Hard Country

Kerney Family Trilogy #1

by Michael McGarrity, George Guidall (Narrator)

National best-selling author and New Mexico native Michael McGarrity takes listeners to the wild territory of the late 19th-century American Southwest for this epic tale. After the deaths of his wife and brother, John Kerney gives up his West Texas ranch and heads south in search of a new home. Soon Kerney is offered work trailing cattle to the New Mexico Territory - a job that will forever change his life.

©2012 Michael McGarrity (P)2012 Recorded Books, LLC

Genres: Historical Fiction, Westerns, Fiction, Audiobook, Mystery, Historical, Crime

Audible Audio

First published May 1, 2012

About the author

With the publication of Tularosa in 1996, Michael McGarrity turned to writing full time. Many of his novels have been national best sellers. He holds a BA with distinction in psychology and a master's degree in clinical social work. As an undergraduate, he held a Ford Foundation Scholarship at the University of New Mexico. Additionally, he is an honor graduate of the New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy.

His career in criminal justice spanned over twenty-five years and included creating treatment programs for drug offenders, supervising outreach services for at-risk juveniles, and re-establishing mental health services for the Department of Corrections after the infamous 1980 riot at the New Mexico Penitentiary. As a Santa Fe County deputy sheriff, he worked as a patrol officer, training and planning supervisor, community relations officer, and was the lead investigator of the sex crimes unit, which he established. Additionally, he taught courses at the New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy, served as a caseworker and investigator for the Public Defender's District Office, and conducted investigations for a state government agency. In 1980 he was named New Mexico Social Worker of the Year and in 1987 was recognized by the American Legion as Police Officer of the Year.

In 2004 he received the New Mexico Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts -- Literature. He is also the 2015 recipient of the Frank Waters Exemplary Literary Achievement Award and the 2015 Santa Fe Mayor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts – Literature. He has been instrumental in establishing the Hillerman-McGarrity Creative Writing Scholarship at the University of New Mexico, the Richard Bradford Memorial Creative Writing Scholarship at the Santa Fe Community College, and the N. Scott Momaday Creative Writing Scholarship at the Institute of American Indian Arts.

He lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico with his wife Emily Beth (Mimi).

Reviews

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

The novel is epic in book length and rotates between three generations of Kerney men starting in the post-Civil War era through WWI (1918). The segments describe their years spent on the plains of Texas through their eventual migration to what will become the Double K Ranch in the Tularosa Valley of New Mexico.

The author paints a vivid portrait of a harsh early frontier life with characters that are mostly likable…except for one. Patrick Kerney, from the second generation, was such a distasteful, unlikable character that I hoped he would either attain a certain amount of grace by the novel’s end or get his final comeuppance once and for all.

This novel was the first in a trilogy and I enjoyed its early Americana theme. I would recommend to anyone who loves westerns or historical fiction.

[Harry Lane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book expecting a few hours of light reading about good guys in white hats and bad guys in black hats, with lots of fisticuffs and gunplay. It's not that kind of western. It's more of a pastoral novel, except that the US southwest is not pastoral. It is, as the title says, a hard country, and it takes a certain kind of grit to live there and love it. McGarrity tells a story about those kinds of people. There is a certain amount of gunplay, but of a sort that more closely approximates the reality of what usually went on than the face off portrayed in western movies. The main characters were shown as real people, some of them seriously damaged by life events. Their defining characteristic was the toughness needed to manage in difficult circumstances. The story unfolds in both the quotidian and extraordinary events of the lives of several major characters that are interconnected in ties of both family and friendship. Despite the occasional violence, it is at heart a peaceable story that leaves you thinking you have truly visited another time and place.

[Tim Chamberlain · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard Country is a sweeping epic of the American West that tells the story of imperfect people trying to settle a harsh country.

Author Michael McGarrity, best known for his Kevin Kerney mystery series, is going back in time to the American origins of Kevin’s family. Hard Country follows Kerney’s ancestors starting with Irish immigrant and Civil War veteran John Kerney in 1874. John’s story starts with the birth of a son, the death of a wife and the murder of his brother and nephew, and it only gets tougher for him from there. McGarrity has a knack for crisp storytelling, and he weaves a tight story that takes the Kerneys up to 1918.

