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Trusty Dawson, U.S. Deputy Marshal #1
Lost Mountain Pass
First in a brand new series from Spur Award-winning author Larry D. Sweazy, a lawman’s grave mistake sends him gunning for justice against a gang of badmen whose violent trail of bloodshed ends at Lost Mountain Pass . . .
Kosoma, Indian Territory. The outlaw Darby brothers have been sentenced to hang until dead. Witnessing the exectution are Amelia Darby, sister of the condemned men, as well as U. S. DeputyMarshal Sam “Trusty” Dawson and Judge Gordon Hadesworth. After justice is served, Trusty hits the trail, escorting the Judge—and begrudgingly, Amelia—back to Oklahoma. Ambushed en route, the Judge is murdered and Amelia vanishes, leaving Trusty to believe she led them into a trap for revenge.
To find Amelia, Trusty will have to put his faith in Father Michael Darby, a fourth brother who gave up his criminal ways to take up the cloth and collar. Unwilling to let his sister continue to fall to the wicked evil that claimed the rest of his family, Michael joins the hunt for Amelia. But as their journey turns deadlier by the day, Trusty starts to doubt that Michael is truly on the righteous path…
Kosoma, Indian Territory. The outlaw Darby brothers have been sentenced to hang until dead. Witnessing the exectution are Amelia Darby, sister of the condemned men, as well as U. S. DeputyMarshal Sam “Trusty” Dawson and Judge Gordon Hadesworth. After justice is served, Trusty hits the trail, escorting the Judge—and begrudgingly, Amelia—back to Oklahoma. Ambushed en route, the Judge is murdered and Amelia vanishes, leaving Trusty to believe she led them into a trap for revenge.
To find Amelia, Trusty will have to put his faith in Father Michael Darby, a fourth brother who gave up his criminal ways to take up the cloth and collar. Unwilling to let his sister continue to fall to the wicked evil that claimed the rest of his family, Michael joins the hunt for Amelia. But as their journey turns deadlier by the day, Trusty starts to doubt that Michael is truly on the righteous path…
1 pages, Audio CD
First published September 28, 2021
41 people are currently reading
403 people want to read
About the author
Larry D. Sweazy
47 books116 followersLarry D. Sweazy (pronounced: Swayzee) is the author of nineteen novels and five series: the Trusty Dawson series (LOST MOUNTAIN PASS, THE BROKEN BOW), WHERE I CAN SEE YOU, a standalone thriller, the Marjorie Trumaine Mystery series (SEE ALSO MURDER, SEE ALSO DECEPTION, SEE ALSO PROOF), the Sonny Burton series (A THOUSAND FALLING CROWS, THE LOST ARE THE LAST TO DIE, WINTER SEEKS OUT THE LONELY), the Lucas Fume Western series (VENGEANCE AT SUNDOWN, ESCAPE TO HANGTOWN), the Josiah Wolfe, Texas Ranger series (THE RATTLESNAKE SEASON, THE SCORPION TRAIL, THE BADGER'S REVENGE, THE COUGAR'S PREY, THE COYOTE TRACKER, THE GILA WARS, and THE RETURN OF THE WOLF), and THE DEVIL'S BONES, a standalone mystery.
He won the WWA Spur award for Best Short Fiction in 2005 and for Best Paperback Original in 2013, and the 2011 and 2012 Will Rogers Medallion Award for Western Fiction for books the Josiah Wolfe series. He was nominated for a Derringer award in 2007, and was a finalist in the Best Books of Indiana literary competition in 2010, and won in 2011 for THE SCORPION TRAIL. In 2013, Larry received the inaugural Elmer Kelton Fiction Book of the Year for THE COYOTE TRACKER, presented by the Academy of Western Artists. He received the Willa Award in 2019 and was shortlisted for the Indiana Authors Award in 2020, both for SEE ALSO PROOF. The Western Fictioneers (WF) awarded THE RETURN OF THE WOLF the Peacemaker Award for Best Western in 2020.
Larry has published over one hundred nonfiction articles and short stories, which have appeared in ELLERY QUEEN'S MYSTERY MAGAZINE; THE ADVENTURE OF THE MISSING DETECTIVE: AND 25 OF THE YEAR'S FINEST CRIME AND MYSTERY STORIES!; BOYS' LIFE; HARDBOILED; Amazon Shorts, and several other publications and anthologies. He is also a freelance indexer and written over 1000 indexes since 1998. He lives in Indiana with his wife, Rose, and is hard at work on his next novel.
