Blood Money and Other Stories: Seven Classic Western Tales of Trust, Destiny, and Survival

by Elmore Leonard

The  New York Times -bestselling Grand Master of suspense deftly displays the other side of his genius, with seven classic western tales of destiny and fatal decision . . . and trust as essential to survival as it is hard-earned.

Trust was rare and precious in the wide-open towns that sprung up like weeds on America's frontier—with hustlers and hucksters arriving in droves by horse, coach, wagon, and rail, and gunmen working both sides of the law, all too eager to end a man's life with a well-placed bullet. In these classic tales that span more than five decades—including the first story he ever published, “The Trail of the Apache”—Elmore Leonard once again demonstrates the superb talent for language and gripping narrative that have made him one of the most acclaimed and influential writers of our time.

Apache medicine
Red hell hits Canyon Diablo
Last shot
Blood money
Saint with a six-gun
Man with the iron arm
Longest day of his life

Genres: Westerns, Short Stories, Fiction, Adventure, Thriller, Short Story Collection, Historical Fiction

208 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published September 26, 2006

About the author

Elmore John Leonard lived in Dallas, Oklahoma City and Memphis before settling in Detroit in 1935. After serving in the navy, he studied English literature at the University of Detroit where he entered a short story competition. His earliest published novels in the 1950s were westerns, but Leonard went on to specialize in crime fiction and suspense thrillers, many of which have been adapted into motion pictures.

Father of Peter Leonard.

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

"They called it 'Canyon Diablo,' but for no apparent reason. Like everything else it had advantages and disadvantages, good points and bad ones, depending on time of the day, the season of the year, or who happened to be occupying the canyon at a given time. At this particular time, two hundred feet up the south wall, a solitary disadvantage stood motionless on the narrow ledge, watching the small group of riders on the open plain approaching the dark defile that led into the canyon . . . " -- the ominous introduction that immediately sets the tone to 'Red Hell Hits Diablo Canyon,' on page 23

A collection of seven short pieces - which originally appeared in now-defunct monthly periodicals like Argosy and/or Dime Western Magazine between 1952 and 1956 - that showcases early work from Elmore Leonard, Blood Money and Other Stories is no mere amateur hack labor. It was a very enjoyable paperback that demonstrated Leonard - who was then barely thirty years old at the time - could craft tight and lean stories right from the beginning of his eventual prolific 60-year writing career. All set in the remote and dusty Arizona territory during the early to mid-1870's (the Civil War is occasionally mentioned as occurring less than a decade earlier), this assemblage was one of those rare gems where each story was very good if not great. The particular standouts here include the aforementioned 'Red Hell Hits Diablo Canyon' (a young and untested cavalry lieutenant matches wits with an Apache warrior of equal standing) , 'Blood Money' (a group of five outlaws in hiding from a marshal's posse after a bank robbery increasingly each experience 'cabin fever' of sorts), 'Man with the Iron Arm' (a maimed and honorable Civil War veteran gets a reckoning with a deplorable cowpoke who is nothing but a walking insult), and my favorite 'Saint with a Six-Gun' (a young deputy marshal, responsible for the overnight guarding a convicted man awaiting execution, faces a trial-by-fire and quickly gains valuable and needed experience during his first week on the job). Without a doubt this was the best $1.50 that I have EVER spent at my dependable local used book store.

[Adam McPhee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Blood Money is really cinematic, surprised this hasn't been adapted into a movie yet. It feels like a spaghetti western. The Longest Day of His Life likewise, though to a lesser extent. Saint with a Six Gun has such a great twist ending, I loved it. Man with the Iron Arm and The Last Shot are both pretty good stories and pro-Union, which I'd always assumed was rare considering the country music penchant for all things Confederate.

Apache Medicine and Red Hell Hits Diablo Cannon I kinda struggled with. Red Hell has some great action and really evocative imagery, but it ends up being a story just about drinking a bunch of Natives under the table. Apache Medicine likewise revolves around tricking a Native. And yet, it's also clear these stories are pushing back against an older form of Western, the cowboys and indians attitude of a John Wayne film. The Apaches are as human and complex as the cavalry officers and outlaws (which is to say, 'somewhat'), and the white heroes in the stories succeed by attempting to understand the differences between their cultures and the Apache's. So I dunno.

[Mark Stone · Rating 4 out of 5]

What can I say about Elmore Leonard that I haven't already? The man was a freaking writing genius and it shows in most of the short stories within this book, nowhere more so than in The Longest Day of His Life. The main characters in that (man and woman) are utterly charming and captivating. Highly recommended read.

[Alan · Rating 5 out of 5]

As I’ve said before, I’m not much on short stories, but these are exceptional. I am also not very used to reading westerns. Again, these stories are exceptionally well written and entertaining.

[Austin Bell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am desperately trying to find some Westerns that I can fully love, and while the writing itself absolutely was on a loveable level, here, unfortunately the antiquated conception of the West that sours the genre for me was also present (though less overtly than some of the other works I've read, at least). The character work was surprisingly deep, given the restrictions that the short story format imposes, and this goes some way towards humanizing some of the indigenous characters. But it just isn't quite enough.

