A new author to me. I'm a fan of the western genre but this is not your typical western. Jack Picaro is a gunsmith who built the weapon he carries.....aka the ghost rifle. As a young man, Jack kills a friend while drunk and runs from the consequences. As he faces the many challenges that were typical of the era, Jack will lose his ghost rifle and travel the western frontier to recover it.
This is the first book in a new series. The back story and the characters have been developed to allow growth and some exciting stories in the following stories. Max McCoy has earned a slot on my followed authors.

I received a free advanced reader copy of “ The Ghost Rifle” through Net Galley. My thanks to the author, publisher, and Net Galley for this fine historical novel.

To begin with, Max Mc Coy’s novel “ The Ghost Rifle” is the first in a series of books centered around that rifle. The ending of this book is not so much a cliff-hanger as the first book in a sage whose length is undetermined. This book is enjoyable on its own , though it did whet my appetite for the next book in the series.
That said, my experience in reading western novels leads me to believe that they are either amateurishly written on a six grade reader level and turned out in batches like packaged bread, or sweeping epic sagas that rise to the level of unputdownable dramas. The books of Terry Johnston are an example of great writing historical fiction set in the pioneer West. “ The Ghost Rifle” is as good as the best. If you loved the classic novels of Terry Johnson , you will love “ The Ghost Rifle.”
The hero of the book is one Jacques Aguirre a gunsmith indentured to a master in Frontier Missouri n the early 1830’s. He flees the town a wanted man, after a duel over a lady results in an accidental discharge of Jacques pistol, killing his opponent, the lady’s brother. Heading west, Jacques becomes Jack, and the rifle he carries, a masterpiece of workmanship he tooled from the finest steel with careful workmanship- the ghost rifle. That rifle- and it’s ownership- is the quest of the novel
Jack signs on with a group of fur trappers heading up river to the Missouri to beaver- trapping country. There he finds all the adventure he could have wanted and more. He has encounters with the indigenous peoples both hostile and friendly while traveling awe-struck on seeing some of the most beautiful scenery in the world.
Max McCoy story telling ability draws the reader in by painting a panorama of the west. His MC Jack is a deftly-drawn hero as his adventure leads him north. He gains insight into himself as he encounters the land and the Indians who people the prairies. I particularly enjoyed Mc Coy’s natives - they are fully drawn, strong and sympathetic characters, not stock Indians neither savages nor louts . There is real sense of the author’s empathy for them and their way of life.
“ The Ghost Rifle” is an epic adventure very worth reading. The story moves smoothly with many lyric moments, episodes of great danger and a story that never falters.
Highly recommended for everyone.

Sensitivity warnings: yes, the native peoples of the West are termed Indians, not the current nomenclature ( historically appropriate for the times.) Bloody fighting episodes, but not too graphic nor prolonged. Romantic love scene or two.
Easy five stars.

I knew Mac McCoy from his Ophelia Wylde paranormal mystery series, which is also set in the American West. Disappointed that the series had come to an end, I decided to give this new one a chance, even though it was not the same genre. Adventure awaited me, and I’m so glad I’ve stepped foot on the trail.

The Ghost Rifle provides a good balance of historical detail and adventuresome storytelling In a smoothly readable voice. Not being terribly familiar with the conventions in the Westerns genre, I hesitate to make much of a technical critique. However, I can say that I was engaged, educated, and entertained from start to end, and look forward to the next Jack Picaro volume.

Thank you to Max McCoy, Kensington Books, and NetGalley for an Advance Reader Copy in exchange for an honest review.

Max McCoy's Ghost Rifle (Pinnacle 2021), Book 1 of A Ghost Rifle Western, seems at first a simple story. Jack Picaro comes to America to make his fortune but accidentally kills his best friend. He flees because he thinks no one will believe him, changes his name, and moves westward working on a ferry boat. It is attacked by Indians. They kill the ferry boat's crew and steal Picaro's gun. It's not just any gun. He forged it, spent hours making it better than any other gun of its time. A ghost gun. He must retrieve it. 

This journey to reclaim his gun is a sort of adult coming of age story, about figuring out one's responsibilities, what's important in life. For example, early on the journey, he kills a Buffalo cow because he's hungry, eats one meal from it and leaves the rest to rot. The author touches--though lightly--on the waste of the animal's life. Later, he defaces a holy Indian place by scratching his name into its stone walls. Again, as with the buffalo, he doesn't understand the fullness of his actions.

These pieces are what bothered me about the book. I sensed the author had Picaro perform these actions so he could grow from learning how he should have acted but that isn't clearly delineated. I would have enjoyed the story more and felt the animal's life well-spent if this western man had learned from it. But this is only the first book of the series. The author tantalizes readers at the end as Jack is tracked down by two children he sired without even knowing it. I can't help but think I will feel differently about the series once I've read the next.

Overall, this is an interesting story not like many other Westerns I've read.

Enjoyable look at life on the frontier with indentured servant/gunsmith Mountain Jack escaping from troubles and finding many more in his search for his Ghost Rifle. Hopefully more books will follow in what could be a great new series ala The Sacketts.