HERNE THE HUNTER 1: WHITE DEATH by John J.McLaglen

John J. McLaglen was one of a group of western writers known as The Piccadilly Cowboys.

Jedediah Herne, who was once upon a time known as Herne The Hunter a bounty hunter and hired killer, has retired and got married to his wife, Louise, who is a lot younger than he is. Herne is in his late thirties and she was just sixteen when they got married.

The story opens pleasent enough with the daughter of their next door neighbour, Becky Yates, drawing pictures on a steamed up window while Louise cooks up a meal as she is expecting her husband home anytime. He's gone into town to get supplies.

But he's been delayed because there's been a heavy snowfall which has brought everything to a halt.

Even the train on the nearby railtrack has been forced to stop.

Aboard the train are seven men who have got drunk and have got bored with sitting around and doing nothing. Seeing the lights from the distant farmhouse they decide to go and see it they can have some 'fun'.

What passes as fun is the continual rape of Louise Herne - Becky manages to get away and hide.

Jedediah Herne comes home to find his wife traumatised, Becky missing and her mother dead.

Slowly, Jedediah draws the story out of his wife and he comforts her the best he can. But it is to much for Louise and in the morning Herne finds his wife hanging in the barn.

Jedediah Herne straps on his guns and goes looking for revenge only it's not that simple. He has doubts about abilities that were once second nature and it is this that makes Jedediah Herne human. Also, he is 'helped' by his neighbour Bill Yates who is not the nice, caring husband and father that I thought he was at first.

When it comes to killing Herne is quite cold but he is a thinking man who is well aware of his weaknesses.

I've read a few Edge books but I like Herne The Hunter better.

This series looks good and I am now reading the second book called: River Of Blood.

ESCAPE FROM SOBIBOR (1987) on dvd

'The Great Escape' is a great movie but 'Escape From Sobibor' is something else.
Sobibor was a concentration camp and a death camp in Poland during World War 2. In 1943 there was an escape from another of these camps at Treblinka and the commander in charge of Sobibor said that no escapes would be made from his camp. If anyone attempted an escape then the Germans would kill an equal number of prisoners. Knowing this the inmates begin to plan an escape but it is not until some Russian soldiers come to the camp that the plans go ahead. They all know that whether they try to escape or not they will die.
They do not build a tunnel. Instead they turn on their guards and the officers killing some and escaping right through the gates.
This film was directed by Jack Gold for TV and based on a true story.
It is very emotional, compelling and should not been missed. Some of the scenes are quite harrowing like the killing of a trustee as the prisoners become as brutal as their captors.
Over 300 prisoners escaped and many were recaptured and killed - but some got away and survived the war.
The film stars Alan Arkin, Joanna Pacula and Rutger Hauer and runs for 2hrs 25 mins.

Listening to: DISCOGRAPHY by PET SHOP BOYS

The Pet Shop Boys are Neil Tennant on vocals and Chris Lowe on keyboards. They met in an electronics shop in the Kings Road, Chelsea and discovered that they had music interests in common and that was how the group began.

DISCOGRAPHY contains all their singles from 1985 to 1991 and opens with their first number one 'West End Girls' and has their other number ones: "It's A Sin", "Always On My Mind" and "Heart".

Their music is described as electropop and electronic dance music.

Well worth checking out.

WALT MASTERSON: LEFT-HAND GUN (2009)

Now I've only just started reading this book but so much has happened within the first 28 pages.
A stranger has ridden into town and slaked his thirst with a couple of ice cold beers and got instructions how to get to the Flatbush ranch. Already on their way is Morgan Fetterman and his foreman the former armed with a faked up deed that says that he owns the ranch. As far as they know there's just a female cook and an old hand there that they can run off. What they don't know is that the 'cook' is the neice of the recently deceased owner. Into the fray steps Luke Horn, a gunfighter hired by Fetterman to take care of one or two problems. Only Luke Horn doesn't like what he sees and throws the rancher's money back in his face.
I have always liked this writer's style. It's like listening to him telling the tale that is so vivid that it can be seen like a movie.
Looking at his website I see that he had some great contacts with writers like C.S.Forester and had dinner bought for him by Louis L'Amour.
Sadly, though, Walt Masterson died last year and there are only the six western books to his name:
APACHE COUNTRY
CARNIGAN'S CLAIM
TOMBSTONE LULLABY
SIDEWINDER FLATS
GUNFIGHT AT DRAGOON SPRINGS
LEFT-HAND GUN
All these books are A Black Horse Western that is published by Robert Hale Ltd

The First Word

All I aim to do is write things about the books I read; the films I watch and the music I listen to.