by Van Holt
BOOK DESCRIPTION
The Circle 8 bunch were really just outlaws and rustlers. Their leader, Mort Dudley had a devious plan to get rid of a couple of his newly hired hands before the bunch cashed in the large herd of cattle that had fallen into their hands when they murdered the old man who owned the herd.Their trouble began when they tried to frame a quiet stranger for the old man’s murder. They didn’t know his real name or that he was a deadly gunfighter and the son of the old man they had buried in an unmarked grave.
The quiet stranger drops out of sight to hide from the law and soon becomes the bane of the Circle 8 bunch; harassing them on all sides, hunting them down and frustrating all their rustling plans and profits.
When Mort Dudley swears that the hills would run with blood, he was right. But he didn’t know whose blood it would be.
AUTHOR BIO
For as long as he can remember, he has been either reading or writing books. His first love is the Old West. Back when cowboys were real men. They knew their guns and their horses and they didn't put up with any crap. Back when women were either prim, proper and married or working in a saloon, but always seemed well acquainted with hard work and the privations of frontier or farm life.
He calls his westerns The Hellbound Westerns, because the good guys always send the bad guys straight to hell. Titles include Rubeck's Raiders, Curly Bill and Ringo, The Hellbound Express, Wild Desert Rose and The Bushwhackers, among others.
In the 1980s, Van spent a lot of time reading and studying the books of Dashiel Hammett, Raymond Chandler, Mickey Spillane and Ross MacDonald, trying to learn how to write murder mysteries.
It was about then that the illegal immigrant situation inspired him to write a series about a private detective named Jake Card, who seems to have a mind of his own, "but feels the same way I do about those who want to turn America into something un-American."
Van has written two hardboiled detective murder/mystery series: The Destino Detectives and The Jake Card Mysteries.
The Destino Detective Series begins in the roaring 1920s with GAT and The Dying Twenties (a kindle exclusive), along with others like Mata Hari's Daughter, Revenge of the Shrews and Weeping Widows, among others.
The Jake Card Mysteries start around the 1950s and take the reader up to the early 2000s. With titles like The Great Detective, Death of a Nation, Jackie the Stripper and Border Girls, among others.
Van has also written several off the wall stories that he affectionately calls 'The Weirdies.' With titles like The Mindwatcher, The Remote Control Cellphone, Max Dare and The Outsider, among others.
REVIEWS
5.0 out of 5 stars Zane Gray's Tradition Continues with Von Holt March 16, 2013
By stern0
Format:Kindle Edition
Blood in the HillsWhen Zane Gray wrote "Riders of the Purple Sage," he set new standards in spinning a good cowboy yarn by exploring not only the usual "black hat/white hat" syndrome but he set new standards by moving the playing field. Instead of just having the tall, handsome stranger "kiss his horse" and ride off into the sunset with the girl pining at the log/rail fence, Gray explored the motivations behind a character's actions. He also made his characters three-dimensional. Now, let's fast forward over half-a-cenury and introduce a new "Zane Gray"-style writer into the mix, Von Holt, whose works are rapidly becoming the new standards by which cowboy yarns are judged. His "Dynamite Riders," though somewhat tough to swallow because of its concept and now his "Blood in the Hills" are hardly the stuff of Cowboy Writing 101. Von Holt's characters are truly three-dimensional and his story lines are multi-dimensional as he explores not only the physical aspects of his characters, but also their abilities and motivations. No one else in the market today is taking the "good old cowboy yarn" to the places Von Holt is taking it. If nothing else, you'll enjoy the ride.
5.0 out of 5 stars Blood in the Hills March 17, 2013
Format:Kindle Edition
`Blood in the Hills' is another amazing novel by Van Holt. This is a western genre full-length book.
Van Holt delivers a refreshing story line.
Mort Dudley is the leader of a group of outlaws that call themselves the Circle Eight bunch. Follow the group on an exhilarating, fast paced ride as karma a.k.a. Dan Potter catches up to them.
The `Eight" appear to be reformed businessmen, living a legitimate lifestyle as cattle ranchers. Turns out the `Eight' murdered the previous ranch owner to acquire the business, an evil act that sealed all their fates.
I don't want to spoil the Dan Potter character for anyone, but believe me when I say there are a lot of twists concerning that one!
Van Holt is rapidly rising in my personal list of favorite authors. If you like action western, try one of Van Holts books. You will not be disappointed.
Van Holt delivers a refreshing story line.
Mort Dudley is the leader of a group of outlaws that call themselves the Circle Eight bunch. Follow the group on an exhilarating, fast paced ride as karma a.k.a. Dan Potter catches up to them.
The `Eight" appear to be reformed businessmen, living a legitimate lifestyle as cattle ranchers. Turns out the `Eight' murdered the previous ranch owner to acquire the business, an evil act that sealed all their fates.
I don't want to spoil the Dan Potter character for anyone, but believe me when I say there are a lot of twists concerning that one!
Van Holt is rapidly rising in my personal list of favorite authors. If you like action western, try one of Van Holts books. You will not be disappointed.
SELECTED OTHER WORKS
Curly Bill and Ringo: They Rode to Hell Together
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