To Rory Yates being a Texas Ranger is about justice, but all of that changes when he is brought to a small southern town to help uncover the mysteries behind a local woman's death—only to discover corruption and lies. Texas Ranger Rory Yates is not keen for hero status. But it's unavoidable once his girlfriend, country singer Willow Dawes, writes a song about his bravery. Rory escapes his newfound fame when he's sent to the remote West Texas town of Rio Lobo, a municipality with two stoplights. And now, according to the Chief of Police, it has one too many Texas Rangers. Rio Lobo Detective Ariana Delgado is the one who requested Rory, and the only person who believes a local councilwoman's seemingly accidental death is a murder. Then Rory begins to uncover a tangle of small-town secrets, favors, and lies as crooked as Texas law is straight. To get to the truth before more people die, Rory is forced to take liberties with the investigation. The next ballad of Rory Yates may not be about a hero, but rather an outlaw song.
In James Patterson's #1 New York Times bestselling thriller, a Texas Ranger fights for his life, his freedom, and the town he loves as he investigates his ex-wife's murder. Across the ranchlands and cities of his home state, Rory Yates's discipline and law enforcement skills have carried him far: from local highway patrolman to the honorable rank of Texas Ranger. He arrives in his hometown to find a horrifying crime scene and a scathing accusation: he is named a suspect in the murder of his ex-wife, Anne, a devoted teacher whose only controversial act was ending her marriage to a Ranger. In search of the killer, Yates plunges into the inferno of the most twisted and violent minds he's ever encountered, vowing to never surrender. That code just might bring him out alive.
In this collection featuring rough-and-tumble outlaws, four popular romance authors serve up sexy stories, including one by Jodi Thomas, in which Cozette Camanez, in order to save her family's ranch, forces an unsuspecting thief into marriage. Original.
This the true story of Willis Newton and his outlaw gang who robbed trains and over seventy banks—more than Jessie James, the Daltons, and all of the rest of the Old West outlaws—combined. They robbed a number of banks at gunpoint, but their specialty was hitting banks in the middle of the night and blowing the vaults with nitroglycerine. One frigid night in January of 1921 they even hit two banks, back to back, in Hondo, Texas. Their biggest haul occurred in 1924 when they robbed a train outside of Rondout, Illinois—getting away with $3,000,000. They still hold the record for the biggest train robbery in U.S. history. G.R. Williamson interviewed Willis Newton in 1979 at his home in Uvalde, Texas. A few months later the outlaw died at age 90. With a tape recorder running, Newton rattled off the well-practiced account of his life in machine gun fashion—rationalizing everything he had done, blaming others for his imprisonments, and repeatedly claiming that he had only stolen from “other thieves.” Speaking in a high-pitched raspy voice, Willis was quite articulate in telling his stories—a master of fractured grammar. He spoke in a rapid fire jailhouse prose using a wide range of criminal jargon that was sometimes difficult to follow but Williamson kept his tape recorder running, changing cassettes as fast as possible. The taped interview revealed the quintessence of a criminal mind. Everything he had done was justified by outside forces, “Nobody ever give me nothing. All I ever got was hell!” Over the course of the interview, Willis told how he was raised as a child in the hard scrabble of West Texas and how he was first arrested for a crime “that they knowed I didn’t do.” He went into detail about his first bank holdup, how he “greased” safes with nitroglycerine, robbed trains, and evaded the lawmen that came after him. Willis described robbing banks throughout Texas and a large number of mid-western states, including another back-to-back bank heist in Spencer, Indiana. Eventually he recounted the events of the Toronto Bank Clearing House robbery in 1923 and finally the great train robbery outside of Rondout, Illinois. He went into great detail about the beatings he and his brothers took from the Chicago police when they were later captured. As he told the story his face reddened and his voice rose to a high pitched screech until he had to pause to catch his breath. Then lowering his voice he described how he had managed to negotiate a crafty deal with a postal inspector for reduced prison sentences for himself and his brothers by revealing where the loot was hidden. He told about his prison years at Leavenworth and his illegal businesses he ran in Tulsa, Oklahoma, after he got out of prison in 1929. He complained bitterly about being sent back to prison in McAlester, Oklahoma, for a bank robbery “they knowed I didn’t do,” in Medford. Willis took great pride in saying that, “We never killed nobody, we was just in it for the money. Sure, we shot a few people but we never killed a single man.” During his extensive research, Williamson uncovered evidence to dispel this myth that Willis insisted upon until his death. Now Williamson, using transcripts from his interviews with Willis and others who knew the outlaw, first-hand accounts from eye witnesses, newspaper articles, police records, and trial proceedings, tells the true story of The Last Texas Outlaw—Willis Newton.
