Showing results by author "Max Brand" in All Categories

Frederick Schiller Faust was a prolific writer who wrote under a number of pseudonyms. One of these was Max Brand. Gunman's Reckoning is the story of a drifter who is given the job of righting a great wrong. In the midst of carrying out his task, he finds out that he was not told the entire truth. He continues anyway, because in doing the job, he has stumbled on the answer to a long quest of his own. This book is a western romance that has a bit of everything: love, mystery, lies, action and humor.

As he rode into Dunphyville, Dan Harrigan noted the broken windows, smashed doors, collapsing verandas. The Blacksmith's shop had been set on fire, the saloon wrecked, and the general store shot up. He nodded knowingly. There were only a dozen buildings in this small town, but they all bore the Mark of Angus "Black" MacTee. Dan Harrigan and Angus MacTee were friends and partners once; but their mutual love for pretty Kate Malone had turned them into Mortal Enemies.

Versatility was a key talent of author Frederick Faust using the pseudonym Max Brand. What you’re about to hear is one of his lesser known stories that ranks as a prime example of his stupendous ability.

When Samuel Cross was growing up, he was rarely found without a book in his hands and that was the way his mother, a widow, wanted him raised. His uncle, Stephen Larkin, a frontiersman like Sam's father, wanted him to be strong and able to fend for himself, so he would take him into the mountains every summer to teach him how to fight and use a weapon. He proved to be as adept at these subjects as he had been at book learning.

In this extraordinary novel by Max Brand, one of the masters of the Western, the incident that turns Andrew Lanning into a fugitive also marks the start of his rites of passage from youth to adult. Pursued by the formidable Hal Dozier, Andrew grows with every adventure of the fast moving plot which brings the Old West to life in cinematic detail. This is storytelling at its peak, encompassing suspense, wit, and romance in a flowing narrative with a delightful conclusion.

A dying man, Hank Peyton, tells his son Jerry Peyton that, after a lifetime of evil deeds, his only gift to his son will be his extremely valuable gun called The Voice of La Paloma. When Jerry is wrongfully accused of horse thievery, a cunning sheriff blackmails Jerry into stealing the gun from his father in exchange for a clean slate, even though the sheriff has already found the real horse thief.

Tom Converse was the kind of man to pull a Colt from his back pocket faster than the seasoned gunslingers could draw from a hip holster. It seemed to come easy to him - like breathing in and out. But was he also the kind of man to make a whole town trigger-happy with fear? Did he hide behind a dark mask and come back for vengeance? Was he The Shadow? Sylvia didn't think so. "I'm the only one who knows the face of the real Shadow," she said.

When the Gold Rush came to Murrayville, it brought with it rogues and bandits, but none of them more daring than the one who came to be called "The Ghost." He got his name from his mysterious knowledge of all the comings and goings of the town and its gold transportation. The miners and townsfolk had to band together to hire Silver Pete to take care of their ghostly problem.

When two men riding on horseback meet on a trail in the mountains, it proves to be so narrow that neither man's horse can be turned around, or aside, or backwards. So the two now have no choice but to determine who is to be pushed off the trail to certain death.

Feared outlaw John Banner joins a hazardous quest for Yukon Gold - and discovers love. Master storyteller, Texas-born and raised Barry Corbin, horseman, rancher, and star of the hit TV series Northern Exposure reads this classic Western story by Max Brand.

Anthony Woodbury, strong, athletic, constantly in pursuit of another challenge, is the son of a New York millionaire. Now he is faced with a most difficult challenge. His millionaire father is murdered and Anthony goes West in search of the person who did the killing. An expert marksman and rider, Anthony is well-suited to the West and capable of self-defense. Not only does he discover who the killer is, he also uncovers a mysterious history regarding his mother and father. But Anthony soon learns that he, the hunter, is also the hunted...

When he first arrived in the town of Lister, no one knew anything about him except that he didn't speak... that he was probably a deaf mute. No one knew what to call him, so they called him Shannon. He bought supplies and ventured into a secluded valley and made enough money to take care of himself by selling pelts in town.Then one day Shannon came upon a horse that had been abused and was near death....

In this dramatic and strange story, Lefty Bill Ranger, an Alaskan mail carrier, travels to Circle City through a terrific snowstorm. There he meets Menneval - a man who is widely feared throughout the territory - and is offered a job. He is to go to Tuckerville, California, and from there to the mountain fastness where Peter Crosson and his son, Oliver, live in total isolation. Menneval wants Ranger to watch and report what he sees for a period of six months. The pay for this espionage will be $6,000 in gold.

Don Sebastian Valdivia and his secretary, Juan Carreño, attend a horse auction at the Garrison Ranch, where an outlaw stallion, Twilight, is held back until last. The only man who can ride this magnificent beast is Charles Dupont, known as the Crisco Kid, who has bonded with the horse since he was a colt.Because gunman Bud Carew despises the Kid, he desperately wants to possess Twilight. Those attending the auction know that no matter who wins, a gunfight is sure to follow.

Terry Shawn was a kind-hearted outlaw. He took from the rich and gave to the poor and while doing so, stole the heart of a beautiful young woman. Infuriated lawmen could never catch up with him. But deep in one secluded valley lived an older man with such a haunted past, he chose the solitude of a wild mountain range to find peace for his troubled soul. From this man named Shannon, Terry came to know the real meaning of honesty and friendship.

When Dick Rutherford, known as The Colonel, loses all his money in a horse race heads into the Far West to seek his fortune. His companion in this is Christy Deever, whose inventiveness and quick thinking prove valuable assets on the frontier. After a series of exciting adventures, they find themselves adopted members of the Mandan Indians.

Raw frontier action is epitomized in Lee Porfilo. With a penchant for settling his problems with his fists, Porfilo is always in trouble. And trouble comes to stay when he beats a rich man's son. Now he has an enemy for life. Framed for murder and sentenced to the penitentiary, he is saved by Tex Cummins' small steel saw and heads for the mountains.

James Geraldi is one of the most legendary thieves in the West. But he is not an ordinary thief, preying on the unwitting and defenseless. James Geraldi is a very exclusive thief, stealing only from other thieves. From the largest towns to the loneliest outposts of the desert his name is known, but few could identify him, although many an honest rancher or townsman has become a loyal friend when Geraldi rescued their savings, and many a bandit has been conned or bested by him.

Alcatraz is classic Western from one of the masters of the genre. It's the story of a wild horse many said could not be caught or broken and the man who set out to prove them wrong. Added to the mix, there's danger, betrayal, heroes and villains, and romance.

After hitting a rich vein of gold on the back of Champion Mountain, Blondy Kitchin heads to the big city to have a good time, but there his luck runs out and he ends up spending two years in prison. The prison's chaplain helps educate him, smooth out his rough edges, and convinces him that the range is the place for Kitchin to make use of his brute strength and free spirit.