Tag: westerns

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Ray Launches Latest Western Bestseller With “The Red Ghost”

The following story appeared on the Dusty Saddle Publishing Network on June 4, 2026.

Charles Ray, one of the foremost and most respected writers in Western fiction today, delivers another action-packed winner!

The legendary Rusty Rhodes is back in the saddle with his latest hard-riding bounty hunter adventure. Packed with classic Western tension, clever tracking, and unexpected frontier danger, The Red Ghost proves once again that Charles Ray is at the absolute top of his game.

WHAT IS THIS ONE ABOUT?

Rusty tracks a fugitive to the northwest region of Arizona Territory and learns that he’s probably hiding out with relatives on one of the spreads in the vicinity of Fort Whipple, north of Prescott, the territorial capital. Once in the area, he discovers that finding someone among the widely separated ranches and farms won’t be as easy as he’d anticipated, and it might be complicated by a mysterious ‘red ghost’ that some people claim is running rampant in the area.

Not a believer in ghosts, Rusty ignores the stories until he hears strange sounds while scouting one of the farms and finds evidence of some large creature having crashed through the underbrush near where he’d tethered his horse. He now realizes that the red ghost, while not a ghost, is real and large enough to pose a danger. So, he puts his fugitive hunt on hold to solve the conundrum of the red ghost, and when he does, he and everyone else are surprised.

Even more surprised is the wanted man when Rusty once more sets his mind to the hunt.

WHERE CAN I GET MY COPY?

“Rusty Rhodes Bounty Hunter: The Red Ghost” is available right now on Amazon as a Kindle eBook. Paperback coming soon

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Toby Giles: Lawman – A new box set!

He crossed the Ohio River a slave… he pinned on the star a free man.
Toby Giles: 𝗟𝗔𝗪𝗠𝗔𝗡: Books 1-3 by Charles Ray is now Available on Amazon. Jericho’s about to face the lawman it never wanted… —and can’t survive without. Grab your copy now. https://a.co/d/06qdQKWn
𝗗𝗦𝗣 𝗗𝗔𝗜𝗟𝗬 𝗗𝗥𝗢𝗣𝗦 – 𝗪𝗛𝗘𝗥𝗘 𝗪𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗡 𝗟𝗘𝗚𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗦 𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗘! #dustysaddlepublishing #charlesray

 

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Beckwourth Trailblazer – Charles Ray’s America250 Epic

26 January 2026|Authors, DSP Articles

The America250 series keeps blazing trails—Jim Beckwourth: Mountain Man Trailblazer by Charles Ray is now available for pre-order on Amazon, with the official release set for Sunday, March 15th, 2026 from Dusty Saddle Publishing!

This thrilling fourth novel in DSP’s landmark America250 series celebrates the 250th anniversary of our nation’s founding by shining a powerful spotlight on one of the West’s most extraordinary and under-celebrated legends: Jim Beckwourth.

Enslaved at birth, James P. Beckwourth was freed and joined the Rocky Mountain Fur Company in the 1830s, heading west as a trapper and quickly carving out a reputation as a master scout, fighter, adventurer, and one of the finest frontiersmen of his era. Over six-plus decades, he lived a life few could match—riding through pivotal moments of American history, from the California Gold Rush to the Seminole Wars. For many years he lived among the Crow Nation, rising to become a respected war chief, and he blazed a trail through the mountains from Nevada Territory to California that still bears his name today.

A man who thirsted for adventure, Beckwourth pushed from Virginia—his birthplace—to the Gulf Coast, the Rocky Mountains, and beyond. He lived life to the fullest, earned a reputation second to none, and helped open the West in ways that changed the nation forever.

Charles Ray brings Beckwourth roaring back to life with his signature blend of historical accuracy, high-stakes action, vivid frontier detail, and the kind of unbreakable spirit that defines the America250 series. After the chart-climbing success of The Pathfinder: John Fremont and  Simon Kenton: The Forgotten Hero, this fourth installment keeps the momentum rolling—honoring the grit, courage, and trailblazing heroism that built America.

Nick Wale is steering this launch with full DSP firepower, and Jersey Muriel Campana is coordinating to ensure Jim Beckwourth: Mountain Man Trailblazer hits hard from day one. Pre-order now so you’re first on the trail when it drops March 15th!

WHAT TO EXPECT

  • Authentic historical depth and high-country adventure
  • Beckwourth’s incredible life: from enslavement to Crow war chief to trailblazer
  • The raw courage and daring that opened the West
  • The kind of relentless storytelling that makes the America250 series unforgettable

PRE-ORDER NOW

Jim Beckwourth: Mountain Man Trailblazer by Charles Ray is AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER on Amazon as a Kindle e-book (paperback to follow). Lock in your copy today and be ready to ride with Beckwourth on March 15th, 2026!

The trailblazer’s story is calling—don’t miss it. America250 rolls on!

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A new kind of western hero

The main characters in Western stories are ranchers, cowboys, lawmen, or outlaws. While these make for good storytelling, this reliance on such traditional characters overlooks the fact that it took a lot of different occupations to tame the frontier. Well, now there’s a new character in town. Eustis Tucker, a lawyer, shows the contributions that these unsung heroes made to bring law and order to the wild and woolly west.

