Sage Fire Reviews

Harris:  The Return of the Gunfighter

Bullets Only Kill

The town of Medford, Missouri quakes and reels from the news of the release from prison of the Jones brothers.  Not only have they teamed up with their nefarious uncle ... Snake River Reese; but they have sworn revenge on the entire town that sent them to prison.

Synopsis: 

Henry Harris had retired from being a gun slinger.  Better known to the town of Medford as a farmer / rancher, the last thing he wanted to do was strap on his guns again.  He would rather spend his time with Kate, the hotel owner.  But when his old friend, Sherrif Wilkie called for help, on went the guns.

Wilkie knew it was not going to be easy, or quiet.  He also called for his other friend, John Murdock, also a very dangerous pistol handler.  Together with young Bubba they would simply have to contain the Jones.

Wilkie has a plan, Harris has a plan, Murdock has a plan, and Bubba just wants it to end soon.  There is a showdown coming to Medford, and tickets are not being sold.

Impression: 

No, this is not the 1967 film staring Robert Taylor.  That story was written by Robert Buckner.  This book is by H. R. Williams. Considering they are both Westerns, it's probably a good idea to keep in mind the fact that the same name is about all the two stories have in common.

This book, like its hero, stands as a loner, hunting his place in society. The intensity of the writing brings forth sweat, tears, and fear as you read it.  It is not for the faint of heart or those would devour a book in a single evening.

Rather, just as a 50 year old cognac should be savored sip by sip, so  too is this tale  best swallowed a little at a time, savoring the social implications, the plot, the theme, and the intertwining conflict.  H. R. Williams is a master of the craft, wrapping you up in a story both timeless and as old as is the West yet leaving you breathless and desiring more.

I give this book 9 campfires.

RATING:  9 Campfires

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Book is marked Mature by the publisher.  Probably due to the language and violence.  Some sexual inuendo present in the later part of the book.  I give this 2 flames

2 Flames for sexual content.

Author's credentials:

H. R. Williams grew up on Crowley's Ridge, a line of hills and a geographical region that figures in many of his stories. The author refers to this area as "my own Yoknapatawpha County." He was a paratrooper in the 101st Airborne Division and held about a thousand jobs (slight exaggeration) before coming to the conclusion that his only talent lay in writing.

Since then, his short fiction and essays have appeared in a wide assortment of national and regional magazines. His mystery novel, The Whiskey Killing, represented by the August Agency in New York City, was recently purchased by Five Star Publications. Mr. Williams is husband to Nora Lee (long suffering and ever patient) and the father of four children.

Reviewer & reviewer credentials:

MD Johnson is a mountain northwest regional -- freelance author, living in Payette, Idaho.

His writing interests include poetry, romance, westerns, science fiction, travel, and history. His work has appeared in a diverse range of publications including True Romance and Ballyhoo Stories.

In 2007 he bacme an EPIC author and he has republished the 1935 western classic historical novel, “The Bitterroot Trail” as the anthologist. http://thebitterroottrail.pencraft.biz 

Mr. Johnson also runs a book review web site, Sage Fire Reviews, http://sagefire.pencraft.biz . Mr Johnson specializes in small press editions which include multi-format e-books in the genres above. In early 2008, Mr. Johnson was nominated and accepted membership into the National Book Critics Circle.

If you have a book or an ARC, you would like Mr. Johnson to review, please address your questions to him at queries@pencraft.biz.

All work © 2008, MD Johnson, all rights reserved.