[Kamakana · Rating 3 out of 5]

280517: quick, short, sharp, comic. another ebook downed from library for a break. one of Elmore Leonard's rules about writing is to leave out words the reader will skip: so in reading this i add all the words in my mind that he has taken out. cinematic, swift, words only as needed...

[Zak · Rating 4 out of 5]

A master…Etching a harsh, haunting landscape with razor-sharp prose, Leonard shows in brilliant stories why he has become the American poet laureate of the desperate and the bold…In stories that burn with passion, treachery, and heroism, the frontier comes vividly, magnificently to life.”

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked "Blood Money", "Saint with a Sixgun", and "Apache Medicine" the most in this collection.

[Jordan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as strong a collection as Three-Ten to Yuma but with several good ones.

Leonard excelled at the last stand, with the good guys holed up in a desperate and untenable position awaiting a final attack. It’s in a couple of stories here, including “Blood Money” and “The Longest Day of His Life,” foreshadowing novel-sized versions like Last Stand at Saber River and even The Moonshine War. There are also a couple clever stories involving jailhouses and condemned men.

Also interesting because you can see Leonard’s work improve. The stories here come from 1952-56, and there’s a striking leap in quality between the first two stories (May and October 1952) and the third (September 1953).

Recommended.

[Bob Cantrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fine Western Stories

I have been reading Westerns for years. So I kind of know what I like and these are fine Western stories. I read one of Elmore Leonard's stories and I want to belly up to the bar and wash the trail dust from my throat. I would hate to have to pick just one favor author of Westerns stories, because they are all great writers. I have read a lot of Elmore Leonard Western, these were all new ones for me. But I would read them again sometime in the futrue and like them allover again.

[Shawn MacDonald · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the first western I've ever read. I liked it, but because it was all short stories, I didn't really get to dig into it. I only went this route because I wanted to test the waters. It was good, but these were all written before he really became Dutch Leonard. I'll try one of the classics of the genre, Riders of the Lonesome Sage or something like that. But later. Next up we have Agatha Christie.

[Lee Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vivid, entertaining, and cinematic western short stories. The Longest Day of His Life was definitely the best of them. A great light read and I really enjoyed it. Elmore Leonard is the master of bad guy crime fiction but it turns out he could write anything else just as well.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

These were good stories, but 3:10 to Yuma and other stories was better.

[Ted Prezelski · Rating 5 out of 5]

All great tales. Interesting how often his protagonists don't solve their issues by gun play.

[Eddie · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a master story teller. I loved them all

[Sudha Yadav · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Wild Wild read

Elmore Leonard sparkles in these stories. His stylised narration sweeps through the wide wild west, bringing us unforgettable characters living and dying in an unforgiving land.

[Timothy · Rating 4 out of 5]

7 stories:

Apache Medicine
Red Hell Hits Canyon Diablo
The Last Shot
Blood Money
Saint with a Six-Gun
Man with the Iron Arm
The Longest Day of His Life

[Elisabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being in the mood for some Western short stories, I decided to try collections by a few different authors I'd never read before, and Elmore Leonard definitely came out the winner. This collection opens with a pair of rather tough and bloody cavalry stories; although they were unquestionably well-written, I did find myself hoping the whole book wouldn't be in that precise vein. It was not. The stories near the middle of the book were some of the best short Westerns I'd read in a long time. "Saint With a Six-Gun," the story of a young deputy assigned to guard a condemned prisoner, was my favorite. I especially loved the humorous twist at the very end. "The Man With the Iron Arm" was another excellent, character-driven piece, and the title story "Blood Money" was good too. Leonard's writing is fine and straighforward, and I liked the occasional touch of dry humor in the narrative. Where plot is concerned, rather than tracking over old familiar hero-versus-villain ground, it seems his best stories stem from more mundane circumstances, leaving the author freer to take it where he wants, and creating more of a question for the reader regarding how it will end. With only one story in this collection, in fact, the concluding "The Longest Day of His Life," could I predict with any certainty how it would end.

[Wilson Lanue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Seven brief Western stories. The first two are cavalry tales that rival James Warner Bellah for tone and surpass him in writing quality and conception. The next few are good but less so to varying degrees. The final story was a disappointment, clichéd Western action without a point.

Would easily recommend as light reading for other Western fans.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy the short story format, and these are well done. I am not really into westerns, but they had interesting characters, and were just fun to read. Kind of reminded me of Heinlein's short stories in a different genre.

[Shawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

My first Western. Read in one sitting. Good pulpy fun.

[Tanuj Solanki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though simple in their themes, these stories deceive through their detail and their pace. One never feels one is not in the hands of a master.

[Eliana]

Criminal suspense, usually told from the criminal's point of view. Leonard's criminal protagonista are among the most likeable of the genre! Funny, with excellent plot lines.

[Darren · Rating 2 out of 5]

have to put it down for now. could not get into it at the moment

[Dave · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good short stories. I found them entertaining and I like to read short stories at times.

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not earth shaking, but a fine collection of short stories.

[wally · Rating 4 out of 5]

26 mar 15
#46 from leonard for me? i think that is the number
29 mar 15 finished. good stories. beginning, middle, end. who could ask for more?
onward and upward

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Western Tales

Not a big fan of westerners, but Leonard has a way with words that makes characters intriguing, genre aside. Plus, I enjoy story stories.