Buckskin and Satin

Rating:
Summary: Did I mention the cover art?
Review: The problem I have with this book is, now that I have read it, how do I get the images out of my mind. Can one get their brain steamed cleaned so that the taint doesn't carry over to other books they might read on the same topic?

This book pretends to no more than being a fictional novel, however, as the preface states it is "only in those incidents when history is silent have I attempted to create characters and events as they might have been, and perhaps were". That is an overstatement of the reality of this book; real and known facts and events are played loose with in a manner that serves the narrative's purpose (did or did not Ringo shoot Louis Hancock in the ear lobe and neck or did Louis knock Ringo down as reported in this book). Maybe this is nitpicking and petty stuff, but it does indicate how facts are treated here in the interest of the "yarn".

While it is true that the mythos of Tombstone has grown to point where anything can be written about the events that happened there in the 1880s, it seems a shame that under the guise of historical fiction, real persons can be viciously slandered. Little is known of the private life of some of the characters portrayed here but it does seem a crime to accuse people, with living relatives, of some of the perverse actions described by Mr. Wilhelmsen unless he has historical documentation that the general public is ignorant of...or at least that I am..

Given all that, once again, here are the Earps, knights-errant saving the general populace from the horrors and deprivations perpetrated by the Clantons. Frank Stillwell is a child rapist while sundry other members of the "cowboys" are just murdering rapists and social deviates. Ringo is a sociopathic homosexual who is having an affair with William Breakenridge. Ringo also, according to this book, goes in for the bit of patricide and incestuous pedophilia.

As to the actual writing of the book, technically it is okay I assume (I never took literature 101); however, almost every western cliché is here short of the famous John Wayne quote about "filling your hand..."

My gut reaction to this book, besides complete revulsion, is the question "Why?" Why write this trash unless, as I have previously stated, there is some historical indication that the very real persons written about actually committed the obscene actions portrayed (rape, infanticide etc.). The death of Ringo may have been related to some crime or the other, but I had hoped for something a little better than the sadistic and obscene conjectures offered in this novel.

Rating:
Summary: Did I mention the cover art?
Review: The problem I have with this book is, now that I have read it, how do I get the images out of my mind. Can one get their brain steamed cleaned so that the taint doesn't carry over to other books they might read on the same topic?

This book pretends to no more than being a fictional novel, however, as the preface states it is "only in those incidents when history is silent have I attempted to create characters and events as they might have been, and perhaps were". That is an overstatement of the reality of this book; real and known facts and events are played loose with in a manner that serves the narrative's purpose (did or did not Ringo shoot Louis Hancock in the ear lobe and neck or did Louis knock Ringo down as reported in this book). Maybe this is nitpicking and petty stuff, but it does indicate how facts are treated here in the interest of the "yarn".

While it is true that the mythos of Tombstone has grown to point where anything can be written about the events that happened there in the 1880s, it seems a shame that under the guise of historical fiction, real persons can be viciously slandered. Little is known of the private life of some of the characters portrayed here but it does seem a crime to accuse people, with living relatives, of some of the perverse actions described by Mr. Wilhelmsen unless he has historical documentation that the general public is ignorant of...or at least that I am..

Given all that, once again, here are the Earps, knights-errant saving the general populace from the horrors and deprivations perpetrated by the Clantons. Frank Stillwell is a child rapist while sundry other members of the "cowboys" are just murdering rapists and social deviates. Ringo is a sociopathic homosexual who is having an affair with William Breakenridge. Ringo also, according to this book, goes in for the bit of patricide and incestuous pedophilia.

As to the actual writing of the book, technically it is okay I assume (I never took literature 101); however, almost every western cliché is here short of the famous John Wayne quote about "filling your hand..."

My gut reaction to this book, besides complete revulsion, is the question "Why?" Why write this trash unless, as I have previously stated, there is some historical indication that the very real persons written about actually committed the obscene actions portrayed (rape, infanticide etc.). The death of Ringo may have been related to some crime or the other, but I had hoped for something a little better than the sadistic and obscene conjectures offered in this novel.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful!
Review: This book was a good read. Fun, exciting and sexy. I love it when Authors bring in true life events, places and people and put their own slant on things. But it is still fiction. And who can really say what is true and what is not? If someone has a problem with Historical Romance Novels, they should curl up with a history book. Me, I like the historical slants surrounded by sizzling romance, excitment and humor, like my newest favorite "Anything, My Love" by cynthia Simmons. A sizzler with a hero to die for.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful!
Review: This book was a good read. Fun, exciting and sexy. I love it when Authors bring in true life events, places and people and put their own slant on things. But it is still fiction. And who can really say what is true and what is not? If someone has a problem with Historical Romance Novels, they should curl up with a history book. Me, I like the historical slants surrounded by sizzling romance, excitment and humor, like my newest favorite "Anything, My Love" by cynthia Simmons. A sizzler with a hero to die for.

Rating:
Summary: Buckskin and Satin
Review: This is a book "old west" historians will especially enjoy. The author clearly has either lived on the trail or interviewed those that have, as you feel yourself in the landscape and inside the experiences the characters are living. The attention to detail is almost too good but typical of mainstream historical novels. The quality is mainstream too, and I would not be suprised if we see several more novels by this author. I've always loved reading about the "O. K. Corral and Wilhelmsen really made me rethink some of my assumptions about the events. As I love reading "historical anything" I found the characterizations of the minor characters to be the most interesting part of the book. Wilhelmsen has a knack for blending character, fact, and writer's license together in a thoroughly enjoyable novel. I'm looking forward to his next book as he has a fresh and exciting (and different) perspective on historical events that have been rehashed so many times I didn't think there could be new retelling. I'd recommend this book to Western or Historical fiction buffs.

Rating:
Summary: Buckskin and Satin
Review: This is a book "old west" historians will especially enjoy. The author clearly has either lived on the trail or interviewed those that have, as you feel yourself in the landscape and inside the experiences the characters are living. The attention to detail is almost too good but typical of mainstream historical novels. The quality is mainstream too, and I would not be suprised if we see several more novels by this author. I've always loved reading about the "O. K. Corral and Wilhelmsen really made me rethink some of my assumptions about the events. As I love reading "historical anything" I found the characterizations of the minor characters to be the most interesting part of the book. Wilhelmsen has a knack for blending character, fact, and writer's license together in a thoroughly enjoyable novel. I'm looking forward to his next book as he has a fresh and exciting (and different) perspective on historical events that have been rehashed so many times I didn't think there could be new retelling. I'd recommend this book to Western or Historical fiction buffs.