C.K. Crigger Reviews

Added September 17, 2008

Black Crossing

Author: C.K. Crigger
Publisher: Amber Quill Press
Available At: www.amberquill.com
Publishing Date: Available Now
Genre: Western
Format: Trade Paperback and Ebook download
Price: $15.00 paperback, $5.25 ebook
ISBN-13: 978-1-60272-976-6 paperback, 978-1-60272-089-3 ebook
Author Email/Website: http://hstrial-ccrigger.homestead.com/
Reviewer: Kathy Martin
Rating: 9 Gargoyles

Working as a Pinkerton Agent in 1887, TJ Osgood knew how tough law enforcement was. Not just in trying to get the bad guys, but trying to be one of the good guys and not go crazy. Osgood had not always been the best "good guy." He got fired from Pinkerton because he could not keep himself out of the whisky bottle, and that ended up getting one of his fellow agents killed. It had been a long time ago, but it was a shadow he always carried with him.

Thankfully, Osgood had the chance to stay in law enforcement, despite his background. Hired by the mayor of a town called "Black Crossing," Osgood was to be the new marshal.

The first thing the new marshal sees when he gets into town is a body hanging from a scaffold. It was obvious that it had been hanging there for at least a day. The couple of townsfolk Osgood ran across did not want to say much. So he headed over to his new office. There he found a very young Deputy named Benny. Benny informs Osgood that the body is that of Isaac Gilpatrick, and he was hung because he was a timber jumper. The town mayor, Colin O'Doud had ordered that the body be left up as a warning to others to stay off of his timber land. Marshal Osgood was informed that O'Doud "owned" the town. Anyone who did not agree with the mayor would be hurt by his group of lumberjacks, or O'Doud's henchman, Jensen.

Starting to believe he had made a mistake in coming in the first place, Osgood met Ione Gilpatrick - Isaac's mother. She swore to the new marshal that she would find the evidence that was needed to clear her son's name and put O'Doud away. Osgood found himself strangely drawn to Ione, so he knew that he could not leave as long as she was going to continue her own little investigation. This being the case, Osgood started doing his own snooping around, and now both he and Ione were on a collision course with O'Doud.

This was one of the best westerns I have read in a long time! The author kept a good pace with the story. The characters had depth and what I call "breath." These were not one dimensional stick-people, but multi-dimensional "real" characters. I could feel the anxiety, pain, frustration; whatever emotion was on the table.

Some critics say that a reader should not be sure who is good and who is evil as they go through a book. But I enjoy having the good guys and bad guys spelled out for me in the beginning. The antagonism between Osgood and O'Doud starts out high, and gets even higher and more tenuous every time the two men meet.

As a woman, I appreciated the strength shown in the character of Ione Gilpatrick. There was no way she was going to rest while her son's name was scarred. And even though she was spurred on by a taste for revenge, the author always kept Ione in control of what she was doing.

This book may not be long in comparison to other major western novels, but every page is jam-packed with action and feeling. This is one story I will want to read again!

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This page was last updated on September 17, 2008

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