High Country Killers — Jere D. James

High Country Killers, the fourth book in the Jake Silver Adventure Series, is yet another riveting, action-packed novel by Jere D. James. James once again sets his main character, U.S. Deputy Marshal Jake Silver, in the Arizona territory in 1889. This time the story is largely set in the Mogollon Rim country in northeastern Arizona. The author introduces a host of murderous, villainous men, all intent on grabbing up as much of the pristine land as they can by killing and raping the owners. The plot thickens as Jake Silver slowly untangles the intricate web of evil. All of James' books tend to be historical, but this one is more so than the others. References to the Hashknife, the multi-million acre cattle ranch owned and operated by the Aztec Land and Cattle Company are plentiful, as is the use of real people who served as sheriffs or outlaws. As always, Jere D. James maintains his knack for writing a superb ending, and the final scene in High Country Killers will absolutely shock readers and, as Shirley Johnson, Senior Reviewer for MidWest Book Review said, "...the ending will have you drop your jaw in surprise. Excellent!"