by Charles Boeckman
* The contents of this book were later reprinted by Bold Venture Press under the title Stagecoach to Hell.
Whether it was matters of love, revenge, range wars, or shootouts, the Wild West always seems larger than life. It was a time of do-it-yourself justice, when no wrong was left unpunished, no damsel in distress lacked for defenders, and no gunslinger dared turn his back on an enemy. At least, that’s the way it’s portrayed in the tales that really grab us by the heart. Danger lurks behind every bush; the town saloon is the stage for gambling, drinking, womanizing, and deadly confrontations. And we always root for the good guy. Hop on your imaginary steed and ride along for a trip back to those frontier days with Charles Boeckman, writing as Charles Beckman, Jr., in this collection of 10 vintage pulp stories filled with characters so human that you feel you’re witnessing these stories live and that you have a stake in the outcome of the action. You’ll get into the minds of those cowpokes who had to make instantaneous decisions about who deserved to live or die. Thorough them, you will feel the scorching heat of the summer prairies, the longing for love, the driving force of their ego when challenged by a foe, the insecurities they stomp down and try to deny, the raging anger of the need for revenge, the cunning required to outwit the foe. Tales of the old West, with their universal appeal, are always fun to read. So grab your Stetson, put on your spurs, and have a great time with these top-notch stories from a master writer.
