Land of Hills and Valleys
Lena Campbell never knew her grandfather—but she always dreamed of visiting Wyoming, where her mother was born and raised. When she receives word that her grandfather is dead and his Wyoming ranch belongs to her, she jumps at the chance.
Only later does she learn that Garth McKay was murdered, and the murder is still unsolved.
Despite this shadow hanging over her, Lena thrives in her new life—and unexpectedly finds love there. And then a new revelation breaks the McKay murder case wide open again, and leaves her reeling.
Caught in a battle to prove the innocence of the man she loves, Lena begins to have frightening doubts. Whatever verdict the jury returns, will she ever know the truth about Garth McKay’s death—and does she even want to?
Bridge to Trouble
Jeanette Pierpont is out of patience.
On the run from hurt and humiliation, she's fled back to her home in the Montana mountains in search of solitude. But to her unpleasant surprise, she discovers she's not alone there. In fact, there are altogether too many strangers lurking in the woods and around the abandoned mining town nearby—some decidedly suspicious, others merely infuriating.
Before long it becomes clear that the mountain has become the setting for a daring crime—and Jeanette finds herself dragged into a race against time to foil it before it's too late.
A Sidekick’s Tale
Meredith Fayett needed to marry someone before the week was out or she would lose her ranch. It sounded simple, so ranch hand Chance Stevens agreed to take on the job, in spite of his friend Marty's warnings that it could only lead to trouble.
But even Marty, a loyal though opinionated sidekick, couldn't have predicted the mayhem that ensues when his own eccentric relatives appear on the scene, dragging Chance, Marty, and Meredith into the latest skirmish in a long-running family feud.
What follows is a hilarious tangle involving an emerald ring, a fearsome aunt, a scheming suitor, and a team of runaway mules—by the end of which Chance finds that even a marriage just on paper has its complications, and that it never hurts to have a good sidekick.
The Smoking Iron and Other Stories
Featuring the 2021 Peacemaker Award finalist “Dakota Clothesline”
A new bride faces questions about her marriage in the shadow of a prairie blizzard.
A minister's decision to raise sheep in cattle country stirs up controversy among his new congregation.
A spunky ranch girl matches wits with a thief.
A World War II veteran struggles with wartime scars while assuming the responsibilities of the family ranch.
And in the title story, a man is found shot beside a branding fire and a young rancher is accused of murder—but what crime was really committed there?
If you enjoy classic Western short stories in the tradition of Dorothy M. Johnson, Elmer Kelton, and Louis L'Amour, you'll love these seven stories capturing the grit, gumption, and buoyant spirit of the Old West.
Outlaw Fever: Five Western Stories
Three men poised on the brink between honesty and crime.
A spunky young woman determined to foil claim-jumpers.
Christmas Eve among the wolves and the winds.
Rebellion by a brother, and betrayal from a friend.
Five short stories of the West and its people.
Wanderlust Creek and Other Stories
A gunfighter refuses to explain to his friends why he backed down from a fight.
The proprietress of the busiest eating-house in town deals with a stagecoach-load of troubles at the height of the noonday rush.
A hotel night clerk finds himself in on odd position after he allows an exhausted traveler to stay in a reserved room.
And in the title story, a young rancher and his wife struggle to hold onto their land and their dreams in the face of adversity from weather, enemies—and even doubts of each other.
If you enjoy character-driven Westerns with heart and humor, like those of B.M. Bower and Eugene Manlove Rhodes, you’ll love the six short stories in this collection.
Left-Hand Kelly
2015 Peacemaker Award nominee for Best Independently-Published Western Novel
Practicing his quick draw seemed a harmless amusement…until the day a boys' quarrel exploded into gunplay.
Sixteen-year-old Lew Kelly grew up idolizing his enigmatic ex-gunfighter father. Everyone thought Lew's habit of practicing his quick draw was a harmless amusement—until the day when a boys' hot-headed quarrel exploded into gunplay, with disastrous results.
