Beyond the Law: A Western Duo (Thorndike Press Large Print Western) - Hardcover

The featured attraction on this western double bill is “Beyond the Law,” a book-length story, but preceding it is a short subject, “Shadow of a Lobo,” first published in 1947. In it, Cliff Jenson, a mercantile owner, finds his business crippled by usurious fees he has to pay to get supplies through a toll road. A new banker in towns wants to get rid of Jenson’s store, but Jenson has other plans. It’s a typical Overholser western, a story about real-life characters in real-life situations, but it’s over just as you’re settling into it. More satisfying is the main feature, which pits Sherman Rawls, a brutal ranch owner, against Dane Devlin, a gunman hired by a woman to avenge Rawls’ murder of her husband. But Devlin has his own problems, including Keno Kane, a man even nastier than Rawls. Rich in character and story, “Beyond the Law” showcases Overholser’s ability to spin a fresh and exciting yarn with the same raw materials used by countless western writers who came before and after him. --David Pitt