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West of Prehistoric #1
West of Prehistoric
Jedidiah Huckleberry Smith spent his entire life searching for the raider who mutilated him as a child. Finally, giving up on a trail long grown cold, he leaves his outlaw past behind and starts over in a remote town in Wyoming.
One dark night his ranch is attacked by a mysterious and ferocious beast from a world lost to time. Only Jedidiah’s savagery and skills save him.
Now, teaming up with a beautiful but naïve paleontologist, they stand between his adopted town and its destruction by an army of barbaric prehistoric apes and dinosaurs. But Jed’s past has come back to haunt him. The man he searched for is discovered in a position of power, and Jed must choose…
Revenge for his past, or the salvation of strangers.
Either way, bullets will fly, and blood will be spilled.
One dark night his ranch is attacked by a mysterious and ferocious beast from a world lost to time. Only Jedidiah’s savagery and skills save him.
Now, teaming up with a beautiful but naïve paleontologist, they stand between his adopted town and its destruction by an army of barbaric prehistoric apes and dinosaurs. But Jed’s past has come back to haunt him. The man he searched for is discovered in a position of power, and Jed must choose…
Revenge for his past, or the salvation of strangers.
Either way, bullets will fly, and blood will be spilled.
263 pages, Paperback
First published September 18, 2020
139 people are currently reading
964 people want to read
About the author
Erik Testerman
7 books15 followersErik Testerman is a Marine Corps grunt, a competitive shooter, and an admirer of fine arms and armaments. He lives in the mountains of North Carolina with his lovely wife, two rambunctious children, and a slobbery English Mastiff.
To learn more about Erik Testerman and read samples of his work, visit http://GunPowderAndInk.blog I'm also on Facebook, Instagram, and X under my name. :)
To learn more about Erik Testerman and read samples of his work, visit http://GunPowderAndInk.blog I'm also on Facebook, Instagram, and X under my name. :)
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
December 8, 2022
'West Of Prehistoric' is an entertaining, action-packed ride that manages to twist the Weird West tropes into some new and intriguing shapes.
Even though this is a book where we have dinosaurs and vicious Neanderthal warriors roaming around in Wyoming in 1888, Erik Testerman manages to make the book feel like an authentic alternative history. He achieves this partly through the character of Jedidiah Smith who is very much a man of his times and proud of it and partly by making the book a portal fantasy. The first half of the book sets up the conflict that’s to come and establishes Jedidiah's personality and motivations. Jed is a man with a violent past. His childhood came to a traumatic end when he was tortured by a rogue carpetbagging Union officer at the end of the war between the States and who ended up fighting in western wars and running with an outlaw gang. He's a solitary sort of man, who follows his own code, lust after fine guns and thinks that nothing is more attractive than a fine woman with a rifle in her hands. Jed is starting to succeed in his plan to put his past behind him and make an honest living as a rancher when a dinosaur turns up on his land and tries to eat his horses.
Yeah, I know. I was thinking 'How likely is that?' but every time I responded to what I learned about the dinosaurs by saying, ‘Nah, that couldn’t happen because…’ Erik Testerman provided a plausible explanation that let me move on happily. The big thing here is that 'West Of Prehistoric' is a Portal Fantasy, not a ‘Lost World’ scenario. The dinosaurs and Neanderthals aren’t our dinosaurs and Neanderthals, they’re from the other side a portal to a different world. This gives the story a different scope. One of the things that I’ve enjoyed about it is that, unlike our Neandertals who are often characterised as going extinct because homo sapiens were more aggressive and made better tools, these Neanderthals are very aggressive and scarily efficient.
This is an action-packed book, where the danger and the violence start with Jed having to find a way to kill a huge dinosaur that's trying to kill him and escalates from to skirmishes with armed groups and then a full set-piece battle with the townsfolk, some celebrity visitors and a small group of soldiers making a stand against a Neanderthal army, some of whom are mounted on dinosaurs. The battle scenes are vivid and the Neanderthals are truly scary, even when faced with the highest tech weaponry that the late Nineteenth Century could provide.
Jed loves guns and the book has plenty of them. I liked that when Jed describes a repeater rifle or a colt handgun or a Gatling gun, they come across as powerful, modern weapons rather than as antiques with less firepower than the average twenty-first-century active shooter.
The humour in the book improved my enjoyment of it. It stopped it from being too earnest or too depressing. It also prevented situations from being clichéd. Jed's views are conservative (for an ex-criminal and revenge killer) and he is the man telling the tale, but the people around, who are often larger-than-life examples of Wild West characters, tend to smile at his determined politeness, his formality around women and his instincts towards valour in the face of danger.
