THE CHEROKEE TRAIL

New York: Bantam Books, 1982. Hardcover. Very Good/Good Plus. Of his well-over 200 novels, L'Amour. the western genre's all-time best-selling author, wrote only a very few with a woman as the main character. "The Cherokee Trail," with stagecoach stationmaster, Mary Breydon, is one of those rarities. Her Virginia home destroyed in the Civil War, her husband murdered on their way to Colorado, Mary Breydon and her young daughter face constant danger from outlaws and Indians and a mysterious stalker as they turn the station into an important stop on the journey west. Bookclub Edition, First Edition Thus. About 5 1/8 x 8 3/8 inches, 177 pages including one-page biographical sketch at the end, in tan paper-covered boards with red lettering on spine and a "Colorado Territory" map decorating the pastedowns and end pages. The dustjacket shows a wrap-around illustration from a painting by Louis S. Glanzman showing a woman holding a rifle flanked to her right by a man with his hand near a holstered revolver and on her left by a dog and young girl, all with a statecoach in the background. A touch of soiling on top edge of text, o/w boards and text are clean, complete and unmarked. No significant edge wear, bumped corners or creasing. The dj shows some aging and minor wear at edges and corners, and the dustjacket's verso shows aging and light foxing along the edges and folds. Altogether, makes a very decent reading copy of a L'Amour rarity.