One of the few authors still writing for the Western genre today is Robert J. Randisi. It always brightens my reading pile when I see a new title from him. GALLOWS is no different, and Randisi likes to get right into the action.
It opens with a drifter named Lancaster looking for water for his horse, but steps into a whole hornets’ nest of trouble. He finds water, but it’s located on someone’s property, so he knows he needs to ask permission first. When he heads to the homestead to do so, he finds three men dragging a woman by her hair and beating on her. He tries to avoid confrontation, but the men threaten him while they keep beating on her at the same time.
Lancaster tries to do right, but it ends up in a one-sided gunfight. Being a former killer for hire, he comes through slightly unscathed, in that the men shot his horse, which was the reason for his actions. This all happens within the first few pages, and GALLOWS never lets up.
Inside the house, Lancaster discovers another dead body: the husband of the battered woman. But it’s not until he hits town the real trouble starts. Not only does the woman claim she shot her husband, but that the three men were the dead man’s brothers and they’re all related to the town judge, who seems calm and collected, but also vindictive.
Now, if you’re expecting some tried-and-true, “good guys vs. bad guys” formula of Westerns, go watch a Gene Autry film. Randisi has been writing these long enough to know how to throw in a few spurs and tumbleweeds to gum up the works. He balances the plot with a variety of characters who add to the nonstop tension. The story itself is like a slow-simmerin’ pot of chili that can turn deadly at a moment’s notice, especially as we get a better picture of the judge and his sons.
To go further surely would be a disservice to GALLOWS. It’s a nice take on the Western genre, which needs more writers like Randisi, an original voice who’s still going strong. —Bruce Grossman
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR:
• DOUBLE THE BOUNTY by Robert J. Randisi
• THE GUNSMITH #85: WINNER TAKE ALL by J.R. Roberts
• THE LAWMAN by Robert J. Randisi
• LONE STAR LAW edited by Robert J. Randisi
• THE GUNSMITH #23: THE RIVERBOAT GANG by Robert J. Randisi
• THE GUNSMITH #44: THE SCARLET GUN by Robert J. Randisi
• THE GUNSMITH #128: THE CALIENTE GOLD ROBBERY by Robert J. Randisi
• THE PICASSO FLOP by Vince Van Patten and Robert J. Randisi
• SHELTER #2: HANGING MOON by Robert J. Randisi
Related posts:
- Double the Bounty / The Lawman
- BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL & BOMBS >> AM Radio Ruined My Youth
- BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL & BOMBS >> Back in the Saddle
- BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL & BOMBS >> A Fistful of Pulps
- BULLETS, BROADS, BLACKMAIL & BOMBS >> Card Sharks
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I’m a big fan of Randisi’s work, and his Westerns are most of the reason why.
Just finished this one, and it is indeed terrific from beginning to end. Amazon has it for less than three dollars.
Randisi’s latest, Crow Bait, is out now in trade paper.