mexico, where he was wounded fighting Apaches. He went on to become the lieutenant governor of Texas, killed at least one man in a duel and worked as a judge and attorney - unsuccessfully defending BILLY THE KID in court.

In 1896 Fountains and his 8-year-old son, HENRY, vanished in the desert near White Sands, believed murdered. Local ranchers, who may have been part of a rustling ring Fountain was investigating, were considered suspects, to the extent there was subsequently a shoot-out between them and the law, including PAT GARRETT.

In HOMBRECITO'S WAR Henry Fountain survives, to make bloody war on his father’s murderers, in the ways taught him by Yellow Boy, his Apache mentor.

About the White Sands area of south eastern New Mexico - according to Wikipedia:

‘The desert is located in the Tularosa Basin of New Mexico. Its white sands are not composed of quartz, like most desert sands, but of gypsum and calcium sulfate. Unlike other desert sands, it is cool to the touch, due to the high rate of evaporation of surface moisture and the fact that the sands reflect, rather than absorb, the sun's rays.

At 1185 meters above sea level, there are approximately 442 square kilometers of dune fields and is known to be the world's largest surface deposit of gypsum.’

A western set in the White Sands region, FOUR FACES WEST (1948) starring JOEL McCREA, featured CHARLES BICKFORD playing Pat Garrett, although it wasn’t about the Fountain disappearances.

CHARLES BICKFORD as Pat Garrett in FOUR FACES WEST (1948)

Reviews:

‘A superlative read. … a powerful story.’

This book is a fantastic read… The author uses unique phrases that paint enjoyable mental images that I have never experienced before.’

‘This was a very enjoyable book, which surprisingly, drew me in emotionally. …I cried more than once. The story is told with wonderful details of the landscape.’

‘An outstanding fiction writer.’          

‘We all LOVED this book, even though none of us is much of a fan of the western genre… Farmer paints a vivid picture of southern New Mexico and tells his tale well.’

‘As good as it gets.’

https://www.amazon.com/Hombrecitos-War-W-Michael-Farmer/dp/159526082X/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8