Paul Colt’s first book Grasshoppers in Summer was a Western Writers of America Spur Award Finalist in 2009. He weaves fast paced stories around historical characters and events. His stories crackle with authenticity in a style that fuses Jeff Shaara’s historical dramatizations with Robert B. Parker’s character driven action. His political insight, military knowledge, research and genuine horse sense bring history to life with characters that walk off the page into the reader’s imagination.

His life long love of the west began, growing up as comfortable on the back of a horse as most kids are on a bicycle. He gets his boots dirty researching a story, whenever possible on horseback.

Paul lives in Lake Geneva Wisconsin with his wife Trish.

www.paulcolt.com

Location: Cheyenne Wyoming, the construction of the Union Pacific Railroad.

President Ulysses S. Grant is disturbed over the building of the railroad. Somewhere along the line, there is the possibility of construction fraud and corruption. Why are so many construction crews leaving and not finishing what they started? The cost is running way over what it should, into the tens of millions. Something needs to be done.

The President dispatches U.S. Marshall J.R. (Lucky) Chance to Cheyenne to investigate.

What Chance finds when he gets there is more than he figured on. He discovers a conspiracy being controlled by Right of Way development that will not stop at nothing or let anything or anyone stop their movement to own all the Union Pacific construction contracts and the right of way land grants that go with them. Will Chance be able to find who is behind all this? With the aid of a Cheyenne Indian maiden that saved his life, together they will face the dangers of Indian raids, robberies, and that chance of being killed themselves…All roads lead back to New York.

Paul Colt has written a excellent historical novel that also has a touch of historical fact to it. As you read, you will be drawn into the characters of the book and will keep turning the pages to see who else is involved. What starts out with two or three involves many more. This is a great Historical novel. It drew me in more, as I lived in Cheyenne Wyo. and came from a long family line of Union Pacific Railroad workers.