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The Last Hard Men
After breaking free from a chain gang, the prisoners seek refuge in the desertZach Provo saw the dawn of the twentieth century from inside the walls of Yuma’s prison. After twenty-eight years on an Arizona chain gang, Provo seizes an opportunity to escape. He smashes one guard’s face with a rock, takes his shotgun, and blows the other guard away. Soon the twenty-eight men of the chain gang are on the loose. Provo sends most of them into the desert to hide, holding back the nine smartest fugitives. While the police hunt for the men who ran, his group waits for nightfall, hidden in the mud of a dry riverbed. At dark they sneak back into Yuma. Escape was only the first part of Zach Provo’s plan. Now comes time to deal with the man who sent him away—and the bloody vengeance of which he has dreamed for decades.
198 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 12, 1971
40 people are currently reading
96 people want to read
About the author
Brian Garfield
106 books78 followersBrian Francis Wynne Garfield was a novelist and screenwriter. He wrote his first published book at the age of eighteen, and gained prominence with 1975 his book Hopscotch, which won the Edgar Award for Best Novel. He is best known for his 1972 novel Death Wish, which was adapted for the 1974 film of the same title, followed by four sequels, and a remake starring Bruce Willis.
His follow-up 1975 sequel to Death Wish, Death Sentence, was very loosely adapted into a film of the same name which was released to theaters in late 2007, though an entirely different storyline, but with the novel's same look on vigilantism. Garfield is also the author of The Thousand-Mile War: World War II in Alaska and the Aleutians, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for History. Garfield's latest book, published in 2007, is Meinertzhagen, the biography of controversial British intelligence officer Richard Meinertzhagen.
Brian Garfield was the author of more than 70 books that sold more than 20 million copies worldwide, and 19 of his works were made into films or TV shows. He also served as president of the Western Writers of America and the Mystery Writers of America.
Pseudonyms:
• Bennett Garland
• John Ives
• Drew Mallory
• Frank O'Brian
• Brian Wynne
• Frank Wynne
His follow-up 1975 sequel to Death Wish, Death Sentence, was very loosely adapted into a film of the same name which was released to theaters in late 2007, though an entirely different storyline, but with the novel's same look on vigilantism. Garfield is also the author of The Thousand-Mile War: World War II in Alaska and the Aleutians, which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for History. Garfield's latest book, published in 2007, is Meinertzhagen, the biography of controversial British intelligence officer Richard Meinertzhagen.
Brian Garfield was the author of more than 70 books that sold more than 20 million copies worldwide, and 19 of his works were made into films or TV shows. He also served as president of the Western Writers of America and the Mystery Writers of America.
Pseudonyms:
• Bennett Garland
• John Ives
• Drew Mallory
• Frank O'Brian
• Brian Wynne
• Frank Wynne
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
October 12, 2019
Brian Garfield was a longtime prolific author who hit it big with "Death Wish". However before that seminal novel he had written many other books- mostly crime thrillers and westerns. He was a good solid professional author. "Gun Down" (later changed to "The Last Hard Men" for the 1976 movie version) is a competently written western set at the end of the Old West and the beginning of the 20th Century in the year 1909. A convict escapes after twenty-eight years in prison and sets out to get revenge on the lawman who put him there. This type of western, set during the transitional period between the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, was almost a genre in it's own right in the sixties and seventies. Personally I like westerns set during this time period (The Wild Bunch, The Ballad of Cable Houge). The old clashing with the new. Maybe because I live in a similar transitional time...... or it's just indicative that I'm getting older.
Mr. Garfield lived for many decades in the southwestern United States and was a lifelong outdoorsman. Many of his novels were set in the southwest and his experience in the desert outdoors provided his westerns with a real feel of authenticity. This is a good oater and will hold your attention. The movie is actually a bit more violent and bloody than the novel so if that's your thing you might find the book a rather sedate affair, but I recommend it to fans of more modern westerns.
Mr. Garfield lived for many decades in the southwestern United States and was a lifelong outdoorsman. Many of his novels were set in the southwest and his experience in the desert outdoors provided his westerns with a real feel of authenticity. This is a good oater and will hold your attention. The movie is actually a bit more violent and bloody than the novel so if that's your thing you might find the book a rather sedate affair, but I recommend it to fans of more modern westerns.
