Stillwater Smith

by Frank Roderus

A lean and grizzled Civil War veteran, Stillwater Smith determines to keep his temper in check, until cattle rancher Asa Wheeler tries to take his property and forces him into a deadly showdown. Original.

Genres: Westerns

192 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1986

About the author

Frank Roderus wrote his first story—it was a western—when he was five. It was really awful, as might be expected, but his mother kept that typed and spell-checked short story tucked away until the day she died.
Later, Frank became a newspaper reporter, thinking that books are written by authors which he most assuredly was not. He kept trying to write though, and eventually did it wrong enough to learn how to get it right. That first sale, a young adult novel published by Independence Press, was more than thirty years and a good many books ago.
As a journalist, the Colorado Press Association awarded Frank Roderus their highest award, the Sweepstakes Award, for the best news story of 1980, and the Western Writers of America has twice named Frank recipient of their prestigious Spur Award. Frank passed away at age 73 in December 2015.

Reviews

[Steve Hockensmith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somewhere or other when I was looking for information on this book I saw old promotional copy that described it as "action-packed." Ha. No. This book is definitely not packed with action. But that doesn't mean it's packed with yawns. Roderus is a good writer and storyteller, even when he's telling a tale where the lack of action seems to be the point.

You know all those Westerns and action movies where the tough-guy hero vows to set aside violence and live life peacefully but the dang villains just *force* him to grit his teeth, roll up his sleeves and kill them all? This is like one of those, except that the hero here (Stillwater Smith, put-upon semi-recluse living alone in the hills of...well, Roderus never says) *really* takes his vow seriously. Like, long after most readers are saying, "OMG, dude -- kill this piece of %#@& already!" But Roderus doesn't seem interested in that kind of pandering. He prefers describing how Stillwater fishes and puts up fences and slowly builds a future with a widow and her cognitively impaired daughter. As a result not much happens in the book, yet it's still an engaging and satisfying story that (unlike a lot of books and movies) practices what it preaches and gives peace a chance.

I read Roderus' "Easy Money" last year, and though it was more traditionally "action packed" than "Stillwater Smith" it also emphasized character development and moral quandaries over brawling and gunfights. I liked it a lot. There's definitely more Frank Roderus in my future.

[Lowell Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

great story, enjoyable reading,
.

[kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Asoft 4.

[Jeff Benham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very simply, Stillwater Smith has been through the Civil War. Now he is just a hillside farmer that wants to be left alone. Unfortunately, a wealthy cattleman has come to town with plans to disrupt his quiet life. Cattle need water and they need to divert some of Stillwater's to do it. Smith checks out the contract and then checks out how they really plan to divert the water and is none to pleased with what he finds. The cattleman's nephew likes to do the pushing, but there comes a point where he pushes too far. If you are expecting a lot of shootem ups and bar brawls, you won't find them here. What you will find refreshing, is a good honest tale of the Old West.

[Robin Steele · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can't go wrong with anything by Frank Roderus.

[Sheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't usually go for westerns but I enjoyed this one.