When mixed-blood
army scout Peter MacLoon is caught in the middle of the short-lived Dakota
Uprising he realizes there are two sides to every story—and both sides want him
dead. Son of a Dakota mother and his father a Scottish trader, whites don’t
trust him, and the Indians don’t, either.
But Peter makes a
promise to two women, both of them alone in the wild territory, that he will
see them to safety. Believing he’s done the right thing for beautiful Emma
Foster, he travels on to complete his mission for the army. But he stumbles
upon a white captive that he must free—and when he does, he vows to keep her
safe until he can return her to the world she was stolen from years earlier.
Keeping his word
may be the death of him when she is captured again by marauding Indians, and he
must face the GUNS OF THE PRAIRIE to save her—or die trying.
EXCERPT
No change
in the stoic Indian’s expression was evident from the time I pulled a gun on
him to the time I gave him food. He picked up the small sack and disappeared
silently into the dark woods.
“You
could have killed him,” Jacques whispered.
“That’s
right.”
“He could
have killed you,” he added.
“Also
true.”
Jacques
was quiet, propped up on an elbow, looking thoughtfully at me for a moment
before he spoke again. “You pity the Indian.” From his tone, it was unclear
whether he approved or found it offensive.
“Hunger
changes a man,” I said. “When a man has been hungry long enough, he becomes a
wild beast.”
“So, when an Indian is a
little hungry, you'll feed him. But when he is very hungry, you'll shoot him.” Jacques
shrugged, rolled over, and went back to sleep.
Be sure and leave a comment to be entered in a drawing for a free ebook.
Loved this story, Kevin. Lots of twists and turns--I wasn't sure how in the world you were going to manage to resolve everything...but you DID! Whew! I felt like I was right there. Excellent story!
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your support!
DeleteLooks like a wonderful story, Kevin. I wish you all the best.
ReplyDeleteThanks, I appreciate it.
DeleteKevin, this sounds very intriguing and sure to keep the reader on their toes and totally engrossed. Looking forward toa great read. Wishing you much success with this one and all others. Nice to meet you.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much!
DeleteSounds like a most interesting and exciting story.
ReplyDeleteIt was a fun one to write, especially living here, just a short drive from where the uprising took place!
DeleteGood lines in that excerpt. I'm sure you have a winning story here. Best wishes.
ReplyDeleteBy the time all was said and done, there were some lines in the book I really liked!
DeleteI wish you the best, Kevin. To me, it sounds like a wonderful tale with no easy answer, just the kind of story I enjoy. Doris
ReplyDeleteMany thanks!
DeleteCongratulations, Beverly, you're the lucky winner of a free copy of my new book! Look for my email; all the best!
ReplyDeleteWOW! I will look for it and thank you so much. I can't wait to read it. And again, wishing you the best and much success. Yes!
DeleteThe excerpt reflects a good ethic to live by. You may not be able to fully trust someone, but giving them the benefit of the doubt and a bit of help is a better option than killing them.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes for a successful release of GUNS OF THE PRAIRIE.
I love the tagline. "...both sides want him dead." That alone intrigues me to read more. Best of luck with this story.
ReplyDeleteYour excerpt is a very effective piece of dialogue, Kevin, particularly the punch line – which is what you find in the best western writing, in books and movies. Remember ‘we deal in lead, friend’ or ‘all I want to do is enter my house justified’? Now we’ve got: ‘when an Indian is a little hungry, you'll feed him. But when he is very hungry, you'll shoot him.’
ReplyDelete