Book picks similar to
Tucker's Reckoning (Ralph Compton) by Matthew P. Mayo
westerns
western
gifted
less-than-1-000-reviews
A Man Named Cully:
Orris Slade - 2018
Having worked both as a U.S. marshal and a bounty hunter he ruthlessly pursues villains who plague the West. The son of a clergyman, Cully has strayed from the faith but not from righteousness.As committed as Cully is to law and justice, shrewd and ruthless outlaw “Smiley” James lives a life of crime. With his hardened gang of killers he has created a horrific mail-order bride scam. Young women are lured from the East to become brides for ranchers or businessmen in the West. When they arrive they are taken captive and forced to work in a profession that has nothing to do with wedding rings.James fancies himself as a rich businessman and is more than willing to kill anyone and everyone who gets in his way. Cully is hired to find a young mail-order bride from Philadelphia who has gone missing. The evidence leads to Smiley and his gang. Cully is outnumbered and out-gunned. This is not the first time he has faced long odds, and it may be the most dangerous and bloodiest hunt of his career.Note: Each book in the Cully the Bounty Hunter series is a standalone story that can be read out of order.
No Man's Land (Jack Ballard Book 1)
Linell Jeppsen - 2018
Sometimes he's able to stop it from hurting innocent people—and sometimes he causes it. It can’t be helped, though. He is a good man with a fast gun, and in West Texas in the late 1800’s, trouble lies around every bend. Only he and his filed-down .44-40 Colt can stop it.
Lone Star Law
Louis L'AmourMarcus Galloway - 2005
Here, too, are superb, action-packed entries from today's outstanding Western storytellers -- distinguished award winners as well as daring newcomers, including Peter Brandvold · Randy Lee Eickhoff · Marcus Galloway · Ed Gorman · Elmer Kelton · Rod Miller · Robert J. Randisi · James Reasoner · Dusty Richards · Troy D. Smith · L. J. Washburn Edited by renowned author and anthologist Robert J. Randisi, Lone Star Law spans the existence of this elite investigative law enforcement agency. From fending off hostile Comanche to tracking serial killers, from aiming Winchesters and Colt revolvers to firing up laptops and state-of-the-art forensics technology, from targeting rustlers and outlaw gangs to leading harrowing hostage negotiations, the men and women who don the badge and white hat of the Texas Ranger stand as steadfast deliverers of American justice -- the Lone Star way.
Fate Rides A Tall Horse, 1869
Gary Church - 2019
Obsessed with finding his brother’s killer, Johnny makes himself very visible in a place where people often assume new identities and don’t want to be found. It will require all of Johnny’s experience and skills to stay alive. His man-hunt results in action, adventure and romance, which all combine to reflect life on the Texas frontier and a number of people find their fate is altered; by not only their decisions but by chance meetings with strangers, including one who rides a tall horse.
The Confederate
Scott Thompson - 2018
The girl he was to marry was now promised to another, and his former mentor had cheated him. Disillusioned he left his home in River Falls, Georgia for something different: The Colorado Territory of the American West. Ambrose soon learned that the West was wild and untamed, and despite his effort to find peace and to create a normal and stable world, something continued to pull him toward death and ruin. While the former Confederate soldier made his way through the treacherous territory of Colorado the girl he thought had been lost to him chose to follow him to the West while facing hazards of her own. While they fight to survive and to find meaning in a dangerous and new place they both learn about themselves while always thinking of the other. But will they find each other in an unfamiliar world that is as inhospitable to love as it is to law and order?
JL Tate, Texas Ranger
Lou Bradshaw - 2015
A short time later we find him up to his chin in the embrace of a lovely lady outlaw. He’s able to get himself untangle, only to come face to face with nearly a half ton of stolen Civil War gold, which the great State of Texas has placed a claim on. JL and his Ranger partner, Spade Carson, become involved with the gang seeking to recover the gold and a rival gang seeking to take it, by whatever means necessary. A sweet young lass is right in the middle of the fray, and Tate is of course, in no way immune to the charms of Eve. From Odessa to El Paso, there is no safety for Tate and Carson. Ambushes, night raids, and lust for the yellow gold, keep the two Rangers living on the raw gritty edge. But they must keep going forward because there’s no going back.