He won the WWA Spur award for Best Short Fiction in 2005 and for Best Paperback Original in 2013, and the 2011 and 2012 Will Rogers Medallion Award for Western Fiction for books the Josiah Wolfe series. He was nominated for a Derringer award in 2007, and was a finalist in the Best Books of Indiana literary competition in 2010, and won in 2011 for THE SCORPION TRAIL. In 2013, Larry received the inaugural Elmer Kelton Fiction Book of the Year for THE COYOTE TRACKER, presented by the Academy of Western Artists. He received the Willa Award in 2019 and was shortlisted for the Indiana Authors Award in 2020, both for SEE ALSO PROOF. The Western Fictioneers (WF) awarded THE RETURN OF THE WOLF the Peacemaker Award for Best Western in 2020.
Larry has published over one hundred nonfiction articles and short stories, which have appeared in ELLERY QUEEN'S MYSTERY MAGAZINE; THE ADVENTURE OF THE MISSING DETECTIVE: AND 25 OF THE YEAR'S FINEST CRIME AND MYSTERY STORIES!; BOYS' LIFE; HARDBOILED; Amazon Shorts, and several other publications and anthologies. He is also a freelance indexer and written over 1000 indexes since 1998. He lives in Indiana with his wife, Rose, and is hard at work on his next novel.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
August 28, 2021
I won this book in a goodreads drawing.
Trusty Dawson is a Deputy Marshal in what was then called the Indian Territory of Oklahoma. He is the bodyguard for a judge who sentenced some outlaws to hang. The sister of the outlaws begs to accompany them out of town. The judge insists, and winds up dead. Trusty is wounded.
He pursues her. Meanwhile, a Texas rancher finds himself in a feud with a Saint Louis financier, and elbows his way into the narrative. It seems the rancher has a bone to pick with the Marshal as well.
It all ends up in a showdown.
Not a bad western.
Trusty Dawson is a Deputy Marshal in what was then called the Indian Territory of Oklahoma. He is the bodyguard for a judge who sentenced some outlaws to hang. The sister of the outlaws begs to accompany them out of town. The judge insists, and winds up dead. Trusty is wounded.
He pursues her. Meanwhile, a Texas rancher finds himself in a feud with a Saint Louis financier, and elbows his way into the narrative. It seems the rancher has a bone to pick with the Marshal as well.
It all ends up in a showdown.
Not a bad western.
January 15, 2022
Here is a fine story, one of the finest. A page turner, exciting, authentic, romantic, full of windings and bendings in the trail, it will keep you up if you make the mistake of reading it at night. No more to say because I won’t spoil the plot for you.
I’m glad this is a series. I’m looking forward to Book 2. Called, I believe, The Broken Bow.
Treat yourself. The author is a Spur Award Winner and it shows.
I’m glad this is a series. I’m looking forward to Book 2. Called, I believe, The Broken Bow.
Treat yourself. The author is a Spur Award Winner and it shows.
October 25, 2021
Thanks to netgalley.com, Kensington Publishing and the author Larry D. Sweazy for the advance ARC copy for my honest review.
It was the late author Bill Crider, with his 'Outrage at Blanco' novel that made me love revenge stories so much and in away revenge stories for me will always be a tribute to him.
One of my favorite niches in the Western genre are the U.S. Marshall yarns and 'Lost Mountain Pass' checks off that box. Do wish that this one would have been a 100 pages longer. So a couple of the intertwining storylines, where more realistic verse having the easy button pushed to check them off.
You have an intertwining storyline, that involves U.S. Deputy Marshall Trusty Dawson with his youth, his relationship with Jessica Marberry and Military. With this being the first book in a new series, it's no brainer that you'd get backstory on Trusty, but mix in Rancher Calhoun, Amelia and Michael Darby, set in Indian Territory mostly, the Guardsmen and you get a pretty entertaining read.
Must say that U.S. Marshal Trusty Dawson is a real likable character, you get to see he's human, relatable for the reader and don't want to give too much away!
Although I do think that up to the last 100 pages you got a gem of a read, then the author kind of kills it by pushing the easy button and you get another piece into the puzzle of whose one of the ghost writers for the Johnstone estate.
It was the late author Bill Crider, with his 'Outrage at Blanco' novel that made me love revenge stories so much and in away revenge stories for me will always be a tribute to him.
