Red Runs the Plain


W.R. Benton - 2007
    Army Scout'Escaping from the Oto Indians who brutally slaughtered his whole family, fifteen-year-old Jarel Wade runs aimlessly into a snowstorm. On the verge of death he's rescued by a pair of cantankerous old mountain men as rugged as the mountains off which they live. Taken under their wing, Jarel proves himself worthy of the trail, but something's coming; something far more sinister that will test every ounce of his newly earned skills and mettle. A rogue former British Army officer is systematically exterminating the free trappers. He wants to corner the fur trade for himself, and he commands a pack of thieves, murderers and outcasts who know the mountains as well as they know how to dig Jarel a grave."RED RUNS THE PLAIN is a crackerjack story written by a craftsman at the top of his form. A whirlwind of a tale that will keep you turning pages."— Matt Braun

High Country


Jason Manning - 1993
    The first in the High Country trilogy, followed by Green River Rendezvous and Battle of the Teton Basin.

Blood Trail (Fannin County, Texas)


G.H. Lambert - 2014
    Dylan Ryan arrives in Texas just as the Runaway Scrape is in full swing and the Battle at San Jacinto nears. He misses going to war when he comes to the aid of Mort Lems, severely wounded by outlaws who seek information on the location of an old trail used by the Spaniards to transport gold bullion from Texas to New Orleans. It is said gold bars are still buried along that trail. Dylan and Mort escape to the prairie of North Texas and the safety of the Red River Wilderness. But instead of having the land to themselves, they discover peaceful settlements springing up around trading posts all along the river. Peace is fleeting, as Indians grow angry at the homesteaders breaking the soil with their plows on land that was promised to them for hunting grounds. The newly organized Republic of Texas is unable to provide the settlements protection, so it is the trading post owners who hire gunmen to act as ranger forces to repel the hostiles. A new war has begun, this time with an unpredictable enemy. Dylan, Mort and the settlers watch their dreams for a new beginning end as clouds of dark smoke rise into the clear blue sky as homesteads burn. Indians begin to raid every community, burning, stealing horses and taking women and children as slaves. Overnight the promise of a better life in Texas has been replaced with one of a living hell. Blood Trail is the first in a series.

Runaway


Edwin Page - 2016
     The year is 1863 and Joshua is a runaway slave who finds refuge on a farmstead in Missouri. Six year old Clara was born on the farm and is naive to the ways of the world. She abides there with her mother, Lizbet, and discovers Joshua hiding in the barn. Her father is absent, fighting for the Confederacy with Missouri guerrillas, and she soon forms an attachment with the unusual man whose presence she agrees to keep secret. However, not all secrets can be kept, despite best intentions. This is an evocative tale and the interplay of the characters will keep you enthralled. The descriptive qualities match those of The Hanging Tree, as does the emotional content. Engaging in its simplicity, Runaway is sure to touch its readers and is another tale by Edwin Page that will not soon be forgotten. A story that shows sometimes you don’t have to leave home to make a journey of discovery. 20% of the proceeds from this book will be donated to the charity Anti-Slavery International. The U.K. abolished slavery in 1833 and the U.S. in 1865, but its blight is still present in the world today with an estimated 21 million people living under its yoke, visit www.antislavery.org to find out more. This book is available in paperback and Kindle formats. Look out for the sequel to Runaway. Entitled Homestead, it will be released in paperback and Kindle formats on the 17th November 2017. The Kindle edition will be available to pre-order from the 3rd of that month. 'This moving book about slavery is set in 1863 on a farmstead in Missouri. It focuses on six-year-old Clara and her mother, Lizbet, who, through the last days of slavery, hide Joshua, a runaway slave, in their barn. The child’s presence brings an innocent perspective on the matter that highlights the cruelty of slavery yet also allows for some of the more refreshing elements in this novel. While the plot and outline are not overly original, the book shines with its likeable and endearing characters, and its ultimately upbeat tone. I was gripped by the suspense and deeply touched, and would recommend this book to others' - Historical Novel Society

Storm Warrior II


W.L. Cox - 2013
    Storm Warrior plans to set up a school in the Sioux Valley with Judith Johansen as the teacher, the the Sioux's demand of surprising obstacles must first be overcome. Storm Warrior II is filled with action, battles, deaths, births, and the development of many life long friendships.

The Adventures of Hatchet Jack (The Mountain Men Book 4)


Terry Grosz - 2013
    Jack's master turns out to be a mean-tempered drunk in frontier St. Louis and treats him harshly. There, Jack learns how to hunt, shoot a bow and arrow, trap, and throw a Tomahawk superbly-gaining his nickname "Hatchet Jack." One day, Jack's master beats him to within an inch of his life. Jack vows to escape to the untamed West to become a Mountain Man fur trapper. Thus begins an adventure involving turncoat fellow trappers, deadly betrayal, death on the frontier, battles with hostile Blackfoot Indians, loss, love, fortune, and an ultimate surprise. The Adventures of Hatchet Jack is an epic story of the life and times of a Mountain Man when the West was young, dangerous and yet beautiful beyond compare ... told only as Terry Grosz can tell it.

