Dusty Richards

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About Dusty Richards

IF THERE WAS A SATURDAY MATINEE, Dusty was there with Hoppy, Roy and Gene. He went to roundup at seven-years-old, sat on a real horse and watched them brand calves on the Peterson Ranch in Othello, Washington. When his family moved to Arizona from the Midwest, at age 13, he knew he'd gone to heaven. A horse of his own, ranches to work on, rodeos to ride in, Dusty's mother worried all his growing up years he'd turn out to be some "old cowboy bum."

He read every western book on the library shelves. He sat on the stoop of Zane Grey's cabin on Mrs. Winter's ranch and looked out over the "muggie-own" rim and promised the writer's ghost his book would join Grey's some day on the book rack.

Since English teachers never read westerns, he made up book reports like "Guns on the Brazos" by J.P. Jones. The story of a Texas Ranger who saves the town and the girl. Then he sold them for a dollar to other boys too lazy to read when teenagers were lucky to earn fifty cents an hour. In fact, book reports kept him and his buddy in gas money to go back and forth to high school.

After graduating from Arizona State University in 1960, he came to northwest Arkansas, ranched, auctioneered, announced rodeo, worked 32 years for Tyson Food in management, anchored TV news and struggled to get a book of his own sold. The three earlier books on the list were published without his knowledge and only discovered in 2011 as even existing.

In 1992, his first novel, Noble's Way was published. In 2003, his novel The Natural won the Oklahoma Writer's Federation Fiction Book of the Year Award. In 2004, The Abilene Trail won the same award. Dusty invests a lot of his time helping others who want to learn how to write by speaking at seminars and conferences all over the United States. There is no difference in writing any kind of fiction. In Dusty's words, "You simply change the sets, costumes and dialect."

He serves on the board of Ozark Creative Writers Conference held annually in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, as well as on the boards of the Ozarks Writers League in Branson, Missouri, and the Oklahoma Writers Federation. He also serves on the board of his local electric co-op, and of the Springdale, Arkansas, PRCA rodeo. He is president of Western Writers of America. In 2004 he was inducted into the Arkansas Writers Hall of Fame.

Over one hundred books have been published under his own name and pseudonyms. That does not count his five dozen plus short stories and hundreds of articles and columns.

Dusty and his wife, Pat, reside next to Beaver Lake east of Springdale, Arkansas, that is whenever they aren't off at speaking engagements or writing conferences, announcing rodeos or chuckwagon racing, or researching for western novels. He and his wife have two wonderful daughters, Ann and Rhonda, two great sons-in-law, and four super grandkids.

If he can steal time to do it, Dusty likes to fish for trout on the White River in Arkansas.

Dusty's website: www.dustyrichards.com
Interview on Youtube: http://youtu.be/n1p4-B6fvjE?hd=1

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Author Updates

Titles By Dusty Richards

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Rage for Vengeance (A Byrnes Family Ranch Novel Book 12) Dec 18, 2018

by Dusty Richards

( 71 )

$1.99

Bloodthirsty hired guns are out to ruin a lawman’s plans for progress in this action-packed Western from the award–winning author of Sharpshooter.

Born out of the grit, sweat, and drive of a cattle ranching empire, U.S. Marshal Chet Byrnes is turning the savage and lawless Arizona desert into a homeland. To some he’s the hero that the West needs. To others, he’s a moving target.

Chet is spearheading a stage line from Gallup to the Colorado River. It’ll be a boon to Navajo trading posts, and lay out the territory for new settlements. Unfortunately, it’s not Gerald Hall’s idea of progress—killing Chet is. The mysterious Texas gambler has hired three kill-crazy assassins—and counting—to bury Chet under a storm of bullets. To turn the tables on a game of revenge, Chet must match the deranged Texan play by play, body by body, and bullet for bullet. Come hell or high water, that stage line is going through—even if it’s forged in blood.