This is obviously a meticulously-researched novel, as McGarrity weaves the actual history of the region into his story. The politics of cattle ranching and railroad expansion predominate, with most of the real-life politicians appearing as themselves. There are also cameos by more legendary figures such as Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett, who just seem to mosey onto the page and are gone just as quickly. A larger part is played by the real western writer Eugene Manlove Rhodes, who is befriended by the Kerney family and even bases a story (that doesn’t sell) on one of them. This sort of historical framework around the story underscores the authentic feel of Hard Country.

McGarrity’s version of the west (specifically the Tularosa Basin in southern New Mexico) isn’t overly-romanticized and, thus, feels authentic. The gunplay, a staple of the pulp western, is sporadic, realistically presented and somewhat shocking when it happens. He is also mindful of the cultural shift going on in the area as Americans are settling an area already occupied by Native Americans and Mexicans. While the complex relations going on here are not deeply explored, they are also not ignored as something insignificant to the story.

With Hard Country, McGarrity has made a successful leap from mystery to history. His Tularosa Basin is almost a character unto itself, and his talent for bringing real cowboys to life is evident throughout the novel. Readers will find themselves transported to a time when the country was expanding and will get to know the tough (and not-so-tough) men and women that made it happen.

Fans of Hard Country will be pleased to know that this is the first of a trilogy, and McGarrity hopes to have the second installment (tentatively titled Backlands) published in early 2014.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a western. I don't generally gravitate towards this genre but I liked this one. I really liked the writing and the character development. I would definitely read this author again just for that. This book was a sad little story, kind of like a country song. Everything bad that could happen, did happen....and then some.

[Kelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderful book that I won from Goodreads. This type of book just isn't written anymore and it should be. "Hard Country" is the multi-generational story of the Kerney family and their triumphs and tragedies as they settled the Old West. The novel reminds me of books like "Lonesome Dove" that got me hooked on reading years ago. It's been way too long since a book like this has been written! There was not one wasted page out of the 600+ that it took Michael McGarrity to tell this story. "Hard Country" is a book well worth reading; the only fault I can mention is that it ended.

[Ron Chicaferro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard Country is the first of a trilogy on the history of a family, a state and, to some extent, the nation. The family is that of McGarrity's main protagonist of his books, Kevin Kearney. Hard Country is very aptly named. The book covers the era from about 1870 to the first world war. It's how the family settles in New Mexico territory and how back-breaking life was in the Southwest in the late 19th century. This is the story of how people lived, fought and died in a very hard country - a country that either made you or broke you. The characters are fascinating - neither saints nor sinners and usually a combination of both. This is an amazing book and I am looking forward to reading the sequels.

[Glen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is one of those big epic westerns.

It traces a family and ranch for many years. All of the family are boring jerks, and nothing much happens at the ranch.

I found it pretty dull. I prefer a lot more shooting in westerns.

[Jeff Dickison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This episodic tale is a precursor to the Kevin Kerney series. It tells the story of three generations of Kerneys from 1875 to 1918. Much of it is sad, but sheer hard persistence pays off. This is the first of three stories known as The American West Trilogy. I am glad that the Kevin Kerney series is not this down trodden. Recommended to McGarrity fans.

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

i enjoyed this book so much more than i thought i would, i really didnt want it to end and am hoping there will be a sequel.
I have never been a Western fan; just not a genre i have been drawn to, however Michael McGarrity did such a fantastic job of combining interesting characters with incrediable detail that i couldnt put it down. I originally purchased the book because i am a McGarrity fan and really enjoy his Kevin Kerney series. This book takes you back to the 1800's to where Kevin's family first started moving west. Excellent job at really making you feel as if you were in that time period.

[Anthony Whitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Hard Country" is my type of story. It's a tough world out there and doesn't need embellishment to make it interesting. All it takes is a talented author to accurately portray the inherent conflict of man versus nature, man versus himself, and man versus man. McGarrity accomplishes this feat with a saga moving from generation to generation as they struggle to wrestle a living out of an unforgiving environment. There is death, adventure and love. None of it easy, but all of it entertaining.

