Legacy of the Slash M by Ray HoganMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Ray Hogan was one of a slew of great authors who were writing Westerns in the shadow of the spectacularly popular Louis L’Amour in the 1960-70s. Sadly most of them are forgotten. Hogan’s works are tightly plotted with terse prose and plenty of action. I really like his Ace Double novellas which are just the right length to showcase his skills. Here Hogan tells the story of Jess Holloway who is summoned by a dying friend to take over his ranch since his family was ill-equipped to do so and they vehemently resent his intrusion. Not surprisingly a range war is on the verge of exploding too. Nothing groundbreaking here, although Hogan does a nice job keeping the story fresh with some interesting characters and dialog. A solid and entertaining 106 pages.
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Sounds like my kind of book! I have a bunch of Ace Double Westerns that I haven't read all of yet, I'll check to see if I have any of Hogan's work.
ReplyDeleteThe Ace Double Sci Fi books seem to be held in higher regard, although I think the Westerns are better quality in general.
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