Haunted Falls
Ken Farmer - 2013
Marshal Bass Reeves in their first book, entitled "The Nations". The story continues in "Haunted Falls", the story of Bass Reeves as he joins other U.S. Marshals in pursuit of the infamous Dalton gang. It is full of adventure, romance, some history, excitement and a unique paranormal twist. You will not want to miss this sequel.
Coyote Courage
Scott Harris - 2018
In the first two books of the series, “Coyote Courage” and “Coyote Creek," readers are introduced to Brock Clemons and the small town of Dry Springs, where Brock meets a young boy named Huck, falls for a beautiful young woman named Sophie and faces a band of hardened outlaws. Brock decides to stay beyond the one night he had planned, and readers follow his adventures in town and journey in the aftermath of his visit to Dry Springs. Brock Clemons rides into the small town of Dry Springs simply looking for a place to grab a cigar and a good night’s sleep. Instead, he finds a town being strangled by a band of hardened outlaws, a young boy named Huck who is bravely facing challenges far beyond his years, and Sophie, a woman of captivating strength and beauty. Brock decides to stay beyond the one night he had planned, but will his intelligence, courage and unmatched skill with a gun be enough to save the town, help Huck and win Sophie’s heart?
Old Dogs
Ron Schwab - 2021
Tending to the Lucky Five Ranch with Thor, Jack's 12-year-old dog, at their side was now a more appealing way to spend their remaining years than the decades of close calls they experienced.But a mysterious rider approaching the Lucky Five will change everything for Jack and Rudy, and their peaceful lives will be uprooted by the revelation of a long-kept secret that prompts one last quest for the "old dogs."Adventure abounds in Ron Schwab's latest Western novel that will leave you laughing, crying, and in suspense until the very end.
Fork Your Own Broncs (Louis L'Amour)
Louis L'Amour - 1996
From his classic short-story collection, "Riding for the Brand", comes another thrilling western dramatization, featuring a full cast, music and authentic sound effects, whisking listeners back in time to the frontier days of the Old West.
Trail To Yesterday
Duane Boehm - 2019
He has written another western novel with enough humor, heartbreak, love, and outlaws to keep you turning the page.When Ike and Luka Gunther moved to the Montana Territory to start new lives, they thought they'd left behind all their troubles from their days in Colorado. The brothers had turned in their law badges back home, tired of the headaches the job entailed. Luka had gladly left Nevada City in hopes he could forget about the girl that he could never get to the altar. After outlaws bloodthirsty for revenge arrive in Bozeman, the lives of the brothers are changed forever. Ike and Luka find themselves back on the trail to Colorado to serve justice and confront the past. Secrets will come to light, scores will be settled, and Luka will be forced to face the girl that time and distance couldn't vanquish from his heart.
They Called Him Cav: Reloaded
William Coury - 2014
He has long since passed away, but his book remains, gathering dust on my shelf when it should have been entertaining good folks like you. So here it is at last: a western with heart written on an old manual typewriter. The story takes place in the badlands of West Texas (where he lived), and is chock-full of all the sprawling drama, heartache, triumph, tragedy, and gun-slinging grit one could desire. The cover of the book is adapted from an oil painting brushed by our father back in 77—one of many. I remember it hanging on the wall when I was a kid. I believe it was his favorite, so thought it only fitting that it be the cover. Now, finally, after all these years, our dad will get the recognition he deserves for both his writing and his painting. I sure hope he can see what's going on down here, 'cause I know it would make him smile. So take a deep breath, and let the troubles of the modern world slip away as you journey back to a simpler time (two simpler times, actually), the old west, and the 1940's....
