Jamie Hedges counted six riders and there should have been only one.
That was is the opening sentence of Edge: The Loner, in which George G. Gilman unleashed his psychopathic western anti-hero Edge onto the world.
Obviously inspired by the violence, the heat, the dust and the bloodshed that were the iconic and instantly recognizable features of Sergio Leone’s spaghetti westerns – films that attracted millions of viewers to the cinema during the late sixties and early seventies – George G. Gilman (a pen-name for Terry Harknett) eschewed the puritanical and moralistic conventions of the generic and standardized cowboy stories that were the staple of the western genre and relocated them in brand-new violent territory. Before long the name Edge would become synonymous with the essential reading of any dedicated or ‘real’ fan of Western fiction.
Edge was billed ‘a new kind of western hero’. Later on in the series, he was billed ‘a man alone’. Gilman deliberately emphasized Edge’s loner status: the half-breed psychopath, the western outsider, the amoral existentialist. Initially the Edge novels were novels of pursuit, later they became a series of one-off Edge adventures, with each novel containing an extremely violent dénouement.
Here is a list of the ‘complete’ Edge series:
Edge #1: The Loner (1972)
Edge #2: Ten Thousand Dollars, American (1972)
Edge #3: Apache Death (1972)
Edge #4: Killer’s Breed (1972)
Edge #5: Blood On Silver (1973)
Edge #6: The Blue, The Grey And The Red (1973)
Edge #7: California Killing (1973)
Edge #8: Seven Out of Hell (1973)
Edge #9: Bloody Summer (1974)
Edge #10: Vengeance is Black (1974)
Edge #11: Sioux Uprising (1974)
Edge #12: The Biggest Bounty (1974)
Edge #13: A Town Called Hate (1975)
Edge #14: The Big Gold (1975)
Edge #15: Blood Run (1975)
Edge #16: The Final Shot (1975)
Edge #17: Vengeance Valley (1976)
Edge #18: Ten Tombstones to Texas (1976)
Edge #19: Ashes and Dust (1976)
Edge #20: Sullivan’s Law (1976)
Edge #21: Rhapsody in Red (1976)
Edge #22: Slaughter Road (1977)
Edge #23: Echoes of War (1977)
Edge #24: The Day Democracy Died (1978)
Edge #25: Violence Trail (1978)
Edge #26: Savage Dawn (1978)
Edge #27: Death Drive (1978)
Edge #28: Eve of Evil (1978)
Edge #29: The Living, the Dying and the Dead (1979)
Edge #30: Waiting for a Train (1979)
Edge #31: The Guilty Ones (1979)
Edge #32: The Frightened Gun (1979)
Edge #33: The Hated (1980)
Edge #34: A Ride in the Sun (1980)
Edge #35: Death Deal (1980)
Edge #36: Town on Trial (1981)
Edge #37: Vengeance at Ventura (1981)
Edge #38: Massacre Mission (1981)
Edge #39: The Prisoners (1982)
Edge #40: Montana Melodrama (1982)
Edge #41: The Killing Claim (1982)
Edge #42: Bloody Sunrise (1983)
Edge #43: Arapaho Revenge (1983)
Edge #44: The Blind Side (1984)
Edge #45: House on the Range (1984)
Edge #46: The Godforsaken (1984)
Edge #47: The Moving Cage (1984)
Edge #48: School for Slaughter (1985)
Edge #49: Revenge Ride (1985)
Edge #50: Shadow of the Gallows (1985)
Edge #51: A Time for Killing (1986)
Edge #52: Brutal Border (1986)
Edge #53: Hitting Paydirt (1986)
Edge #54: Backshot (1987)
Edge #55: Uneasy Riders (1987)
Edge #56: Doom Town, London (1987)
Edge #57: Dying is Forever (1987)
Edge #58: The Desperadoes (1988)
Edge #59: Terror Town (1988)
Edge #60: The Breed Woman (1989)
Edge #61: The Rifle (1989)
The Edge adventures finally stopped arriving on bookstore shelves in 1989. That was it. To all intents and purposes, the series, although it hadn’t been officially concluded, was over. For many years, there would be no more Edge novels.
