“There’s always a price…and it’s paid in blood.”
Published July 2009
186 pages; a Berkely Western series paperback
Set in Texas, 1882
Subject Headings:
Gunfighters - - Texas
Stories of the American West - - Fiction
Violence and anger in men
Sitting in a south Texas jail cell awaiting execution for one murder he did not commit, Eli Gault recounts the events that have lead to him to this place. At the age of 17, Eli Gault commits his first murder and the victim is none other than the Reverend Joshua Gault, his abusive fire and brimstone preaching father. From here, Eli embarks on a journey that centers around playing poker, enjoying the company of loose women and committing various murders to keep him out of the reach of the “lawdogs.” Along the way, he meets Cutter Sharpe, the most infamous gunslinger in Texas, who teaches Eli the necessary skills to live the life of an outlaw. Eventually, Eli ends up in Uvale, Texas where he begins to build the semblance of a law-abiding life while still battling his killer instincts. Eli becomes invested in the lives of the people of Uvale, especially, the beautiful Ella Farnsworth. His love for Ella and what he does to protect her may be his downfall…but don’t count Eli out just yet.
WARNING!!!!!
Eli Gault is not the traditional stereotypical idealized Western hero. Eli Gault is not the gunslinging outsider that brings justice to the uncivilized West. While there is a hint of redemption, Eli Gault is largely motivated by his own self-interest. Eli Gault is most definitely an antihero.
Appeal Factors:
Pacing: Very fast-paced with almost non-stop action.
Storyline: Surviving in a ruthless environment where there is danger lurking around every corner - from the harsh landscape itself and the deadly predators that live there to the brutal characters (both lawmen and outlaws) that relentlessly pursue the protagonist.
Style/Language: Spare although very colorful dialogue with more use of phrases over complete sentences: “For the first time in my life, I knew exactly what the word bloodlust meant. Went at him like one of them demons he preached on so often. Beat on the man till my arms ached like I’d been digging graves. Finished up when the shovel handle broke, and realized I was almost ankle deep in blood and gore. Nasty business.” (p. 7).
Read-alikes:
Riders of the Purple Sage by Zane Grey (1912)
Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry (1985)
Blood Meridian (Evening Redness in the West) by Cormac McCarthy (1985)
Author Read-alikes:
Louis L’Amour
Max Brand
R.W. Stone
Forrest Carter
Why Do People Like Westerns?
“The Western is a story in which we get to have our cake and eat it. Shane does the killing, then rides into the mythical Tetons, carrying all our guilt away with him. Our problems have been solved quickly, and we are off the hook, guilt free, ready to go on, no blood on our hands…”
“The Western is a story as ancient as warfare, about solving problems with violence, the great simple solution …”
- - William Kittredge, The Portable Western Reader (1997).