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Library Binding , Mass Market Paperback , Audio CD

Sharpshooter (A Byrnes Family Ranch Novel Book 11) Mar 27, 2018

by Dusty Richards

( 81 )

$6.89

A rancher and US marshal battles a corrupt cabal as a new railroad comes to Arizona, in this powerful Western by a Spur Award–winning author.

In the brutal, unforgiving wastes of the Arizona desert, Chet Byrnes built a cattle ranching empire with his bare hands, steel will, and a fast draw. As a US marshal, he risks his life to bring law to a lawless land.

When a new railroad route is planned to pass through Navajo territory, Chet fights to get the Indians a contract to supply the locomotives with coal. But the corrupt politicians in Tucson and D.C. have other ideas. The coal contract means millions, and the ruthless Tucson Ring will do anything to get it—even if it means killing a US marshal. Battling bandits, the railroad, and a corrupt gang of millionaires, Chet won’t back down until the desert is painted red with blood.

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Library Binding , Mass Market Paperback , Audio CD

Ambush Valley (Byrnes Family Ranch series Book 5) Mar 4, 2014

by Dusty Richards

( 85 )

$5.99

Spur Award–winning author: “Dusty takes readers into the real west at full gallop.” —New York Times bestselling author Jodi Thomas

Ride into an unforgettable tale of valiant courage and bloody conflict from the Western Heritage and Spur award-winning author Dusty Richards . . .

They’ve crossed the line . . .

Chet Byrnes has his hands full taking care of his family and running his ranching operation in Arizona Territory. But he still takes his responsibilities as a deputy US marshal very seriously. Bandits have been crossing the border, cutting a bloody swath of mayhem—stealing horses, robbing banks, and murdering innocent folk—then high-tailing it back to safety in Mexico.

. . . for the last time.

The chief US marshal asks Chet to lead a secret task force to stop the raids and round up the border bandits—dead or alive. But the bandits fight back—putting a five-hundred-dollar bounty on Chet’s head. Now he’s got bushwhackers to deal with, and when he’s led into an ambush, it’s kill or be killed in a life-or-death showdown . . .

“Dusty Richards writes . . . with the flavor of the real West.” —Elmer Kelton

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Hardcover , Paperback , Mass Market Paperback

Deadly Is the Night (A Byrnes Family Ranch Novel Book 9) Sep 27, 2016

by Dusty Richards

( 69 )

$1.99

From the Spur Award–winning author, the saga of one family and the blood spilled to make Arizona Territory their home . . .

Building a ranching empire is one thing, keeping it out of the hands of robbers, kidnappers, murderers, embezzlers, and every no-good opportunist crawling through the Arizona desert is a daily grind for Chet Byrnes. He’s just as likely to rescue a stolen daughter as he is to recover rustled cattle on any given day. But with a family to keep safe and enough real target practice to keep his aim deadly, nothing’s going to stop Chet from bringing his ranch into a bold new era. And if that means he’ll have to go to war to run a new telegraph line through the godforsaken territories, he’s got the manpower, the willpower, and the bullets to light up the night with blood . . .

“Dusty takes readers into the real west at full gallop.” —New York Times bestselling author Jodi Thomas

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Hardcover , Mass Market Paperback , Audio CD

Ralph Compton North to the Salt Fork (A Ralph Compton Western) Jun 1, 2010

by Ralph Compton, Dusty Richards

( 37 )

$5.99

In this western in Ralph Compton's USA Today bestselling series, a Civil War veteran learns the fight isn't over...

Captain Jack Starr served the Confederate cause with honor for four years. The Texas town of Lost Dog Creek promised an opportunity for the war veteran to rebuild his life—and a woman to share it with. But not everyone is willing to roll out the welcome wagon for Jack.

Hiram Sawyer has designs on every inch of cattle range in the surrounding territory and he isn’t about to let some ex-reb steal the heart of the widow whose ranch he covets. With men on both sides of the law willing to do his bidding, Sawyer begins a campaign to destroy Jack.

But he’s just declared war on the wrong man…

More Than Six Million Ralph Compton Books In Print!

