Hell Star by Chuck Mason, a pseudonym for British author Donald S. Rowland (
ISFDB,
SFE) is his vintage standalone western historical action adventure novel with mystery elements, starring a US marshal who attempts to investigate the death of his ex-partner, posing undercover as a rancher and garnering the suspicion of perhaps crooked local town marshal, amongst other complications, free for a limited time courtesy of publisher Endeavour Press' Pioneering imprint.
This was originally published in 1972 by Robert Hale.
Currently free @
Amazon (available to Canadians & in the UK and pretty much everywhere else Amazon sells worldwide, since this is being done via their KDP Select exclusive-or-else program)
Description
The Devil wears a badge…
When US marshal Link Leyland heard that his ex-partner Dan Shurmer had been killed, he rode in to Prairie City to investigate.
However, Link’s hopes for a quiet investigation are shattered when he intervenes in a coach robbery, killing a man.
Despite passing himself off as a rancher, Link attracts the attention of the town’s marshal.
Things are complicated further when Link is forced to kill the marshal’s deputy in self-defence.
But Marshal Pat Eke is not a man who can be trusted, nor the company he keeps.
While investigating the death of his friend and trying to stay on Eke’s good side, Link is also approached by Ann Rayner, who fears for her brother’s safety.
Could Schurmer’s murder, the robbery, the marshal and the brother all be connected?
It’s not long before more bullets start flying and bodies pile up.
Will Link find justice for his partner, or will he too fall to the killer who wears a Hell Star?