At its heart, this book is an adventure, filled with danger and courage and conflict. It's always clear who the bad guys are and how they should be dealt with . The good guys aren't saints but they're trying to do the right thing and they're brave enough to fight to keep as many people alive as possible. The fights and battles feel real. There's lots of blood and lots of death but none of it is gratuitous.
I had a good time with 'West Of Prehistoric'. If you want to escape to an alternative West and see what happens when cowboys (and Indians) have to fight dinosaur-riding, blood-thirsty Neanderthals, try 'West Of Prehistoric'. If you like it, there are two more books in the series.
Even though this is a book where we have dinosaurs and vicious Neanderthal warriors roaming around in Wyoming in 1888, Erik Testerman manages to make the book feel like an authentic alternative history. He achieves this partly through the character of Jedidiah Smith who is very much a man of his times and proud of it and partly by making the book a portal fantasy. The first half of the book sets up the conflict that’s to come and establishes Jedidiah's personality and motivations. Jed is a man with a violent past. His childhood came to a traumatic end when he was tortured by a rogue carpetbagging Union officer at the end of the war between the States and who ended up fighting in western wars and running with an outlaw gang. He's a solitary sort of man, who follows his own code, lust after fine guns and thinks that nothing is more attractive than a fine woman with a rifle in her hands. Jed is starting to succeed in his plan to put his past behind him and make an honest living as a rancher when a dinosaur turns up on his land and tries to eat his horses.
Yeah, I know. I was thinking 'How likely is that?' but every time I responded to what I learned about the dinosaurs by saying, ‘Nah, that couldn’t happen because…’ Erik Testerman provided a plausible explanation that let me move on happily. The big thing here is that 'West Of Prehistoric' is a Portal Fantasy, not a ‘Lost World’ scenario. The dinosaurs and Neanderthals aren’t our dinosaurs and Neanderthals, they’re from the other side a portal to a different world. This gives the story a different scope. One of the things that I’ve enjoyed about it is that, unlike our Neandertals who are often characterised as going extinct because homo sapiens were more aggressive and made better tools, these Neanderthals are very aggressive and scarily efficient.
This is an action-packed book, where the danger and the violence start with Jed having to find a way to kill a huge dinosaur that's trying to kill him and escalates from to skirmishes with armed groups and then a full set-piece battle with the townsfolk, some celebrity visitors and a small group of soldiers making a stand against a Neanderthal army, some of whom are mounted on dinosaurs. The battle scenes are vivid and the Neanderthals are truly scary, even when faced with the highest tech weaponry that the late Nineteenth Century could provide.
Jed loves guns and the book has plenty of them. I liked that when Jed describes a repeater rifle or a colt handgun or a Gatling gun, they come across as powerful, modern weapons rather than as antiques with less firepower than the average twenty-first-century active shooter.
The humour in the book improved my enjoyment of it. It stopped it from being too earnest or too depressing. It also prevented situations from being clichéd. Jed's views are conservative (for an ex-criminal and revenge killer) and he is the man telling the tale, but the people around, who are often larger-than-life examples of Wild West characters, tend to smile at his determined politeness, his formality around women and his instincts towards valour in the face of danger.
At its heart, this book is an adventure, filled with danger and courage and conflict. It's always clear who the bad guys are and how they should be dealt with . The good guys aren't saints but they're trying to do the right thing and they're brave enough to fight to keep as many people alive as possible. The fights and battles feel real. There's lots of blood and lots of death but none of it is gratuitous.
I had a good time with 'West Of Prehistoric'. If you want to escape to an alternative West and see what happens when cowboys (and Indians) have to fight dinosaur-riding, blood-thirsty Neanderthals, try 'West Of Prehistoric'. If you like it, there are two more books in the series.
February 9, 2021
Jumping' Jimminy, Wotta grand western/Dinosaur Adventure!
No kidding, Mr. Testerman has written a real sockwalloper of a book! It's a western with a wanted man trying to straight, a romance between a cute as a button 19th century paleontologist and said wanted man, and a strange interventional tunnel between a prehistoric last and the historical present. Mix it all up with superior writing, a wild imagination, and a real gift for creating action scenes and before you can say "hold her Noot, don't let her rare" you've got this thrilling book. Enjoy.
No kidding, Mr. Testerman has written a real sockwalloper of a book! It's a western with a wanted man trying to straight, a romance between a cute as a button 19th century paleontologist and said wanted man, and a strange interventional tunnel between a prehistoric last and the historical present. Mix it all up with superior writing, a wild imagination, and a real gift for creating action scenes and before you can say "hold her Noot, don't let her rare" you've got this thrilling book. Enjoy.
