Vengeance Rider

Buck Fletcher #3

by Joseph A. West, Ralph Compton (Series Creator), James Daniels (Contributor)

Saddle up with Doc Holliday in this adventure from the USA Today bestselling Ralph Compton series. Buck Fletcher plans to race his horse for a $10,000 prize-money he needs to send his sick daughter to a faraway clinic. Then some outlaws steal his steed, and his daughter's last hope with it. Though it's been ten years since Buck slapped leather and traded lead with the badmen of the frontier, he's quick to fasten on his gun belt again for the chase. The thieves are led by Port Austin, a man who fears no retribution for the lives he takes-not with a ruthless band of brothers guarding his back. But Buck is not alone either. Doc Holliday, a legend of loyalty and ferocity, rides beside him, eager to help on a mission of vengeance-and a quest to save a little girl's life

Genres: Westerns, Fiction

285 pages, Audio CD

First published May 24, 2004

About the author

Joe West was born and raised in the seaside town of Saltcoats in Scotland. At 19 he became a police officer, but soon turned his love of writing into a career as a journalist, working for the Daily Mirror in London among others. In 1972 West was recruited as a reporter for the National Enquirer, and began working in the United States. Traveling the world in search of stories, West almost froze to death on an Alaska mountain, and a spider bite nearly killed him in the Amazon rainforest. 'I swelled up like a balloon and turned a real pretty violet color,' he recalls.

Now a full-time novelist, West and his wife Emily reside in sunny Lake Worth, Florida, where he enjoys tamer pursuits like canoeing the alligator-infested swamps of the Everglades. His daughter Alexandria attends a local college where she studies forensic technology. She will have absolutely nothing to do with canoes and alligators.

West researches the settings of his novels by exploring the terrain in person, usually with little more than a sleeping bag and a can of coffee.

Recently he and Emily celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary at the Lodge in Cloudcroft, New Mexico, a gift from the students at Rio Rancho High School who use West's first novel as a textbook. They then spent a month in the mountains and deserts of New Mexico, often pitching their tent where the air is thin at 9,000 feet above the flat.

Reviews

[Tyler Cole · Rating 2 out of 5]

The plot of the story was weak. There were several twists and turns but nothing too captivating. The calico cat that Buck rescued from being tormented was a nice thought but was totally unnecessary and really didn't add anything to the story. The ending was inconclusive.

[Peter Charleston · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amiable western tale.

[Justin Jauregui · Rating 4 out of 5]

If our into the right hands, this would make a great movie

[Bernie Ideker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good Western. Did not go into great descriptive details which I appreciate. Happy ending which I appreciate. Looking forward to more of the author’s books.

[Milo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Absolutely not your average Western. Joseph West is one hell of a writer.
Very worth the read.

[Pauline · Rating 4 out of 5]

The race to recover a horse from thieves leads Fletcher to an old friend, Doc Holiday. Holiday is gravely ill with TB - the same disease Fletcher's small daughter has. The stolen race horse was the hope that Fletcher had to win enough money to send his daughter to a clinic in Switzerland. Doc was motivated to help as a sufferer of the same disease.

The trek from North Dakota where Fletcher owns a ranch to Arizona is filled conflict and challenges. When the horse was stolen Fletcher's ranch hand was murdered. Fletcher tracks the killer along with the horse. Having once been a gun-slinger Fletcher realizes his skills are rusty, but he continues the chase with determination and with the help of the skills of Doc Holiday

[Christopher Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent read, with more of a L'Amour feel than Compton's books. This book is the completion of notes by Ralph Compton by Joe West (possibly a pseudonym?) following the angry quest by an old gunfighter to recover his horse, save his daughter's life, and avenge the death of a cowboy in his hire.

On the way, Buck Fletcher joins up with the mythical Doc Holliday who historically was only involved in one known gunfight, but has developed into a deadly gunhand in western lore. The tale moves along fairly well but has a strangely episodic feel, like a serialized magazine tale or movie than a single novel. The ending is a bit vague and sort of a cliffhanger, but the immediately preceding vignette was very satisfying.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

West always delivers a reliable, traditional western. There are some beautiful descriptions in this one.

[Leonard · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written western novel. I enjoyed reading about Slaughter's ranch in Cochise County. A page turner and hard to put down. Fun the way he feeds in western names on some characters.

[Dennis O'Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed the storyline and the characters