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Mass Market Paperback , Audio CD

Range War of Callie County (The Brandiron Book 4) Sep 9, 2019

by Dusty Richards

( 11 )

$8.99

Charlie Brackeen owns the big ranch that takes up the entire north end of drought-stricken Callie County. When he pushes his B-Bar-M cattle south of their own range, it’s no mistake—it’s a hostile takeover, enforced by Sheriff Alex Woodbridge, the tough, one-eyed former Texas Ranger who’s in Brackeen’s pocket. They want the small ranchers leaderless and isolated so they can be picked off one-by-one and forced to sell their land.

They just didn’t count on Jed Mahan.

Jed is a small-time rancher who wants nothing more than to raise his cattle in peace and find comfort at the table and in the bed of the alluring Mrs. Gabriella Contras. As the county’s independent ranchers come together, though, they look to him for leadership. Jed’s reluctant at first, but when he’s blamed for the murder of his neighbor’s son, he has no choice but to step up. Woodbridge and Brackeen won’t waste time on something as trivial as a murder trial. Jed has two options—convince by-the-book county judge Neemore Davis of his innocence... or put Woodbridge in the ground before the old sheriff does the same thing to him.

In the dust and heat of a wild South Texas summer, it won’t take much of a spark to set off a range war in Callie County.

**Please Note: This title has previously been published by another publisher under the title BRACKEEN'S LAW.**

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The O'Malleys of Texas Sep 26, 2017

by Dusty Richards

( 101 )

$5.99

Spur Award–winning author: Two half brothers, former Texas Rangers, take their gunfighting skills on the road to secure their family’s future . . .

Western Heritage and Western Writers of America Spur Award–winning author Dusty Richards unleashes the epic beginning to the O’Malley family saga, a new western classic set in the lawless sprawl of an unforgettable Texas . . .

As Civil War bloodies the nation’s ground, Texas Rangers Harp and Long John O’Malley patrol a vast, unguarded range, picking off the Comanche while protecting the families of soldiers off fighting at the front.

Bullet by bullet the O’Malleys distinguish themselves as two of the bravest gunfighters to ever wear the Ranger’s star. At war’s end, the Rangers are disbanded, but Harp and his half-Cherokee brother Long John are not through fighting yet. They sign on with a cattle drive that will take them across the most treacherous and deadly stretch of the American frontier: the long trail from Texas to Sedalia, Missouri. Beset by ruthless enemies inside and outside the camp, Harp and Long John aim dead straight for the future—where a great ranching fortune awaits back in a Texas they will change forever.

Other Formats: Library Binding , Mass Market Paperback

Dead Aim (The O'Malleys of Texas Book 2) Jan 30, 2018

by Dusty Richards

( 92 )

$4.99

A novel in the Spur Award–winning author’s blazing American epic of blood, bullets, and brotherhood . . . “Richards writes . . . with the flavor of the real West.” —Elmer Kelton

Long John O’Malley is only nineteen years old, but he’s no greenhorn. The oldest and boldest of the O’Malley brothers, Long John cut his teeth tangling with Comanche at the tender age of sixteen. He risked his life to rescue a group of captive women settlers—and forged his own destiny as a hero in the making.

Now he’s taking on his biggest challenge yet: riding shotgun on a wagon train across the hostile Nebraska Territory. It’s a treacherous trail, and it’s not long before the young Texan is earning his paycheck by fighting off a tribe of bloodthirsty Sioux. But the real test lies in the journey ahead—a genuine ride to hell and back, from the Rocky Mountains to Sante Fe and all the way home—that will make Long John O’Malley either a living legend . . . or a dead one.

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Library Binding , Mass Market Paperback , Audio CD

Pray for the Dead (Byrnes Family Ranch series Book 8) Mar 1, 2016

by Dusty Richards

( 69 )

$6.49

The frontier comes alive in the saga of Chet Byrnes and his family empire, by the Spur Award–winning author who writes “with the flavor of the real West” (Elmer Kelton).

Between the living and the dead . . .

