The George Kelley Collection
Western Stories


Hell On Hoofs
Gordon Young
Ace, 1948.
Bison Catalog Record

This is the story of young Bill Helgar, an orphaned boy who arrives in a small western town looking for his uncle who has just been murdered. Bill is befriended by the slick and cunning gambler, Dan Trusand -- the very man who killed his uncle. Trusand allows Bill to ride his horse, Blue Chip, in the big race that is coming up. There are rumors that the race is fixed, and Bill learns more than a few life lessons as he attempts to discover the truth about both his uncle and the horse race. The narrative takes a number of unexpected twists and turns, with a double lynching, a wife beating, a framed horserace and several more murders before reaching a tense showdown filled with smoking guns.