In book one, The Hanging Jury, Eustis Tucker, a recent law school graduate, has arrived in Beeville, Texas to hang his shingle. The Bee County judge, a friend of Eustis’s law school professor, assigns him to defend a young Mexican who has been accused of murder, who can’t afford to hire a lawyer. Eustis has his work cut out for him. He’s never done a criminal trial, least of all a murder trial in a town where juries love to see the accused hang. Worse, he has to face off against a prosecutor who will do anything to win a case, including withholding exculpatory evidence.

Get your copy of this book, available for now in e-book format at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FLMMY6MC/. Be one of the first to see how Eustis navigates the byzantine corridors of a western courtroom in the fractious, violence-ridden Lone Star State.

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New books that I think you’ll like

I’ve been extremely busy of late with westerns. In addition to my several series, the western soap opera series that DSP publicist Nick Wale suggested, finally launched after a rough ride. You can get the first six episodes of Life of a Texan: A Family Story on Amazon. For now, it’s only an e-book, but hopefully reader interest will justify issuing it in paperback. We’ll keep our fingers crossed and Mike Mackessy and I will keep cranking them out.

I’ve been trying a few new things as well. For starters, a tale of knights in the Middle Ages.  A Clash of Colors: A Medieval Knights Adventure is also available as an e-book at https://www.amazon.com/Clash-Colors-Medieval-Knights-Adventure-ebook/dp/B0DF86L21K/ .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’ve also done four Vietnam War novels which you can check out in the Other Fiction Page of this site.  One of my favorite non-western projects, though is my dystopian political thriller. I’ve done two so far which are available as e-books and paperbacks. The third and final of this trilogy, Resistance, Retribution, and Redemption, should be finished by the end of the year. The first one, The Last Election is at https://www.amazon.com/Last-Election-Charles-Ray-ebook/dp/B0D8DMNPXY/ 

And, number two, The Web of Deceit, can be seen at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CW1HB63S/

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New, Exciting And Heading To Market This Week From Charles Ray!

May 7, 2024|Authors

A few days ago, DSP launched a new competition, and one of the first Westerns to result from that competition has already been prepared for market—“Showdown At High Noon” from Charles Ray will be the first of the new competition entries to be released onto the market for readers to enjoy.

This exciting first Western adventure of a series comes from one of the most popular authors in the Western genre, Charles Ray. Charlie is one of the most prolific and popular authors with books ranging from mountain men through to gunfighters, lawmen and every other kind of Western inbetween.

This new adventure is something he has been toying with for some time and readers should enjoy it immensely as they travel with Charlie to the “Showdown At High Noon” in the company of Boone Collins—a new Western hero readers may very well be hearing from again real soon.

What Is This One About?

When Boone Collins’ friend, Hale Orson, marshal of Plata, New Mexico, is murdered, Boone lets the Plata mayor talk him into taking Orson’s job. The new marshal, a loner who came to New Mexico from Texas after the death of his wife, only wants to be left alone and not be responsible for anyone but himself. But his sense of responsibility for a friend compels him not just to take the job, but do it the way Orson would’ve done it in his honor. His first task is to find out who the killer is, but that task is complicated by the web of relationships that exist in a small town that is overshadowed by competing interests. One is the owner of the copper mine that is the town’s economic mainstay, who the mayor thinks might be the killer. The other is a rich ranch owner whose arrogant son acts like the heir to some ancient throne. Boone finds himself caught in the middle of so many intrigues, he doesn’t know which way is up, and without the help of Thelma Battle, owner of the Two Aces Saloon, as an anchor, he fears he might drown in the sea of double dealing and back stabbing.

Boone, though, is not one to give up. He’s determined not to let outside interference or his personal demons get in the way of getting the job done.

Where Can I Get My Copy?

“Showdown At High Noon” will be released this week and will be available as a Kindle e-book and as a paperback from Amazon.

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Help Wanted: Mounting Autograph Requests Call For Expansion

April 17, 2024|Authors, DSP Articles

Autograph requests in the Western genre are becoming more popular, and Charles Ray recently shared a very pleasant request he received from a reader who had recently finished a collaboration Charles had written with Harvey Wood called “Hell’s Fury.”

More of these requests have become commonplace as more and more readers turn to Western authors for their entertainment. This has occurred to the point that DSP has considered hiring a new assistant just to deal with this ever-increasing stack of reader requests.

If there’s an indication of popularity in a genre, then autograph requests and personal correspondence with readers are that indication. Judging by the time that is now spent corresponding with readers, Westerns are working their way back into the public’s heart.

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Fan mail

Writers write to be read, especially those who write in the western genre. The one thing western writers don’t think of, because they don’t get it, is fan mail. I do get the occasional email, one or two a year, from someone who got it off my blog or my Amazon author page–half of them complaining about something–but an actual fan letter . . . well, I’d say never–until now.

A reader in North Carolina, who is reading Hell Fury, a western I co-authored with Harvey Woods, sent me a nice fan letter along with two posters he’d made of characters in the story. One poster he wanted me to autograph and send back and the other was a thank-you gift. Now, that’s the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me, and my thanks and heart go out to him.

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