The Byrnes family has fought fiercely for its ranching empire. And with success comes the fate of empires: The Brynes have taken in far-flung family members, hired hands, and folks looking for another chance at life. The Byrnes clan has taken their fair share of hurt, too, taking on outlaws too deadly and powerful for the law.

When a stage is robbed of a fortune in gold, the Byrnes boys set off on a wild race through the wilderness. But who are the men they are chasing? And where have they stashed the gold? In a harsh, unforgiving land, the Byrnes men face a mystery of gold and death—that could explode like a bomb in their hands . . .

“Dusty takes readers into the real west at full gallop.” —New York Times bestselling author Jodi Thomas

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Hardcover , Paperback , Mass Market Paperback , Audio CD

A Good Day To Kill A Byrnes Family Ranch Western (Byrnes Family Ranch series Book 6) Feb 1, 2015

by Dusty Richards

( 88 )

$5.99

In the thrilling saga from the Western Heritage and Spur Award–winning author, Chet Byrnes stands his ground—with his courage, guns, and blood.

For Chet Byrnes, building a ranching empire means adding new land, hiring good men, finding water, and trying new breeds of cattle. But outlaws and Tucson’s idle rich want to take it all away—and Arizona just may be too lawless to stop it. So while the Byrnes family expands its reach, Chet must do his job hunting down outlaws on either side of the border.

Chet’s cowboys prove to be tireless fighters, going up against former Mexican military men, a powerful family with bad in their blood. Then Chet takes on the most dangerous risk of all: a bloody, all-out shooting war—with everything to lose, and one last enemy to kill . . .

“Dusty takes readers into the real west at full gallop.” —New York Times-bestselling author Jodi Thomas

“Dusty Richards writes . . . with the flavor of the real West.” —Elmer Kelton

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Paperback , Mass Market Paperback , Audio CD

The Natural Apr 28, 2016

by Dusty Richards

( 16 )

$8.99

Eight Seconds is a Lifetime.

There’s a lot of tough competition in the rodeo arena—from the man behind the microphone to the cowboys and cowgirls that ride, rope, and climb on the bucking stock. The Natural puts you in the boots of famed rodeo announcer Brad Turner, racing his horse Golden Boy into the arena and welcoming the crowd to a pro rodeo performance in Jackson, Mississippi. You’ll hit the road with Brad as he criss-crosses the country struggling with life, love, and business on the pro rodeo circuit. You’ll meet Zola Johns, the rebellious, barrel racing beauty with her eye on the prize of winning a national championship, and Shoat Krammer, the young rough-and-tumble rookie that’s the real natural coming up the hard way.

Tough, gritty, and written with the authenticity of a lifelong rodeo veteran, two-time Spur Award-winning author Dusty Richards tells a tale so real, you’ll be dusting the dirt from the arena off your Wranglers before you’re done.

Other Formats: Hardcover , Paperback , Mass Market Paperback

The Cherokee Strip (The Brandiron Book 2) Sep 17, 2016

by Dusty Richards, Dennis Doty

( 39 )

$8.99

Norman Thompson doesn't seek out trouble, but it always seems to have a way of finding him, anyway. All he really wants is a job as a ranch foreman. He'd tried in Montana, but ended up in a gunfight with a pair of ugly-looking brothers over a horse. Leaving one dead and the other swearing revenge, Norm figures it'd be wise to make himself scarce. He heads south, making his way to Nebraska. Instead of work, though, he finds something he never expected—a partner. Edith is a beautiful young woman seeking to escape the clutches of her own sordid past. Together they buy a decrepit old cattle ranch—the legendary Rocking Chair— and start driving herds up to the lush grass of the newly-opened Cherokee Strip. With Norm’s brawn and Edith’s brains, it’s a winning combination.

The sins of yesteryear, though, are not so easily left behind. While Norm settles into a new life as a ranch owner and family man, forces are at work to take it all away. Will he and Edith find the happiness they’ve been searching for? Or will the ghosts of the past burn it all to bitter ashes?

Other Formats: Audible Audiobook , Hardcover , Paperback

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