What’s left from those heady days of very violent, but very well-written westerns is a 61-book series of NEL paperbacks, 3 Edge/Steele novels, and 6 e-books that continue Edge’s adventures after Edge #61: The Rifle.
The series of six new books is titled Edge: The Return. The titles are:
The Quiet Gun (Edge: The Return, #1)
The Deputy (Edge: The Return, #2)
The Outrage (Edge: The Return, #3)
Killing Time in Eternity (Edge: The Return, #4)
Return to Massacre Mesa (Edge: The Return, #5)
Name on the Bullet (Edge: The Return, #6)
I enjoyed reading the Edge series of books very much and I was sorry to see the series come to an untimely (and unexplained) end. Each novel was very fast-paced, and all of them were written in a style that mixed violence, sex, black humour and the western landscape in a very compelling way.
It would, of course, be wonderful if George G. Gilman were to write a final Edge adventure, tying up all the loose ends and providing a fitting conclusion to his stories and a fitting end to his charismatic anti-hero.
Note: If you are interested in reading the further adventures of Edge in 6 e-books written by George G. Gilman, click on the link below:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/George-G.-Gilman/e/B0034PSQWM/ref=sr_tc_2_0?qid=1378132396&sr=1-2-ent
George G. Gilman’s Edge – A New Kind of Western Hero
Copyright © R J Dent (2009 & 2016)
Tags: Edge, Edge is a man alone, Edge westerns, George G. Gilman, George G. Gilman fiction, George G. Gilman's Edge, R J Dent, Terry Harknett, Terry Harknett's fiction
R J Dent 
November 25, 2008 at 12:05 am |
Make It Into A Film Please… A good violent western, based on the ‘Edge’ series of books. I was reading these when they first came out in ’72. Would make Clint Eastwood’s ‘man with no name’ films very tame in comparison.
December 4, 2014 at 11:26 pm |
I am a Jack of all trades and the master of a few and filmaking is one….
I’d like to master …. Lets take action and get this film made I have an agency of all skills and I like to operate a time bank, Top Banana Time Bank
December 25, 2008 at 10:39 am |
yes about time we had a good western again, but who could play the part of edge? viggo mortensen might do a good job.
December 28, 2008 at 5:20 am |
I WOULD LOVE TO SEE THIS SERIES AS A FILM!
February 15, 2009 at 11:39 am |
yo, rjdent – great article on Gilman
March 11, 2009 at 7:45 am |
I started reading Edge in 1972 whilst at sea in the navy. A lot more realistic after a diet of Louis L’amour !! I particularly loved the one-liners at the end of each chapter, followed by a really great one at the end of the novel. I came home from sea after no 29, so I have some catching up. Thanks for the memories. Mick.
March 13, 2009 at 7:08 pm |
Folk might be interested to know that there are 6 unpublished EDGE books on the GGG Message Board that continue his adventures after #61 in the original series, great reads as usual. The link to the site is:-
http://gggandpcs.proboards33.com/index.cgi
Enjoy.
John 🙂
September 13, 2013 at 10:36 am |
John, because Terry Harknett (GGG) has now epublished the six Edge: The Return novels, the free Edge books on the GGG message board have (rightly) been removed. If anyone wants them, they are available to buy on Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com
March 13, 2009 at 8:14 pm |
And three titles have been missed from the series list, namely the books that saw Edge team up with one of George G. Gilman’s other western characters; Adam Steele. These books continue storylines from the main series.
The books are:
Edge meets Steele: Two of a Kind (read after Edge 34)
Edge meets Steele: Matching Pair (read after Edge 40)
Edge meets Steele: Double Action (read after Edge 46)
Edge also appears in Jubal Cade #6: The Burning Man.
July 8, 2009 at 4:55 pm |
Looking for copies of Edge: The Rifle and Uneasy Riders, think they’re #s 61 and 55, respectively. stevech1321@yahoo.com
July 17, 2009 at 10:37 pm |
it’d be the perfect western movie series…. i’ve been reading edge since 1972… i would have to say in the movie climate now, someone who might do a good job would be mark wahlberg.. he’s maturing and i think he might be mean enough to pull it off.