November 6, 2020
Quite frankly, one of the most badass American novels you will ever read.
March 9, 2021
Excellent book
Loved this story. Well written. Would love to read more like this. Not as much a dino book as I thought it would be, but I think that's what I ended up liking so much.
Loved this story. Well written. Would love to read more like this. Not as much a dino book as I thought it would be, but I think that's what I ended up liking so much.
November 17, 2020
Oh. My. God. This book, West of Prehistoric, by Erik (Tracer) Testerman was BRILLIANT. The highlight of my 2020 reading journey. It came out of nowhere – I hadn’t heard anything about it – and perhaps that’s why I had no real expectations going in, but within two pages, I was already blown away, and knew this was going to be a helluva book.
What’s it about? Well, think Red Dead Redemption 2 meets Planet of the Apes, then has a threesome with Jurassic Park. The resulting love-child, is West of Prehistoric.
Ex-outlaw turned rancher, Jed Smith, is minding his own business working on his ranch, when he’s suddenly (and brutally) attacked by a dinosaur. From that moment on, the weird, the west, the carnage, and the awesome, don’t stop.
An excellently fleshed out cast of characters join Jed as he seeks to first understand the dinosaur/ape menace that threaten the west, and then to stop them slaughtering every human they come across. Action is crammed into these pages, but there’s still room for fantastic character development, wry humour, and yes, some romance. You know an author has a great handle on character development when he makes the reader love and care about the main character’s horse!
Though West of Prehistoric is Testerman’s debut novel, he feels like an old-hat at writing – there’s nary a jangled sentence or misplaced word to be found. And while the premise of West of Prehistoric might seem simplistic on first glance, it’s actually absorbing, engaging, and addictive. I had trouble putting this one down.
It’s pretty clear this is a setup for a sequel or possible trilogy, and I can only hope Testerman draws this saga out for a few more books – I for one, will be lining up to get the next instalment when it comes out.
Yes, it’s weird western. Yes, there’s gore. However, even to those of you who aren’t into this genre or gore, I’d suggest grabbing a copy and giving it a go, because at the end of the day, this is just a wonderfully told, greatly entertaining story.
What’s it about? Well, think Red Dead Redemption 2 meets Planet of the Apes, then has a threesome with Jurassic Park. The resulting love-child, is West of Prehistoric.
Ex-outlaw turned rancher, Jed Smith, is minding his own business working on his ranch, when he’s suddenly (and brutally) attacked by a dinosaur. From that moment on, the weird, the west, the carnage, and the awesome, don’t stop.
An excellently fleshed out cast of characters join Jed as he seeks to first understand the dinosaur/ape menace that threaten the west, and then to stop them slaughtering every human they come across. Action is crammed into these pages, but there’s still room for fantastic character development, wry humour, and yes, some romance. You know an author has a great handle on character development when he makes the reader love and care about the main character’s horse!
Though West of Prehistoric is Testerman’s debut novel, he feels like an old-hat at writing – there’s nary a jangled sentence or misplaced word to be found. And while the premise of West of Prehistoric might seem simplistic on first glance, it’s actually absorbing, engaging, and addictive. I had trouble putting this one down.
It’s pretty clear this is a setup for a sequel or possible trilogy, and I can only hope Testerman draws this saga out for a few more books – I for one, will be lining up to get the next instalment when it comes out.
Yes, it’s weird western. Yes, there’s gore. However, even to those of you who aren’t into this genre or gore, I’d suggest grabbing a copy and giving it a go, because at the end of the day, this is just a wonderfully told, greatly entertaining story.
Read
July 10, 2025DNF
I gave this one fifty-odd pages and it just never grabbed me, getting to be a bit of a slog eventually, which is the last thing you want to say about cowboys fighting dinosaurs. There just didn't seem to be any success at grasping the mood and lyricism that you want from a Western, even one featuring cavemen with a narrator that frequently seemed to have escaped from a Deadpool comic with his irreverent quips. Which I suppose you can get away with if they're funny, but these are pretty much the jokes you'd find getting updoots in a Reddit comment section, so.
It also just never seemed that these characters were outside the 21st century, with the main character thinking stuff like "he's an abuser of Native American women!" when another guy talks disparagingly about a 'squaw'. Which fine, it's pulp, there's time travel, you can write your cowboy to be as antiracist as you want--I just don't believe a real historical personality would phrase it that way. And without any sense of verisimilitude, what's the point of being a Western?
