Review: The Texas Job by Reavis Z. Wortham

Title: The Texas Job by Reavis Z. Wortham
Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
Genre: Historical (30s), Action, Adventure
Length: 418 pages
Book Rating: C+

Complimentary Review Copy Provided by Publisher Through NetGalley

Summary:

Some men are destined for danger

Texas Ranger Tom Bell is simply tracking a fugitive killer in 1931 when he rides into Kilgore, a hastily erected shanty town crawling with rough and desperate men—oil drillers who’ve come by the thousands in search of work. The sheriff of the boomtown is overwhelmed and offers no help, nor are any of the roughnecks inclined to assist the young Ranger in his search for the wanted man.

In fact, it soon becomes apparent that the lawman’s presence has irritated the wrong people, and when two failed attempts are made on his life, Bell knows he’s getting closer to finding out who is responsible for cheating and murdering local landowners to access the rich oil fields flowing beneath their farms. When they ambush him for a third time, they make the fatal mistake of killing someone close to him and leaving the Ranger alive.

Armed with his trademark 1911 Colt .45 and the Browning automatic he liberated from a gangster’s corpse, Tom Bell cuts a swath of devastation through the heart of East Texas in search of the consortium behind the lethal land-grab scheme.

Review:

The Texas Job by Reavis Z. Wortham is an action-filled novel which takes place in 1931.

Texas Ranger Tom Bell finds more than the fugitive he is searching for when he rides into a booming oil town. He discovers the sheriff has no interest in fighting the crime in his town so Bell takes matters into his own hands. He is soon the midst of ruthless criminals, corruption and gangsters as he looks into the mysterious deaths plaguing the wives of greedy husbands. Bell ends up in the crosshairs of ruthless gangsters who do not want him to find the answers he is searching for.

The Texas Job is an entertaining adventure set in the lawless oilfields of east Texas. Tom is a dedicated lawman who is somewhat larger than life as he evades the criminals who are after him. The criminals are rather one dimensional as they go to extreme lengths in their quest for riches. The storyline is a little convoluted with a plethora of characters. The oil town is richly detailed and springs vividly to life.  Reavis Z. Wortham brings this well researched novel to a dramatic conclusion.

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