Max Brand

Every fall Tom Reynard, ramrod for the Bar L, had a hard time finding cowpunchers willing to work the winter range in the bleak badlands near the Sioux reservation. So when Jigger Bunts, an eighteen-year-old from New York who was familiar with riding and roping, happened along, he was hired even though his youth was a red flag to Reynard. To pass the time in the bunkhouse, the other cowhands spin tall tales for Bunts, who they call the kid, about...

"Prairie Pawn" tells the story of Paul Torridon, called White Thunder by the Cheyenne Indians holding him hostage. They believe that he cured Whistling Elk's son from a menacing illness and brought rain when others had failed to do so. Though Paul has been rewarded with many riches, he still seems unhappy, and the Cheyenne chief decides to undertake a dangerous mission to kidnap Torridon's sweetheart, Nancy Brett, from Fort Kendry. The Cheyennes believe...

Longtime thief and card sharp Steven Train is sought out by another crook, John Rainier, with a proposal. Rainier saved rich rancher Patrick Comstock from serious injury and was rewarded with an easy job. Now Comstock has asked Ranier to help find an honest man skilled with firearms for a special mission. Years ago, Comstock unintentionally benefited from bad financial advice he gave to a friend, and wants to find him to pay it back. Rainier wants...

Freedom can mean a lot of things, but the hardest to earn and most rewarding will always be wild freedom. Max Brand turned Westerns into an art form with cleverly crafted tales like this one. Plot twists, adventure, suspense, romance, and humor combine in this delightfully fulfilling read.

In 'Traynor' the title character is believed to be a weak young man, having let Dr. Parker Channing steal his love, Rose Laymon, away from him. When the stage Traynor is driving into Little Snake is robbed and Traynor's best friend and stage guard, Sam Whitney, is killed by the robber, Traynor chases the thief and recovers his dropped Stetson, which was sold to Dr. Channing less than a month earlier. The medico takes off after Traynor confronts him...

The Great West, prior to the century's turn, abounded in legend. Stories were told of fabled gunmen whose bullets always magically found their mark, of mighty stallions whose tireless gallop rivaled the speed of the wind, of glorious women whose beauty stunned mind and heart. But nowhere in the vast spread of the mountain-desert country was there a greater legend told than the story of Red Pierre and the phantom gunfighter, McGurk. These two men of...

"Newcomer David Duval is secretive about his past and Marian Lane is determined to discover what he is hiding. When she enlists the aid of the famous manhunter, Marshal Richard Kinkaid, a dangerous game of matching wits between Duval and Kinkaid begins"--

This fast-paced story is about a tough rebel named Destry who is sent to prison for years, serving time for a crime he did not commit. Once out, he aims to seek revenge on the 12 jury members who sent him to prison. However, his mission isn't to kill but to find other unique ways as punishment...

"Three western stories where unlikely heroes struggle with their consciences and desires to discover where true values lie"--