July 20, 2009 at 5:50 pm |
Interesting info on GGG. I like some of your other posts too. Any chance of posts on other great western writers: J.T. Edson or Louis L’Amour or Oliver Strange or Zane Gray for example. Hope so. I’ll look at this site again soon. Thanx.
September 7, 2009 at 2:26 am |
Just one left to collect, Uneasy riders #55…anybody have any ideas where I can find one?
October 14, 2009 at 3:08 am |
I’ve enjoyed this series since I started reading them in 1980. I also agree, that a movie should be made based on the Edge character. Would be a great movie. This is the most awesome series ever done.
October 14, 2009 at 3:30 am |
Some of these titles that are listed aren’t correct:
Edge #2 is “Ten Grand”
Edge #6 is “Red River”
Edge #12 is “Death’s Bounty”
Edge #13 is “The Hated”
Edge #14: “Tigers Gold”
Edge #15: “Paradise Loses”
Edge #18: “Ten Tombstones”
Edge #24: “Slaughterday”
Edge#30: “Towering Nightmare”
Edge #33: “Red Fury”
November 17, 2009 at 4:46 pm |
Jim,
The titles that you have written down are later issues of the same books. A couple of them were published under different titles in the States.
Regards
Paul.
November 28, 2010 at 5:02 pm |
They aren’t later issues, just different titles used in America. The main list above are the original English titles.
October 14, 2009 at 4:24 am |
Still looking for #55….Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!….This is the hardest thing I’ve ever tried to collect….after reading #61, we definitely need to see a #62.
October 14, 2009 at 4:28 am |
I think the characters Henry Fonda played in some of his westerns would have made a great Edge, or maybe Charles Bronson, just not tall enough… Today, not sure, maybe Sam Elliott or an older, dark haired Ben Affleck.
November 6, 2009 at 4:12 pm |
For anyone wanting to chat to Terry Harknett, aka George G gilman and also some other authors then go to the following web address and become a member of the forum.
November 6, 2009 at 4:13 pm |
I might add that the web address which I speak of is linked to my name ‘Glyn’
November 19, 2009 at 9:01 pm |
I have collected almost all of the Edge books and would like to know if it is possible for the original publisher to start with # 1 and reprint all of the Edge series?
November 19, 2009 at 10:25 pm |
The original publisher of Edge is New English Library, which no longer exists, as you can see from this Wikipedia entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_English_Library
The books are out of print, with the copyright ownership having reverted to George G. Gilman (Terry Harknett). So, unless a new publisher is willing to negotiate with Terry and then risk re-publishing the whole series in the hope that there’s enough interest in them, it’s unlikely we’ll see them reprinted.
Why not email a few publishers and ask them if they’d be interested in such a project? I’m sure Terry Harknett would appreciate it.
December 30, 2009 at 9:56 pm |
So….in the end, why did he stop writing them?
January 1, 2010 at 12:08 am |
According to one Terry Harknett interview, he stopped writing them because the last few stories didn’t sell as well as previous titles. He felt that westerns were going out of fashion – readers wanted other fare. So he switched to other genres.
October 1, 2010 at 9:54 am |
One of the biggest influences in my young life. he made me want to become a writer.
October 1, 2010 at 8:51 pm |
I have managed to acquire all 61 Edge books and also the 6 Kindle books but there still was not a good ending either by the death of Edge or possibly some type of ranch retirement. He did age a little more gracefully than he lived most his life but does need a complete finish.
October 9, 2010 at 9:23 pm |
Terry Harknett (George G Gilman) recently stated that he is writing a ‘final’ Edge novel. Watch this space………………..
March 31, 2011 at 2:10 pm
Fantastic, if a final novel of Edge is written. I will keep looking for Edge. Does George G. Gilman (Terry Harnett) have a fan club website, or any form of contacting him??
Thanks a Lot
Respectfully,
Bob
Beloit, Wisconsin
October 2, 2010 at 12:28 am |
Could you please tell me what model Henry rifle Edge owned?
