The Last Ranch


Book Description

The great saga of an American ranching family that gripped readers in the New York Times bestselling novel Hard Country and its sequel, Backlands, concludes in The Last Ranch, the final, mesmerizing novel in Michael McGarrity’s powerful and richly authentic American West trilogy. When Matthew Kerney returns to his ranch in the remote, beautiful San Andres Mountains of New Mexico, honorably discharged after serving in Sicily during World War II, he must not only endeavor to recover physically and emotionally from a devastating combat injury, but he must also fight attempts by the U.S. Army to seize control of his land for expanded weapons testing. Yet keeping his land is only half the battle as he struggles with an aging father no longer able to carry his load at the ranch, an ex-convict intent on killing him, and a failing relationship with a woman he dearly loves. As Matt’s personal and family life unravels, a punishing drought pushes him to the brink of ruin, and he is forced to draw upon all his mental and physical resources to keep his world—and the people in it—from collapsing. Spanning the era from World War II to the end of the Vietnam conflict, The Last Ranch enthralls with the deeply rich, sometimes heartbreaking Kerney family saga as it steps brilliantly into the mid-twentieth-century world of the new American West.




The Last Ranch


Book Description

The year environmentalist Sam Bingham spent in Colorado's San Luis Valley showed him that environmental disasters of global consequence are happening in our own backyard. THE LAST RANCH tells of the desperate efforts of one community to stop the encroaching desert. "A rare and beautifully written account of hard lives in hard times, and must reading for those interested in the future of the American West".--KIRKUS REVIEWS.




Last Chance Llama Ranch


Book Description

From the author of Bliss comes a heartwarming tale of friendship, romance, self-discovery. . . and llama drama. When a close encounter with an eighty-foot spruce steals Merry Manning's dreams of Olympic gold, the former ski champ finds herself falling into a career she never expected -- the life of a travel writer. Picturing glamorous trips to exotic places, Merry is speechless when her boss assigns her to the blog, "Don't Do What I Did," and sends her to a middle-of-nowhere llama ranch with instructions to "fall on her fanny" as often as possible. Soon she's eyeball-deep in alpacas, llamas, goats, and all the mess that comes with them. But when the Last Chance Llama Ranch -- and a certain gruff cowboy -- start to grow on her, Merry finds that each life might actually be just what she's been missing. You know what they say: when life gives you llamas. . ..




Last Stand Ranch


Book Description

HER COWBOY HERO After crossing a mob lawyer, Olivia Dillon knows she has to run for her life. But on the way to her great-aunt's remote Arizona ranch, she's forced off the road. The message is clear. She can run, she can hide...but she'll never be safe again. So with Elijah Morales--the rancher next door--by her side, she's determined to face the danger head-on. The former Army Ranger and natural-born protector promises to end the attacks against her. Even if helping her puts him directly in harm's way. Staying means risking his life, but can Olivia leave to confront her enemies--and the future--without Elijah?




The Last Ranch


Book Description

The great saga of an American ranching family that gripped readers in the New York Times bestselling novel Hard Country and its sequel, Backlands, concludes in The Last Ranch, the final, mesmerizing novel in Michael McGarrity’s powerful and richly authentic American West trilogy. When Matthew Kerney returns to his ranch in the remote, beautiful San Andres Mountains of New Mexico, honorably discharged after serving in Sicily during World War II, he must not only endeavor to recover physically and emotionally from a devastating combat injury, but he must also fight attempts by the U.S. Army to seize control of his land for expanded weapons testing. Yet keeping his land is only half the battle as he struggles with an aging father no longer able to carry his load at the ranch, an ex-convict intent on killing him, and a failing relationship with a woman he dearly loves. As Matt’s personal and family life unravels, a punishing drought pushes him to the brink of ruin, and he is forced to draw upon all his mental and physical resources to keep his world—and the people in it—from collapsing. Spanning the era from World War II to the end of the Vietnam conflict, The Last Ranch enthralls with the deeply rich, sometimes heartbreaking Kerney family saga as it steps brilliantly into the mid-twentieth-century world of the new American West.




The Last Chance Olive Ranch


Book Description

In this exciting mystery from New York Times bestselling author Susan Wittig Albert, China Bayles fears for her husband's life as an escaped convict targets him... Max Mantel, the killer McQuaid put away years ago, has busted out of the Huntsville prison and appears to be headed for Pecan Springs. McQuaid knows there's only one way to stop the vengeful convict--set a trap with himself as bait. China wants to stay by her husband's side and keep him from harm. But McQuaid insists that she get out of town and go to the Last Chance Olive Ranch, where she's agreed to teach a workshop on herbs. When China and her best friend arrive at the ranch, she learns the owner, Maddie Haskell, has her own troubles. She inherited the ranch and olive oil business from the late matriarch, Eliza Butler, but Eliza's nephew is contesting the will. While China throws herself into helping Maddie, McQuaid's plan backfires when Mantel executes a countermove he never saw coming. Now McQuaid's life is not the only one at stake--and this time may really be his last chance...




Operation Ranch Hand: The Air Force and Herbicides in Southeast Asia, 1961-1971


Book Description

This book is a study of the process by which herbicidal military policy was made in Southeast Asia. The author relates the intense controversy over the effects of the Agent Orange spraying program. He connects policy to operations, showing how pressure from scientists and disagreements within the government imposed limits on the program. He explores the technical difficulties in spraying herbicides; and he pays tribute to the Ranch Hand airmen who flew planes "low and slow" over enemy positions (altogether, Ranch Hand aircraft took over 7,000 hits). Since the 1975 renunciation of the use of herbicides, this military episode has remained unique in U.S. history. Includes notes, appendices, bibliography, and photos.




Corriganville: The Definitive True History of the Ray "Crash" Corrigan Movie Ranch


Book Description

FOR THE FIRST TIME! A complete and true history of the Ray "Crash" Corrigan Movie Ranch, from its prehistory to its current status as a city park. Corrects all of the falsehoods and exaggerations concerning the ranch and its operation as both a movie location and as an amusement park. Includes many details of its day-to-day operation, especially the amusement park business (its highpoints and its shortcomings!). An extensive and expanded filmography of the movie ranch. Profusely illustrated with nearly a thousand illustrations, including almost 500 photographs from a 4,000 negative collection of Corriganville images, most of which have not been published before.







Finding, Buying, and Developing a South Texas Ranch


Book Description

With greatly varying weather, inhospitable flora and fauna, and a hardscrabble citizenry that has learned to endure and thrive, Texas is the romantic stuff of legends. Driving a pasture road at sunrise or sundown is the best time to appreciate it. Midday it may be 110 degrees, a time when man is the only animal dumb enough to be out. But when the sun is waxing or waning, the abundant wildlife begins to stir, either heading out to feed or heading for daytime shade. Colors that were bleached in direct sunlight become vivid, and the breeze that dehydrates you at noon carries a bit of moisture and the musty smell of a fecund ecology. It is this complex living puzzle that draws its human inhabitants. The romance and the belief that this land will produce abundantly for whoever has the gumption to take it on, declares Jim Mullen, is why people buy property here. In Finding, Buying, and Developing a South Texas Ranch, Mullen outlines how to do exactly that, exposing the prospective ranch buyer to the basic principles of buying and developing rural land in this great state.