Golden Spike

The Iron Horse Chronicles #3

by Robert Lee Murphy

The driving of the Golden Spike at Promontory Summit in Utah on May 10, 1869, almost didn't happen. None of the history books mention this crucial event. Only five people were aware of the incident. Will Braddock knew. He was one of those five. It all started when Paddy O'Hannigan attacked Will; his uncle, Sean Corcoran; and Homer Garcon, in Echo City, Utah, four months earlier. When Will chases after Paddy, the Irish thug traps Will into a bigger mess. Fortunately, Jenny McNabb is around to help Will recover. Paddy, desperate for money, creates more trouble by kidnaping Jenny. Will coerces Mort Kavanagh, Paddy's godfather, into providing the ransom money. Jenny tries to escape, but Paddy throws her shoes away and forces her to walk shoeless to the ransom rendezvous point. After getting his hands on the money, Paddy unwittingly brags that he is rich. Kavanagh forces Paddy to return the funds, and Paddy is broke again. Jenny accepts employment as a chef for the Central Pacific Railroad's president, Leland Stanford, who is bringing the Golden Spike to the ceremony in Utah that will commemorate the completion of the first transcontinental railroad. Paddy sneaks aboard Stanford's train, stabs Homer, grabs the Golden Spike, steals Will's horse, and races away. Will must pursue Paddy again and regain the spike before the railroad officials discover it's missing. If he fails, Jenny, Homer, and Will stand to be accused of being the thieves.

291 pages, Hardcover

Published July 19, 2017

About the author

Award winning author Robert Lee Murphy graduated from the University of Oklahoma with a business degree. Throughout his career, he worked with national and international agencies and institutions on all seven continents, including Antarctica, where Murphy Peak bears his name.

In conducting research for The Iron Horse Chronicles trilogy, Murphy traveled the route of the transcontinental railroad and walked the ground where the action takes place.

Eagle Talons,the first book in The Iron Horse Chronicles was awarded the 2015 Bronze Will Rogers Medallion. In 2016, Bear Claws, the second book, received the Silver Will Rogers Medallion and was awarded First Place in Fiction by The Wyoming Historical Society. Golden Spike, the final book in the trilogy, won the Silver Will Rogers Medallion in 2018.

Bozeman Paymaster: A Tale of the Fetterman Massacre was awarded First Place in Fiction by the Wyoming Historical Society in 2023. Bozeman Paymaster: A Tale of the Fetterman Massacre also received a Copper Will Rogers Medallion in 2023.

Robert's latest historical novel, Bear Flag Revolt was released by Thorndike Press in March 2025. This tells the tale of how Kit Carson and John Frémont "steal" California from Mexico in the 1840s.

Robert is a member of Western Writers of America, The Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators, and the Historical Novel Society.

Reviews

[Lauren Murphy · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are a fan of historical fiction you will love this series. The author does such a great job of weaving actual historical characters and events into an action packed adventure that you feel like you are there witnessing history unfold right along with them. I was actually sad as I got to the final chapters because I felt such a connection with the characters that I didn't want the story to end. I also found myself talking to the characters as the story went along, "wait, don't do that, go back...." I love when an author gives me characters I grow to care about, and this series did just that. Now I want to know what happened to them after this book ends.

[Kathy Heare Watts · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is book 3 in The Iron Horse Chronicles, a historical fiction. The Golden Spike was the joining of the East to the West for the Railroad and this story is the author's creativity rendering of that event with colorful characters, some mystery, and suspense.

I won a copy of this book during a Goodreads giveaway. I am under no obligation to leave a review or rating and do so voluntarily. I am paying it forward by passing this book along to a family member who I think will enjoy it too.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic Finish

A fantastic ending to an exciting and fast-paced story that held my interest and kept me entertained. I would love to read more of the adventures of Will Braddock and friends

[AmsD · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed the trilogy!