Texas Jack - Book 2

by Pierre Dubois, Dimitri Armand (Illustrator)

Jack and his friends, still attached to Marshal Sykes’ posse, are on
their way to Eagle Town to rendezvous with a cavalry detachment. Yet
there are still questions marks hanging over his mission. Too many
ambushes, too many coincidences … Not to mention that the idea of
sending a circus act to fight a deadly bandit remains a preposterous
idea to Sykes … and that the presence of the too-beautiful Amy
creates tensions between the two teams.

64 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 24, 2021

About the author

Pierre Dubois est né en 1945 à Charleville, dans les Ardennes. D'une enfance passée dans les livres et sur les sentiers forestiers, il retire un amour du merveilleux qui ne le quittera jamais, au point de devoir se créer son propre métier: elficologue. Patiemment, de récits en livres oubliés, il accumule un savoir que, tels ces druides des temps jadis, il n'a de cesse de transmettre. Scénariste de téléfilms et conteur pour France 3 Bretagne, il est également auteur de romans et d'encyclopédies fantastiques ("La Grande Encyclopédie des Lutins", celle des "Fées" et enfin celle des "Elfes", ainsi que "Le dictionnaire de la féérie") qui compilent ses connaissances pléthoriques. Passionné par l'image, il a également beaucoup oeuvré dans la bande dessinée: "Laïyna" avec Hausman, "Lutins et Red Caps" avec Stéphane Duval, "Le Torte" et "Saskia des Vagues" avec Rollin, "Petrus Barbygère" avec Sfar. Une oeuvre aussi fournie que sa barbe qui a vu également fleurir "La Légende du Changeling" réalisée avec Xavier Fourquemin pour Le Lombard, ou encore "Capitaine Trèfle" où il retrouve René Hausman.

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started skimming about a third of the way through.

[Simon Chadwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This concluding part to the tale contains some really incredible art. In a book full of mustachiode, bearded and hat-wearing characters it would be easy to lose track of who was who, but the character design and skilled visual storytelling cut through all that to deliver a coherent, well-paced story.

Closing in on Ironsmoke and his band of riders, Texas Jack and his companions stop off at a trading post to rest. Marshal Sykes is concerned that there's no sign of the promised cavalry that's supposed to support them in apprehending the villains, so asks that everyone waits for him in the saloon while he rides out to seek help. Texas Jack, though, has other ideas. With Sykes out of the way, he tricks the others into leaving for Ironsmoke's stronghold.

This brave-but-foolish behaviour on behalf of Texas Jack reveals him to be a far more complex and interesting hero than he's first painted. But despite the book being named after him, the real hero of the piece is, perhaps, someone else entirely.

I liked the way the story plays with your expectations, delivering on its promises. I'd gladly read more of these stories if they're out there, and certainly more by the creators. Good to see that the Western genre continues to thrive.