Buchanans War

Buchanan, the giant semi-hero created by Jonas Ward is once again doing his best to avoid conflict with very little success. The story opens with him part of a group illegally moving cattle from Mexico to Texas. A difference of opinion with the trail boss leads to a dispute and Buchanan is once again fighting when he would rather not. He manages to overwhelm his opponents and get the money that he is entitled to, leaving them frustrated and his sworn enemies. Moving on, Buchanan once again finds himself in jail and to his amazement he is offered a position as a Texas Ranger. An old adversary named Major Jones sends Buchanan to a small town called Scottsville, where the owners of two large cattle ranches are engaged in a mini-war over local supremacy. Things are further complicated when one daughter of each of the cattle barons are part of the battle. Buchanan, being Buchanan tries to calm things down but when one of the cattle barons is murdered and hired guns start arriving; there is little chance of that. Buchanan is forced to be a detective and with the help of some odd characters and his simple wisecracking, the murders are solved and peace is restored. Buchanan is my second favorite western character; no one can ever pass Shane as the best. He is a gentle man that never seems to be able to stay out of trouble and his quips and resigned attitude towards the world are just incongruous enough in a genre where guns often reign to be attractive. While this is not the best Buchanan book, it is good enough to be well worth reading.