One of my favorite niches in the Western genre are the U.S. Marshall yarns and 'Lost Mountain Pass' checks off that box. Do wish that this one would have been a 100 pages longer. So a couple of the intertwining storylines, where more realistic verse having the easy button pushed to check them off.
You have an intertwining storyline, that involves U.S. Deputy Marshall Trusty Dawson with his youth, his relationship with Jessica Marberry and Military. With this being the first book in a new series, it's no brainer that you'd get backstory on Trusty, but mix in Rancher Calhoun, Amelia and Michael Darby, set in Indian Territory mostly, the Guardsmen and you get a pretty entertaining read.
Must say that U.S. Marshal Trusty Dawson is a real likable character, you get to see he's human, relatable for the reader and don't want to give too much away!
Although I do think that up to the last 100 pages you got a gem of a read, then the author kind of kills it by pushing the easy button and you get another piece into the puzzle of whose one of the ghost writers for the Johnstone estate.
May 31, 2022
Love this author but not this new series.
Kindle Unlimited
Kindle Unlimited
July 3, 2021
in Larry Sweazy's Book One of the Trusty Dawson US Deputy Marshall series, Lost Mountain Pass, Trusty Dawson is a US Deputy Marshall with a long history of law enforcement prior to the US Marshalls. He’s good with his guns and always trusted with the most challenging jobs. One of his claims is that he's never lost someone he was guarding. But this last one, guarding the judge who convicted three villainous brothers to hang, might be the one that changes all that (no spoilers). Not only does Trusty end up ferrying the hated daughter of these three brothers to a new beginning but unknown to him, someone who hates him more than they love justice has placed a bounty on his head that is attracting a passel of bounty hunters:
"Don't matter who set the bounty. You stirred up a twister of hate for one reason or another."
I won't tell you much more because you need a few surprises in this Western saga but there were some items that bothered me. One: In most westerns, the cowboys love their horses, consider them a best friend. Not Trusty. He recognizes the importance of a horse to his livelihood as a Marshall but that’s it. To him, a good horse is replaceable with another good horse. This is not a problem with the story. It’s simply my disappointment with the main character who I had hoped to love. Where I had a problem with the story was the second item: Sweazy adds a lot of review to the story, reminding me what happened and why, which slows the action. Westerns are known for their bias for action and non-stop excitement. All this reflection made me want to jump ahead. That’s where it lost a star.
Overall, a good enough story but I'm not sure I'll read Book 2.
"Don't matter who set the bounty. You stirred up a twister of hate for one reason or another."
I won't tell you much more because you need a few surprises in this Western saga but there were some items that bothered me. One: In most westerns, the cowboys love their horses, consider them a best friend. Not Trusty. He recognizes the importance of a horse to his livelihood as a Marshall but that’s it. To him, a good horse is replaceable with another good horse. This is not a problem with the story. It’s simply my disappointment with the main character who I had hoped to love. Where I had a problem with the story was the second item: Sweazy adds a lot of review to the story, reminding me what happened and why, which slows the action. Westerns are known for their bias for action and non-stop excitement. All this reflection made me want to jump ahead. That’s where it lost a star.
Overall, a good enough story but I'm not sure I'll read Book 2.
September 24, 2021
I'm finding that I'm in the midst of another mini-reading binge of books set in the American West, and one of the best authors to read is Spur Award-winning Larry D. Sweazy. This first Trusty Dawson book, Lost Mountain Pass, takes us from 1860s St. Louis and Trusty's youth to 1880s Indian Territory where U.S. Marshall Sam Dawson has earned the nickname everyone calls him by being utterly trustworthy and dependable.
Sweazy's setting has you slapping off the trail dust, hearing the jingle of spurs, and knowing that your life may very well depend on how observant you are of people and your surroundings. There's more going on than a simple manhunt to put Trusty's life in danger, and as his backstory is woven into the story, the danger he's in becomes palpable. There are two very dangerous men after Dawson, and the shadowy Michael Darby with his reluctance to talk makes you wonder if there's a third. And as far as characters are concerned, Sweazy introduces a female Apache scout named Woman's Clothes that I definitely would love to see more of.
With its fast pace, authentic setting, very real sense of danger, and amusing turns of phrase ("...took to wearing suits like a lizard dancing on ice" and "...face that looked like it had been used to rake gravel"), Lost Mountain Pass is an extremely satisfying read. In the next book in the series, Trusty will be heading to North Dakota, and I think I'll just mosey right along with him.
(Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley)
Sweazy's setting has you slapping off the trail dust, hearing the jingle of spurs, and knowing that your life may very well depend on how observant you are of people and your surroundings. There's more going on than a simple manhunt to put Trusty's life in danger, and as his backstory is woven into the story, the danger he's in becomes palpable. There are two very dangerous men after Dawson, and the shadowy Michael Darby with his reluctance to talk makes you wonder if there's a third. And as far as characters are concerned, Sweazy introduces a female Apache scout named Woman's Clothes that I definitely would love to see more of.
With its fast pace, authentic setting, very real sense of danger, and amusing turns of phrase ("...took to wearing suits like a lizard dancing on ice" and "...face that looked like it had been used to rake gravel"), Lost Mountain Pass is an extremely satisfying read. In the next book in the series, Trusty will be heading to North Dakota, and I think I'll just mosey right along with him.
(Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Net Galley)
November 23, 2022
It is in the small town of Kosoma, a small town in the SE part of the Indian Territory (Oklahoma now), as Lost Mountain Pass by Larry Sweazy begins. It is May 1988 and the hanging has been done by the order of the Eastern District of Arkansas Judge Gordon Hadesworth. Accompanied by U.S. Deputy Marshall Sam “Trusty” Dawson for security and protection, the plan is to get out of town fast now that the three Darby brothers, Cleatus, Horace, and Rascal, are swinging slowly from the gallows and are most assuredly dead.
The Darby’s reign of terror is finally over and that should be a good thig for everyone. But both men are nervous about what comes next as some folks might take offense to the deaths. The plan is to get out of town as fast as possible, do some misdirection, and hide out in the nearly lost mountain pass where they can see trouble coming before it arrives on horseback.
Assuming all that works, the two men will then journey on to Muskogee and get the good judge safely home.
That was the plan and it was a good plan.
It just didn’t work.
There are certain authors who just cannot write a bad book. The legendary Bill Crider was one. Wayne Dundee is one. This is also true of Larry Sweazy. While I am partial to his westerns, anything he writes is always a good read.
Such is the case here with his new series that starts with Lost Mountain Pass: Trusty Dawson, U.S. Deputy Marshall. A complicated read full of plenty of twists and turns, action and double crosses, this is a western tale that runs on all levels. Simply put, it is a mighty good read and well worth your time.
According to the mighty zon, I purchased this as an eBook back in August 2021. Probably when the publisher, Pinnacle Books, heavily discounted it as my local library was not getting it at that time. The local library system does have it now. Dallas Public Library System also now has book two, The Broken Bow, only in paperback, and I have a copy here from the library.
Kevin R. Tipple © 2022
The Darby’s reign of terror is finally over and that should be a good thig for everyone. But both men are nervous about what comes next as some folks might take offense to the deaths. The plan is to get out of town as fast as possible, do some misdirection, and hide out in the nearly lost mountain pass where they can see trouble coming before it arrives on horseback.
Assuming all that works, the two men will then journey on to Muskogee and get the good judge safely home.
That was the plan and it was a good plan.
It just didn’t work.
There are certain authors who just cannot write a bad book. The legendary Bill Crider was one. Wayne Dundee is one. This is also true of Larry Sweazy. While I am partial to his westerns, anything he writes is always a good read.
Such is the case here with his new series that starts with Lost Mountain Pass: Trusty Dawson, U.S. Deputy Marshall. A complicated read full of plenty of twists and turns, action and double crosses, this is a western tale that runs on all levels. Simply put, it is a mighty good read and well worth your time.
According to the mighty zon, I purchased this as an eBook back in August 2021. Probably when the publisher, Pinnacle Books, heavily discounted it as my local library was not getting it at that time. The local library system does have it now. Dallas Public Library System also now has book two, The Broken Bow, only in paperback, and I have a copy here from the library.
Kevin R. Tipple © 2022
September 11, 2021
Lost Mountain Pass is a great Western book. I spent my youth watching Westerns on TV, but it has been a while since I read a Western novel. I must say, I enjoyed the old-fashioned but pithy sayings.
The main character seems at first to be very much a straight arrow. As the story unfolds, we discover that his life is much more complex than that. He has had disappointment in love and frustration with his station in life. I suppose that the main theme of this story is betrayal and the issue of who can you really trust.
