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The Gunfighter #7

Ride the Hammer Down

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In this racing new installment in bestseller Ralph Compton's the Gunfighter series, Marshal John Beck is a man who has spent his career dispensing justice throughout the West, but now the justice is personal.

Marshal John Beck was the law in the dangerous town of Mother Lode, Arizona. On his own, he'd managed to keep bandits, rustlers, and desperados at bay. It was a tough job for one man to handle, but he made it work...until the day Bram Hogan and his Brickhouse Gang got the drop on the lawman.

They beat Beck to within an inch of his life and dropped him in the desert where nothing but a slow, painful death awaited him. But the gang underestimated Beck. Even at his lowest point, he found a way to survive.

Now, he's coming back and anyone who stands against him is going to ride the hammer down to the grave.

304 pages, Mass Market Paperback

Published December 15, 2020

11 people are currently reading
22 people want to read

About the author

Terrence McCauley

38 books45 followers
Also writes as Terrence P. McCauley

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5 stars
52 (57%)
4 stars
24 (26%)
3 stars
14 (15%)
2 stars
1 (1%)
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0 (0%)
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
Profile Image for Laur.
715 reviews125 followers
November 26, 2023
A ruthless, violent gang of 5 men overtake the town of “Motherlode”, aiming to make the Marshall of the town (John Beck) an example by stripping him, tying his hands behind his back, fastening his Sharps Rifle to head, putting a 50 caliber bullet in his mouth, hanging a canteen of water around his neck (he wouldn’t be able to drink and sending him into a blistering hot desert to die a horrible, painful, slow death completely humiliated.

What happens next are a series of events that will change this man, the towns and all the people involved forever. It’s the stuff good westerns and legends are made of.

The lower rating is due the ending - wish loose ends were tied up better, too many unanswered questions past/future. It ends like someone just slams on the brakes!! Still a worthy read/listen. Free audiobook (recommended) on Libby.

3.5 stars
Profile Image for HornFan2 .
766 reviews47 followers
May 30, 2024
An entertaining read from the Ralph Compton Novel Series. The part I like about these books is that the actually author of the book gets writing credit, it's win win for the purchaser slash reader and enables you to skip ones were your not a fan of the writing author.

With 'Ride the Hammer Down', you getting an entertaining read, from one of my favorite Western writers in the 21st Century being Terrence McCauley. John Beck is a Marshal, in a Arizona mining town, he's tough, honest, while damaged, he drinks too much to deal with his pain, and will ultimately get run out of town by a gang of outlaws. The whole story is, built off of his Sharp's rifle that he's tied too, along with the bullet the gang puts in his mouth and to know what happens in this entertaining tale. You'll have to read, 'Ride The Hammer Down'.
Profile Image for Shawn Bain.
Author 1 book4 followers
May 13, 2021
Ride the Hammer Down is a great light read. If you go I to reading it expecting an epic tale, you’ll be disappointed. If you go into it hoping for plenty of action, redemption, and tough characters, you’ll love it like I did.

I got the strong feeling that Terrence McCauley is a Christian. Faith is mentioned a few times in the book, and it is always given a positive light. It doesn’t play a major role in the story, but it’s obviously present. That coupled with the lack of any real language, explicit sex scenes, and gore gives me that impression.

There’s a lot of fun action, and I enjoyed the main character. None of the characters felt too thin except maybe Lilly. There were a few typos, but nothing that ruined the story.

In all, I really liked Ride the Hammer Down. I would recommend it to anyone who likes good ol’ western action.
64 reviews
November 8, 2021
More detailed plot and better descriptive action. Terrence McCauley, actual writer kept things tight and moving forward. Better than many of the opthewr author's who actually write fro Ralph Compton.
3 reviews
August 27, 2021
Such an amazing read! The book is exciting front to cover, with amazing characters that really come to life. If you like an intense western thriller definitely pick this book up.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews

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