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Backshot: 1902
In the tradition of Charles Willeford's western noirs, Ed Gorman gives us the mining town of Granite Bend, where mining interests run the often violent lives of its citizens as we see first-hand when the fates of Marshal Royce and a young drifter intersect. Gorman's portrait of the West is a real one, not a mythic one. He paints the people and their era with page-turning incidents of brutality and intrigue offering us compelling monsters and victims alike.
- GenresWesterns
138 pages, Hardcover
Published December 10, 2015
1 person is currently reading
25 people want to read
About the author
Ed Gorman
469 books122 followersLibrarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
Edward Joseph Gorman Jr. was a prolific American author and anthologist, widely recognized for his contributions to crime, mystery, western, and horror fiction. Born and raised in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Gorman spent much of his life in the Midwest, drawing on that experience to set many of his novels in small towns. After working over two decades in advertising, political speechwriting, and industrial filmmaking, he published his first novel, Rough Cut, in 1984 and soon transitioned to full-time writing. His fiction is often praised for its emotional depth, suspenseful storytelling, and nuanced characters. Gorman wrote under the pseudonyms Daniel Ransom and Robert David Chase, and contributed to publications such as Mystery Scene, Cemetery Dance, and Black Lizard. He co-founded Mystery Scene magazine and served as its editor and publisher until 2002, continuing his “Gormania” column thereafter. His works have been adapted for film and graphic novels, including The Poker Club and Cage of Night. In comics, he wrote for DC and Dark Horse. Diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2002, he continued writing despite his illness until his passing in 2016. Critics lauded him as one of the most original crime writers of his generation and a “poet of dark suspense.”
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
Edward Joseph Gorman Jr. was a prolific American author and anthologist, widely recognized for his contributions to crime, mystery, western, and horror fiction. Born and raised in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Gorman spent much of his life in the Midwest, drawing on that experience to set many of his novels in small towns. After working over two decades in advertising, political speechwriting, and industrial filmmaking, he published his first novel, Rough Cut, in 1984 and soon transitioned to full-time writing. His fiction is often praised for its emotional depth, suspenseful storytelling, and nuanced characters. Gorman wrote under the pseudonyms Daniel Ransom and Robert David Chase, and contributed to publications such as Mystery Scene, Cemetery Dance, and Black Lizard. He co-founded Mystery Scene magazine and served as its editor and publisher until 2002, continuing his “Gormania” column thereafter. His works have been adapted for film and graphic novels, including The Poker Club and Cage of Night. In comics, he wrote for DC and Dark Horse. Diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2002, he continued writing despite his illness until his passing in 2016. Critics lauded him as one of the most original crime writers of his generation and a “poet of dark suspense.”
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
Want to read
February 22, 2016This is one of 750 copies signed by Ed Gorman.
December 31, 2015
A great little western novel. As great as every other Gorman western I have read. As great as every other Gorman novel of any genre.
February 14, 2023
Parnell young works in a small town loves gambling and women. He will lose money and be given a loan to pay back the money to a shady piece of shit. He will decide to buy a present for a girl from this money and start a chain reaction of drugging, kidnapping, murder and suicide. Parnell will luckily get his life back and justice given in the end. Signed copy.
February 25, 2016
What can I say? Gorman is a master. He packed so much into this short novel. If you haven't read him, what are you waiting for?
April 30, 2016
Parnell is a ne’er-do-well who has pissed off his last friend in the town of Granite Bend with his mounting gambling debts. When his corrupt boss and the woman he longs for plan to rob a judge of a wealthy coin collection, he figures he has nothing to lose by throwing in with their scheme. But then nothing goes as they planned in this authentic Western that steers clear of mythological posturing. The jacket blurb of Backshot states “in the tradition of Charles Willeford noir Westerns.” Future practitioners of this subgenre will be likened to Ed Gorman—a master of crafting Westerns dripping with raw human emotions.
April 10, 2016
Classic Gorman. Great story in the tradition of the old west. Loved this story can't wait to read Backshot 2012 and try and figure out the connection between the two.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews