'NADA

by Daniel Boyd

MEXICO, 1936:
HIDDEN GOLD
SHOTGUNS NAZIS
A MEXICAN POSSE
AND
TWO DRIFTERS HEADING INTO HELL

“A tale of gold and greed and doing the right thing. Mexican bandits, a harrowing desert journey, one heck of a gun battle, and a narrator who knows how to tell a tale about greed and loyalty. Highly recommended.” — Bill Crider, POP CULTURE MAGAZINE

“If you’re in the mood for a Gold Medal adventure novel, ‘NADA delivers.” — Dr George Kelley, Ph.D.

“Action, told as if the teller of the tale were in the same room with you.” — Steve Lewis, MYSTERY*FILE

“Quiet tension, skillfully sustained from first chapter to last.” — Richard Roesberg

Genres: Fiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2010

About the author

When Central Ohio police chief “Daniel Boyd” retired from his career in law enforcement, he became a driver for the Red Cross, transporting elderly and disabled persons to medical appointments. He also began writing crime and adventure novels.

His first book, ‘NADA (2010), was nominated for the Spur Award for Best First Novel by the Western Writers of America and was reissued in 2023. As one reader put it, “The story blends Nazis, greed, mayhem and gold into a satisfying mix.”

Since ‘NADA was first published, Boyd has penned EASY DEATH (2014), THE DEVIL & STREAK WILSON (2020), AESOP’S TRAVELS (2023) and GONE TO GRAVEYARDS: A Streak Wilson Story (2023). He’s currently writing the third book in The Streak Wilson Series. Boyd writes daily, including contributing book and movie reviews to MysteryFile.

As a graduate of The Ohio State University, Boyd switched majors from English to Communications because, “Having to read assigned books is like being told to eat my vegetables.” He has been a fan of old movies since childhood (his wife calls him a paleo-cinephile). He is also a HAMLET scholar and has a unique hobby of making tobacco pipes from found and upcycled objects.

Boyd and his wife currently live in their 1950s home and enjoy the lifestyle offered in the Columbus area, from the arts and food to metro parks and hiking trails.

Reviews

[Kgb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finalist: Best first novel Spur Award (Western writers of America)

[Ronald Koltnow · Rating 3 out of 5]

The town of Quenada, where some of the action in this spare 20th Century western takes place, is a dying town. Hence, it is now known as 'Nada. This B.Traven-ish tale of greed, gunfights, and redemption deals with an engineer who is tempted when a load of gold coincidentally ends up at his deserted mine. The gold, collected from European Jews trying to find a home in the States, is to be sold in Mexico but is pursued by a relentless SS officer. A gang of bandits, a menacing lawman, and the good people of 'Nada come together in a huge, cinematic gunfight to see who, if anyone, will get the gold. Perhaps influenced by The Great Joe R. Lansdale, 'NADA is at its best when describing action and the ambiguous motivation of our ostensible hero; the folktale humor is not of a piece. Boyd, whose second novel is coming from Hard Case in the fall of 2014,is a talent to watch. This won a Silver Spur as best first novel from the Western Writers of America, and it is worth seeking out.

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

The mystery and action of this story drew me in from the beginning. It's set in Mexico during the Great Depression and at a time when Hitler was gaining power and had violated the Treaty of Versailles. With that historical backdrop, Boyd creates believable characters, danger, and motivation for sometimes radical actions. I highly recommend this easy page-turner.