The Trial at Apache Junction

by Lewis B. Patten

Book by Patten, Lewis B.

Mass Market Paperback

Published March 1, 1977

About the author

aka Lewis Ford, Len Leighton, Joseph Wayne (with Wayne D. Overholser)

Lewis Byford Patten was a prolific author of American Western Novels, born in Denver, Colorado. Often published under the names Lewis Ford, Len Leighto and, Joseph Wayne.

Reviews

[Josh Hitch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great western by one of the masters. Sheriff Buck has Kincaid in jail and sentenced to hang for killing a man who was evicting him from a homestead. The cattlemen want him dead but the settlers say they wouldn't let him hang. On top of this, Buck has a terrible deputy that wants his job and the condemned man also was sleeping with the judge's wife making the matters of legality a little suspect. Buck is right in the middle of this mess and he knows no matter what he does, he is going to be in great danger.

Highly recommended, never read a bad Patten book and this is his version of High Noon in a way but with added elements. A fast read that always keeps your interest.

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is taut and well written. I loved the writing, and the moral ambiguities. This is not a simple good vs evil story, the hero, Owen Buck, tries to follow his honor which means not allowing a man to be executed because of an unfair trial, even though the man is actually guilty. There are a lot of shades of grey in this book, and the plot is handled very well. I loved this book, and look forward to reading more by Lewis Patten.

[Benjamin Chandler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Apache Junction is a boiling pot that's about to bubble over. Johnny McGrath, the town playboy, staked a claim in the middle of one of the local cattlemen's hayfields. When confronted by the ranchers, McGrath shot one of the men dead, claiming self-defense. Unluckily for him, the judge who presided over the trial is the husband of one of the women McGrath was sleeping with. The judge sentences McGrath to hang. As the hanging date approaches, factions in Apache Junction are heating up. Some think McGrath doesn't deserve a severe punishment. Others don't think he can be hanged soon enough. In the middle of it all is Sheriff Buck, trying to keep the peace and see that the law is followed.

Buck thinks McGrath's sentencing was fueled by revenge and that the man is being punished for something he wasn't technically on trial for. This is the beauty of this book. McGrath is actually a rotten guy but Buck feels uncomfortable over the way everything was handled. The novel follows his efforts to make sure that the law is actually being followed in Apache Junction. Meanwhile, McGrath's allies plot his escape and Buck's deputy connives to take over Buck's job. The poor sheriff has to juggle half a dozen problems as the hanging date nears.

I really appreciated this different kind of western. No one was battling the elements, the hero was not out for revenge, there were no marauding Indian war parties. Just a good dude in a tight spot (that gets tighter as the novel progresses) with no easy way out.

[Theresa Lange · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good western