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Thank you for visiting my author website. Feel free to wander around and browse. I hope you’ll find my books entertaining, exciting and inspiring.
My names Raymond Cook, and I’m now 70 years old. If you’re not familiar with my books, I write historical fiction novels about Independence, Missouri, Nauvoo, Illinois, Colorado, Texas, Arizona, Kentucky, Wyoming and Montana in the 1890s. It’s my pleasure to introduce to you 36 eBooks I’ve written since 2011. With that many books written, you know the ‘Spirit of the west’ lives within me. I’ve been an independent author for 12 years. I hope visitors to my website will enjoy reading the eBook they purchase. Every author who has multiple eBooks has a favorite he likes the most. My favorite eBook is called, Devastation Came To Paducah, Kentucky.
My goal as a fiction writer is to breathe life into the characters of each book. Most of my eBooks can be read as a stand-alone novel and many feature a strong female protagonist. If you haven’t read one of my books yet, click on the Books Tab at the top of this page. Then, click on the book cover of your choice.
From a traditional western romance story to bounty hunters, wagon train journeys, a woman doctor, Native American wars, floods, mountain men, orphan children, territorial penitentiaries, serial killers, brothels, grizzly bears, lawmen, cattle rustling, hangings, stagecoach holdups, bank robbers, kidnappings, homesteading, to tough women hell bent on revenge, you’re sure to make one of my eBooks your favorite.
The Wagon Train Journey Across the Plains
“To endure such a journey… a man had to endure heat like a salamander, mud and water like a muskrat, dust like a toad and labor like a mule. He must learn to eat with his unwashed fingers, drink out of the same vessel as his horses, sleep on the ground when it rained and share his blanket with vermin. He must cease to think, except where he might find grass and water and a good camping place. It is hardship without glory.” –Anonymous settler in the St. Joseph Gazette.
For those of you who have read my eBooks, thank you for your support. If you haven’t become a fan yet I hope you will.
My NEW e-mail address is: between_lines_and_verses@outlook.com
Shown below is the link to all 36 of my digital eBooks currently available on Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/Raymond-Cook/e/B008Y66916
Below is a slideshow of all 36 of my eBook covers.
Hey Partner, be sure to bookmark this page.
-Amazon Comment-
“Mr. Cook is a very promising up & coming writer of westerns & his story line is always extremely interesting.” Mary Jane Kail on July 29, 2015.
To My Readers
The goal of every author is to write and edit the best book he or she can and leave the person who buys one of their books feeling they enjoyed the book they purchased.
That said, if someone majored in English or was a secretary for example, and read one of my eBooks, grammar mistakes may be found. This doesn’t mean I was careless with the proper use of grammar, but rather, I may have fell short of writing the perfectly edited eBook.
100% Satisfaction Guarantee to my readers.
If after purchasing your digital download eBook on Amazon… you weren’t 100% satisfied with the eBook you read, just e-mail me with the title and date of your Amazon purchase. Then REQUEST another eBook title and I’ll be happy to send the digital download to the e-mail address you give me.
An author should stand behind the books he writes even though not every reader may be satisfied with the eBook they purchase.
e-mail: between_lines_and_verses@outlook.com
Check out my 36th western frontier digital eBook on Amazon.
To read the story excerpt, Click on the button below.
About This eBook
A Witness To A Murder ©2021 by Raymond Cook is a 419-page western frontier story. Carl and Anna Walker, a couple in their 30s living in Independence, Missouri, decide to join a wagon train headed for Colorado in July of 1885. The couple have a five-year-old son they named Virgil. The Walkers know they won’t have much money to spare after reaching Denver. Dan Higgins, the wagon master, doesn’t sugarcoat the risks they might face crossing the plains.
He agrees to take 41 families to Denver and saw uncertainty in men, women and children’s eyes as he spoke to them. Dangers they might face could be attacks from Indians or highwaymen, wagon wheels or axles breaking, running out of water, injuries, tornadoes, wildfires, diseases like smallpox or cholera, dysentery, rattlesnake bites, drownings at river crossings or death from accidents.
Dan does his best to reassure the Walkers; having crossed the plains three times, he can get them to Colorado. In the past, settlers heading out west ranged from well-to-do to dirt poor. If a family ran out of money sooner than expected, they’d put down roots in the next town they came to. Carl and his wife hope they’ll have enough money left over to fix up a cabin on a homestead if they find a suitable one.
What they don’t know is their son will die along the way, and three years after getting a parcel of land with a cabin on it, they’ll be murdered by three men. The only witness to their murder will be their cat, “Bruni”. A couple near the Walkers’ homestead takes in “Bruni” after they corner and catch the distraught cat. Without any witnesses, the sheriff will close the case as an unsolved murder, or is it really closed?
Kirkus Book Review July 1, 2021 ~ A Witness To A Murder. “In this epic novel set in the late 19th century, a couple travel west in search of a new life, undertaking a perilous journey. For readers interested in an accurate picture of the dangerous trek thousands of American families took in search of a new beginning in the West, this is a rigorously researched portrayal.”
Four Star Book Review By Rabia Tanveer on July 11, 2021
A Witness to A Murder by Raymond Cook is set in 1885 when 41 families decide to travel from Independence, Missouri to Denver, Colorado for a better life. Joining this group are Carl and Anna Walker along with their son Virgil. With Dan Higgins guiding them, the little family looks forward to a future that is not so bleak anymore. However, before they can reach Colorado, they will have to face the dangers of the long journey. From tornadoes to accidents and disease, the Walkers and the other families will need to prepare themselves for a long treacherous journey ahead. However, getting to Denver was just the beginning. Before they can truly settle in, tragedy strikes the Walker family. But lucky for them, there is a witness to the crime. All the local authorities have to do is follow the clues and trust the witness. Can they do it?
A Witness to A Murder is fascinating and looks into the lives of couples and families who were trying to survive even decades after the Civil War. You can tell that Raymond Cook did deep research to understand how traveling such vast distances was difficult and perilous for people. The plot and the premise of the story are fascinating, to say the least. The descriptions of the journey from Missouri to Denver are vivid and incredibly detailed. The descriptions of the tornadoes, the deaths and the absolutely miserable times these families endured are heart-wrenching.
The chemistry between Carl and Anna is gentle like their relationship. The pace is rather slow, but it is worth it when you reach the end. The author gives us the complete life story of the Walkers and the struggles they face as they try to fight for a better life. Bruni, the cat, plays a vital role in moving the story forward and bringing justice to the Walkers. Simple yet effective, this is a story to keep you entertained for days.
-Amazon Reader’s Comments-
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I won’t replace Louis L’Amour or Zane Grey, but I’m very happy writing each eBook and offering it to you.
Favorite Authors:
These authors have influenced what and how I write: Louis L’Amour, Zane Grey, Larry McMurtry, Laura Ingalls Wilder and James Fenimore Cooper.
Thanks to all of you who buy, read and comment on my eBooks. If you would like to send me a message, feel free to send me an e-mail.