A Badge for a Badman by Brian Wynne (Brian Garfield)

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A Badge for a Badman (1967) by Brian Wynne (Brian Garfield)


This is the 6th of 8 westerns featuring Jeremy Six, marshal of Spanish Flat, written by Brian Garfield under the pen-name of Brian Wynne. A Badge for a Badman kicks off in fine form with an excellent and suspenseful sequence detailing how Marshal Six, his deputy, Dominguez, and a small group of devoted friends go into covert action upon realizing that Burl Marriner and his gang have arrived in town to steal the Reservation consignment from the town bank. 

Burl is a hard-case whose son, Cleve, and a nephew, Wes, both share a history with Jeremy Six. It all ends with Six outgunning the elder Marriner and capturing an injured Cleve. The real villain of the book though is the now widowed Ma Marriner who immediately pulls together a large group of outlaws and sets off to free her son and kill Marshal Six. Realizing that this will endanger the entire town, Six decides to hit the trail with Cleve in an attempt to beat the gang to a larger town where Cleve can be more safely held until trial. 

Despite some convenient coincidences and occasionally confusing character motivation, this is a fast and enjoyable read. It may not stand up to a lot of scrutiny after the fact, but Garfield was a real pro and knew how to spin a fast and compelling read that featured good, concise action and stronger than expected dialog. Marshal Jeremy Six is a great protagonist and worthy of the effort of tracking down more of his adventures.

And who doesn't love a good Ace Double Western?

Review by Steve Carroll

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