AustLit

'They were an odd pair, the one-time Union captain and the former Confederate sergeant. They’d fought each other during the Battle of Pea Ridge and then ended up fighting shoulder to shoulder when a common enemy showed his face.

'Bo Rangle, leader of the guerilla force known as Rangle’s Raiders, took advantage of the slaughter to steal what the two opposing forces had been fighting for – two hundred thousand dollars’ worth of Confederate gold.

'Hank Brazos and Duke Benedict never forgot that day, or each other. And when, by chance, their trails crossed again after the War, they decided to team up, find Rangle and reclaim that gold for themselves. And while they were at it, they swore to get revenge for all of their comrades who’d died that day back in 1862…'

Source: Publisher's blurb (2020 ed.).

'Trouble was brewing in the town of Harmony, between the gun-toughs who manned the Two-Bar ranch, the hardcases who hung around the Rawhide Saloon and the beleaguered miners out at Whipple Creek. Into this explosive situation rode Hank Brazos and Duke Benedict. With a thin bankroll, they were looking to earn some fast money to continue their hunt for a Civil War guerilla who’d killed their comrades and stolen a fortune in Confederate gold …. a fortune they themselves planned to get their hands on.

'So Brazos pinned on the sheriff’s badge in return for a hundred dollars a month, and soon found himself taking his responsibilities more seriously than he’d thought possible!

'Across a poker table, meanwhile, Benedict ran into an old acquaintance named Doc Christian. They were rivals, these two gambler-gunmen. And frankly, Benedict had no idea where Doc fitting into the various warring factions. When the chips were down, however, Benedict and Brazos found themselves in the thick of a fiery showdown, with just about every gun-filled hand turned against them!'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'After witnessing the cold-blooded killing of a man named Boyd Larsen, Duke Benedict and Hank Brazos found themselves up to their gunbelts in mystery, murder and mayhem. Someone was rustling cattle from Nate Kendrick’s Rancho Antigua, and while that in itself wasn’t Benedict and Brazos’ business, rumor had it that the man doing all the rustling was Bo Rangle, the cut-throat outlaw they’ve been tracking ever since he massacred their men in the closing days of the Civil War.

'Signing on as range detective and wrangler respectively, Benedict and Brazos set out to run the rustlers to ground and exact their revenge on Rangle. But before they can find the man, they need to find the cattle… and somehow or other, those cattle have vanished right off the face of the earth!'

Source: Publisher's blurb (2020 ed.).

'The sheriff of Tumbleweed took an instant dislike to Duke Benedict and Hank Brazos. The dude and the giant in the garish purple shirt looked like trouble to him. So he gave them one-way tickets for the next stage out to Flintlock …. and that’s when the trouble really began.

'The minute it left town, the stagecoach became a target. Among the other passengers was a federal marshal delivering his prisoner, notorious outlaw Jack Savage, to Flintlock for trial. But Savage’s gang had other ideas. They planned to stop the stage and rescue him, even if they had to kill everyone else on board.

'They reckoned without Benedict and Brazos, and when the stranded passengers took refuge in a deserted town called Buckaroo, they found themselves up against hot lead – and stone-cold ghosts from the past!'

Source: Publisher's blurb (2020 ed.).

'It had been months since Brazos and Benedict had started their search for Bo Rangle, the outlaw who’d killed most of their comrades in the War and stolen a fortune in gold. But the west was a big place and Rangle could have been anywhere.  Then they chanced upon the best lead they’d had in months…. the only trouble was, Race Sackett, the man who could take them right to Rangle, was behind bars, awaiting a noose. There was only one thing to do – bust the outlaw out and force him to take them to Rangle’s lair. But that was going to be easier said than done ….'

Source: Publisher's blurb (2020 ed.).

'Spargo was a mining town… but there hadn’t been any mining there for a while. The mines were in a dangerous condition, and their owner, Foley Kingston, refused to make improvements. So the miners–those who’d survived the numerous cave-ins and accidents–went on strike, and Kingston called on his old friend, Duke Benedict, to help him break it.

'Benedict’s partner, big Hank Brazos, immediately sided with the miners. And even though Benedict knew Kingston was at fault, he had to stand by him. Back in the War, Kingston had saved his life, so he owed the man.

'But there were darker forces at work in Spargo–from Kingston’s cheating wife Rhea to saloon owner Ace Beauford, who wanted to run the entire outfit all by himself. And then there was a man-mountain named Paddy Clancy, who figured to double-cross all of them!'

Source: Publisher's blurb (2020 ed.).

'As usual, Duke Benedict and Hank Brazos were low on funds … until they ran into a drunken miner by the name of Arnie Woodcock. Arnie bore such an uncanny resemblance to a wanted outlaw called Turk Jory that it gave Benedict an idea. Suppose they were to turn Arnie in and claim the reward on Jory’s head? They could then bust Arnie out of jail, quit the territory and split the money three ways.

'What could possibly go wrong? In short — everything.

'Nobody figured on the real Turk Jory showing up to take a look at the man who was to hang in his place. Nobody figured that he would use the hanging as a diversion while he hit the local bank. And nobody figured that Benedict and Brazos could still come out of the whole sorry mess as heroes!'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Bold Venture ed.).

'As a favor to his father, Duke Benedict took on the job of bodyguard to Governor Sherwood Garfield. The territory was still raw, and the cattlemen who had claimed most of the surrounding land were determined to fight Garfield’s Settler’s Act, which would effectively open it up to homesteaders looking to start a new life.

