The Tarnished Star, by Jack Martin. Robert Hale, London. 2009.

Black Horse Westerns are not well known in the United States, but it’s strictly a geographic problem. These small, lean hardbacks are the house imprint of Hale Publishing of London and are mostly available only in the United Kingdom. Eventually they are seen in the U.S., but the distribution is still very limited. This is a shame, because the BHW gang, of which I am affiliated with through their online group, are a fine group of very talented writers.

Which brings me to the book The Tarnished Star, written by Gary Dobbs under the pseudonym Jack Martin. Dobbs is no stranger to fiction writing, having already published several short stories in online forums such as Beat to a Pulp and print periodicals , which has earned him a reputation as a fine writer.

The plot is a simple, classic Western one: Sherriff Cole Masters is at odds with a rancher and his worthless son who is accused of murdering a prostitute. Masters is pushed into circumstances in which he ends up not the lawman in pursuit, but the criminal being pursued.

The Tarnished Star will not disappoint those who want a quick read that is lean, suspenseful and is true to the standard Western conventions. All of these qualities total up to a solid Western that is appealing and suitable for anyone’s taste.

But that doesn’t mean that it’s a run-of-the-mill yarn for one important reason: Dobbs’ skill as a writer. For those who like to read the works of new and talented writers, this is the book for you.

Dobbs’ experience as a noir thriller writer is of benefit in The Tarnished Star. He writing has almost a minimalist quality, resulting in a style that is spare and yet nuanced. Dobbs wisely keeps his storyline within a time frame of only a few days and fills his scenes with finely detailed scenes, rich characters and believable dialogue – the latter being one of the hardest skills for a writer of Westerns to master. The result is a book that you can get lost in with scenes filled with strong tension. One feels as if time has stopped, and I could not help but think of the movie High Noon throughout the story.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read a Western that I couldn’t put down – come to think of it, I think the last time was when reading another Black Horse Western, Winter’s War by Matthew Mayo, and a few short stories like A Man Called Horse. The Tarnished Star is now on that list.

I could have used more physical description of the characters, but it’s a minor complaint when considering the entire book and how well it came out. One can only hope that more Cole Masters stories will appear in the BHW line and, more importantly, that Dobbs keeps writing.

The Tarnished Star can be purchased through Amazon.com, Amazon.com.uk, and The Book Depository. (The latter does not charge for shipping to any destination in the world.)

For more information on Gary Dobbs, you can go to his blog, The Tainted Archive

Cole Masters has a problem. As sheriff of the town of Squaw, he’d arrested Sam Bowden for cutting up and murdering a woman. It was the worst in a long series of arests of the man, the son of Clem Bowden, a wealthy and powerful rancher.

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The old man wants his son released and Cole won’t allow it. A judge was on the way and a trial set. The old man and his crew are on the way to get him out. The town, afraid as well as beholden to the rancher, isn’t going to back him.

When they arrive, the sheriff is forced to give up the keys. Outnumbered, with his fiance, Jessie, and his best friend, old man Em, with guns on them, he takes off his badge in disgust. That’s when Bowden’s foreman starts beating him until he’s out cold.

Waking from the thrashing, everything is different. San Bowden is out of jail and the foreman is now sheriff. In a confrontation, the sheriff draws on him and Cole kills him, fleeing town after, even though it was self-defense.

THE TARNISHED STAR is the story of a man out to redeem himself. A man of honor, he’s embarrassed the town wouldn’t back his legal actions, that he took the badge off and was beaten into submission, that he killed the sheriff, though self-defense and reprehensible that the man was even an officer of the law.

And Clem Bowden has brought in two “professionals” to ensure that Masters will be dead before the judge arrives so that he can spin things in the best light for his son.

I liked this book. A first novel, Martin deftly handles his characters developing them into true people with their own foibles. Cole Masters, the honorable man, San Bowden, the spoiled young man who’d never been responsible for his actions, Clem Bowden, the father who recognizes his own and his son’s shortcomngs, but as a father, can’t stop himself from doing all the wrong things.

