The Lovable Liar

A stolen horse swap, a burst of gunfire, and a case of mistaken identity throw Hashknife Hartley and Sleepy Stevens into the hard country of Tecoma, where Sheriff Swan River Smith and his sharp-tongued deputy, Forty Dollar Dion, are already tracking train robbers. The trail leads to Moolock, a rough frontier town poisoned by old family feuds, where powerful rancher Frank Allenby stands at the center of suspicion, rage, and fear. When three hundred head of Allenby's Herefords vanish from the Half-Circle Cross loading pens, the mystery deepens. Allenby offers Hashknife and Sleepy work, but the job quickly becomes more than cattle rustling: a murdered detective, a wounded stage driver, a missing treasure box, and the disappearance of Allenby's daughter June point to a larger plot. As the sheriff struggles to hold the line between law and vengeance, Hashknife and Sleepy must sort rumor from evidence before the feuding Bell men, a bitter ranch war, and Allenby's own fury explode into open violence. In a country where life is cheap and loyalties run deep, every clue matters—and every mistake can turn deadly. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.