King of Spades

Buckskin Man Tales #4

by Frederick Manfred, Max Westbrook (Introduction)

Young Earl Ransom is found on the Cheyenne prairie with no memory of his past or knowledge of how his destiny is linked to that of Magnus King, and in the years that follow, the truth erupts on the Dakota frontier territory of Deadwood.

Genres: Westerns

312 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1966

About the author

Manfred's novels are very much connected to his native region. His stories involve the American Midlands, and the prairies of the West. He named the area where the borders of Minnesota, Iowa, South Dakota, and Nebraska meet, "Siouxland."
(wikipedia)

Reviews

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this one back in '69 or '70. I can vaguely recall enjoying the book, probably because it was just earthy enough to kick my teenage libido into overdrive.

[John Benson · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the 1960s, Minnesota author Frederick Manfred wrote a series of five books that he called the Buckskin Man Series, which helped bring out a fictional history of the area between Wyoming, the Dakotas, Iowa and Minnesota, an area he called "Siouxland." This was the last of the book that I have read in the series and deals with the time in Wyoming and South Dakota when gold was discovered in the Black Hills. It tells the story of a young British doctor who comes to Sioux City, marries a very young wife, and has a child with her. The book uses as its theme, the Oedipus Rex tale of mother-son love. After the son seems like he may have killed his father, the story moves on ten years and the son had amnesia and has no idea who he really is and meets his "mother' not really knowing who she is. While the writing is good, the theme does not really seem to fit the book or this time period. I ended not caring much for the book because of the overall theme, rather than the writing. Three of the books in the series were excellent: CONQUERING HORSE, LORD GRIZZLY and RIDERS OF JUDGEMENT, but the other two books, this one and SCARLET PLUME turned out to be real clunkers with the stories Manfred told not fitting the historical time period or place.

[Alex Wiseman · Rating 2 out of 5]

One of the oddest Westerns I’ve ever read. It’s a whole book basically about the tragic loss of innocence, the Oedipal complex, and straight up incest wrapped in a western veneer. Was it an easy read and were there some good parts? Yes. Would I read it again or recommend it to others? No, probably not. I’ve read other books by this author and absolutely loved them (eg, Lord Grizzly), so this is one I’m just going to quietly forget about.