Wyatt Earp

by Matt Braun

Before the legend, there was the man...and a powerful destiny to fulfill.

On October 26, 1881, three outlaws lay dead in a dusty vacant lot in Tombstone, Arizona. Standing over them-- Colts smoking-- were Wyatt Earp, his two brothers Morgan and Virgil, and a gun-slinging gambler named Doc Holliday. The shootout at the O.K. Corral was over-- but for Earp, the fight had just begun.

Wyatt Earp was a man who craved fame, power and prominence. He came to Tombstone with a plan to get elected sheriff, and a dream of building the biggest business empire the booming mining town had ever seen.

But by Christmas, both his brothers had been struck down, and their assassins were coming after him and Doc Holliday. For Earp, a man of ambition and pride, it would mean putting aside his dream for one last fight...not for glory, but revenge.

Genres: Westerns, Fiction, Historical Fiction

304 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published June 15, 1994

About the author

Matt Braun is an author of fifty-six books, most of which are in the Western genre and has over 40 million copies in print.

Reviews

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fairly good re-telling of the gunfight at the OK Corral. Humanizes the Earps and the outlaws more than some of these types of books. The shootouts themselves are pretty good.

You know what is going to happen before you even open the cover, but it's the ride that makes this worthwhile.

[Harold Cheetham · Rating 5 out of 5]

great read. if you like Westerns you will want to read this one.

[Callum Hyslop · Rating 5 out of 5]

An amazing book, I would read again!

[Alton Motobu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast-paced story about events leading up to the shootout at the OK Corral and the aftermath. Story line covers about a week and is in three parts: the immediate events prior to the shootout, the shootout itself, and 3-4 days thereafter. Non-stop action. Nothing deep; no psychological analysis about what made Wyatt tick and how he was affected by all the violence around him. This is a standard western with he-man heroes and vile villains. Enjoyable if you are an aficionado of this genre.

[The Wayward Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

(This is my first time writing a book review so apologies if it's all over the place.)

I've always had a soft spot for movies set in the wild west. My first exposure to Wyatt earp was the movie Tombstone and I thoroughly enjoyed it. So when I saw this novel I thought I'd give it a go.

What I got was an action adventure historical fiction novel, and I loved every page of it. Much like the legend and myth around Earp this novel had a unique charm to it. I felt it shed a new light on Earp's motivation's, why he was so determined to become sheriff and what it would do for Tombstone. All the central characters felt like they had more to them, even the 'Bad guys' had motivation and were just relegated to "Oh we're just mean." stereotypes. After all these were real people, living often dangerous lives.

The novel itself details the events leading up to the gunfight at the O.K. Corral and it's immediate aftermath. The flow of the novel was fast paced with enough there to keep me intrigued as to what would happen next (despite knowing the outcome.) The action scenes as well were well done and felt intense, there was weight to them. My only gripe would be the final act felt a bit rushed.

As for the historical accuracy that's where I falter slightly, however I felt that this was yet another version of the legend and with that in mind I was happy to overlook some inaccuracies. After all this is just another retelling of a western legend. Though upon saying that the novel has made me research the events and the people involved, so in a way it's succeeded in another form.

Whilst not a mammoth read (I read it in four days) it was still a fun read. All in all I would say if you want a fun, action packed western adventure you should pick this up.

[Kevin Findley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many other books I've read on Earp and the OK Corral are often over the top when it comes to the deadly details of what is probably the most well-known gunfight of the Old West. Here, Braun clearly shows that the gunfight was only the start of a series of foolish decisions by everyone involved. Although Earp and his brothers had the law on their side, they clearly exerted their influence for political purposes. There is being right and correct. The Earp's were right, but nothing correct was done IMHO.

Taken as a traditional, rip-snortin' tale of the West, this was a great book! The author has an incredible body of work behind him and it shows with this novel. His love for this time period and the characters shines through on every page. My only gripe is that more background could have been given to the villains so I could enjoy their deaths even more than I did. Yeah, that's kind of bloodthirsty, but that's fine. Stop reading now if you disagree.

Recommended for Western fans and a must read for fans of Wyatt Earp especially.

Find it! Buy it! READ IT!

[Mary Arkless · Rating 3 out of 5]

This wouldn't normally be a book I would read, but one topic in my reading challenge was a book about a sheriff. I had certainly heard about the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, so I thought this might teach me something about it.

Wyatt Earp's running for the office of sherrif of Cochise County was the main cause of what happened in this telling of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. Also, one of Wyatt Earp's key opponents throughout the story was the sitting Sheriff Behan. Earp was running against Behan to become sheriff, was a US Marshall during this story, and had been a lawman before these events.

This is based on the facts of Wyatt Earp's life, but is a fictional story. My main complaint with this book is that women are only there to throw themselves at the men in their lives to make wild love to them, look pretty on the men's arms, or nurse them back to good health after a shootout.

[Sherri Bryant · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ever since visiting Tombstone, Arizona and standing on the very ground that Wyatt, his brothers and Doc Holliday stood on, I became intrigued with the story of the shootout at the O.K. Corral and began searching for all reading material he could find on it and Wyatt Earp.

The book reads like a novel instead of a fact-based biography. If you like studying historical events and the people around them, Wyatt Earp was a fascinating character.

[Marcus Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I may have reached that age where I am becoming my dad. I really enjoyed reading this book and may now have to read all my dad's western books u have bought him over the years. Also, I need to watch the movie Tombstone 🪦 again now.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Couldn't put this book down. It also prompted me to research The Gunfight at the OK Corral.

[Keith B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this a long time back and am again struck by his obvious less than favourable take on Wyatt.

[Nen · Rating 2 out of 5]

⭐️2.7 was alright nice change of scene but a bit too "old fashioned" for my liking

[Jake · Rating 3 out of 5]

There wasn’t anything especially memorable about this book. I read it. I enjoyed it. It’s a straightforward shoot ‘em up rendition of the famous Wyatt Earp story/legend. It held my interest, but failed to stand above other renditions. If you want to read everything you can about Mr. Earp and the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, then you probably won’t waste your time trying out this novel.

For a non-fiction historical account, I recommend Wyatt Earp: The Life Behind the Legend .

[Clare · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fairly decent historical novel about the legend Wyatt Earp.

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like Westerns usually but I believed this book was first class and gave the same impression of WYATT as I had built up over the years.

Book will be on sale on www.mingbooks.co.uk