Today, HJ is pleased to share with you Nik James’s new release: Silver Trail Christmas
In this riveting historical western for fans of William Johnstone and Ralph Compton, feared gunslinger Caleb Marlowe is out to save his partner by taking on:
A dangerous enemy, long thought to be dead
A greedy, railroad-obsessed power broker who’s above the law
A jealous neighbor looking for payback
For years, Caleb Marlowe has been following a hard trail. But fate finally seems to be smiling on him. The ranch he and his partner have been building is ready for a herd of longhorns, and a ghost from his troubled past is about to dance at the end of hangman’s rope. With winter descending on the Colorado boom town of Elkhorn, Caleb’s future looks bright.
But in the Wild West, a man’s fortune can turn with the speed of a mountain storm. When his partner is jailed for murder, his herd taken by rustlers, and his ranch nearly destroyed, Marlowe knows someone is trying to run him off. His nemesis, Elijah Starr, has been pardoned and hired by Judge Patterson—the local power broker—to build a railroad, and they are two men who will stop at nothing to get what they want.
Marlowe stands alone against a gang of hired killers. The stakes could not be higher, and the cards are stacked against him. A final shootout is coming, but in Elkhorn no one—especially Caleb Marlowe—goes down without a fight.
Enjoy an exclusive excerpt from Silver Trail Christmas
Sheila had a head for solving problems. Caleb had done right in asking her.
Just then, the sun pushed through the clouds, and light poured in through the window. Her golden hair glowed like a halo. It was like a damn sign. For a wild moment, Caleb thought about what it would have been like if Sheila were also living out there on the ranch. As quickly as the idea formed, though, he pushed it away. He wasn’t allowed to have such fanciful dreams.
“When are you going to tell him?”
“Not until after I get back with Ortiz. No reason to stir things up.”
“You’ll take care out there, won’t you?”
“I got to. There’s a twelve-year-old boy’s future to think of.”
She walked slowly toward him. “And is Paddy the only one who you’ll be thinking of?”
Caleb jumped to his feet, feeling his body come alert. She was playing with him. He recognized the expression on her face. They’d exchanged a few brief kisses in the past. Right now, though, he didn’t think he could keep himself reined in if he let down his guard and kissed her properly.
“’Course not. There’s Bear. In spite of how bad he smells when he’s wet, I’ve come to be very fond of him. Then there’s Henry. Come to think of it, he don’t smell so good either. Then there’s Doc, who still can’t play chess worth a lick. And—”
Sheila pushed herself up on the tips of her toes and took hold of Caleb’s chin. “Can’t say it, can you? You’ll miss me. I know you’ll miss me.”
They were close enough that he could have fallen directly into those blue eyes. He felt his guard slip a notch.
“Say it, Marlowe.”
He took a deep breath. “I will miss you, Miss Burnett.”
“Good. Because I’ll miss you too.” She pressed a kiss against his lips and started toward the door.
Caleb was still trying to think of something clever to say in parting, so she wouldn’t know how much her little flirtations affected him. He was about to give up, figuring something would come to him when he was halfway back to the ranch, when she stopped.
“I heard my father say you’re looking for a room where Mr. Washington can convalesce.”
“You heard right.”
“I think I can help you with that.”
“You can?”
“He can stay at Belle Constant’s place.”
The words caught Caleb by surprise. For a moment, he wondered if Sheila actually knew what kind of place the Belle was.
“I recently learned that Miss Constant has a small rooming house that she built for the flood of visitors that came to Elkhorn for the eclipse viewing last summer.”
“That right?” Sheila’s knowledge of this town was beginning to amaze him.
“It’s located at the end of an alley that runs alongside her saloon. Since then, she’s been using it to house some of her employees.”
“I wonder if she’d object to renting it to Tex.”
“I’ll ask her. But I’m fairly certain she won’t mind at all.”
“You’ll ask her? You know Belle Constant?” Every time Caleb thought he knew everything there was to know about Sheila Burnett, she knocked him all a-kilter.
“Of course. She’s a member of the Ladies’ Event Planning Committee.”
Excerpt. ©Nik James. Posted by arrangement with the publisher. All rights reserved.
Giveaway: 3 winners, Caleb Marlowe series each: High Country Justice, Bullets and Silver, Silver Trail Christmas
To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and post a comment to this Q: What did you think of the excerpt spotlighted here? Leave a comment with your thoughts on the book…
Meet the Author:
NIK JAMES is a pseudonym for award-winning, USA Today bestselling authors Nikoo and Jim McGoldrick. They are the writing team behind over four dozen conflict-filled historical and contemporary novels and two works of nonfiction under various pseudonyms. They make their home in California.
EC
That the main character’s love interest is a strong woman. Thanks for the excerpt, HJ!
Diana Hardt
I liked the excerpt. It sounds like a really interesting book.
Lori R
I enjoyed the excerpt and want to read the book.
Dianne Casey
I really enjoyed the excerpt. Would really like to read.
debby236
I love the cover and the excerpt is perfect to entice me
hartfiction
Sounds great – and I love the cover!
lasvegasnan
Enjoyed the excerpt.
Amy Donahue
Definitely made me curious to read more!
Amy R
Sounds good
Glenda M
It definitely made me want to read the book!
bn100
interesting
Texas Book Lover
Made me want to ready more…
SusieQ
I really enjoyed it
Daniel M
looks like a fun one
Teresa Williams
Sounds wonderful and I love the cover.
Latesha B.
I liked the excerpt because it made me curious to learn more about these characters. Sounds like a great story.
Bonnie
What an exciting book! Great excerpt. I’d love to read more.
Laurie Gommermann
Makes me want to visit Elkhorn!
Belle sounds like she has her finger in everything!
I want to know what happens as Sheila and Caleb interact more.
Lori Byrd
Sounds really great
Stephanie
I enjoyed it and am excited to read the book!
Linda Herold
Sounds like a book that I would enjoy.
Patricia B.
It shows how relationships and people in a town are not always what people think. Good and bad do not always describe people accurately. We and they have many parts of just who they are.
Katrina Dehart
I enjoyed reading
Terrill R.
The series as a whole sounds like a great read. I’ve yet to venture into this genre, but my mother and grandmother have always encouraged the western greats, Zane Grey and Louis L’Amour.