[Cindy B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A long, worthwhile read, three generations before trains or water coming out of the kitchen pipes. I was totally immersed in this story all the way through. It’s Wild West so there’s shootings, rape (not intimately described), and 2 F-words in the whole story. But there’s lifelong friendships, families that stayed and worked together. It doesn’t end happily but it does end with the promise of love and hope. The narrator is his usual perfection.

[Wendy Lane · Rating 5 out of 5]

McGarrity’s Hard Country was written in 2012 and is among the best of the western genre I’ve read. I listened to it on Audible and it is narrated by George Guidall whose voice brings the well written southwestern characters into three dimensionality. I particularly enjoyed the details of the Southwestern landscape and how it shapes the characters. The story spans three generations of a family and how each manage loss and to make a living off the land. There is an unusually independent female character not typical of the most westerns. Native Americans and Mexicans are not treated well in the story, but it manages to show the history of their mistreatment in relatively realistic but sympathetic manner, with an occasional uncomfortable alliance when there was mutual benefit.

The novel has a sweeping and ambitious quality and it kept me engaged with the different generations of characters, so I thought about them after I finished the book and mourned the loss of those who died during the story.

I am definitely going to read more of McGarrity’s books.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story was slow moving, with far too many historical details for my taste. I found this book difficult to get into. But the characters, especially Cal and C.J., compelled me to keep reading. I liked the matter of fact, down to earth tone of the story. Many Westerns are overdrawn, showcasing the flamboyant characteristics of the most extreme people of this era. The characters in Hard Country, though, are probably more like the average people who just lived regular lives in the American West. They were ranchers, not gunfighters. If I could talk to the author I would have one suggestion, which is find out more about how women think and behave. He did a passable job of drawing the female characters, better with Emma than with Mary Alice, but missed a few beats here and there. This story was entertaining, but not of the same caliber as those by Larry McMurtry and Cormac McCarthy.

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

He's known for his mysteries, but McGarrity shows here he can also write westerns!! I loved the detail of the area and found it to be very well researched. If you are familiar with this section of the country, I think you'll love it. If you're not, I think the pacing may be a little slow at some points. The folks in this book are the ancestors of Kevin Kerney, the protagonist of McGarrity's mysteries. Being familiar with him, this led me to keep guessing about how certain characters were going to turn out. Don't expect to find the answers here, because it's the first in a trilogy!! (I didn't know this when I was reading it.) Still a very good read, I would recommend this to fans of McMurtry's westerns.

[Dave Delsigne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book ... Who can't get into an old fashioned horse turds and gun powder story? Michael McGarrity makes one feel like you are there on a horse ... With a pistol strapped to your side. The story is very well presented ... Great history of the Old West and the settling of New Mexico. Can't wait to dive into the second ... Backlands ... Of three!

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went to High School in Alamogordo, New Mexico, and my stepfather had homesteaded a cattle ranch in the valley, so this book was near and dear to my heart. Loved the story of the family that evolved throughout time, creating a familial dynasty out of sheer hard work.

[Larry Sweeney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having just returned from that area of New Mexico. I love reading about some of the places I myself love that country it is beautiful

