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Gunfighter's Reputation #6
Ride to Hell's Gate
Drowning his sorrows in alcohol after the death of his beloved Rosa, Lawrence Shaw, once the fastest gun alive, gets a second chance at life when he starts working on a ranch, but the brutal Barrows Brothers Gang has other plans for him. Original.
- GenresWesterns
304 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published September 1, 2008
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37 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 6, 2019
An action-packed western. Loved it!
May 25, 2025
Lawrence Shaw is the fastest gun alive. But since the death of his beloved Rosa, his shots have come from a bottle. He gets a second chance at life when he starts working for a widowed rancher. Unfortunately, the Barrows Brothers Gang has other plans, including stealing horses and spilling blood. Fast Larry, with Cray Dawson and his partner, Jedson Caldwell—no slouches themselves with .45 Colts—go after the Barrows and light up both sides of the Rio Grande.
Ralph Cotton continues to amaze with his "Lawrence Shaw" western series. These books are the essence of page-turners; once you start one, you'll probably finish it the same day. Something worth noting is that Lawrence Shaw is sidelined for the majority of this book. Cray Dawson and Jedson Caldwell are the real protagonists here, and it's all about the quest for revenge they go on. which worked great for me because that's really what made the other Cotton book I read, "Escape from Fire River" work so well. I think the revenge aspect is better here; in "Escape" it's really about the hunt, but here it's about the tragedy of the western life, and it almost has biblical proportions. Lawrence Shaw is at his lowest point in this book; his wife Rosa was murdered, and he drowns his pain in alcohol, even during the opening chapter at the duel, seemingly accepting his fate and wanting to be in Rosa's embrace again. He makes a triumphant return by the end of the story, but I don't think he'll ever be the same again, at least mentally.
4/5; check it out.
Ralph Cotton continues to amaze with his "Lawrence Shaw" western series. These books are the essence of page-turners; once you start one, you'll probably finish it the same day. Something worth noting is that Lawrence Shaw is sidelined for the majority of this book. Cray Dawson and Jedson Caldwell are the real protagonists here, and it's all about the quest for revenge they go on. which worked great for me because that's really what made the other Cotton book I read, "Escape from Fire River" work so well. I think the revenge aspect is better here; in "Escape" it's really about the hunt, but here it's about the tragedy of the western life, and it almost has biblical proportions. Lawrence Shaw is at his lowest point in this book; his wife Rosa was murdered, and he drowns his pain in alcohol, even during the opening chapter at the duel, seemingly accepting his fate and wanting to be in Rosa's embrace again. He makes a triumphant return by the end of the story, but I don't think he'll ever be the same again, at least mentally.
4/5; check it out.
January 21, 2020
I love watching western movies, but have not read many books of that genre.
Ride to Hell's Gate
played out like a western film and I thoroughly enjoyed the story of Lawrence 'Fast Larry' Shaw who begins the story as a drunk, but as the story unfolds, the fastest gun in the west hunts down the Barrow Brothers Gang, after they kill off his love interest, Anna, and his friend, Sheriff Luna.
I love some of the characters in this book, along with a fantastic story.
I love some of the characters in this book, along with a fantastic story.
June 17, 2017
Another exciting and well-told tale by Ralph Cotton, one of my most favorite western writers. A good western will cleanse the palette of all the zombie and survivalist novels you’ve been reading. Fast Larry Shaw is handing out some justice for a woman he had feelings for; his brand of justice. The Barrows Brothers Gang is next on his list. Plenty of action with great characters.
October 7, 2023
I’ve never read a Ralph Cotton book before. He has a lot of action and little people description. Second chapter was a murder. Fourth chapter was another death. After that there was about a shootout or killing every chapter. In the real west it wasn’t this bloody. But it was a good read and interesting ways the plot split and reconnected. It was fast and good like the fastest gun in the west.
April 10, 2020
Hadn't read the earlier novels featuring these characters,which I generally avoid, but enjoyed the story overall although the end felt weak.
July 22, 2017
Of all the books in this series, which focuses on the fastest gun alive, Lawrence Shaw, and his friend, Clay Dawson, this was my least favorite. I'm not saying I didn't enjoy this novel, because it was well written, and of all the western writers I'm familiar with, I enjoy Ralph Cotton perhaps the most.