Blood Storm: A John Henry Cole Western
Bill Brooks - 2012
Recent unexpected gunplay has whittled his detective agency down to a single operative: a man named John Henry Cole. Cole is the only man left when a new assignment comes in from a former lover of Kelly’s, a woman operating an escort service in the new mining camp of Deadwood in Dakota Territory. Three of the young women working for her have been murdered, and someone is trying to cover up their deaths.It’s a dangerous job, and Cole is advised that he must take every precaution—as if he needed such advice. The legendary Wild Bill Hickok was recently murdered at Deadwood, and Calamity Jane Canary and Doc Holliday are among Cole’s potential suspects. Add that to a corrupt constable and a bounty hunter who just happens to be an old enemy of Cole’s, and it’s clear there are many who will not welcome his arrival in Deadwood. Cole is a lonely man in a lonely profession, and finding a murderer in the wild mining camp could be less of a challenge than simply staying alive.Using real-life characters and settings from one of the most notorious times in the history of the Wild West, veteran author Bill Brooks spins another edge-of-your-seat thriller.Skyhorse Publishing is proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in fiction that takes place in the old West. Westerns—books about outlaws, sheriffs, chiefs and warriors, cowboys and Indians—are a genre in which we publish regularly. Our list includes international bestselling authors like Zane Gray and Louis L’Amour, and many more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.
Valley of Fire
Johnny D. Boggs - 2014
But it's not Christian charity that's driving Sister Genevieve--she wants Micah to take her to a place called the Valley of Fire, deep in the most lawless and perilous part of New Mexico Territory. It was here where an order of nuns met their Maker, and it's Sister Genevieve's mission to see that they are given a proper funeral. Or so she claims. Micah's not in the habit of helping nuns, but it turns out the only true vow Genevieve ever took was to get rich--and there's a fortune in gold buried along with the sisters. With kill-crazy bandits and blood-hunting bounty hunters after them, it'll take a miracle to reach the Valley of Fire, let alone get the gold. But sometimes, the Almighty does work in mysterious ways. . ."Johnny Boggs has produced another instant page-turner...don't put down the book until you finish it." --Tony Hillerman on Killstraight "Johnny D. Boggs tells a crisply powerful story that rings true more than two centuries after the bloody business was done." --The Charleston (S.C.) Post and Courier on The Despoilers
Raves For The Westerns Of Johnny D. Boggs
"Another dramatic story by a finalist for the Spur award of Western Writers of America." --Amarillo Globe-News (on Once They Wore the Gray)"An entertaining western in the classic mold. The characters possess enough human frailty to be believable, the author includes interesting stuff on the weaponry of the times, and there is enough gunplay to satisfy genre purists." --Booklist on Ten and Me"Boggs has once more written a humdinger of a book with wonderful characters, even the villains. The Despoilers tears at one's heart, which is what really good fiction should do." --Roundup on The Despoilers"Boggs' unique approach to the Lincoln County War's legal skirmishing is both eye-opening and memorable." --True West on Law of the Land"... a finely crafted historical novel with fully developed characters playing out their lives against the backdrop of early Texas settlement." --American Cowboy on Spark on the Prairie"Boggs delivers a colorful, clever and arresting tale." --Santa Fe New Mexican on Camp Ford
The Devil's Brand: The Rider ~ Book One (The Rider Western Series 1)
Seth Nation - 2017
In the aftermath, Ethan Brody returns from the war to find everything he knows and loves reduced to nothing but ashes. Hell bent on revenge, he sets off to find the murderous gang, only to have them slip away. Losing his faith, he sets off on a life of bounty hunting, vowing to never again let justice go astray. "Alive" is no longer an option and in the process, the legend of the Rider is born. 1894: Oliver Kingston Dukes a man of remittance finds his way to the town of Adobe Wells, immediately becoming embroiled in the town's struggle with the wealthy and powerful Katy brothers. Enter the Rider, on the trail of the notorious bandit Hector Salazar. He joins Dukes and the townsfolk to take back the town once and for all, and perhaps...take back his own salvation.