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michael McGarrity is the author of the Kevin Kearny series (e.g., Tularosa, Mexican Hat, Serpent's Gate, etc.). These have all been enjoyable, well written mysteries with an interesting protagonist, set largely in New Mexico and the Southwest.
In Hard Country, McGarrity has laid out, in a sweeping, epic-style novel, the origins of the Kearny family, beginning back in the 1870's. He clearly set out to stretch as a writer by penning a vast, multi-generational tale spanning the old West, two wars, and the beginning of the industrial revolution. Sometimes, one's strength can be one's greatest weakness as well. In McGarrity's desire to cover so much ground, ala McMurtry's Lonesome Dove, he loses focus at times. Is this a Western? Is this a War story? At times, I wasn't sure. The meat of this novel centers on repeatedly demonstrating the veracity of the title. Indeed, the "hard country" theme becomes downright depressing at times, beginning early with the death, in childbirth, of John Kearny's young wife. He is forced to give his baby son, Patrick, over to his sister-in-law, planning on retrieving him in the future. Of course, that plan goes awry, and the first third of the book involves John's search to retrieve his son. Along the way, he meets up with Cal Doran, a very likeable and strongly written character, and the two establish a close bond that reminds one of Gus and Call in Lonesome Dove. Patrick, John's son, dominates the 2nd third of the book, and is at once a pitiable, sympathetic, and despicable, unlikable character. Granted, his life has been hard (yes, more "hard country" theme), but the emotional scars he bears from his early life experiences seem insurmountable. That Cal more or less adopts Patrick and tries, with the patience of Job, to rehab him into a good man (he already had trained him to be a good "hand" on the ranch) fills much of the book.
McGarrity is at his best when writing dialogue. He clearly researched and used well, the lingo of the late 1800's cowboy, and it is during the exchanges between the numerous, richly drawn characters, that the story captivates. Unfortunately, the author elected all too often to write in the 3rd person, and the pages of description begin to drag, given the length (600+ pages) of the book.
The last third of the book centers on Emma, a strong, albeit emotionally damaged, young woman who eventually marries Patrick and bears him 2 sons after numerous miscarriages (yep, more "hard country" depressing material). Here we have the union of two emotionally scarred individuals amidst a group of "too good to be true" friends such as Cal, Ignacio, and others, and at times, the story felt forced.
The other criticism involves the author insisting on having two of the Kearny clan going off to war-- one in Cuba with the Rough Riders (and Teddy Roosevelt, no less), and the other enlisting and fighting in WWI (you guessed it-- more "hard country" suffering served up). I understand why the author was including the idea of his characters going to war, but felt it really derailed the vibe of the novel which functions best as a Western.
This is a well written book in general, but falls just short of the standard bearers of epic novels of the old West (think "The Way West" & The Big Sky" by A.B. Guthrie, or "Lonesome Dove" by McMurtry). For fans of the Kearny series and McGarrity, it is a definitely worth the time; for anyone who enjoys historical fiction and stories of the West, it's a good book to take a look at. Enjoy.

[litost · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did not finish this long, slow novelized history of the last years of the wild West. I believe it evoked that time period well, though it became frustrating as the story repeatedly threatened to get exciting, then petered out. The audiobook was well performed by George Guidall.

[CindySR · Rating 2 out of 5]

Family saga. Flat characters. I expected much more.

[Jim A · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good novel following the Kerney family in New Mexico from just after the civil up to the end of WW I. McGarrity, known for his Kevin Kerney detective novels brings the family history to this book.

One of the barometers I use to indicate how much I am enjoying what I am reading is how often I go to Google to look up a reference made in the novel. I made several side trips to Google maps to see the relationship, distance wise, between the towns mentioned, many of which I had heard of but needed to see just where they were located relative to each other.

McGarrity brings several historical figures of the era into this novel. Billy the Kid, Pat Garrett, just to name a couple, as well as the players from the Lincoln County wars made famous by several movies.

For readers who enjoy historical fiction and who have read the Kevin Kerney series, this is an interesting read. There are two follow on novels which I have not yet read, but fully intend to do so.

[wally · Rating 4 out of 5]

21 aug 16, 1st from mcgarrity for me, kindle, plus i purchased the audible option. rarely listen to stories, have only listened to...well, one. but something made me want to try listening to this one, too, as i read or instead of reading. (pickles are done, 9 bottles bread and butter, 19 bottles dilly bean, 13 bottles green tomato and 14 bottles garlic dill, all lined up at parade rest on the counter here beside me.) onward, ever onward.

and i did 12 bottles of salsa. yippe ki aye.

good story. really good story. a novel of the old west. i wonder if kearny will find his son? some bureaucratic/army bastard lied to his face, burned the letter, asshat extreme. karma ought to bite his ass.

29 aug 16, finished, great story! a long one. good read.