In this installment, Shaw basically has a death wish, and couldn't care whether he lives or dies. He's in Matamoros, Mexico, drinking himself to death, and in the beginning, he gets shot in the shoulder and barely survives after the local sheriff saves him. His friend Clay Dawson, and their sidekick, a former undertaker, Caldwell, are "lawdogs" in pursuit of the infamous Barrows gang, under secret orders from both the American and Mexican governments to exterminate the gang with extreme prejudice. Clay, a fundamentally moral gunfighter, has moral issues with this directive, but cognizant of the gang's villainy, he agrees to the commission, and exterminate he does. Eventually, Shaw, Dawson, and Caldwell hook up, and after a few adventures and misadventures, they find themselves riding to Hell's Gate to settle an old score and take down the local warlord, Sepreano. Since this is a western, and this series continues, you can well anticipate the ending.
The writing here is as good as in any of the prior novels. Indeed, I cannot put my finger on exactly why I didn't enjoy this as much. Perhaps it's because Shaw and Dawson spend most of the novel separated. Also, while the violence is effective, it isn't nearly as satisfyingly gratuitous as it has been in previous novels in the series. I'm not eager for gore, but I just felt the shots come too quickly, and very little time is spent really analyzing the aftermath of the various encounters. In short, some of the action sequences are just too short; the build up isn't there...the build up I've come to expect from Cotton, and always get with Louis Lamour. Now, I will continue reading this series as I have a great respect for these men I've come to care about, admire, and respect. They are good, decent men who work hard, who regret the necessity of killing, but who don't hesitate to protect themselves and the lives of the innocent. They are my favorite western heroes to date, with Lance Kilkenny a short second. I am only giving this two stars because it doesn't live up to the excellence I'm used to with this series, but it is by no means a bad novel, and in fact, I am quite sure I will read it again in the future.
N.B. Listening to an audiobook should not count toward the Reading challenge. Reading is reading. Listening is listening. They are not the same thing.
In this installment, Shaw basically has a death wish, and couldn't care whether he lives or dies. He's in Matamoros, Mexico, drinking himself to death, and in the beginning, he gets shot in the shoulder and barely survives after the local sheriff saves him. His friend Clay Dawson, and their sidekick, a former undertaker, Caldwell, are "lawdogs" in pursuit of the infamous Barrows gang, under secret orders from both the American and Mexican governments to exterminate the gang with extreme prejudice. Clay, a fundamentally moral gunfighter, has moral issues with this directive, but cognizant of the gang's villainy, he agrees to the commission, and exterminate he does. Eventually, Shaw, Dawson, and Caldwell hook up, and after a few adventures and misadventures, they find themselves riding to Hell's Gate to settle an old score and take down the local warlord, Sepreano. Since this is a western, and this series continues, you can well anticipate the ending.
The writing here is as good as in any of the prior novels. Indeed, I cannot put my finger on exactly why I didn't enjoy this as much. Perhaps it's because Shaw and Dawson spend most of the novel separated. Also, while the violence is effective, it isn't nearly as satisfyingly gratuitous as it has been in previous novels in the series. I'm not eager for gore, but I just felt the shots come too quickly, and very little time is spent really analyzing the aftermath of the various encounters. In short, some of the action sequences are just too short; the build up isn't there...the build up I've come to expect from Cotton, and always get with Louis Lamour. Now, I will continue reading this series as I have a great respect for these men I've come to care about, admire, and respect. They are good, decent men who work hard, who regret the necessity of killing, but who don't hesitate to protect themselves and the lives of the innocent. They are my favorite western heroes to date, with Lance Kilkenny a short second. I am only giving this two stars because it doesn't live up to the excellence I'm used to with this series, but it is by no means a bad novel, and in fact, I am quite sure I will read it again in the future.
N.B. Listening to an audiobook should not count toward the Reading challenge. Reading is reading. Listening is listening. They are not the same thing.
February 17, 2011
I thought this was a pretty good western. Ralph Cotton is one of the better western author's I have read.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews