Mystery Western Historical Fiction

This first episode of the Montana Brides introduces Violet, Iris, and Rose Kilburn, heiresses to the Kilburn family cattle fortune. Rocking Horse Ranch runs five thousand head of cattle, but all the ranch hands are getting old. The sisters need someone to run the ranch, so the eldest sister Violet hatches the idea of getting mail order husbands for the three of them. There’s only one problem; Cornell Pollard, the sisters’ guardian and the executor of their estate, doesn’t approve.

Saddle tramp Petey McGuire doesn’t have much to live for. The trail in front of him stretches out long and hot, and there’s no end in sight. He’s been beaten down, beaten up, and kicked around so long, he’d run away from his own shadow if he could. But there’s one fight he can’t run from - the fight against hunger. Petey needs a job quick, before he drops dead in the dust. But the only way to get one is to act cool and talk tough - in other words, become the exact opposite of Petey McGuire.

Lynn Taylor and his kid brother Frank may not be angels, but they’re not devils, either. They’re just a couple of men - two-fisted Texans who have landed on the wrong side of a corrupt lawman. Young Frank’s been framed for robbery, rustling, and murder, and if Lynn doesn’t think fast, his brother’s going to end up the guest of dishonor at a hanging party. Lynn cooks up a daring plan to clear his brother’s name and rope in the real outlaw.

Every man walks with a shadow...but what happens when he acquires a second one? Just ask Brazos, a cold-blooded killer for hire with blood on his hands and a posse on his tail. Desperate for cash, Brazos accepts $200 to gun down a local man named Brant. He’ll earn every penny...but in the end there’ll be the devil to pay. Because to put a bullet in Brant means putting one in his partner as well - an eerie stranger schooled in the black art of witchcraft. This is one killing that brings with it a deadly curse - and a second shadow.

Penniless, homeless, and virtually lifeless, the vagrant “Doughface” Jack is about to discover that where medical marvels meet the mysteries of the human mind, amazing things happen. The Tramp acquires a capability beyond his imagination and without equal on Earth. Riding the rails, Jack runs afoul of a local sheriff and ends up with a crushed skull. He’s as good as dead until a savvy country doctor performs a bit of medical magic.

Eighteen-year-old Lee Thompson has a chip on his shoulder and a mission in his heart to save his dad, an aging sheriff who’s lost control of his town. Old Diehard’s lost control of his town, and it seems every outcast and outlaw west of the Mississippi is on the prowl in Wolf River, Montana. Now Lee’s come all the way from Texas to stand up for his father, a man who hasn’t seen him since he was a boy and who doesn’t know him from Adam.

Mart Kincaid may be the fastest gun in the state, but it does him no good - because his gun and his life are not his own. They belong to Gar Malone, the King of Concha Basin, a ruthless rancher driven by his thirst for power, wealth, and conquest. Now Gar has set his sights on the Singing Canyon spread - the richest land in the basin - and he commands Kincaid to run its true owners off. If not, he threatens to reveal a dark secret that could ruin Kincaid's brother.

Forged in the hot sun and sand of the Arizona desert, Chinook Shannon is as tough as they come. But Chinook is far from home—in the north country of Montana—and facing a challenge as big as the territory itself. Following his grandfather’s suspicious death, he’s come to Montana to claim his inheritance—the family’s cattle ranch. But the territory’s crawling with bandits and bankers, and they all want a piece of Chinook’s land.

Klu and Shad complete the construction on the Bar TC ranch. Melody gives birth to a healthy boy and the future looks great. The Colorado Cattlemen’s Association decide that the best way to defeat the drought conditions of 1868 is to drive out all the farmers and small ranchers and use their land for grazing. First, the Lanswing ranch, the Slash L, finds themselves in the crosshairs of the Cattlemen’s Association hired guns. They refuse to sell or give in. Next in the sights of the hired gunmen is the Bar TC owned by Klu Klinger and Shad Benfold.

Marshal Jake Timber has been tasked with collecting Gray Buffalo, an Indian accused of the murder of the president of a stage line, from Fort Collins and bringing him back to Denver for justice. Grey Buffalo's people aren't about to let him leave, however. They attack the fort in earnest, overwhelming both in skill and number the small attachment of greenhorn soldiers stationed there. Timber must be both marshal and army officer, as he teaches the soldiers how to fight Indians. Will Grey Buffalo be rescued by his tribe? Or will he be forced to face his destiny in front of the judge?

Leigh Hawthorne, a widow and local farmer in Tucker Springs, receives an unusual letter from a man out west who wants to marry a woman with ranching expertise. Could this solve all of Leigh’s problems? Hoping to find a better life, Leigh embarks on a journey to Chance City, Oklahoma. Fired for breaking Pinkerton rules, former detective Cyrus Decker just wants to live a quiet life as a cattle rancher. The problem is that he knows nothing about ranching - and his bank account shows it.

He’s handsome. He’s charming. He’s a total gentleman ... and he’s totally outgunned and outnumbered. He’s Michael Patrick Obañon. Obañon’s lost his inheritance—a 100,000-acre New Mexico spread—and he could lose his life if he’s not careful. A ruthless band of renegades have seized his land, and he’s determined to get it back... Obañon’s got one secret weapon: his fierce intelligence. He can’t outshoot the outlaws, so he’ll have to find a way to outwit them....

Sunset Maloney is about to find big trouble in the Big Sky country of Montana. He’s riding into the middle of a ruthless land grab, and his fight for what’s right takes an unexpected turn...in the face of a young, attractive woman. Slim Trotwood is a cruel, greedy tinhorn - a gambler with little money and less skill - who’s determined to take possession of all the land in Puma Pass, whether by fraud or by force. And Sunset’s the only man willing to take him on.

Ben Crown ist Hunderte von Meilen geritten, um die schöne Lucy Galloway zu ihrem Vater zurückzuholen, doch dann hat er sie dennoch weiterziehen lassen. Mit einem Spieler und Halunken. Gegen den ausdrücklichen Befehl seines Ranchers und obwohl er Lucy liebt. Aber Lucy erklärte ihm, dass sie mit Jim Cogburn freiwillig von zu Hause fortlief, dass sie dessen Frau wurde und ein Kind von ihm erwartet. Und Ben akzeptierte ihre Entscheidung, versprach Lucy sogar seine Hilfe.

Die Fährte der Banditenhorde, die unsere Ranch niedergebrannt und Rosalyn, meine Schwester, geraubt hatte, war leicht zu verfolgen. Sie führte in eine kleine Stadt am Rande des Mesalandes. Hier aber brach sie ab, und die Chance, die Mordbrenner und Frauenräuber jemals aufzuspüren, war gleich null. Im Mesaland hausten die Gesetzlosen. Ein Fremder, der sich hier Zutritt verschaffte, hatte sein Leben verwirkt. Was also sollte ich tun? Aufgeben? Rosalyn ihrem grausamen Schicksal überlassen?

Sally und Sue McNall sind fünfzehn, als sie bei einem Indianerüberfall die Eltern verlieren und selbst von zwei Revolvermännern in letzter Minute gerettet werden. Joe Scarlock und Ben Savage stehen nicht in dem Ruf, Ehrenmänner zu sein, doch die schönen Zwillinge sehen in ihnen ihre Retter und verlieben sich unsterblich in sie. Gemeinsam mit den beiden verlassen sie die verwüstete Farm in den Hügeln und reiten in die große Welt. Ein Leben, wie sie es nie zu erträumen wagten, beginnt für sie. Sally und Sue sind glücklich.

Seit ich die schöne Jamie Boston zum ersten Mal sah, war ich verrückt nach ihr. Aber die Frau spielte die Unnahbare. Männer duldete sie nur am Kartentisch um sich. Deshalb hatte ich an diesem Abend mit ihr gepokert - was mich fast ein Vermögen kostete. Allerdings hatte ich damit gerechnet. Beim Pokern konnte ich ihr nicht das Wasser reichen. Außerdem spielte die schöne Jamie falsch, und nicht jeder ließ sich ungestraft von ihr die Haut abziehen. Mit dem jungen Donovan würde sie jedenfalls Ärger kriegen.

Die Geschichte der Menschheit bestätigt immer wieder die Worte Vilfredo Paretos: "Solange die Sonne leuchtet über dem Unglück der Menschen, wird das Schaf vom Wolf gefressen werden." Das genau sind die Worte des großen Soziologen. Und wer kann sich darüber wundern, dass es schon immer Menschen gab, die diese Worte zwar nicht kannten, aber dennoch zur gleichen Erkenntnis kamen und danach lebten?

Mit letzter Kraft schafft US Marshal Lin Adams den Weg zur Ranch der schönen Fee Allison. Wieder hat er im Namen des Gesetzes getötet und blieb selbst nicht unverletzt. Es ist ein harter Job, den er macht, und oft verflucht er sich deswegen. Besonders, wenn er bei Fee ist, fragt er sich nach dem Sinn seines Tuns, wünscht er sich einen festen Platz auf der Welt. Bei Fee könnte er ihn finden, dennoch treibt es ihn immer wieder fort von ihr auf Verbrecherjagd.