Bøger af John M Cunningham

In the early 1850s Gideon Deshler, distraught over his wife's and baby son's deaths, falls in love with a turfman's evil daughter, Elvira Sturgis. Blaming her former fiance for deserting her at the altar, she feigns a mutual love, but he's a pawn in her plans to exploit and destroy him, the first victim in her vengeance crusade against all men because of what her fiance did to her. Joe Quarles, a bitter rival of Gideon's friend Owen Washburn, accuses Owen's late father of killing his horse farm's champion, Green Legs. To regain the farm's status and keep a promise to his dying father, Joe's hope lies in an ornery Thoroughbred named Johnny Boy and a big match race against Owen's champion. If Johnny Boy loses, Joe risks falling into depression and killing himself. Only Gideon can discover Green Legs's real killer and save Joe from suicide, but Elvira's tricks and his sufferings may prevent this, especially if she destroys his life and his soul.

At the outbreak of the Civil War, over his wife Rachel's objections, Jesse takes their beloved dog Squire to war as his Alabama regiment's mascot. By 1863 they're posted at Port Hudson, Louisiana where Jesse encounters his old rival for Rachel's hand, Colonel H.L. Marsden, who'd killed Jesse's brother in a duel. Here, too, Squire kills a fighting dog in self-defense. Marsden and the fighting dog's owner, Aaron Blevin, plot vengeance against Jesse and Squire. In exchange for Squire to be used as a bait dog for Blevin's other fighters, Blevin's daughter sets out to ruin Jesse's honor and marriage, which will be Marsden's revenge for losing Rachel to him. When Rachel arrives at the garrison, divorce threatens Jesse's marriage and Squire falls into Blevin's cruel hands. Will Squire survive his ordeal and find his way home while the Union army battles the Rebel garrison? Will Jesse survive the siege of Port Hudson? Will Rachel forgive Jesse's "affair" and for losing Squire?