A bride to redeem an outlaw! The only way Boone Walker can escape jail is by capturing the fearsome King brothers. But to do this he needs Melinda Winston's help and that means making her his wife! After only being valued for her beauty, Melinda is delighted to find a man who sees her for who she truly is. Even as their mission leads them into ever greater danger, Boone proves to be courageous and honorable beyond measure, and Melinda determines to show her outlaw husband that he is worthy of redemption…
On the run for a murder he didn't commit, the last thing Luke Weston needs is to go looking for more trouble. But when Luke stumbles across a fiercely beautiful woman struggling against two heavily armed men, it's obvious that trouble has found him. Original.
Skylar, the youngest Belle daughter, is known as the rebellious sister. But her days of sowing wild oats are over—now her life's about running the family ranch and keeping her four-year-old daughter safe. And Skylar doesn't feel very safe around Cooper Yates, High Five's foreman…and a former criminal. Cooper can't shake his reputation as an outlaw. Being framed for a crime he didn't commit is one thing. A stubborn boss lady making him feel he doesn't belong on the ranch—the only home he's known in years—is another. But when danger threatens her child, Cooper has a chance to show Skylar what really separates the good guys from the bad.
Beginning with Texas's declaration of independence in 1835 and stretching into the turbulent Depression era a century later, many ruthless criminals and daring deputies and rangers kicked up dust within the state's borders. Billy the Kid, Machine Gun Kelly, Bat Masterson, and Belle Star were familiar faces. Other characters included Texas Jack, Rowdy Joe, Mysterious Dave, Long Haired Jim, Buckskin Frank, and Curly Bill. In this book, accounts of gunfights, robberies, and kidnappings follow selected profiles. In a borrowed costume, Marshal Ratliff, the Santa Claus Robber, held up cashiers while several of his "elves" pulled weapons to help St. Nick fill his sack. Mishaps, accidents, and misunderstandings lighten the mood between truly heinous crimes such as that of the Bender family. Owners of a small hotel, the four family members would kill lone travelers for their possessions. While pursuing his undergraduate degree at the University of Tulsa in Oklahoma, Laurence Yadon considered himself fortunate to have studied under William Settle, a Jesse James scholar. This experience served as his inspiration to become a lifelong student of American history, especially that of the Southwest. Dan Anderson is a former newswriter, photographer, features writer, and columnist. He has been honored with multiple awards from the Associated Press for spot news reporting, investigative reporting, and newswriting. Anderson and Yadon are also the authors of 100 Oklahoma Outlaws, Gangsters, and Lawmen: 1839-1939, published by Pelican.
Davis makes extensive use of untapped literary archives to weave a fascinating portrait of six Texas writers, calling themselves the Mad Dogs, who came of age during a period of rapid social change: Bud Shrake, Larry L. King, Billy Lee Brammer, Gary Cartwright, Dan Jenkins, and Peter Gent.
A fascinating journey through the Lone Star State’s unruly past— with maps, photos, and more Texas rightfully claims a celebrated place in the “wildest” West of both myth and reality—which makes it truly stranger than fiction that The Crime Buff’s Guide to Outlaw Texas is the first-ever travel guide to the many sites related to the Lone Star State’s renowned rambunctious past, complete with GPS coordinates that put you at the scene of the action. From outlaws like Sam Bass and John Wesley Hardin to Bonnie & Clyde and Houston’s notorious Candy Man killer, Texas has dozens of places where true-crime buffs can actually stand close to history. For many readers, the attraction to these sites—some well-known, some obscured by time—is irresistible. Written with the same fast-paced, gripping style that marked the author’s widely praised earlier work, The Crime Buff’s Guide to Outlaw Texasis an indispensable resource for both criminal-history enthusiasts and travelers. Each site description includes a concise summary of the location’s significance, historical context, maps, directions, and photos. Praise for a previous book by the same author, The Darkest Night “Heartbreaking . . . Not unlike Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood.” —Chicago Sun-Times “This uncommon story has every chilling component of human terror, drama, and suspense that readers of true crime look for.” —Vincent Bugliosi, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Helter Skelter “A very, very, good book . . . written by a very, very, good writer.” —Ann Rule, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Stranger Beside Me
