Book picks similar to
The Geraldi Trail by Max Brand


westerns
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4-star-books
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The Land of Strong Men


A.M. Chisholm - 1919
    Excerpt and one of them, Gavin, was reputed to be the strongest man in the neighborhood. The daughter, a long-limbed slip of a girl who rode like a cow-puncher, was about the boy's age. Though Godfrey French had a ranch it was worked scarcely at all. The boys did not like work, and apparently did not have to. Godfrey French was reputed to have money. His ranch was a hang-out for what were known as "remittance men," young Englishmen who received more or less regular allowances from home--or perhaps to keep away from home. There were rumors of gambling and hard drinking at French's ranch. "Well, I'll take you home," the boy said. "You can ride my pony. He's on a rope a mile from here. But I'll have to hang up this buck, or the coyotes will chew him." He found two small saplings close together, bent them down, trimmed them and lashed their tops. Over these he placed the tied legs of the buck. With a little search he found a long dry pole. With this he had a tripod. As he hoisted with the pole the spring

Cowboy


Frank Roderus - 1981
    He had been saving the pay he sweated so hard for, and he reckoned there was enough to set himself up with a spread of his own. He thought he might look into the Triple X Ranch, the one they called the Whiskey Brand. It had prime cattle land and was a bargain... or so it seemed.

The Long Shooters


Daniel C. Chamberlain - 2011
    Ballou perfected the art of the judicious killer. His ability with his cherished Stephens target rifle is legendary, making a nearly miraculous shot that no one else – North or South – could accomplish. After the war, he disappears… Samuel Roark is a small-time rancher and part-time lawyer. One personal tragedy after another leaves Samuel gripped by periodic bouts of depression. When a hidden marksman of uncommon skill murders his son, the death leaves Samuel on the brink of total madness.Roark’s wife Sarah, a woman of strength, grace and startling beauty is now both emotionally and physically exhausted by the tragic circumstances that have beset her family. After discovering her husband’s quest for revenge, she does everything in her power to prevent what she fears will ultimately destroy him.Matthew Shaw is a known manhunter and soldier of fortune that people call on when they’re willing to pay someone else to deal with obstacles in their lives. When required, Shaw reluctantly uses his considerable marksmanship to achieve those ends. Now Shaw finds himself caught between a job he truly believes in, and a very good reason to walk away when he realizes he’s falling in love with Sarah, the wife of the man who hired him.

Gunfight In Mescalito


John Legg - 1991
    Hounded by Marshal Tom Baylor and his posse, Crockett, runs from one fearful, violent encounter to another. As time passes, he learns to make his way with the gun. But he is always looking for a place to call home, a place where he could live life in peace. He thinks he has found it when he lands in Mangas, Arizona Territory. There he meets wealthy, regal Don Esteban. And the hacendado’s daughter, the beautiful and spirited Magdalena. But a rival for Magdalen’s affections draws Crockett back into the world of danger and gunfire — and eventually a showdown that can only bring death.

Saving Muffin


R.O. Lane - 2018
    O. Lane -- A mother, faced with losing her daughter in a fraudulent divorce proceeding, heads west on a wagon train. The wagon train is hit by Comanches, and the mother is critically wounded. Her four-year-old daughter is saved by hiding in the high prairie grasses in the Texas panhandle. A cattleman comes along and nurses the mother back to health and saves her daughter. The wounded woman and the cattleman fall in love and fight off many attempts by her wicked husband to kill his former wife and kidnap his daughter and bring her back to Chicago. In the end, saving Muffin (a nickname given to her by her new Pa) becomes a full-time job. Working together, the woman and the cattleman win the battle to save Muffin and give her a good life.

Seven Fingers a' Brazos


Eric H. Heisner - 2018
    When a wagon train of homesteaders is massacred by outlaws, a young male survivor is determined to rescue his stolen siblings. Dragged from his now peaceful existence, former military scout, Holton Lang invests himself in the search for the stolen captives as well as the difficult task of keeping the young man alive. As the search continues across three states, Holton meets old friends and finds new meaning in life as his job of survival embraces a newfound kinship.

The Town Marshal


Robert Vaughan - 2018
    Its two main participants, James Cooper and Henry Newton Brown, form a close friendship when, along with Billy the Kid, they fight in the Lincoln County War. After that, James and Henry move on, their bond of friendship growing even stronger as James becomes a crusading newspaper editor and Henry, a town marshal feared by outlaws and lauded by his peers and the towns he served.But something goes wrong, and in an emotive moment, the two best friends find themselves face to face in a dramatic and poignant confrontation.

The Gunsmith's Boy: A Western Adventure


Dave Sebeslav - 2018
    Four years ago, his father had handed him a box containing both guns, completely disassembled, and told him he could have them, when and if he could put them back together. It took him a week, but he did it. He didn’t do it to please his father, whom he hated, nor his mother, whom he loved. He did it to prove to himself that he could, and as a result of hours of practice at the back of the property, he rarely missed with either gun, and he could draw and fire the pistol in a split second.