October 2, 2010 at 1:31 am |
henry repeater
January 12, 2011 at 10:21 pm |
would like to buy more edge books: 3 to 6 11 14 15 18 19 21 and up from there – can anyone help?
not good on computers but ok on e-mail
March 31, 2011 at 2:14 pm |
I have most Edge series paperbacks.there is a book store,trade place that has numerous Edge at 1/2 price from origional price,or trade in(s).Email me if you would care to have me find,send your missing Edge.Am recently retired,disabled.New Chapter in my life.Keeps me busy.
Sincerely,
Bob
Beloit,Wisconsin
November 7, 2011 at 10:07 pm
bob, this is oscar reed I am also an edge man. I have all the books exsept for # 54-55-56-57-59-60-61. I am reading #53 now. please help me with any of those numbers if you can. my # is 360-539-7502 in Olympia, Wa.
sonnyboy-reed@hotmail.com
January 13, 2012 at 11:49 pm
would like to know the website bob talks about to find edge books.
January 14, 2012 at 12:18 pm |
try this site it has edge and adam steele books http://www.abebooks.co.uk
its in fife scotand
regards arch
February 7, 2011 at 8:09 pm |
Paul i currently have your requested books in my possession and have no room for them. I managed to sell some on ebay and earned a few quid. Please email victoria_mcnamara_21@live.co.uk if you are still interested.
February 22, 2011 at 9:48 pm |
my brother started reading the edge books around the time i left school in 72. he would pass them on to me. my favorites were early in the series when edge/captain josiah c hedges was in the civil war. i’ve read most of the series and i think with the right actor the books could be made into great films.
March 29, 2011 at 7:31 pm |
I am looking for number 52-53-54-55-56-57-59-60-61 of the edge books by george g.gilman
March 31, 2011 at 2:08 pm |
I happened to buy Edge # 1 way back and immediately fell hard for EDGE. I have almost ALL Edge series paperbacks. The one(s) I am missing are at a local “swap-shop bookstore”. Weekly I purchase 1 or more.
Someone PLEASE make a MOVIE of Edge. What a fantastic epic this would be.
Lately I started rereading Edge, am now into Book 24. Always a treat to reread EDGE.
Am researching author George G. Gilman (Terry Harnett) .
Best Western’s EVER.
May 31, 2011 at 6:50 am |
i want to get the whole series of edge books i remember them from when i was young can anyone help i am in uk
May 31, 2011 at 9:23 am |
You could try: http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=gilman+edge
June 30, 2011 at 7:26 pm |
[…] along the coast – the classic ‘existential’ pier-pose. I heard a voice: ‘Edge is a man alone’. Jennie had found me. We walked through the amusement arcade – still no […]
July 27, 2011 at 11:12 pm |
I have a five book box set of Edge #1 – #5. Does anyone know their prospective value?
August 4, 2011 at 8:55 am |
I am currantly looking for the following Edge series numbers as follows 47.48.49.52.53.54.55.56.57.&61 but I also have the following spare if any one wishes to purchase them altho they are in the pinnacle books & not new english library.
August 5, 2011 at 8:47 pm |
Sorry forgot to mention that the ones that I have spare are numbers 42 & 44 did have a few others but have sold them.
September 27, 2011 at 12:39 am |
I have not read this book for some 30 years but it was the most compelling book that I have ever read, I only read westerns, can someone tell me where I would be able to acquire these books from.
I live in Perth Western Australia
October 13, 2011 at 12:03 am |
Is it possible to get the IBSNs on 10 of the Edge books? #4-Killer`s Breed, #5-Blood on Silver, #14-Big Gold,#21-Rhapsody in Red, #32-The Frightened Gun, #35-Death Deal, #37-Vengence at Ventura, #39-The Prisoners, #41-The Killing Claim & #42-Bloody Sunrise?
October 13, 2011 at 3:54 pm |
The ISBNs of the books you mention can all be found at: http://www.amazon.co.uk/George-G-Gilman/e/B0034PSQWM/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1
November 5, 2011 at 8:09 am |
George G. Gilman is re-releasing his first series of Edge on amazon as eBooks with a completely new make-over.. The first two are due out next week. The mini-series is already selling on Amazon. You can find details here:
http://codywellswesterns.blogspot.com/2011/10/return-of-man-called-edge.html
November 8, 2011 at 7:12 am |
I read all 61, as they were written. I loved them, and was quite sad when they came to an end. He was my kind of hero.
