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Ranger #33
Shadow River
KNOW YOUR ENEMY.
Arizona Ranger Sam Burrack is a predator lying in wait. He’s undercover as an outlaw to infiltrate a pair of vicious border gangs and bring them down. This mission has already had its share of casualties, and if Burrack has his say, there will be more.
A cloud of dust rises as four men ride toward the Twisted Hills. The only thing between them and certain death at the hands of the Apaches is Sam, who also wants those men dead. But fighting in a land where gunfire draws a rain of arrows means silence is golden, and if Sam keeps his wits about him, he’ll be painting these hills red.
More Than 2.5 Million Ralph Cotton Books in Print
Arizona Ranger Sam Burrack is a predator lying in wait. He’s undercover as an outlaw to infiltrate a pair of vicious border gangs and bring them down. This mission has already had its share of casualties, and if Burrack has his say, there will be more.
A cloud of dust rises as four men ride toward the Twisted Hills. The only thing between them and certain death at the hands of the Apaches is Sam, who also wants those men dead. But fighting in a land where gunfire draws a rain of arrows means silence is golden, and if Sam keeps his wits about him, he’ll be painting these hills red.
More Than 2.5 Million Ralph Cotton Books in Print
- GenresWesterns
305 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 4, 2014
15 people are currently reading
31 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
April 21, 2023
I’ve been a western buff since childhood, so I’m not sure why it’s taken me this long to read a Ralph Cotton western, as he’s been on my radar for some time now. Maybe it’s because his name is too similar to that of the late Ralph Compton, whose byline he has written under, or maybe it’s because I tend to be leery of authors as prolific as Cotton has been. Either way, and for whatever reason, I’m glad I decided to give him a chance. Shadow River may not be the best entry point to Cotton or his Ranger Sam Burrack westerns, but thanks to Berkley Publishing Group’s failure to print 2023 editions of the series in chronological order, I had little choice but to start with what appears to be the third novel in a trilogy. To his credit, Cotton does a pretty good job of making this book work as a standalone novel. As traditional westerns go, Shadow River is a solid, engaging read. The writing is thoughtful and assured, the details of landscape and time period seem well-informed, and the clipped dialogue is believable and relatively free of embarrassing anachronisms. I liked it so much that I’m already well into my second Sam Burrack western, and I’ve ordered two more.
If you enjoy a well-made western and are looking for something a cut above the shoddy genre fare currently being churned out by Pinnacle and Wolfpack Publishing, you could do worse than Ralph Cotton and Sam Burrack.
If you enjoy a well-made western and are looking for something a cut above the shoddy genre fare currently being churned out by Pinnacle and Wolfpack Publishing, you could do worse than Ralph Cotton and Sam Burrack.
October 13, 2021
Surprisingly humorous, this is a generally well-written Western, apparently part of a series, though that's not made clear in this edition.
This is as much character-driven as it is action-driven.
Usually I don't like series entries -- don't like series -- but I like this enough to look for more from Ralph Cotton and to recommend it to other Westerns readers.
This is as much character-driven as it is action-driven.
Usually I don't like series entries -- don't like series -- but I like this enough to look for more from Ralph Cotton and to recommend it to other Westerns readers.
January 12, 2018
A good novel and I enjoyed reading this novel. I recommend this book to everyone.
March 8, 2022
Other than being an idiot releasing a wounded panther, this is a good story and fast paced.
January 3, 2017
"ON THE RUN"
The Ranger undercover tracking and eventually becoming a member of the gang. Discovering who "Mr Big" is, lots of action and backstabbing. Men who have survived on the fringes of a so called society...no big ideas of grandeur..if you call descent food, a place to live..some sort of livelihood...rancher, store owner..just something of their own to keep the rain off your head. Men who wanted to become rich not by honest work, but by robbery, pillaging..anything and anyway to make a few dollars that never lasted. The Ranger doesn't seem to like this part of law, going undercover..Sometimes there isn't to much distance between lawmen and robbers..You know, why don't you read this adventure and you decide what your summation of these men and sometimes women outcome will be...
The Ranger undercover tracking and eventually becoming a member of the gang. Discovering who "Mr Big" is, lots of action and backstabbing. Men who have survived on the fringes of a so called society...no big ideas of grandeur..if you call descent food, a place to live..some sort of livelihood...rancher, store owner..just something of their own to keep the rain off your head. Men who wanted to become rich not by honest work, but by robbery, pillaging..anything and anyway to make a few dollars that never lasted. The Ranger doesn't seem to like this part of law, going undercover..Sometimes there isn't to much distance between lawmen and robbers..You know, why don't you read this adventure and you decide what your summation of these men and sometimes women outcome will be...
July 10, 2014
Ralph Cotton provides an adventure into the old west with his book Shadow River. I enjoyed traveling with Sam Burrack, the Arizona Ranger, as he tries to infiltrate and break up a gang of bandits. During his ordeal he encounters Indians, Mexican soldiers and ma nature. A comfortable book to read.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews