Saturday, June 11, 2011

E-book Bargain of the Week: Adventures of Cash Laramie and Gideon Miles

In Adventures of Cash Laramie and Gideon Miles (99 cents), Edward A. Grainger (aka David Cranmer) delivers seven satisfying stories that you shouldn't miss.

I'm not always the biggest fan of Westerns, but here the quality trumps any reservations about genre. Not to mention that Grainger skillfully crosses Western with noir and mystery (especially in The Outlaw Marshal, The Bone Orchard Mystery, and Kid Eddie), which makes for a tasty combination.

Grainger possesses a gift for characterization and one of the things I enjoyed most about this collection was seeing how Cash Laramie developed--from action hero in The Wind Scorpion to cool compromiser in Under the Sun. But throughout Cash Laramie and his partner, Gideon Miles, are pursuers of justice as they see it. Both prove to be complex and very likable heroes.

Under the Sun, co-written with Sandra Seamans, is one entry in the collection that doesn't focus on the duo, instead rotating to the perspective of Delilah, who repays a debt to an Indian, Brave Coyote. Here Grainger and Seamans deal with the political and moral realities of law enforcement in the old West while telling a riveting story.

Bottom line: If you like fast pulp action and adventure with real characters and fine writing, you'll love Adventures of Cash Laramie and Gideon Miles.

6 comments:

  1. Thanks Chris! I am glad you liked the book and I appreciate you pointing out the titles that will appeal to crime aficionados. And I loved working with Sandra and I'm stoked to see our collaboration receiving a lot of attention here and in other reviews.

    ReplyDelete
  2. She knows her stuff. Her entry for Pulp Ink is shocking--in both quality and content. (And it takes a lot to shock me!)

    ReplyDelete
  3. A great shout out, Chris. David's a fine writer and I'm looking forward to reading it.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Good stuff. Thanks Chris.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Cool review, Chris. I'm not a big fan of western either. But I read Lonesome Dove when I was younger and the characters in the book made a huge impression on me. When I read Grainger's first Cash story it brought Lonesome Dove back to me. Through a couple of the stories I also thought of the gunslinger from the dark tower series. Really looking forward to reading these all together in one wallop. (I hadn't realized he'd co-written one with Sandra. Neat!)

    ReplyDelete