Review: Top Shelf Western Noir
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 06 11, 2011
In Adventures of Cash Laramie and Gideon Miles, Edward A. Grainger (aka David Cranmer) delivers seven satisfying stories that you shouldn't miss.I'm not always the biggest fan of Westerns, but here the quality trumps any reservations about genre. Not to mention that Grainger skillfully crosses Western with noir and mystery (especially in The Outlaw Marshal, The Bone Orchard Mystery, and Kid Eddie), which makes for a tasty combination.Grainger possesses a gift for characterization and one of the things I enjoyed most about this collection was seeing how Cash Laramie developed--from action hero in The Wind Scorpion to cool compromiser in Under the Sun. But throughout Cash Laramie and his partner, Gideon Miles, are pursuers of justice as they see it. Both prove to be complex and very likable heroes.Under the Sun, co-written with Sandra Seamans, is one entry in the collection that doesn't focus on the duo, instead rotating to the perspective of Delilah, who repays a debt to an Indian, Brave Coyote. Here Grainger and Seamans deal with the political and moral realities of law enforcement in the old West while telling a riveting story.Bottom line: If you like fast pulp action and adventure with real characters and fine writing, you'll love Adventures of Cash Laramie and Gideon Miles.