The book is smoothly written and a fast read(it just came in the mails yesterday). I’m now looking forward to his next tale.

heriff Cole Masters knows that a showdown is coming. Locked away in a cell is Sam Bowden - a man who has killed a whore. A man who thinks that he can do what he likes because his father is Clem Bowden who holds the town in the palm of his hands.

With only an old timer, Em Tanner, and his schoolmistress fiance to back him Cole Masters knows that the odds are against him.

Clem Bowden comes into the town of Squaw with a bunch of men and Sheriff Cole Masters finds himself humiliated and out of a job.

What follows is Cole Masters attempt to regain his honour and his badge.

Up to now we have only known author Jack Martin through his short stories under that name and as Gary Dobbs. So how does he stand up with his first novel.

First off he creates a believable character in Cole Masters and makes the reader feel his humiliation to the point that I wanted this character to come through. Sam Bowden is bad but his father Clem is cut from a different cloth and I would be spoiling this character study by relating the how and why.

Add to this two minor characters Quill and Boyd who's brief passage through the story is quite effective.

For a first novel - it reads like Gary has been doing this all his life and can only get better.

Posted by Ray at 15:03

Labels: The Tarnished Star - Jack Martin - Black Horse Westerns

The Tarnished Star by Jack Martin

 

I could write that The Tarnished Star is a terrific adventure story, something with some real hidden depth, a slick addition to your western bookshelf, and that if you don’t track down a copy online (most readily through The Book Depository) you’d be doing yourself a disservice. I could write that and only be half right. Additionally, I’d want you to know this is author Jack Martin’s first novel and that through some magical means (What’s in that pipe you smoke, sir? And do you share?) he’s managed to channel a voice that is fresh and distinctive while resonating with the best of the bygone pulp fiction and paperback writers of yore.

This here is the story of Sheriff Cole Masters and the adventurous scenario that erupts after local pretty boy Sam Bowden commits murder. When Bowden’s wealthy father tries to shield Sam from the consequences of his actions, Masters won’t have it. It’s a deceptively simple set up that blossoms as the page count grows. Martin keeps the action high and the suspense notched up to eleven, but he also manages to show us some timeless truths about being young, being old, showing personal responsibility, achieving autonomy, and what it means to be a good guy…and what it means to be bad.

The Tarnished Star is an entry in the Black Horse Western series, and while it’s available through retailer web outlets, its distribution in the United States is limited. That hasn’t stopped Martin’s fans, and you shouldn’t let it stop you from tracking down a copy of this fine work.  You can learn more about author Jack Martin here.

25, 2009

The Tarnished Star - Jack Martin (Gary Dobbs)

THE TARNISHED STAR, the debut novel by Gary Dobbs of The Tainted Archive (writing as Jack Martin), is out now, and I’m happy to report that it’s a fine traditional Western novel. It’s the story of Sheriff Cole Masters, who runs afoul of the evil Bowdens, father and son. Wisely starting in the middle of the action, Dobbs takes a page from the movie RIO BRAVO and has Masters waiting for the arrival of the circuit judge so that the prisoner in his jail, Sam Bowden, can be tried for the murder of a prostitute. Sam’s father, wealthy and powerful cattleman Clem Bowden, has a different idea. He plans to free his son, no matter what it takes.

From that point, Dobbs veers off from the expected and spins a yarn of violence and redemption in gritty, tough-minded prose. Cole Masters is hardly an infallible hero. He can be indecisive at times and dangerously impulsive at others. He never loses his devotion to the law, however, and before the book is over, the title reference to a tarnished star takes on more than one meaning.

THE TARNISHED STAR is an entertaining, fast-moving story, as are all the books I’ve read from the Black Horse Westerns line. From the pulpish cover to the final showdown in which plenty of bullets fly, it’s a fine, action-packed Western that still manages to be character-driven. You can order it from an assortment of places, including Amazon and The Book Depository (which offers prompt, free shipping worldwide – hard to beat that deal, which is why I ordered THE TARNISHED STAR from them), and if you’re a Western fan, you want to get your hands on this one.