Not a great cover on this issue of TEXAS RANGERS, but the Jim Hatfield novel "Brand of the Lawless" is a good one. It's one of three Hatfield novels by J. Edward Leithead, who brings his own distinctive style to the series. For a long time I didn't know who wrote this novel, along with "Gun Harvest" and "Riders of the Shadows", but I knew they were all by the same person. I used to refer to him as "the Coltman author", because of his habit of using the word "Coltman" instead of "gunman". I believe it was Jim Griffin who came across that word in a story under Leithead's name and tipped me off to it, and then when I read several of Leithead's stories I knew he had to be "the Coltman author" because of a number of other phrases he used frequently that also cropped up in those three Hatfield novels. This sort of research fascinates me, although I understand why most people wouldn't care about such obscure stuff. This issue of TEXAS RANGERS also has a Long Sam Littlejohn story in it, a back-up series that I also enjoy.
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