[Joyce · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty good story. I read it mainly because it is based in the Tularosa Basin of southern NM where I live. His descriptions of the beauty of this area are still true. But most of the book was just stating facts. I was curious to see what came next but it didn't draw me into the characters. He needed better character development and more insight into their thoughts and actions. The ending is kind of annoying and leaves you hanging-but I don't care to read the rest of the story if he is writing another.

[Byzantine, TX · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were things I liked about this book: the historical references, the character development, the wonderful lexicon unique to that area and that time. There were also things that I was unprepared for: the death of key figures that you were sure were the linchpin of the entire novel, the poor choices of people you thought had found redemption and solace, and the cruelty of it all. I'm glad I read the novel, but will certainly need something less bleak before reading something else of the same style.

[Union County Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well told, it's an epic along the lines of Lonesome Dove and Centennial. When John Kearny's wife dies in childbirth and his brother and family are murdered, he becomes a cowboy, eventually starting his own spread. True to the Western genre, it is excellent. For those who don't read Westerns, it is a great novel with which to start.

- Reviewed by Shelley F.

[Dave Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book covers the period between the Civil War and WW I in southwestern New Mexico. I enjoyed the description of the land because it reminded me of my child hood when I had the opportunity both in southeast Arizona and that portion of New Mexico to view at the time this unspoiled landscape.

[Bob Box · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read in 2013. I gave it 4 stars that year. An epic novel of three generations of the Kerney Family.

[Jack · Rating 3 out of 5]

ex-Audible Audiobook

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

A big and sweeping epic that I had hoped to speed through before some major life changes arrived - started off fast thanks to a cross-country flights to visit my parents but alas a home sale and new puppy slowed my progress considerably on this one. Not that it really mattered all that much as even though this is the first novel in a very sizable trilogy it covered so much territory and generations (in a sequential manner, none of the uber-literary back-and-forth nonsense) that it almost felt like several novels in one.

The big reason I tackled this one was that that first the hubby and mom-in-law have read and enjoyed this one as they are New Mexican-born and this is a historical novel in the general vicinity/region of my new home in Las Cruces. So a lot of local history that I am only starting to learn about out on my own made perhaps more digestible in this family saga. And pretty cool, to read about the Las Cruces' historic Hotel Bernardo in this book and see archival photos of it in a Mexican restaurant (unfortunately, most of these original downtown buildings were demolished in the 1970s as part of an "urban renewal" project).

McGarrity is a great storyteller and obviously a lot of research went into the book to nothing fancy or special about the writing, but nothing to detract from it either. Plot-wise, there seemed to be stuff that was well telegraphed/foreshadowed and other twists that were quite unexpected.

Oddly enough, in this tale of the Kerney lineage, it takes a couple of generations to find a Kerney man that is likeable enough (actually they're kind of bastards), but there is a cast of characters - particularly Cal and Emma - who make up for it and keep engaged in their stories (not that the Kerney men don't). Westerns are typically not my thing and I can't say this one changed anything, but given that the action is taking place in my new backyard I'll likely continue the series.

[Peter Corrigan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting random find for me. Never heard of the author but apparently he has written a series of popular crime novels. But in a substantial turnabout he enters the world of the old West in this which is the first of trilogy. I expected a 'standard' sort of western novel but this one is based heavily on factual occurrences and events. There is a nice listing of sources and related writings in the Author's note at the end where I learned of J. Frank Dobie and Eugene Rhodes among others who wrote about the old West. The book spans the period 1875-1918 and follows the lives of a family settling down roots in the desert Southwest, mostly in New Mexico. It is an interesting story, although a little slow at times and with random jumps in time. I found his forays into the Spanish-American War and WW1 to be totally distracting from the story and I really could have done without them. There are 'good' characters (Cal Dolan and Emma Kerney) and 'bad' (Patrick Kerney) and a host of minor players including random historical figures making cameo appearances including William Bonny, Teddy Roosevelt and Gene Rhodes. Rhodes in case you are wondering, became a famous western writer in his own right in 'real' life. References to historical events and places abound and really made me want to visit New Mexico, a place I passed through once probably on I-40. Anyway as this first entry of the trilogy ends in 1918 not really sure succeeding volumes will be the 'old' West anymore.