November 17, 2011 at 3:53 am |
I’am looking for some of the edge books I need #’s 54-55-56-57 -60-61 if anybody can help me with thoes numbers contack me at sonnyboy-reed@hotmail.com
November 26, 2011 at 9:33 pm |
if anybody can help me find these six books by george g. gilman, that is his pen name. his real name is Terry Harknett. the books are #54-55-56-57-60-61 yes, the series goes from #-1 to-61 that are out of print, so your best bet would be secondhand stores. good hunting and a big old thanks.
November 26, 2011 at 9:52 pm |
Any book from #50 – 61 are the hardest to find and the most expensive. I saw #61 in mint condition going for $600! I have some doubles, but not the ones you are looking for. Sorry!
November 26, 2011 at 9:45 pm |
Hi Oscar, If you have no luck you can always start collecting the eBooks on amazon. The first two are already out and the next two will follow shortly.
You can also follow this link to Terry’s (George G. Gilman’s) latest interview about his Edge eBooks.
Cody Wells
January 14, 2012 at 12:32 pm |
anyone wanting edge or adam steele books try this site http://www.abebooks.co.uk they have them
starting at 65p and upwards
i checked it out again this morning and the have a good selection off books
regards arch
January 17, 2012 at 6:30 pm |
Trying to find anything after #49 is hard work. Anyone got any spares? I need 50 – 61 this will be the third collection. Previous ones were lost.
February 1, 2012 at 3:06 am |
I’ve been reading Edge since 1972, then re-reading after finding the books in a used bookstore. I recently stumbled on the 6 new E books after buying a kindle. I don’t know how to explain it but it was like finding a long lost family member, I love what he’s done with making Edge in his 50’s. Tried to change but still a Bad Ass. This is great. Please keep it up.
March 21, 2012 at 11:46 am |
All l want in my time of life is to know how to buy the complete series of the Edge and Adam Steele books.
PLEASE can anyone help?
Gaz from Australia.
March 21, 2012 at 10:19 pm |
i have edge books #1 through #50. would anyone like to make a offer?
March 22, 2012 at 11:10 pm |
what price would you be looking at?
June 11, 2012 at 1:23 am |
I am also an Edge fan, I am trying to find out where I could buy Edge No 23, Echoes of War; No 41, The Killing Claim; No 47, The Moving Cage; No 53, Hitting Paydirt; and No 56, Uneasy Riders. Thank you.
June 19, 2012 at 10:57 pm |
http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=gilman+edge+23
July 26, 2012 at 4:37 pm |
I started reading the Edge from the start, probably the first couple of dozen book, awesome!!….. but then started to travel and lost touch, must get start gathering up the series again. I think that the modern day edge is now Jack Reacher.
August 21, 2012 at 7:53 am |
I started collecting George G Gilman book’s in 1974 and i have enjoyed reading them all time and time again. The time has come for me to part company with Edge, Adam Steele and The Undertaker. I am selling the whole lot and won’t split them up. I have Edge 1-61, Edge meet’s Adam Steele 1-3, Adam Steele 1-44 and have 49, The Undertaker 1-6, also i have the 6 new E- books printed out on paper. If anyone was keen to make a realistic offer i can be contacted at eglide@xtra.co.nz I am in Nelson, New Zealand.
September 15, 2012 at 5:47 pm |
The Edge Series are great western books to read. I am looking for a collection of these Edge Books.
October 18, 2012 at 8:39 pm |
Anybody in Cambridgeshire or Norfolk ought to check out the regularish Hilgay Book Sale, they have a crate or two of westerns and the prices are dirt cheap there, nothing’s over a pound! I got a great big armful of Edge but there’s plenty left
March 11, 2013 at 2:40 pm |
The latest Tarrantino flick is Edgy. And the actor for Edge the movie if still kicking would have to be the one who looks like him on the covers. Usually played the bad dude. TR The Alice NT Down Under.