'Benedict’s partner, big Hank Brazos, was kept busy as well, organizing the territorial militia … a thankless task that carried risks all of its own.

'But that was as nothing to the dangers that faced them when a hulking gunfighter named Honder was given a thousand dollars to kill Benedict … and a further five thousand to assassinate the man Benedict had been charged to protect!'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Bold Venture ed.).

'Almost one year after they met, on that fateful day at the Battle of Pea Ridge, Benedict and Brazos are gifted with valuable information. But the information comes with a deadline! Outlaw Bo Rangle has begun moving his stolen Confederate gold from one hidden location to another.

'The clock is ticking on their best lead, but can they trust their informant? Other parties are galloping toward the riches — the local marshal with a weather-beaten posse, and Rangle’s hired muscle with their shifting loyalties. By the time Benedict and Brazos confront their enemy, they’ll be surrounded by a hellfire storm of sizzling lead.'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Bold Venture ed.).

'It looked as though Duke Benedict and Hank Brazos would finally ride their separate ways. Benedict was preparing to marry the beautiful Charity Flint, and return east. First, their old friend Colonel Oliver Traven was desperate to make one last search for his son, who went missing in Llano Estacado — the Staked Plains —  three years earlier. Benedict and Brazos wanted to help the Colonel, but suspected tragedy lay ahead for everyone — including Benedict’s bride, who seemed eager to make a public hero of her fiancée.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Mack Halligan and Kid Chaney were bitter rivals. They ran rival outlaw gangs — Halligan’s was hopeless, while Kid Chaney’s was successful — and they loved the same woman. When Duke Benedict’s new horse was stolen, the gambling man made it his mission to track down Chaney and take the animal back. His big partner, Hank Brazos, figured to put Kid Chaney behind bars, so Mack Halligan could marry the girl of his dreams and return to the straight and narrow. That was a big ‘if’  since the woman loved both outlaws!'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'The note, found in a remote spot, summed it up:

'“Señor Benedict is now my prisoner and will be held for ransom. You will ride to Panhandle, New Mexico, and wire the Americano’s rich father in Boston. He is to wire back the sum of fifty thousand dollars care of Señor Montoya. If you fail to do this or if the rich man does not pay, Benedict will be shot. If you do as I say he will be freed unharmed.”

'Paulo Parada, a psychopathic bandit-turned-revolutionary, sent the note. From everything Hank Brazos learned, Parada was a sadist who killed men for pleasure … so Brazos had to act fast to prevent Duke Benedict, his partner, from ending up another notch on the outlaw's gun.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Trouble was brewing between the Shotgun Ranch and its rivals, the Golden Hoof — and though they wanted no part of a range war, Benedict and Brazos eventually had to choose sides.

'There was just one problem.

'As the bodies piled up, and the gunsmoke grew ever thicker, Benedict started to wonder if they’d thrown in with the right side. Brazos had no such doubts … but by then, he’d fallen head-over-heels for the Golden Hoof owner’s beautiful daughter Tracy. And Tracy could do no wrong in his eyes …

'It was then that the unthinkable happened, and Benedict and Brazos found themselves on opposing sides. In the final showdown, they’d have to go against each other, toe to toe, gun to gun …'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Galloway’s two lawmen arrested Hank Brazos on a charge of rustling. Brazos went quietly, sure that his saddle pard, Duke Benedict, would soon arrive and clear everything up. But the law had other ideas. No ifs, no buts … Brazos would remain behind bars until the circuit judge found him guilty — and sentenced him to hang! Benedict decided to ride solo and arrest the real culprits himself — but to succeed he had to rely on Brazos’ irascible hound, Bullpup!'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Bold Venture ed.).

'Duke Benedict and Hank Brazos were closing in on Bo Rangle, the man they’d sworn to kill; the same man whose gang of cutthroats had massacred hundreds throughout the late Civil War. And Bo Rangle knew it. He planned to dig up the Confederate gold he’d stolen at the Battle of Pea Ridge and high-tail it to Mexico. If anyone got in his way … But still Benedict and Brazos kept after their quarry. They survived ambushes, shootouts, and the Lizard River. Once they dealt with Rangle, though, they’d have to settle with each other!'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Bold Venture ed.).

'The south lost the War Between the States, but landowner Stanton Claiborne emerged a financial winner. He moved his family into the heart of Union country at war’s end. The resident Northerners were living a hand-to-mouth existence, and didn’t take appreciate a rich Southerner lording it over them. The stage was set for a war, and Duke Benedict and Hank Brazos rode straight into it. Unseen forces were determined to make Clairborne’s family suffer for their own gain. Before peace was declared again, men would die …'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Bold Venture ed.).

'If ever a man was born to hang, it was Dusty Lane. But Lane never figured he would hang for a crime he didn’t commit … in this case, a cold-blooded double murder.

'Luckily for Dusty, his old friend Hank Brazos got to hear about his plight and decided to do something about it—with the reluctant help of his gun-swift partner Duke Benedict.

'They rode for the town of Spearhead with no set plan in mind, but quickly started to put all the pieces together … a witness who wasn’t as reliable as he seemed … a sheriff who would sooner look the other way … an undertaker with big ambitions … and a whisper-voiced killer named Raven, who was happy to kill anyone who got in his way—and even those who didn’t.

'Someone was out to break the Arkansas Cattlemen’s Association by any means … and by hang rope or bullet, it didn’t matter to them who had to die in the process.'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Bold Venture Press ed.).