I loved The Lost Shoe, A. K. Brauneis’ exciting novel that takes place in Wyoming Territory in the late 1800’s.
Lifelong friends, Napoleon Nash and his nephew Jackson Kiefer are trying to work themselves out of lives of crime. The Governor of Wyoming Territory has promised them a secret pardon if they can prove themselves worthy of freedom. In exchange, they are required to perform tasks known only by the Governor and a few select people. In the meantime, hefty “dead or alive” bounties still posted make life a challenge.
While stopping in a small town to have their horses shod, the two happen to run into an old friend who invites them to visit his ranch. Against their better judgement, they accept the offer. The heart-warming visit with the rancher and his family makes them realize how much they long for normal lives and they are even more impatient to finish their agreement with the Governor and become free men.
Their world takes a turn for the worse when they are discovered by an ambitious marshall who is unaware of the Governor’s promise of freedom. As their lives spin dangerously out of control, the two must muster up their courage, count on the few friends they have left, and struggle toward an ever-dwindling chance of freedom.
Brauneis writes with authority about conditions that took place in Wyoming in the mid-and late 1880s. The novel’s characters have great love and rapport with their horses, and the author’s own equine knowledge is obvious. The book is written with heart, a quality I greatly admire. Trial scenes in a court of law are particularly compelling.
The Lost Shoe is the first book of The Navarre Link Chronicles: Change of Leads. The author has also written a prequel to the series, Ice.