Three years later, Lew is withdrawn and bitter—and he still carries a gun. When an unexpected twist of circumstances forces him to face again the memories and the aftermath of that ill-fated fight, will old wrongs be righted—or will the result be an even worse tragedy than before?
The Mrs. Meade Mysteries
A series of historical mystery shorts, each just the perfect length to accompany a cup of tea or coffee for a cozy afternoon.
The Silver Shawl (#1)
In a small town in turn-of-the-century Colorado, a young woman has disappeared from the boarding-house where she lives. Her distraught fiancé is certain that she must have been kidnapped.
But the case takes a new turn when a city detective appears on the scene, looking for a woman who matches the description of the missing girl. Was Charity really kidnapped, or did she have a reason to flee?
Mrs. Meade, a gentle but shrewd widow lady who lives across the hall in the boarding-house, feels that there is something wrong with the story of Charity's disappearance…but can she unravel the mystery before it is too late?
"The Silver Shawl" is a novelette, approximately 15,700 words long.
The Parting Glass (#2)
Mrs. Meade is not the only one in Sour Springs who is shocked at the news when Clyde Renfrew is accused of a drunken assault on a woman. Clyde, a sober, steady young rancher, seemed the last person likely to do such a thing.
Between an emphatic witness and Clyde's own apparent reluctance to defend himself, the case seems open and shut. But Mrs. Meade—who seems to have a knack for being just across the hall when things happen—has a few ideas of her own…
"The Parting Glass" is a novelette, approximately 12,500 words long.
The Oldest Flame (#3)
Mrs. Meade had been looking forward to a pleasant visit with old friends—but their house party turns to disaster when a fire destroys the house during the night. Even worse, the fire appears to have been deliberately set.
Which of the people who were in the house that night is responsible? There are several possibilities, and Mrs. Meade is not sure which is the most distressing…
"The Oldest Flame" is a novelette, approximately 17,800 words long.
The Silent Hour (#4)
Major Cambert and his grandson Jim were known to have quarreled bitterly over Jim's choice of a wife, so when the Major is found shot dead by his own fireside a few nights later, Jim is the prime suspect—and a suspect without an alibi.
But there were others who may have held a grudge against the Major too: an obnoxious ex-soldier, a sullen ranch hand…and Jim's fiancée. And none of them can account for their whereabouts during the dark hour when Major Cambert was murdered.
With no other evidence to go on, Mrs. Meade will have to apply all her wits to discover who is really guilty…
"The Silent Hour" is a novella, approximately 19,100 words long.
The American Pony (#5)
Was it a joke gone wrong—or something more sinister?
It's summer in Colorado, and Sir Edmund Marsland's family are enjoying their visit to the West—though not everyone at the Wellman ranch is quite as happy with the company of the English family.
The mood changes for the worse when an accident with a horse nearly claims the life of Sir Edmund's young son. And with the discovery that someone deliberately caused the accident, suspicions and tensions divide the party. Was it meant for a practical joke—or was it for spite—or was there a motive for murder?
Mrs. Meade may be the only guest at the ranch without title or fortune, but she may also be the only one who can get at the truth…
"The American Pony" is a novella , approximately 21,000 words long.
Mrs. Meade and the Invisible Lodger (A Mrs. Meade Short Story)
Mrs. Meade's landlady has an unnerving problem: her new lodger doesn't seem to exist! No one in Sour Springs besides Mrs. Henney has ever seen him—so where does he go when he leaves the house every morning? The obvious solution is to lay the question before Mrs. Meade.
Mrs. Meade and the Schoolboy Prank (A Mrs. Meade Short Story)
When the Wellmans receive a letter from their son's boarding-school informing them that Allen has been accused of stealing from a classmate, they promptly head for Denver to investigate. The situation looks bad, since almost the whole rest of the school have perfect alibis. It's fortunate that Mrs. Wellman thought to bring along her friend Mrs. Meade to see if she can spot the solution...
The Mrs. Meade Mysteries, Vol. I (Books 1 - 3)
Includes the first three titles in the series: The Silver Shawl, The Parting Glass, and The Oldest Flame.
Historical Fairytales
Beloved fairytales retold in real-world historical eras
Corral Nocturne
There's no fairy godmothers on the prairie...but there just might be a prince.
Life on her brother's ranch is lonely for Ellie Strickland. Ed's ungracious manners and tight-fisted habits keep visitors away and his mother and sister close to home. But when Cole Newcomb, son of the wealthiest rancher in the county, meets Ellie by chance, he is struck by an unexpected impulse to rescue her from her solitude—and Ellie's lonely summer is transformed.
When Cole asks her to go with him to the Fourth of July dance, Ellie is determined that nothing, from an old dress to Ed's sour temper, will stand in her way. By the time the Fourth of July fireworks go off at midnight, will they herald only more heartache, or maybe—just maybe—a dream come true?
Novella, approximately 21,000 words.
Lost Lake House
She just has to dance...but her shoes are starting to show the wear. And there's more things afoot on this island than she likes to think about.
All Dorothy Perkins wants is to have a good time. She's wild about dancing, and can't understand or accept her father's strictness in forbidding it. Night after night she sneaks out to the Lost Lake House, a glamorous island nightclub rumored to be the front for more than just music and dancing…in spite of an increasingly uneasy feeling that she may be getting into something more than she can handle.
Marshall Kendrick knows the truth behind the Lost Lake House—and bitterly hates his job there. But fear and obligation have him trapped. When a twist of circumstances throws Dorothy and Marshall together one night, it may offer them both a chance at escaping the tangled web of fear and deceit each has woven…if only they are brave enough to take it.
Novella, approximately 26,000 words.
The Mountain of the Wolf
This Red Riding Hood is willing to walk into the wolf's den..but will she find what she is seeking?
In the shadow of the mountain, Rosa Jean Kennedy lives alone, waiting. Vengeance for her brother's death is the only object left in her life, the one thing that steels her resolve to continue in a solitary, sometimes perilous existence.
When mustanger Quincy Burnett arrives on the mountain, he finds himself strangely drawn to the silent, lonely girl who seems to rebuff all attempts at friendship. But Rosa Jean is determined not to let anyone—even Quincy—stand in the way of her revenge, and her determination may lead them both toward disaster…for there are other dangers lurking in the mountains besides the wolves whose howls are heard at night.
Novella, approximately 30,700 words.
Short Fiction
Individual ebook short stories
At the bottom of an old trinket-box sits a lump of lead—a bullet from the Civil War.
Behind it lies a story—the story of a young girl's experiences in the days surrounding the fateful battle of Gettysburg, which force her to examine her own heart, and show her the face of war in a way she could not have understood before.
War Memorial: A Short Story
Some Christmas Camouflage: A Short Story
On a snowy December evening during the Great Depression, a high-spirited college student impulsively decides to do some spying on a quiet classmate—with unexpected results.
A short story both funny and touching, in which mischief brings about a small Christmas miracle.
Anthologies
A short story of mine features in each of these multi-author volumes.
Through Western Storms
Features my short story “Valiant-For-Truth,” winner of the 2024 Peacemaker Award
Crashing thunder! Pelting sand! The whirl of confusion and the winds of madness.
Join 13 unsurpassed storytellers to journey through Western storms with tales of perseverance, grit, and courage as vast as the 19th-century American landscape.
Curated by award-winning editor Richard Prosch, Through Western Storms features the best Western writers working in America today.
Follow the Lonesome Trail
Features my short story “The Princess of Flat Rock”
A trapper discovers he’s been left a poke of gold—but there’s a safe and a greedy bartender between him and his inheritance. The residents of a mining camp join forces to protect children who may or may not be royalty in disguise. And a pair of bandits get more trouble than they bargained for when the cargo they were hired to steal turns out to be somebody’s mail-order bride!
Find all this and more in this anthology, and prepare yourself for a wild West you only thought you knew as six authors go off-trail and blaze a new path.