THE BROKEN GUN

THE BROKEN GUN (1966) is the third Louis L'Amour book I've read recently and so far, I've yet  to read anything by L'Amour that I would consider a "standard" Western.

The first book of his that I read, BORDEN CHANTRY, was a murder mystery set in the old West, while BOWDRIE was a collection of pulp short stories about Chick Bowdrie, a lone Texas Ranger THE BROKEN GUN, despite the terrific and evocative cover art by the great James Bama isn't a period piece at all. It's an adventure story set in contemporary Arizona.

Dan Sheridan, a writer of western books (fiction and non-fiction) is the hero here. When Sheridan purchased an antique, broken Colt pistol in New Orleans, he discovered a document rolled up and stuffed into the barrel of the revolver. That document sends Sheridan to an immense ranch in Arizona where he sets out to discover what happened to a couple of Texas cowboys and their crew of punchers when they drove cattle from Texas to Arizona back in the 1872. All 27 men vanished without a trace and Sheridan is determined to find out what happened to the men and to whom the land really belongs.

He's aided in his quest by Pio Alvarez, a friend (and fellow special forces fighter) from Sheridan's tour-of-duty in Korea. The two men and beautiful land owner Belle Dawson are up against the murderous Wells family who own the land and will kill anyone who tries to take it away from them.

Sheridan displays some remarkable survival skills when he's marooned in the desert mountains. He's incredibly capable and resourceful and manages to get out of any trap and predicament that the bad guys put him in. I can't help but think that L'Amour is doing some wishful projection here by having his hero be a two-fisted, rugged and highly capable man of action as well as a bestselling author.

THE BROKEN GUN climaxes with a brutal, knock-down-drag-out fight between Sheridan and Colin Wells before everything is neatly wrapped up. The true owner of the land is revealed (it's no surprise) and all is well that ends well.

BROKEN GUN is a fast paced little actioner that has plenty of colorful villains, harsh terrain, a damsel in distress and a couple of crackerjack heroes. It's not terribly well written but L'Amour knows how to keep you turning pages. Worth reading if you're a western fan.