March 29, 2025
The convicts were hard, the lawman was even harder, and the writing was easy. I knew how everything would turn out, but all the action made up for that. Garfield knows Arizona well. He also knows guns. I'm always surprised when the gun content is realistic and I am partial to the 03 Springfield. Garfield also gave me a new maxim “Everybody’s got to die, but nobody’s got to give up.”
January 18, 2018
I don’t typically read western novels – films are my preferred medium for that particular genre – so I’ll admit up front that the only reason I picked up The Last Hard Men because of Brian Garfield’s non-western works such as Death Wish and Hopscotch.
The Last Hard Men (which is actually a 1976 reissue of the 1971 novel Gundown) has two standard western themes running through it. On the surface, The Last Hard Men is a good old fashioned revenge story, as half-Indian convict Zach Provo breaking out of prison - accompanied by a rag-tag group of hardened desperadoes – with the sole intention of delivering bloody, prolonged vengeance to the man who killed his wife and imprisoned him for 37 years, the now ex-Sherrif Max Burgade.
The novel’s Lawmen versus Outlaws revenge story, however, plays out against the backdrop of the even larger conflict of the Old West vs. the New West. Burgade an aging retired lawman, and Provo, a decades-old escaped convict, both represent the “Last Hard Men” of the title, rugged frontiersmen whose extensive knowledge of western terrain is quickly becoming irrelevant in the face of advancing technology. As in other westerns signifying the slow death of the Old West, knowledge of the rapidly diminishing way of life of the older frontiersmen proves to be an asset to Provo’s plans, which leaves the aging lawman Burgade as the only man truly capable of bringing Provo to justice… frontier style.
The Last Hard Men has everything one expects from a decent western, including a plethora of colorful characters and the occasional lesson on tracking or outdoor survival. Garfield is always a solid read, whether it’s western justice or inner-city vigilantism, and The Last Hard Men is no exception.
The Last Hard Men (which is actually a 1976 reissue of the 1971 novel Gundown) has two standard western themes running through it. On the surface, The Last Hard Men is a good old fashioned revenge story, as half-Indian convict Zach Provo breaking out of prison - accompanied by a rag-tag group of hardened desperadoes – with the sole intention of delivering bloody, prolonged vengeance to the man who killed his wife and imprisoned him for 37 years, the now ex-Sherrif Max Burgade.
The novel’s Lawmen versus Outlaws revenge story, however, plays out against the backdrop of the even larger conflict of the Old West vs. the New West. Burgade an aging retired lawman, and Provo, a decades-old escaped convict, both represent the “Last Hard Men” of the title, rugged frontiersmen whose extensive knowledge of western terrain is quickly becoming irrelevant in the face of advancing technology. As in other westerns signifying the slow death of the Old West, knowledge of the rapidly diminishing way of life of the older frontiersmen proves to be an asset to Provo’s plans, which leaves the aging lawman Burgade as the only man truly capable of bringing Provo to justice… frontier style.
The Last Hard Men has everything one expects from a decent western, including a plethora of colorful characters and the occasional lesson on tracking or outdoor survival. Garfield is always a solid read, whether it’s western justice or inner-city vigilantism, and The Last Hard Men is no exception.
November 15, 2021
Like the Wild Bunch, this is about dangerous, bad men at the end of the old west facing the end of their lifestyle. Unlike that film, these men are very bad and dangerous to everyone, including each other.
Well written, tight, almost chillingly realistic and smart, this book pits an escaped convict against the man who put him in prison. But each is old, past their prime, and in a new world with automobiles, telephone lines, and new laws.
Unflinching in its view of criminals and desperate men, this still is a triumph of heroism against evil and does very well in making the criminals a level of at least being respected for their skill and ingenuity, if not their deeds.
Well written, tight, almost chillingly realistic and smart, this book pits an escaped convict against the man who put him in prison. But each is old, past their prime, and in a new world with automobiles, telephone lines, and new laws.
Unflinching in its view of criminals and desperate men, this still is a triumph of heroism against evil and does very well in making the criminals a level of at least being respected for their skill and ingenuity, if not their deeds.
January 9, 2018
Author Brian Garfield is best known for his brutal action thriller, Death Wish, in which an average man goes gunning for revenge against the people who destroyed his family. But Garfield has also been a prolific Western writer as well. That's not all that surprising; turn the clock back a century or so, and Death Wish would have made a good Western. In fact, Garfield explored that same theme of revenge in The Last Hard Men, a book that's as brutal in its own way as Death Wish was.