I gave this one fifty-odd pages and it just never grabbed me, getting to be a bit of a slog eventually, which is the last thing you want to say about cowboys fighting dinosaurs. There just didn't seem to be any success at grasping the mood and lyricism that you want from a Western, even one featuring cavemen with a narrator that frequently seemed to have escaped from a Deadpool comic with his irreverent quips. Which I suppose you can get away with if they're funny, but these are pretty much the jokes you'd find getting updoots in a Reddit comment section, so.
It also just never seemed that these characters were outside the 21st century, with the main character thinking stuff like "he's an abuser of Native American women!" when another guy talks disparagingly about a 'squaw'. Which fine, it's pulp, there's time travel, you can write your cowboy to be as antiracist as you want--I just don't believe a real historical personality would phrase it that way. And without any sense of verisimilitude, what's the point of being a Western?
December 3, 2020
Jedediah Huckleberry Smith is a rancher. He used to be an outlaw, but being basically good, he decided to leave that life behind and start over in Wyoming Territory. Living alone means he thinks he'll be safe from his past catching up with him. However, the present is another story. He is attacked by a dinosaur, of all things. Tracing it back through a tunnel that shouldn't be there, he finds more dinosaurs, as well as savage, heart-eating, ape creatures. The story becomes outlaws, soldiers and ordinary people fighting the dinosaurs as well as the apes. Although it has a satisfactory conclusion, there is enough left over to warrant another book. I look forward to reading it.
June 21, 2021
Dinosaurs apes cowboys and Indians
Can’t get no better than the above. Was a great book with lots of excitement lots of danger and lots of dinosaurs. The book made me feel like I was almost right in the middle of all of it. There of been very few books lately that I have read that compare to this. If you like all of the above then take the time to read it and the second one because they’re both great. I can’t wait and I hope that the series continues on.
Can’t get no better than the above. Was a great book with lots of excitement lots of danger and lots of dinosaurs. The book made me feel like I was almost right in the middle of all of it. There of been very few books lately that I have read that compare to this. If you like all of the above then take the time to read it and the second one because they’re both great. I can’t wait and I hope that the series continues on.
June 17, 2021
I cannot express how much I loved this book! A dinosaur western, who could ask for more? It gave me everything I wanted and more. There was adventure and excitement right from the beginning. From start to finish I was thoroughly entertained. And I loved the interesting cast of characters. I can not recommend this book more and can't wait to read the next part of the adventure!
May 27, 2021
The old West (1885), outlaws, Indians, dinosaurs and huge intelligent apes that want to kill everyone. What more could you ask for? All these things come together nicely in this highly entertaining tale that you will enjoy for hours.The story is centered around Jedidiah Smith - an outlaw tying to leave his former life behind on his quite little ranch outside of town. He discovers a tunnel in the mountains that connects to another land that is quite prehistoric. Creatures start showing up in the area of the Western town with not so good results. Before long the town is fighting for its survival. A really great story. I won this book in a GoodReads Giveaway.
July 4, 2021
4 1\2 Stars
When I read what this book was about, My mind went back to the 1960's when I was a boy about 10 watching the Saturday afternoon matinee on television and Guy Madison facing the beast of hollow mountain (a western with a Dinosaur). This book was nothing like the movie but it sure had a lot of excitement. A Tunnel between two mountains with one side been 1880s Wyoming territory and the other a lost world filled with dinosaurs and giant ape men. When the ape men cross over to Wyoming all hell breaks loose. My only complaint is that this was a pretty long book and it had no chapters just a long continuous read.
When I read what this book was about, My mind went back to the 1960's when I was a boy about 10 watching the Saturday afternoon matinee on television and Guy Madison facing the beast of hollow mountain (a western with a Dinosaur). This book was nothing like the movie but it sure had a lot of excitement. A Tunnel between two mountains with one side been 1880s Wyoming territory and the other a lost world filled with dinosaurs and giant ape men. When the ape men cross over to Wyoming all hell breaks loose. My only complaint is that this was a pretty long book and it had no chapters just a long continuous read.
April 30, 2023
🎭Genre: Science Fiction, Western.
🚩 TW: Graphic violence.
A pleasant surprise, going in I was sceptical that I wouldn't fully enjoy this as the story is set in the 1800s, but instead it had the perfect mix of humour, action & heart, Jed while flawed with a horrific past still had honor & bravery & Carbine the horse was perfectly silly & I found myself wishing for a few more scenes with him, all the other characters were interesting & had their own unique personalities, I'm looking forward to book 2.
🚩 TW: Graphic violence.
