Review of Time to Kill by Lee Lejeune

Review at Western Fiction Review

Review of the $300 Man by Ross Morton

Review at Western Fiction Review

Terry James's Author Day

Joanne Walpole concludes her blogging month by inviting readers to join her on her author day this weekend. Details at Joanne Walpole

May's Black Horse Westerns

Bad Day in Babylon - Clayton Nash
After seven years married to Steve Bannister, Linda discovered to her horror that she didn't really know her husband at all. Settled in a good town and with a suitable lifestyle, she was now faced with a sudden move. It could be in the middle of the night - or the middle of a meal - such was the threat of danger. Steve's past was catching up with him. And the only way it could be stopped was with a smoking gun.
Amazon.co.uk

Return of the Gun Fighter - Ethan Flagg
While eking out a precarious livelihood rearing pigs, ex-bank robber Randy Cole has been asked to help a homesteader who is being threatened with eviction. The aging gunfighter is loath once again to take up arms until he learns that the victim is an old side-kick. And the skunk entrusted with the eviction is Jute Farley who betrayed the Cole gang and was responsible for Randy spending the next ten years in jail. Now Randy must exact his own lethal brand of justice. But the trail is littered with deadly varmints and much blood will be shed before the final showdown.
Amazon.co.uk

The $300 Man - Ross Morton
What's a life worth? $300, maybe. Half-Mexican Corbin Molina lost a hand during the Civil War but he has adapted. Now he's on a mission to Walkerville. On the way, he prevents a train robbery and finds an old friend. Corbin always carries $300, which is significant, since that's what he was a paid as substitute soldier for the Union. When Corbin starts asking questions about Walkerville's law and administration, he discovers that the Walker family, who seem to have bought and paid for loyalty and position, dominate the townspeople. Inevitably, Corbin's questions attract plenty of trouble. And his past emerges to confront him during a tense showdown that threatens not only him but also his newfound love.
Amazon.co.uk

Land of the Lost- Dean Edwards
Young drifter Hal Harper rides into the remote town of Senora when he finds himself looking down the barrels of the law. What Harper does not realise is that the ruthless outlaw Tate Talbot and his gang have managed to get themselves elected as sheriff and deputies. Talbot has discovered that there is a wanted poster on his own head worth a small fortune so he has the ingenious idea of collecting his own bounty by killing the innocent Harper and claiming the drifter is the outlaw known as Diamond Bob Casey. Harper manages to escape to the remote uncharted desert south of Senora but can he survive in the Land of the Lost?
Amazon.co.uk

Long Shadows - Terry James
When Jake Rudd is saved from a brutal beating, he can't believe his luck. Not only is his saviour an attractive redhead, she's an old flame. Suddenly his plans to settle down seem a real possibility. Unfortunately, Ros West has no memory of him, and with trouble following her, no reason to trust him. Only when family and friends are threatened by a power-hungry businessman, do the long shadows of the past bring events full circle. Now, side by side, Jake and Ros must deal with the past to secure the future. But when the smoke clears, will old scores be settled or will the truth prove more dangerous than a smoking gun?
Amazon.co.uk

Time to Kill - Lee Lejeune
Ten years after the end of the Civil War, Nat Jordan who has fought in the Confederate army, is returning by railroad to his home near Kansas City. Then they are held up by so-called Quantrill raiders, led by Captain Coulter with whom Jordan had escaped from Union forces during the War. Coulter recognises Jordan and this soon leads to complications. A Pinkerton agent called McGill suspects that Jordan is in cahoots with the raiders, and things begin to turn very nasty when tragedy strikes at the Jordan homestead. Who is on the side of the raiders and who is on the side of the law? It is time to kill, but who will die?
Amazon.co.uk

Bestsellers on Amazon.co.uk - 25 May

1. Comes the Reaper by B.J. Holmes (1995)
8 Used: from £0.01

2. Hills of Blood by Frank Weight (2000)
4 Used: from £5.85

3. Long Shadows by Terry James (2009)
New: from £9.80

4. Rocking W by Gillian F. Taylor (1993)
5 Used: from £4.95

5. Comanche Country by Greg Mitchell (2009)
New: £11.03

6. War Smoke by Michael D. George (2009)
New: £11.03

7. Yuma Breakout by Jeff Sadler and B.J. Holmes (2008)
New: £12.25
Used from: from £8.95

8. Blast to Oblivion by Chap O'Keefe (2009)
New: £11.03
12 Used from : £7.63

9. Stampede at Rattlesnake Pass by Clay More (2007)
New: £11.99
3 Used: from £8.98

10. Lockwood's Law by Carter West (2000)
4 Used: from £2.66

May's Linford Westerns

Scott Connor - Last Stage To Lonesome
Carter Malone is returning to Lonesome when a thunderstorm forces the stage to stop in Ferry Town. Then, when Bart Merrill rides into town, a gunfight erupts leaving seven men dead, including Marshal McKinney, who, before dying, entrusts Carter to continue the journey and deliver his mysterious prisoner to Lonesome. But there are gunslingers along the trail ready to free the prisoner and an old adversary from his troubled past turns up - can he ever hope to reach Lonesome?
Amazon.co.uk

Ethan Flagg - Two For Texas
The Texas cattle town of Buckeye has been taken over by outlaw boss Wade Garvey. When his men start turning up with their throats cut, he brings in the hired gunfighter known as Nevado to find the killer. However, all is not what it seems in Buckeye, and amidst simmering passions, an unlikely liaison forms between Nevado and the mysterious knife-wielder... Then, as the bullets begin to fly on Nob Hill, it all culminates in an explosive climax.
Amazon.co.uk

Billy Hall - Temptation Trail
Max Quinn stood alone in the street of Sundance, Wyoming. Before him stood three of the fastest gunmen he had ever faced. The small, psychotic one of the trio tittered briefly. 'Let's see if you're fast enough to deal with all three of us,' he gloated. Max knew he should have gone somewhere, anywhere, except to Sundance. He tensed to draw, determined at least to die making the best effort of his life...
Amazon.co.uk

Greg Mitchell - Killer's Kingdom
The outlaw King Lesley has been plundering the countryside around Henly Springs for two years. Finally, when the local sheriff leads a posse against the outlaws, Lesley's men ambush them and a massacre ensues. On a mission to rescue any survivors, Marshal Rod Delroy arrives, but Mort Wolfe intervenes, driven by desire for revenge against Lesley. Rod faces many dangers before the outlaw threat is removed and the citizens of Henly Springs can live in peace again.
Amazon.co.uk

P. McCormac - Hammer Of God
Deputy Joe Hammer always gets his man. Thugs and killers don't give in easy: most are brought in slung over a saddle. Seeking a peaceful life, he resigns his badge, hangs up his guns and rides south to Mexico. But when Joe's friends are gunned down by Gomez Farias, the Hammer of God is roused. As a former lawman, the blood that flowed was a trickle compared to the flood unleashed when Joe rides out on the vengeance trail.
Amazon.co.uk

Bill Williams - Mistaken In Claymore Ridge
Ben Oakes had always been involved in trouble - he'd killed men before - but now he was determined to live a new life and never to carry a weapon. But when he's wrongfully imprisoned for the murder of Todd Hakin, he's desperate to clear his name and escape the hangman's noose. Then Ben is finally released, and his search for Todd's killer leads him to Claymore Ridge, where he faces threats to his life from more than one quarter...
Amazon.co.uk

Marshal Jake T. Devine

Article on the BHW character at The Culbin Trail

Extract of The $300 Man by Ross Morton

Extract available at Black Horse Express

Review of Long Shadows by Terry James

Review at Western Fiction Review

In addition find out more about the author at Joanne Walpole

New BHW Blog - Lee Walker

Check out the new blog at Lee Walker Westerns

May's Dales Westerns

Silent Wolf by Jake Douglas
He was a loner, known as 'Silent' - because he had had his throat partly ripped out by wolves. He had his own private mission and dead men began to pile up around him. Till a naïve girl who was a mighty good rifle shot joined him and cramped his style. She tried to make him see things differently, but finally, saw them his way. Then the body count climbed again, ending in a final bloody showdown in border mud.
Amazon.co.uk

Hoke John's Land by Caleb Rand
The Bannen family embarked on a 400-mile trek to Nebraska in search of a richer and more settled life. Then when they had finally established a small homestead they were fated to feel the full force of the cattlemen's advance across the Kansas border. Hoke Bannen knew he had to make a stand and soon he was driven to shoot a few heifers in order to warn off the cattlemen. That was when his troubles really began. He fought with his fists and guns but would it be enough? Would he save his home and his family despite the odds?
Amazon.co.uk

Interview with Jack Martin

Interview at Pulp Serenade

Review of The $300 Man by Ross Morton

I really liked this book. It is set during the Reconstruction years following the American Civil war. Corbin Molina is a Mexican half-breed who offers to substitute himself into the Union army on behalf of the son of a rancher who has taken him in - thus the reason that lies behind the $300 dollars.

The war is long over and Molina has suffered the loss of his left hand and now wears a hook in its place which comes in useful when thwarting a train robbery at the beginning of the book.

This is a very well told story with well-drawn characters and some very good twists and turns in both characters and plots. Particularly fine are the flashbacks which include the assault on Fort Fisher at North Carolina's Cape Fear in 1864.

I thought it a very good read.

Ray Foster
Broken Trails

Review of Long Shadows by Terry James

Well - what can I say about this new BHW writer? Was it worth the wait?

Yes - it was.

This book has some well drawn characters in the shape of lawman Jake Rudd, Ros West, a rancher's daughter and one time blackjack dealer and the land hungry Emmett Swain. The plot line has several twists and turns to it - and two of the characters have secrets of their own. There is also an impact of past events that dictate how the events in the present are played out.

In one area of the book the author has introduced the element of memory loss in the character of Ros West - and this is very well handled.

Ray Foster
Broken Trails

Bestselling Linford Westerns on amazon.co.uk - 18 May

1. The Gambling Man by John Dyson
3 Used: from £13.18

2. 5 Bullets for Judge Blake by Marshall Grover
10 Used: from £1.71

3. Blood Quest by Peter Taylor
New: £8.99
6 Used: from £3.21

4. Lannigan's Star by Jack Edwardes
11 Used: from £0.18

5. Bitter Sands by Dan Claymaker
New: £8.99
5 Used: from £0.87

6. Sidewinder by John Dyson
7 Used: from £1.16

7. The Devil's Peacemaker by Lance Howard
2 Used: from £3.95

8. The Arizona Kid by Andrew McBride
4 Used: from £3.61

9. Outlawed! by Clifford H. Fry
New: £8.99
10 Used: from £2.25

10. Rangeland Detective by George J. Prescott
7 Used: from £3.26

Video promo for Tarnished Star by Jack Martin

Video available from Tainted Archive

Review of Gun Feud by Frank Arnside

Review at Broken Trails

An Interview with Lance Howard

Interview at Tainted Archive

Review of Loco by Ethan Wall

Review at the Western Fiction Review

New BHW website - John Paxton Sheriff

Check out the new website at http://www.johnpaxtonsheriff.co.uk/. John has written 34 BHWs under the names: Jack Sheriff, Jim Lawless, Will Keen and Matt Laidlaw.

Latest edition of Black Horse Extra available

New edition including an interview with Gary Dobbs at Black Horse Extra

An Interview with Joanne Walpole

Interview at Tainted Archive

Bestsellers on Amazon.co.uk - 11 May

1. The Bullion Trail by Ed Hapgood
New: £11.03
11 Used: £8.27

2. Ruben's Ruse by Ben Coady
13 Used: £0.01

3. Colorado Trail by Will Houston
1 Used: £52.47

4. Ride to Battle Mountain by Will Houston
1 Used: £164.07

5. Meredith's Gold by Philip Harbottle
2 Used: £140.84

6. Thunder God's Gold by Leo P. Kelley
3 Used: £3.00

7. Waco's Debt by J T Edson
1 Used: £114.26

8. Misfit Lil Rides in by Chap O'Keefe
11 Used: £3.99

9. Rocking W by Gillian F. Taylor
6 Used: £1.50

10. The Sharpshooter by Daniel Ransom
3 Used: £0.80

New BHW author website

Visit website Thomas McNulty

Review of Fast Gun Range by Ben Coady

Review at Joanne Walpole

Howard Hopkins on his current BHW

Howard discusses the writing process at Dark Bits

An interview with John Hale

Article here at Tainted Archive

Bestselling Linford Westerns on Amazon - 4 May

1. The Devil's Peacemaker by Lance Howard
3 Used: from £3.11

2. Outlawed! by Clifford H. Fry
New: £8.99
7 Used: from £2.25

3. Lannigan's Star by Jack Edwardes
10 Used: from £0.45

4. Rangeland Detective by George J. Prescott
7 Used: from £3.26

5. The Shadow of Valko by Michael D. George
5 Used: from £3.45

6. The Cinder Creek Pistolman by Lee F. Gregson
9 Used: from £2.29

7. Plain's Wolf by Dan Claymaker
10 Used: from £0.65

8. The Cimarron Kid by Cy James
3 Used: from £4.90

9. Terror Town by Al Brady
9 Used: from £2.88

10. McAllister and Cheyenne Death by Matt Chisholm
1 Used: from £52.34

New BHW poll

The new BHW poll will address whether readers are long-established fans of the series or not. Please take a moment to vote.

Interview with Gary Dobbs

Interview here

Audio excerpt of Long Shadows by Terry James

Audio excerpt on youtube. Link here

Ray Foster on Bret Ray

An article on the writer's work at Tainted Archive

Results of April's BHW Poll

April's poll has now closed. The conclusion would seem to be that we like reading BHWs!

24% hadn't read a BHW in the last year (but hopefully plan to do so soon!). 35% had read between 1 and 9 in the last year. 29% between 10 and 24 and 12% more than 25. Putting that all together the average number of BHWs read in the last year by visitors to the BHE blog was... around about 15.

Thanks to everyone who took part. A new poll will start tomorrow.