The Last Hard Men is the story of two men on opposite sides of the law who are obsessed with each other. Sam Burgade is a semi-retired lawman in 1914 Arizona, living with his widowed daughter. Any retirement plans he has, however, are put on hold when Zach Provo and eight other hardened convicts escape from Yuma Prison. Burgade sent Provo to prison over a quarter of a century earlier, following a shootout in which Provo's wife was killed. In retaliation, once he gets out of jail, Provo and his gang kidnap Burgade's daughter and go into hiding on the Navajo Indian Reservation, knowing that a posse can't follow them onto Indian land. Provo also knows that Burgade will still follow them on his own, regardless of the odds against him, in order to rescue his daughter..
The Last Hard Men was originally titled Gun Down but was later made into a film under its current name starring Charlton Heston and James Coburn. The book was later retitled to match the film. Under either title, the book is an example of pulp genre writing at its best. It’s a short, lean work, clocking in at under 200 pages with little time for transitional scenes. The book is written in chapters that alternate between Burgade’s and Provo’s points of view, with readers being plunged right into scenes with little explanation, requiring them to catch up. It’s a bit disconcerting at first, but later adds to the book’s relentless pace and building of suspense.
Although The Last Hard Men is primarily an action book, author Garfield doesn’t skimp on the literary touches either. The book contains some wonderfully descriptive language, such as this sentence about a secondary character: “God had made Sheriff Noel Nye as ugly as He could and then hit him in the face with a shovel.” The book has plenty of evocative language like that, and when the action heads into the mountains, readers will have a real sense of the scenery. Garfield also makes The Last Hard Men, to a considerable extent, a duel of wits rather than merely of guns. Over and over, readers get into the heads of both Burgade and Provo as they try to figure out each other’s moves and plan their strategies. While the book is a test of wills between two men who genuinely hate each other and want to bring each other down, it’s not just a quick-draw contest, but a lengthy chess game.
While The Last Hard Men is a good, competent Western, it had the makings of a great one, but the author didn’t follow up on the plot threads he so carefully established. He makes a point to set the story in 1914, but, other than a side reference or two to “modern” technology and current events, it could just as easily taken place 30 years earlier. Similarly, Garfield touches on Burgade’s advancing age and his feelings that he has lost his edge, but, primarily, the author uses that to build suspense in the last section of the story, when Burgade takes on Provo’s gang.
Although Brian Garfield isn’t at Elmore Leonard’s level, especially in regard to his use of dialogue, which is merely serviceable (and contains some annoying intentional misspellings to capture the villains’ “dialect”), The Last Hard Men is a solid short novel that most people will want to finish in one sitting. (I’d also recommend the movie to those who can find it.) Western fiction, especially of the pulp variety, tends to be overlooked, even by fans of action thrillers. The Last Hard Men, however, is one tale worth tracking down.
The Last Hard Men is the story of two men on opposite sides of the law who are obsessed with each other. Sam Burgade is a semi-retired lawman in 1914 Arizona, living with his widowed daughter. Any retirement plans he has, however, are put on hold when Zach Provo and eight other hardened convicts escape from Yuma Prison. Burgade sent Provo to prison over a quarter of a century earlier, following a shootout in which Provo's wife was killed. In retaliation, once he gets out of jail, Provo and his gang kidnap Burgade's daughter and go into hiding on the Navajo Indian Reservation, knowing that a posse can't follow them onto Indian land. Provo also knows that Burgade will still follow them on his own, regardless of the odds against him, in order to rescue his daughter..
The Last Hard Men was originally titled Gun Down but was later made into a film under its current name starring Charlton Heston and James Coburn. The book was later retitled to match the film. Under either title, the book is an example of pulp genre writing at its best. It’s a short, lean work, clocking in at under 200 pages with little time for transitional scenes. The book is written in chapters that alternate between Burgade’s and Provo’s points of view, with readers being plunged right into scenes with little explanation, requiring them to catch up. It’s a bit disconcerting at first, but later adds to the book’s relentless pace and building of suspense.
