Shadow on the Land: A Western Story

Western bad boy Lee Dawes is a railroad fixer who uses his gun, fists, guile and charm to obtain hard-to-get rights-of-way, settle labor disputes, outfox his competitors and seduce women. In Overholser's action-packed latest, Dawes is up to his gunbelt in trouble. Dawes is the perfect man for railroad tycoon James J. Hill's plan to beat rival tycoon Edward H. Harriman's effort to build a railroad in Oregon. However, Dawes must contend with opposition from an old pal, the refusal of a rancher who won't sell to Dawes, his lust for a bad news woman and the murderous work of an interloper bent on destroying both Hill and Harriman. As Dawes and Quinn try to outmaneuver and sabotage each other-in work and in love-Dawes and his sidekick, Highpockets Magoon, get sucked deeper into a railroad war where bullets, beatings and explosives nearly settle everyone's hash. Though Overholser reveals too early the mysterious villain and his motive, the railroad lore and fast-paced plot keep the reader involved.