Glorieta Pass

by Gordon D. Shirreffs

The story of legendary mountain man, fighter, and lover Quint Kershaw, his two sons--deadly rivals for the same woman--and his lonely daughter is set in the New Mexico Territory of the Civil War. Reprint.

246 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published March 12, 1984

About the author

Gordon Donald Shirreffs was an American author of Western and young adult novels.

Reviews

[Alton Motobu · Rating 2 out of 5]

Based on actual battle called "Glorieta Pass" during Civil War when CSA troops from Texas invaded New Mexico to take gold and silver resources from the Union, but local volunteers led by Kit Carson and fictitious Quint Kershaw rose up to help outnumbered union troops defeat the Rebels. Against this backdrop is drama about Quint's sons, David and Frank, fighting over beautiful Catherine, who is kidnapped by Apaches; Quint's other son Alec unknowingly falling in love with his sister Rafaela; and Quint rekindling his love affair with Alec's mother Jean. All of this is interrupted with long passages from author's research into New Mexican geography, nature, horse behavior, fauna, Spanish culture, architecture, Apache culture, military strategy, and other ramblings. Glaring loose end is the unresolved kidnapping of Catherine; there is only a vague reference to her ghost in the epilogue, so apparently she died. Shirreff's great hero from earlier novels, Lee Kershaw, also known as the "Manhunter," would have gone after her and killed the kidnappers one by one with his own hands to rescue her, but this plot line is never developed here, and it is a major disappointment.