Although The Last Hard Men is primarily an action book, author Garfield doesn’t skimp on the literary touches either. The book contains some wonderfully descriptive language, such as this sentence about a secondary character: “God had made Sheriff Noel Nye as ugly as He could and then hit him in the face with a shovel.” The book has plenty of evocative language like that, and when the action heads into the mountains, readers will have a real sense of the scenery. Garfield also makes The Last Hard Men, to a considerable extent, a duel of wits rather than merely of guns. Over and over, readers get into the heads of both Burgade and Provo as they try to figure out each other’s moves and plan their strategies. While the book is a test of wills between two men who genuinely hate each other and want to bring each other down, it’s not just a quick-draw contest, but a lengthy chess game.
While The Last Hard Men is a good, competent Western, it had the makings of a great one, but the author didn’t follow up on the plot threads he so carefully established. He makes a point to set the story in 1914, but, other than a side reference or two to “modern” technology and current events, it could just as easily taken place 30 years earlier. Similarly, Garfield touches on Burgade’s advancing age and his feelings that he has lost his edge, but, primarily, the author uses that to build suspense in the last section of the story, when Burgade takes on Provo’s gang.
Although Brian Garfield isn’t at Elmore Leonard’s level, especially in regard to his use of dialogue, which is merely serviceable (and contains some annoying intentional misspellings to capture the villains’ “dialect”), The Last Hard Men is a solid short novel that most people will want to finish in one sitting. (I’d also recommend the movie to those who can find it.) Western fiction, especially of the pulp variety, tends to be overlooked, even by fans of action thrillers. The Last Hard Men, however, is one tale worth tracking down.
September 21, 2021
It's 1913 and Zach Provo, along with eight murderous companions, breaks out of Yuma prison. Provo's one purpose in life is to take revenge on Sam Burgade, the lawman who sent him to prison 28 years ago.
That plan includes kidnapping Burgade's daughter. This in turn leads to the aging lawman doggedly trailing Provo, knowing that this is what Provo wants but knowing that he has no choice.
The plot generates an incredible amount of suspense as Burgade, battling exhaustion and simple old age, has to eventually come up with a plan for taking out nine bad guys and get his daughter back alive. The final action sequences, with Provo and Burgade trying to outsmart each other as they manuever through the landscape, is fantastic.
That plan includes kidnapping Burgade's daughter. This in turn leads to the aging lawman doggedly trailing Provo, knowing that this is what Provo wants but knowing that he has no choice.
The plot generates an incredible amount of suspense as Burgade, battling exhaustion and simple old age, has to eventually come up with a plan for taking out nine bad guys and get his daughter back alive. The final action sequences, with Provo and Burgade trying to outsmart each other as they manuever through the landscape, is fantastic.
August 11, 2023
A Gritty Western
This book tells a story of two men. One of them lives for revenge and the other lives for earlier times. Sam Burgade and Zach Provo are two of of a dying breed of men that once were a part of the Old West. Now Zach Provo has broken out of Yuma Prison to take revenge on Sam Burgade, retired lawman. The thing that drew me to this story was the character of Provo and Burgade they are the last hard men and only one can survive their duel or maybe no one will survive. In a way both men are not all that likeable, but you will enjoy the day and mouse game that plays out between them.
This book tells a story of two men. One of them lives for revenge and the other lives for earlier times. Sam Burgade and Zach Provo are two of of a dying breed of men that once were a part of the Old West. Now Zach Provo has broken out of Yuma Prison to take revenge on Sam Burgade, retired lawman. The thing that drew me to this story was the character of Provo and Burgade they are the last hard men and only one can survive their duel or maybe no one will survive. In a way both men are not all that likeable, but you will enjoy the day and mouse game that plays out between them.
June 22, 2023
Straightforward revenge tale set in the dying days of the west. A vicious criminal breaks out of prison and sets out to take revenge on the aging, retired lawman that put him away almost 20 years ago. It’s short and mean, probably the most interesting thing is its setting at the end of the “west” and the beginning of the modern 20th century. A lot in common with The Wild Bunch and apparently it was made into a movie with Charleston Heston and James Coburn that I’ll have to track down at some point.
January 16, 2026
A great Western in the spirit of "The Wild Bunch". There might not be William Holden and Ernest Borgnine holding this thing together, but Provo and Burgade are two rival shootists with a bone to pick, and they're fascinating. Also the descriptions of firearms and the Arizona wilderness are accurate, detailed, and make you feel like you're in the story with these people. If you like westerns about the end of the outlaw era, this is the one for you.
