Guns of Vengeance

by Lewis B. Patten

When rancher Nick Kenyon, during a devastating drought, diverts the remaining water to his ranch, Walt Rand, the owner of the Double R ranch who is tired of Nick's troublemaking and greed, decides to take him down in a hail of bullets. Reprint.

206 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2003

About the author

aka Lewis Ford, Len Leighton, Joseph Wayne (with Wayne D. Overholser)

Lewis Byford Patten was a prolific author of American Western Novels, born in Denver, Colorado. Often published under the names Lewis Ford, Len Leighto and, Joseph Wayne.

Reviews

[Andrew McBride · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lewis B. Patten is one of the western novelists who inspired me to become one. His output was prolific and variable. My favourite is ‘Bones of the Buffalo’, a moving account of the tragic Cheyenne outbreak of 1878. In ‘Guns of Vengeance’ rancher Walt Rand is caught in a range war in a drought-stricken corner of Colorado. As with many good westerns, this freshens the familiar with unusual twists. Range War westerns are two-a-penny but Patten has the central dispute the rarely covered issue of water rights. And it’s character, rather than action, based, in what could be described as a psychological western. Walt is very much a flawed hero, with what we might now call ‘anger management issues.’ He is going through difficult times with his wife, and verges on hating his father, a man who can be cruel and sadistic. Against this background, Walt has to take on a lynch mob, ordinarily decent folk driven to desperate means as drought leaves them on the brink of ruin. Patten has a deceptively easy, unvarnished writing style, quietly ratcheting up the tension to produce an intense and gripping read.

[Stewart Sternberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exactly What the doctor ordered

I wanted a western, so I cracked open Blood Meridian by Cormack McCarthy. I'm still chewing my way through it. But it wasn't what I wanted or needed. And so, I turned attention to a random allusion some person made to Patten and here I am. All the tropes are in their right places. It's range war time, with good good buys and bad baddies. Nothing original here, just pure entertainment.

[Rodney Haydon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great Lewis B. Patten western. This also included the 1954 short story "Death Fans this Gun" which was originally published in the September 1954 issue of Ace-High Western Stories.

[D. E. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two Western Short Stories

(1) Death Fans This Gun: A Sheriff adopts a young boy and raised him to the best of his ability. At 28 the boys joins with 2 fritters to Rob the bank. His adopted father, the Sheriff, cannot allow! this to occur. During the Bank Robbery the Sheriff attempts to thwart the robbery. But his son comes to his aid and shoots one of the bank robbers.
(2) Guns of Vengence: A Range War is occurring and no one seems to be able to stop it. A Range War begins because of greed or water. In this case it's a little of both. One of the two large ranchers always shared the water with the small ranches. The new owner of the other large ranch cuts off the rest of the ranches from water. Range War.
These two short stories are excellent reads for the genre.....DEHS