March 11, 2013 at 2:49 pm |
Footnote: Unfortunately Mr Lee Van Cleef has gone to boot Hill.
May 4, 2013 at 10:38 pm |
It would be nice if they were released as a series of audio books maybe read by Sam Elliot. Unfotunately, I never got to read the entire series, but I really enjoyed the ones I DID get to read.
May 6, 2013 at 10:27 am |
They are releasing the EDGE books as E-Books, check on Amazon, his other western series ADAM STEELE and THE UNDERTAKER also I think 🙂
July 20, 2013 at 8:49 pm |
Thanks for this. GGG is a great author who deserves all of the recognition he gets.
August 1, 2013 at 9:46 pm |
Wow!!! So wonderful to read so many great comments about the best western that I’ve ever read. Just started with the #48, School for Slaughter. I got to get started on getting more. Oh man, am I excited. This is great stuff!!!!
September 5, 2013 at 7:16 am |
George G Gilman’s Edge series is truly amazing. This guy writes westerns like no one else. I understand (from an interview he gave) he never went to the States, never saw the west at all. I love these books and have most in the original series. I also am enjoying the Edge: Return ebooks. Rock on Mr Harknett.
October 15, 2013 at 10:11 pm |
Can anybody give me information on how to get the new books written after “The Rifle”?
October 15, 2013 at 10:25 pm |
Edge: The Return, the series, is currently only available in e-book format. The link is here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Quiet-Gun-Edge-Return-ebook/dp/B005WJG75Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1381875815&sr=1-1&keywords=edge+the+return
February 13, 2014 at 9:41 pm |
I have still got all 61 books of Edge.
February 13, 2014 at 10:05 pm |
That’s excellent. You should hang on to them. A complete set is a real treasure trove.
May 28, 2014 at 8:13 pm |
Edge is the King
May 28, 2014 at 8:14 pm |
There is a new Edge #62 Black Dawn
May 28, 2014 at 11:30 pm |
Thanks, Carlie. Any chance of a link to your source, please?
May 28, 2014 at 11:42 pm |
Where can I pick up Edge #62, Black Dawn? I have the other 62.
December 23, 2014 at 6:32 am |
I seem to remember Clint Eastwood’s Malposo films buying the screen rights in the early ’70’s!
Although I may be wrong.
January 7, 2015 at 9:00 pm |
My father in law has the whole collection of these books
Also has breed and steel
Can anyone tell me if these are worth much as I have seen random books on ebay for anything from 30 – 80 pound
April 7, 2015 at 9:21 pm |
Is there really a #62 available? I have all 61 and would like this as an addition to my collection.
November 11, 2015 at 8:20 pm |
Amazon Prime have just released a downloadable streaming TV pilot for Edge.
It’s written and directed by Shane Black – the writer of Lethal Weapon, The Last Boy Scout and Long Kiss Goodnight and director of Iron Man w & Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.
Black’s a huge pulp fan and is also attached to develop The Destroyer as a movie (one of The Destroyer’s co-writers, Warren Murphy, was a close friend of Black’s and co-wrote Lethal Weapon 2 with him).
Anyway, Black’s TV movie-length Edge pilot, starring a guy called Max Martini, is excellent – savage, bloody & funny and very true to Harknett/Gilman’s books.
Any Edge fan will really want to check it out:
http://variety.com/2015/tv/news/amazon-edge-cast-max-martini-ryan-kwanten-1201553420/
November 14, 2015 at 10:25 pm |
Have seen the season pilot for Edge. Great western. Hope to see more episodes in this series. Are they planning on making more shows? Hope so. Really enjoyed watching it.
April 20, 2016 at 5:27 am |
David – Amazon actually has commissioned two more “Edge” scripts, but as yet, have not committed to shooting them. The primary problem was the Pilot episode went way over-budget which made Amazon nervous. Hate to say it, but I don’t think they will green light the show for a full season.
July 2, 2016 at 8:28 pm |
Have seen the film and it is very good to see Edge finally make it to the big screen. Max Martini is a fine actor who had a great run in The Unit T V series as a special forces operative. He is a big muscular chap and seems to suit Edge. I would like to see a tv series, had no decent westerns on telly for a long time.