GUNSMOKE: Blood, Bullets and Buckskin by Joseph A. West

Once Gunsmoke jumped from the half-hour black and white format to the hour-long color episodes, I didn’t watch it much. When I did catch a show, I was left with the feeling Matt Dillon had gone soft, and eventually long in the tooth.

But this book, the first in a series of six by Joe West, turned me into a Gunsmoke fan again. The Dillon portrayed here is the tough-as-nails Marshal I remember from the black and white days. The only difference is he’s now running Dodge with the help of Festus instead of Chester.

And make no mistake, these characters really are Matt and Festus, and this really is Dodge. Some TV novelizations I’ve read feature generic cowboys just carrying the names of show characters. Not so here. The personalities, dialogue and rapport between Matt, Festus and Kitty are spot on, and Joe has done his research on Dodge, giving us a backdrop right out of the history books.

Here’s one of the first exchanges between our heroes:

     “When did you get in, Matthew?” the deputy asked.
     “Early this morning,” Matt replied.
     Festus’ right eye screwed up tight, as it always did did when he was thinking hard. “And them Plunkett boys?”
     Matt inclined his head along Front Street. “They’re laid out over to Percy Crump’s funeral parlor.” Matt hesitated, then said, “There was another with them, went by the name of Clem Beecham.”
     Festus nodded. “I’ve heard of that ranny. They say he’s plumb loco and a killer to boot.”
     “Not anymore he isn’t,” Matt said, a grim smile touching the corners of his mouth. “He’s over to Percy Crump’s as well.”

Matt, of course, is about to be hit with a fistful of trouble - in this case a pair of gambler/gunslingers who have an old score to settle with a father-son team of cattlemen. And he’s caught in the middle until the violence escalates to the point the must choose sides, putting his own life on the line in the cause of justice.

As a bonus, the book even has a Foreward by James Arness.

Blood, Bullets and Buckskin is a joy from start to finish, and I look forward to getting my mitts on the next book in the series, The Last Dog Soldier.

 Joseph A. West

VENGEANCE RIDER by Joseph A. West

I’ve never read a Ralph Compton novel, and that record remains intact after finishing this one.  The fine print, you’ll notice, says this was actually written by Joseph A. West.

I have to assume Mr. Compton (who departed this earthly plane in 1998) was a decent writer, based on the continuing selling-power of his name. But I can't imagine him being better - or even as good as - Mr. Joe West.

Vengeance Rider is an epic quest - a journey involving not only vengeance, but the sole chance of saving the life of a little girl. Thankfully, we never meet this pitiful waif, but her plight weighs heavily on our hero, an outlaw-turned-rancher named Buck Fletcher. Buck, who once rode with the likes of John Wesley Hardin, had hoped he’d hung up his guns for good. But he's forced into action when his ranch hand is killed and his racehorse stolen by a ruthless gang of next-generation bad guys.

Buck needs that horse, you see, to compete in a race sponsored by the renowned Texas John Slaughter, for a prize of $10,000. That prize would be his only means of sending his wife and daughter to Switzerland, where doctors could tackle the kid’s tuberculosis.

Lucky for Buck, he meets an old acquaintance, a dying dentist known as Doc Holliday, who joins him in his quest. Buck doesn’t always approve of Doc’s methods, but they make an engaging duo, and shoot their way out of many tight scrapes en route to Slaughter’s ranch.

West’s prose is fine throughout. Blazing action, sharp dialogue, lush scenery. The guy has no weak spots. I’m looking forward to some of many books where his name appears in BIG TYPE on the cover. Next on my Joe West reading list: First in his GUNSMOKE series - Blood, Bullets and Buckskin.