Breakheart Pass [Paperback]

Alistair MacLean (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 5, 1976

A magnificent tale of heart-stopping suspense from the highly acclaimed master of the genre.The Rocky Mountains, Winter 1873…One of the most desolate stretches of railroad in the West. Travelling along it is a crowded troop train, bound for the cholera-stricken garrison at Fort Humboldt. On board are the Governor of Nevada, the daughter of the fort’s commander and a US marshal escorting a notorious outlaw. Between them and safety are the hostile Paiute Indians – and a man who will stop at nothing, not even murder…

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This time it's a western thriller by the author of Puppet on a Chain, The Guns of Navarone and Ice Station Zebra. Once the plot gets moving, the reader may forget the flow of banalities that support the tale - sure, the action has its hooks, but the writing often seems wearily contemptuous of its reader. An army train carries a doctor and medical supplies from Reese City to small, cholera-stricken Fort Humboldt - and some gold and silver bullion on to Virginia City. On board is card cheat-arsonist-murderer-gunman John Deakin, who is also a former doctor and is the captive of U.S. Marshal Pearce. With him on the doomed train are the crooked governor of Nevada and his innocent niece. Meanwhile, Fort Humboldt has been taken over by villainous Sepp Calhoun, who is secretly in with Marshal Pearce (a wrong one) and the vengeful Paiute Indians. The action mainly sticks to the rails, though the sense of riding a great old train is not strongly evoked. Deakin, the hero, is really a federal agent masquerading under all those charges. One tense moment where half the train breaks loose on a mountain and begins rolling backward at a hundred miles per hour - but wait for the flick. Many won't. (Kirkus Reviews)

About the Author

Alistair MacLean, the son of a Scots minister, was brought up in the Scottish Highlands. In 1941 he joined the Royal Navy. After the war he read English at Glasgow University and became a schoolmaster. The two and a half years he spent aboard a wartime cruiser were to give him the background for HMS Ulysses, his remarkably successful first novel, published in 1955. He is now recognized as one of the outstanding popular writers of the 20th century, the author of 29 worldwide bestsellers, many of which have been filmed. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins Distribution Services; New edition edition (February 5, 1976)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0006141325
• ISBN-13: 978-0006141327
• ASIN: 0006141323
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 3.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #575,992 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Watch that first step!, March 29, 2000

By 

Joseph W. Smith III - See all my reviews

This review is from: Breakheart Pass (Hardcover)

When I was a kid, I read every single one of MacLean's novels -- and this was the one I found hardest to put down! With a plot involving a Pinkerton agent on board a train in the American West, it is somewhat different from other MacLean novels -- but just as authentic and exciting! If you're a MacLean fan, it'd be well worth your time to track down an edition of this overlooked gem.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Western action thriller, May 25, 2007

By 

Cory D. Slipman (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Breakheart Pass (Paperback)

Master action adventure author Alistair Maclean goes away from his usual World War II setting using a 1870's Western theme for his 1974 novel "Breakheart Pass". While not written with the intricate plots or character descriptions of his earlier work, the book contains enough misdirection and intrigue to keep you guessing. Maclean's writing style is which he displays an erudite command of the English language, gives us small bits and pieces of information slowly advancing the plot.

"Breakheart Pass" involves a perilous winter railroad journey through the Nevada territory in the midst of a frightful blizzard. Aboard the train are Nevada governor Fairchild and his niece Marica, along with U.S. cavalry colonel Claremont and two carloads of troops. Joining them are U.S. marshal Pearce and the governor's aide and Pearce's old army buddy Major O'Brien. Pearce, a venerable lawman and Indian agent was transporting dangerous murderer and gunman John Deakin. Their destination was the remote Fort Humboldt nestled deep in the Nevada mountains. Their trip was a mercy mission as a cholera outbreak in the fort had decimated the troops who were in need of relief and medical supplies. Dr. Molyneaux, a tropical disease expert was accompanying the aforementioned entourage.

As the journey continues we slowly learn that all is not what it seems. Maclean has meticulously obliterated the lines defining exactly who were the good guys and who were the bad. A nefarious plot had been hatched and the train passengers were mostly all integral parts of it. As the story winds down the cunning deviousness nature of the plan is finally revealed.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Western For All Seasons, July 24, 2011

By 

George Duncan "verogolfer" (Lake Placid, Fla) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Breakheart Pass (Paperback)

When I first read this I was surprised because Alistair Maclean had written Cold War thrillers, novels located in Arctic locales, some contemporary novels and some with World War II in the background. This was his first, and only, venture into the American West.
Always thought this was one of his best novels. After this, the author sadly began to decline. But in "Breakheart Pass" his prose was still sharp and so was his plot. As in many of his novels, his characters are on a ship or outpost or, in this case, a train and a number of mysterious deaths occur. Clearly one or more of the characters are killers.
This was made into a movie with Charles Bronson and it's one of the few MacLean books that Hollywood didn't screw up. That's probably because MacLean wrote the script and it adheres closely to the novel. A very suspensful tale. In his prime there was no one better than MacLean. The novel is a fitting tribute to the old West.