Harper's Justice in Canyon


William Black - 2018
    Marshal Austin Harper is a wanted man. He is wanted in Robbers Roost for intercepting their raids at a stagecoach way station in New Mexico. He is wanted for saving a distressed Rachel Dennis. Now, Harper is facing not just one petty gang of robbers but an entire canyon of criminals operating in a highly organized fashion. Not that Harper is afraid. But his badly injured leg during his line of duty is a huge encumbrance. And time is running short. This nefarious bunch is terrorizing a lot of the southwest from a barren and well-fortified canyon in nearby No Man's Land. Together with his fiercely loyal American Indian friend Eagle, Harper leaps into action to put the marauders out of business permanently. Infiltrating Robbers Roost to take out the leader Wicked Bear is one solution to prevent more innocent lives from being lost. Harper’s daring move is backed by the U.S. Army, but threatened by sworn adversaries of the American government including renegade Indians, enemy Mexican nationals and Confederate soldiers not willing to give up on the Lost Cause. There will be bloodshed. How will the sun set at the canyon terrain of No Man’s Land? Will the sun rise again for Robbers Roost, or for Harper?

The Ranchman


Charles Alden Seltzer
    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

No Peace (Steve Dancy Tales Book 7)


James D. Best - 2019
    He can hardly remember his days of wanderlust, and he’s grateful to have left behind the violence of a raw frontier. In a celebratory mood, Steve invites his mother to a meet her new grandchild in a chic resort in Monterey, California. With the delivery of a handwritten note, his world suddenly reverts to the savagery of his bygone days. There will be no peace.

Revenge Of The Damned (The Montana Series)


L.J. Martin - 2017
    When a freak early-winter storm finds Linc wounded and sheltered in the cabin of a recently widowed homesteader and her young son, all should be fine…if he wasn’t on the run from the law. Now, Bama, a black mule skinner; Twodogs, a Crow tracker; and Dolan, find themselves an unlikely gang. Damned by decent folk, hunted by the law, and pursued by Montana’s most deadly man-hunters, they all three are wronged and seek bloody revenge.

Hell in the Nations: The Further Adventures of Hayden Tilden (Hayden Tilden Westerns Book 2)


J. Lee Butts - 2016
    Until Hayden Tilden caught up with him.Smilin’ Jack Paine is one face from the past that Hayden would rather forget, but the man’s sinister grin is permanently etched in his memory, along with the chilling thoughts of Paine’s unspeakable crimes. There seems to be no other way to put that demon to rest than to tell the whole story—from the day Hayden first heard the man’s name to the day he finally wiped the grin off Paine’s face for good.Praise for Lawdog: The Life and Times of Haydon Tilden“Lawdog should assume its rightful place beside other Western classics.” —Peter Brandvold, author of Once Hell Freezes Over“Lawdog has it all. I couldn’t put it down.” —Jack Ballas, author of West of the RiverAbout the Author:J. Lee Butts is the author of 22 published books and numerous magazine articles and short works. His book Brotherhood of Blood was runner-up for the Western Writers of America Spur Award in 2005. He’s worn many hats over the years (teacher, administrator, pool manager, IBM supervisor, and western author), and he and his late wife lived everywhere from Los Angeles to Dallas. Currently he’s hanging those hats back in White Hall, Arkansas.

Dead Man's Crossing (Jake Moran Book 1)


Robert Broomall - 1987
    Who better to guide a wagon train from San Antonio to California than Jake Moran, the Hero of Chapultapec in the Mexican War? Trouble is, Jake's not really a hero, though he's the only one who knows it. Fifteen hundred miles of forbidding desert make Jake want to turn down the position, but the emigrants of the California Company are depending on him, and he can't let them down. The company faces thirst, cholera, and Comanche raids. In addition, Jake confronts the enmity of Tyler Hampton, wealthy promoter of the California Company, the man whose leadership position has been taken away and given to Jake. Jake may not be a hero when the company pulls out, but he better become one if they're going to survive.

Montana Rose


Deann Smallwood - 2016
    There’s no doubt in her mind that if given another chance, she can make a success of homesteading. She will not fail this time. People scoff, saying ranching is too much of a job for a lone woman to undertake. But Rose is no ordinary woman. She may be petite, stylish, and beautiful, but she is also strong and driven. Every aspect of ranching brings joy to her heart. Then why is she here in Wise River, Montana, taking orders from a mean-spirited school board and attempting something she has no clue how to do? Teaching? Jesse Rivers carries his own baggage on his wide shoulders. He’s been called home by a dying stepmother to take over the Rocking R Ranch and the care of a belligerent and wounded brother. A rugged, lanky cowboy, Jesse is also demanding, surly, and afraid to love. No, he can’t love. What if he has buried inside him the same volatile anger as his father, resulting in brutality by strong fists or a whip? Then Jesse meets Rose. Strong willed, outspoken, determined, and oh-so-desirable.