Ketcham's Land


Douglas Hirt - 2002
    After a card game with Benny Gellerman, a man good with a gun, but bad with cards, Ketcham decides it is time to head out again. He finds a place to bed down on a lonely New Mexico farm run by old Corely Mattlin and his widowed daughter-in-law, Margaret. Ketcham has his eye on pretty Margaret, but he'd better keep his eyes open wide for trouble. A local rancher named Jeb Ollfinger is trying to run the Mattlins off their land, and he is not above using violence, even murder, to get what he wants. Margaret is sure her husband's killer was one of Ollfinger's men, a gunman named Gellerman. If Ketcham knew what was good for him, he would head out again. But this time he has a job to do first.

Ambush in Dust Creek (Lincoln Hawk, #1)


Scott Connor - 2005
    In a wave of rightful vengeance, Lincoln’s deadly Peacemaker did just that. But some of the outlaws escaped the marshal’s justice. Years later, when Lincoln rides into Dust Creek again, the town seems to have been abandoned. But it hasn’t. Mason Black and his ruthless outlaw band are waiting for him. From behind every broken window of the tumbledown ghost town, Mason’s guns are aimed at Lincoln’s head. To see another dawn, Lincoln must face a desperate battle for survival in a world where he can trust nobody and the only law that matters is the law of the gun.

Journey to Utah


Frank Roderus - 1977
    Stumpy was the kind of man who saw his duty and did what had to be done. When Janet Cate's three step-brothers showed up with less than honorable intentions, it was time for Stumpy to act.

Tremain (Texas Ranger Book 1)


Brad Dennison - 2013
    And then a mysterious gunfighter wanders into the middle of things, bringing with him a new brand of justice. A story of love and vengeance, and the sometimes painful path of self-discovery. By the author of THE LONG TRAIL. and ONE MAN'S SHADOW. Also, following the story is a preview of the sequel, WARDTOWN, coming soon.

The Man From Two Rivers


Luke Short - 1974
    They should have taken his life.He'd shot to defend his property. Now Hobe Carew was wanted by the law. First Hobe found an ally in a half-breed named Jim. Then he found a friend in a runaway girl and a good reason to come back to Two Rivers, where his cabin had been burned down. Lew Seely owned half the grass in the county; now he wanted Hobe's. But Seely just couldn't fathom a small man's will to take a stand, or the kind of battle that was about to blaze in the dust.

Hard Trail to Socorro


Wayne D. Dundee - 2011
    Claiming the reward, however, turns out to be considerably more difficult. First there is Veronica Fairburn, the beautiful woman who has her own business in Socorro and insists on sticking with Kendrick when he sets out to return there with his prisoner … Then there's the gang of tough ranch hands dead set on relieving him of the prisoner in order to dish out their own brand of personal revenge … Plus the Mexican desperado stalking the woman … Not to mention the band of renegade Apaches raiding throughout the region … It all makes for Kendrick having his work cut out for him. Complicating matters even more are the feelings developing between Kendrick and Veronica. But the greatest challenge of all may come from the daring passage they must attempt over the Jornada del Muerto—the Journey of the Dead, awaiting them in the merciless White Sands desert. Peacemaker Award-winning author Wayne D. Dundee is at the top of his form in this gritty, action-packed tale of desperate, determined people fighting each other and the elements in order not only to achieve their goals but also to simply survive.

Wade's War


Chet Cunningham - 2010
    Chet Cunningham is on top of the heap of western action-adventure writers with over 300 books, and Wade's War is one you won't put down.

West of Vermillion


C.M. Curtis - 2014
    A place where contracts are solemnized with a handshake and disputes are settled with a gun. There is gold here and some men mine for it, while others steal it from those who toil. But when the outlaw’s war of plunder and killing takes the lives of some of Tom Satterfield’s friends, he declares his own private war on the entire outlaw breed, and shows them what one fearless man can do when he is pushed too far.

Dead Man's Town (Jake Moran 2)


Robert Broomall - 1988
    Railroad terminus and jumping-off point for emigrants headed west, Union City is filled with gamblers, soldiers, settlers, and bad men of all description. It's run by Ned Burr, the notorious Jayhawker, whose name was synonymous with death and desruction during the war. The town council wants to hire a marshal to tame Union City -- and kill Ned Burr. They offer the job to the famous lawman and soldier Jake Moran. Jake doesn't want the job, but he's forced to take it. He has no intention of confronting Burr, though, and makes peace with him. Then Jake falls for Burr's girl . . .