A pleasant surprise, going in I was sceptical that I wouldn't fully enjoy this as the story is set in the 1800s, but instead it had the perfect mix of humour, action & heart, Jed while flawed with a horrific past still had honor & bravery & Carbine the horse was perfectly silly & I found myself wishing for a few more scenes with him, all the other characters were interesting & had their own unique personalities, I'm looking forward to book 2.
July 8, 2021
Enjoyable Dinosaur Thriller in the Old West
It’s a combination of “The Land That Time Forgot,” “Planet of the Apes,” alternate history, and an over-the-top, shoot-em-up western.
It’s not Pulitzer Prize type literature. But for what it is… namely a monster thriller set in an alternate Old West… it delivers.
It’s a combination of “The Land That Time Forgot,” “Planet of the Apes,” alternate history, and an over-the-top, shoot-em-up western.
It’s not Pulitzer Prize type literature. But for what it is… namely a monster thriller set in an alternate Old West… it delivers.
April 25, 2022
Gitty-up little dino
Zane Grey would be rolling in his place of residence. I really loved it. It was fast paced, interesting characters, and a great story line. I have never read a novel that covered every ethnic group. I am not very verse on prehistoric animals but I don't think they had feathers. Could be wrong????
Zane Grey would be rolling in his place of residence. I really loved it. It was fast paced, interesting characters, and a great story line. I have never read a novel that covered every ethnic group. I am not very verse on prehistoric animals but I don't think they had feathers. Could be wrong????
August 28, 2021
Dinosaurs, Ape men,Cowboys, outlaws, a little romance. Oh my. A fast paced completely different take on prehistoric monsters. A great wild west read. So if you like westerns and dinosaurs, you will enjoy this book.
September 19, 2021
Great!
The West is really Wild here in this book. Dinosaurs and Ape men make a deadly combination! The story is well written and holds your interest all the way through. There is also an interesting back story.
The West is really Wild here in this book. Dinosaurs and Ape men make a deadly combination! The story is well written and holds your interest all the way through. There is also an interesting back story.
April 12, 2021
A bit goofy
Good adventure yarn. Interesting use of cowboys, Indians and dinosaurs. Decent characters. Worth a sequel and would make a heck of a movie.
Good adventure yarn. Interesting use of cowboys, Indians and dinosaurs. Decent characters. Worth a sequel and would make a heck of a movie.
Read
May 31, 2021Interesting
This was quite the interesting book. Very good action with what were for me great backing pieces in his firearms and descriptions of dinosaurs and battles.
This was quite the interesting book. Very good action with what were for me great backing pieces in his firearms and descriptions of dinosaurs and battles.
July 15, 2021
Wow I really loved reading this! I could not put this book down! I will can’t wait to read the next one in this series!
March 2, 2022
4.5 stars
OMG, a western and dinosaurs 🦕 !
I'm in heaven! What a great tale. I really enjoyed the characters in this story. I can't wait to read the next one. Highly recommended!
OMG, a western and dinosaurs 🦕 !
I'm in heaven! What a great tale. I really enjoyed the characters in this story. I can't wait to read the next one. Highly recommended!
August 14, 2022
Very good book
This is a fine western dinosaur adventure novel. It is well written and edited. I especially like the mischievous horse. I anxiously await the sequel.
This is a fine western dinosaur adventure novel. It is well written and edited. I especially like the mischievous horse. I anxiously await the sequel.
June 24, 2023
Great, fun read!
A fun read that flowed well. Characters were great as well! Looking forward to the next story from the author!!
A fun read that flowed well. Characters were great as well! Looking forward to the next story from the author!!
June 29, 2022
😲😂😱😊
Absolutely an exciting, funny, thrilling, suspenseful and at the edge-of-your-seat story. The main character is thrown into the role as the hero by unfortunate circumstances. The "Battle with the Apes" is epic. If you like westerns with a prehistoric twist, you'll enjoy this read.
Absolutely an exciting, funny, thrilling, suspenseful and at the edge-of-your-seat story. The main character is thrown into the role as the hero by unfortunate circumstances. The "Battle with the Apes" is epic. If you like westerns with a prehistoric twist, you'll enjoy this read.
December 3, 2022
Very fun dumb. Delivers exactly what I would want from a dumb western X dinosaur pulp fun. Maybe more pterosaur in the sequel?
Some potentially yikes with the native Americans, potential racial coding of the giant monkeys, and possible confederacy apologia, but I guess some of that kinda is inherent in the setting.
Some potentially yikes with the native Americans, potential racial coding of the giant monkeys, and possible confederacy apologia, but I guess some of that kinda is inherent in the setting.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews