Cassidy Yates Box Set available as a Countdown deal

This week the first three books in the Cassidy Yates series will be available on countdown for $1.99 or 99p on Amazon.

The Outlawed Deputy - Cassidy Yates was appointed deputy sheriff of Redemption City but such was his knack of attracting trouble that barely twenty-four hours after his appointment he had been slapped in jail! And if that wasn’t bad enough, Brett McBain’s outlaw gang rode into town to bust Nathaniel McBain from jail. Sheriff Wishbone is killed and the townsfolk think Cassidy responsible.
Now, having been imprisoned for the murder of his own sheriff, Cassidy must prove his innocence and the only way to do this is to infiltrate Brett’s gang. He must convince Brett he’s an outlaw, and persuade everybody else that he really is an honest lawman.
Could he pull off his enormous bluff or would he join Sheriff Wishbone on Boot Hill?

The Last Rider from Hell - Staked out under the baking heat of the desert sun by Frank Chapel’s riders from hell is no way for any man to die. Only someone as resilient as Matt Travis had the courage to endure the heat and the vultures and survive. When finally he manages to escape a gruesome death only one thing is on his mind – revenge.
But his memory has been blasted to oblivion and he is even unsure of his own name. All he knows is that everyone wants him dead!
Justice must be done and Matt will be judge, jury and hangman. First, though, he must face up to the truth of his past and, that accomplished, lead begins to fly.

Yates's Dilemma - When Wendell Moon hightailed it out of Monotony, he left in his wake a murdered lawman and a mob braying for his blood. Fifteen years later the word is out – Wendell Moon is back! But, for Sheriff Cassidy Yates, Wendell’s unwelcome return rekindles old vendettas and ignites three days of raging gun battles.
Now the sheriff has the impossible duty of keeping the peace, but as if that isn’t enough Wendell also claims he never killed the lawman!
If Cassidy doesn’t unearth the truth quickly, Wendell’s trigger-happy enemies will deliver their own form of gun-toting justice. Real trouble lies ahead!

Six-Shooter Bride available on Kindle

This western is available for purchase from today on Amazon.

I remember that I enjoyed writing this story, and looking back at it for the first time in ten years I can see why I had fun with this one. I usually try to bring in a big plot twist or have several seemingly unrelated sub-plots that ultimately all tie up together. With this one the plot is as simple as it gets.

 

Ethan and Amelia are two mismatched characters who at the start argue and are wary of the other person. Then they have to travel from A to B to meet a deadline, and on the way they face heaps of danger and adventure, which helps them to appreciate each other and grow closer. Frankly, if I had a dollar for every time I’ve read or seen that story I’d have, well, probably not very much as I usually groan and give up when I see where the story is heading.

In a way I wish I’d written more stories like this one that are straightforward and which give equal prominence to the leading man and leading lady. I think the reason I didn’t is down to the fact that this book didn’t go to large print, which suggested to me that I’d strayed too far from the usual types of western plot that I write. The even bigger clue that perhaps I’d got the emphasis wrong came with the change that was made to my suggested blurb. Here’s the final sentence that I wrote:

The one problem Ethan never expected to face is that he would fall victim to Amelia's charms and getting her to her wedding might just be the last thing he'll want to do!

Here’s what that was changed to. See if you can spot the difference.

There’s danger every step of the way in this gripping western.

The curious thing is that at first sight the romantic sub-plot suggests I’d strayed towards writing a chick-lit western that ought to have a cover featuring a cowboy who forgot to put on his shirt and pants. In reality, the only thing that gets hot is the flying lead and more bad guys bite the dirt in this book than in anything else I’ve ever written. Anyhow, the book is now available from all good Amazon stores.

Slammed in a jail cell after killing a man in a crooked poker game, Ethan Craig’s future looks bleak. Then a witness, Amelia Ash, comes forward and offers Ethan a way out. But there’s a catch. Amelia needs someone to escort her on a treacherous journey across bandit-infested country to her forthcoming wedding.

Ethan agrees to take her, but with raging rivers to cross and Buck Lincoln’s outlaw gang on her tail, it isn’t long before he realizes just how treacherous this journey will be. There’s danger every step of the way in this gripping western.