There are lots of shootouts and people holding other people at gunpoint. It would not really be a Western without shootings, hangings and the like. The author balances action with gradually revealing the past of “Trusty” and why he is that man that he is.
I highly recommend this book. The Western is a time-honored genre, but the characters would fit in any era.
The main character seems at first to be very much a straight arrow. As the story unfolds, we discover that his life is much more complex than that. He has had disappointment in love and frustration with his station in life. I suppose that the main theme of this story is betrayal and the issue of who can you really trust.
There are lots of shootouts and people holding other people at gunpoint. It would not really be a Western without shootings, hangings and the like. The author balances action with gradually revealing the past of “Trusty” and why he is that man that he is.
I highly recommend this book. The Western is a time-honored genre, but the characters would fit in any era.
November 14, 2021
This was a Goodreads win and honestly, I had no idea what to really expect going into this. When it comes to western theme I am either meh or completely pulled in. Luckily it was the latter with this one. The Lost Mountain Pass is also the first in the Trusty Dawson, U.S. Marshall series.
In Indian Territory in the late 1800’s, U.S. Marshall Samuel “Trusty” Dawson has quite the reputation. After the hanging of the outlaw Darby brothers, Trusty and Judge Hadesworth begin their journey home. However, before they set out, Amelia Darby, sister of the outlaws, insists on joining so that she can start over. As they stop in Lost Mountain Pass, the judge is murdered, Trusty is injured and Amelia is on the run. Another Darby member, Father Michael is with Trusty as he wakes, having saved him from his wounds. Michael gave up the collar and tells Trusty he wants justice for what Amelia did. Meanwhile, Trusty’s past is catching up with him in the form of a bounty on his head and while he is on the hunt for Amelia, he has also become the hunted.
On the Cat Scale:
😸😸😸😸
In Indian Territory in the late 1800’s, U.S. Marshall Samuel “Trusty” Dawson has quite the reputation. After the hanging of the outlaw Darby brothers, Trusty and Judge Hadesworth begin their journey home. However, before they set out, Amelia Darby, sister of the outlaws, insists on joining so that she can start over. As they stop in Lost Mountain Pass, the judge is murdered, Trusty is injured and Amelia is on the run. Another Darby member, Father Michael is with Trusty as he wakes, having saved him from his wounds. Michael gave up the collar and tells Trusty he wants justice for what Amelia did. Meanwhile, Trusty’s past is catching up with him in the form of a bounty on his head and while he is on the hunt for Amelia, he has also become the hunted.
On the Cat Scale:
😸😸😸😸
March 14, 2024
First book in a very good western series. US Marshall "Trusty" Dawson is introduced in this well written western. Trusty will serve as witness in the hanging of two brothers, then accompany the judge to his next court. Along the way, an ambush will leave the judge dead and Trusty on the trail of the murderers. Sweazy does an excellent job of bringing the characters and the background alive in an era of violence and justice at the end of a rope. He stays true to the era. This is the beginning of an excellent series that has already earned a space on my library shelf of westerns.
September 24, 2021
I didn’t expect the end of this book in any way. The characters were likes me and the plot moved well for the most part. A few times I got lost and had to go back and re-read to make sure I was right about what was happening.
October 8, 2021
The first in a new series. As the first in a new series, I will be interested in the next book. I'm not sure how I feel about the main character or his backstory, but the next book may increase my interest.
May 14, 2021
A captivating story!
The first in a brand new series, Lost Mountain Pass is about finding justice. Shortly after the outlaw Darby brothers are hung, Trusty takes back the sister of the hung brothers and Judge Hadesworth. However, things are not as you would imagine when they are ambushed. Was it a trap? Who was involved? Trusty must find answers and soon.
With the help of Father Darby, Trusty takes on the quest to find Amelia who may have been the mastermind behind the ambush. Their journey turns deadlier when Trusty begins to doubt Father Darby's real intentions for joining the party.
Very well crated characters and overall interesting plot.
The first in a brand new series, Lost Mountain Pass is about finding justice. Shortly after the outlaw Darby brothers are hung, Trusty takes back the sister of the hung brothers and Judge Hadesworth. However, things are not as you would imagine when they are ambushed. Was it a trap? Who was involved? Trusty must find answers and soon.
With the help of Father Darby, Trusty takes on the quest to find Amelia who may have been the mastermind behind the ambush. Their journey turns deadlier when Trusty begins to doubt Father Darby's real intentions for joining the party.
Very well crated characters and overall interesting plot.
January 28, 2023
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