May 16, 2018
Great book
This is my first Brian Garfield novel and it was a great book. The writing was superb. The characters had depth, history and motivation. The dialogue was also very good. This book had me hooked from the very beginning.
I highly recommend this book and I will definitely read more from this author.
This is my first Brian Garfield novel and it was a great book. The writing was superb. The characters had depth, history and motivation. The dialogue was also very good. This book had me hooked from the very beginning.
I highly recommend this book and I will definitely read more from this author.
May 20, 2021
Feud between Old West lawman and outlaw is lived out by characters in early 1900's. This story is good not only for its action, but for interesting and sometimes wistful glimpses of iconic Old West emerging into the 20th Century.
August 28, 2023
The Last Hard Men Review
Good western action, brilliant descriptions of the frontier, and great characterization describe this book. However, the main benefit is the authors description of how the sheriff. Thinks and plans and how the outlaw counter thinks and plans.
Good western action, brilliant descriptions of the frontier, and great characterization describe this book. However, the main benefit is the authors description of how the sheriff. Thinks and plans and how the outlaw counter thinks and plans.
May 29, 2025
Good reading for a week’s vacation
Plot moves right along and held my attention until the end.
(Too bad the e-book format had some minor typos.)
Plot moves right along and held my attention until the end.
(Too bad the e-book format had some minor typos.)
December 2, 2013
Man I just wrote a whole review and GoodReads ate it. That's strike one, GoodReads.
Anyway this novel can be described by the key word in its title: HARD. I don't know why the title was changed from GUNDOWN to THE LAST HARD MEN. Really the original title makes a little more sense. I admit I snagged this book from the Bill Macabe paperback collection because it shared a name with a supergroup rock band I love, comprised of Sebastian Bach (Skid Row), Jimmy Flemion (The Frogs), Jimmy Chamberlin (Smashing Pumpkins), and Kelley Deal (The Breeders). The book ended up being awesome, though! A pretty straightforward western with its manly characters doing manly things and gettin' manly in the American southwest.
The paperback copy of the book that I have has a still image from the film version, and I have been really curious to see the movie of THE LAST HARD MEN, but it appears to be mostly or exclusively unavailable. Reckon I'll have to keep digging. James Coburn and Charlton Heston and Barbara Hershey and Michael Parks are in it!
Anyway it's a quick read, and it's pretty impressive that it has a dozen or so distinct main or main-ish characters for its 224 pages. Read it if you can find a copy! It's not Garfield's best-known work. I got a copy of DEATH WISH from (I assume) the same place I got the paperback I have of this. I remember seeing HOPSCOTCH there, with a still of Walter Matthau on the front and everything, but I neglected to get that one and I do regret it. I might have to seek it out elsewhere...
Anyway this novel can be described by the key word in its title: HARD. I don't know why the title was changed from GUNDOWN to THE LAST HARD MEN. Really the original title makes a little more sense. I admit I snagged this book from the Bill Macabe paperback collection because it shared a name with a supergroup rock band I love, comprised of Sebastian Bach (Skid Row), Jimmy Flemion (The Frogs), Jimmy Chamberlin (Smashing Pumpkins), and Kelley Deal (The Breeders). The book ended up being awesome, though! A pretty straightforward western with its manly characters doing manly things and gettin' manly in the American southwest.
The paperback copy of the book that I have has a still image from the film version, and I have been really curious to see the movie of THE LAST HARD MEN, but it appears to be mostly or exclusively unavailable. Reckon I'll have to keep digging. James Coburn and Charlton Heston and Barbara Hershey and Michael Parks are in it!
Anyway it's a quick read, and it's pretty impressive that it has a dozen or so distinct main or main-ish characters for its 224 pages. Read it if you can find a copy! It's not Garfield's best-known work. I got a copy of DEATH WISH from (I assume) the same place I got the paperback I have of this. I remember seeing HOPSCOTCH there, with a still of Walter Matthau on the front and everything, but I neglected to get that one and I do regret it. I might have to seek it out elsewhere...
February 25, 2012
This was an excellent western by the author of "Death Wish" (another great read). Very suspenseful, had me hooked from the first page, all the way to the end.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews