Gunpowder Express (A Widowmaker Jones Western)
This is the third novel in Cogburn’s Western historical fiction series featuring Newt “Widowmaker” Jones, a down-on-his-luck pugilist forced to take work as he can in the Arizona territories in 1884. After a dirty fight seriously fells him, Jones is forced to play security to a stagecoach full of gold and a mysterious, veiled woman. The infamous Gunpowder Express – the route from the gold mines to the railroad – is prime hunting ground for bandits and robbers, but Jones finds himself facing a fearless gang determined to get this gold at all costs.
Coburn’s story doesn’t require readers to be familiar with the previous two Widowmaker novels; his richly described narrative style offers enough background to Jones’ life and past to allow readers to jump into the series and enjoy the unfolding action. Inspired by the notoriety and danger of real-life mining towns, Cogburn’s historical details are sandwiched between cinematic fights and dialogue (“Marshal, I don’t know if there’s such a thing as an innocent man,” Newt said. “Not a one of us.”) that evokes classic Westerns. The familiar ambiance of the Western is kept fresh in Cogburn’s sure hands.
