Dead Man's Ranch

Duane Spurlock, over at the Spur & Lock Mercantile, posted a fine, in-depth review of my novel, Dead Man’s Ranch. Among the many flattering and astute things he had to say about it was: “… you’ve got all the ingredients for a western stew muy caliente.” Who can argue with that? Plus, he mentions Wrong Town (Roamer #1)–yee haa!

Here’s a link: http://spurandlock.blogspot.com/2012/05/deads-man-ranch.html

http://westernfictionreview.blogspot.com/2012/04/interview-matthew-p-mayo.html

Top-selling Western author Peter Brandvold recently reviewed WRONG TOWN on Amazon and he made my week: “I loved ROAMER: WRONG TOWN, and can’t wait for the next one in the series. This is fiction writing at its best, and some of the best writing you’ll find in the western field. If you’re a fan of well-written westerns, you won’t regret adding this one to your collection, and you’ll have a damn good time doing it.”

Coming from Peter Brandvold, I couldn’t be happier, especially given that Mr. Brandvold is one of my favorite authors. His books are ripping reads populated with real people in real circumstances dealing with life as best they can, sometimes having fun with it, sometimes digging in their heels, loading their guns, and toughing it out. But above all else, his books are well written. Needless to say, his kind praise of my writing is most appreciated (and not a little humbling, too!).

Top-shelf writer, Larry D. Sweazy, author of the award-winning “Josiah Wolfe, Texas Ranger” series has laid some serious praise on me and my novel WRONG TOWN. I can only blush and thank him–and work to keep the work up to such standards. I’m pleased that folks are enjoying the book so much–and that they can’t wait for future installments in the journeys of Roamer….

Here’s a link to the review: http://larrydsweazy.blogspot.com/2012/03/wrong-town-by-matthew-p-mayo.html

Click here to book a trip to WRONG TOWN–available in paperback and as an e-book. (Don’t forget your bear spray….)

Click front cover for large image

Click back cover for large image

Best-selling author James Reasoner has reviewed my recently rereleased novel, WRONG TOWN (ROAMER #1) and I’m pleased to say he digs it mighty.

Here’s a link: http://westernfictioneers.blogspot.com/2012/03/wrong-town-matthew-p-mayo.html

Click cover to read review

Steve M. over at the excellent blog, Western Fiction Review (a vital daily e-stop for me), has just reviewed my new novel, Dead Man’s Ranch, and I am pleased to say he liked it.

An excerpt from the review: “Matthew P. Mayo tells his story at a fast pace, his plot threads drawing all the main characters together for a savage and brutal confrontation that not all will survive.”

Steve’s thorough reviews have informed a number of my own Western novel purchases and his interviews with Western authors and illustrators have provided many hours of informative reading for me. Needless to say (though here I am, saying it), I’m flattered that he liked the book.

Here’s a link to the full review: http://westernfictionreview.blogspot.com/2012/03/dead-mans-ranch.html

Wrong Town (Roamer Book 1)

I’m pleased and proud, chuffed and puffed to announce the release of my new e-book, WRONG TOWN (Roamer Book 1), a revised version of my 2008 novel, WRONG TOWN. This time around, I’ve set it up as the first in a series featuring the protagonist, Roamer, a hulking, misunderstood loner who wants nothing more than to lose himself in the West. But as we all know, life rarely gives us just what we want….

Another note of potential interest is that the story and character crosses over with my ongoing series of short stories featuring mountain man, Maple Jack, mentor to Roamer (and the man who gave him his name). They first meet in the short story, “Maple Jack and the Christmas Kid,” in the recent anthology, Christmas Campfire Companion, by Port Yonder Press.

WRONG TOWN (Roamer Book 1) began its life way back as a story, but I liked it so much I kept expanding it until it reached the length that Robert Hale Publishing (London, UK) required for its Black Horse Western line. That first print run sold out less than two weeks of its release. The next year it came out as a large-print softcover through the Linford Western Library (FA Thorpe/Ulverscroft), also in the UK. I received tons of mail (okay, dozens of letters–but they were heavy with emotion….) from readers who really liked Roamer, his first-person narration, and the fact that the book, and Roamer’s day, begins with a grizzly mauling and grows more grim from there….

Never before officially released in the US, this revised edition comes newly typeset, offers a sample chapter from the next Gritty Press book, WINTERS’ WAR, and sports dandy new cover art that reflects that it’s the first in an intended series. My wife, photographer Jennifer Smith-Mayo, did a terrific job on the cover. (The new Gritty Press softcover, available in the next couple of weeks, has a great back cover as well.)

The new rerelease of WRONG TOWN (Roamer Book 1) also marks the launch of our new imprint, GRITTY PRESS. In the coming weeks and months Gritty Press plans to release revised and new work including novels, short stories, non-fiction, and more. Next up: WINTERS’ WAR and HOT LEAD, COLD HEART….

Keep it Gritty!

Dead Man's Ranch

DEAD MAN’S RANCH (A Ralph Compton Western)

Mass market paperback, Signet, March 6, 2012
304 pages
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Indiebound | Powell’s

Brian Middleton was sent back East as a child, raised in a life of privilege. But now he’s returned to claim the land his late father left him—and learns the hard way that if you want to keep something in the wild West, you have to fight for it. With scheming local lowlifes and a drifting, murderous con-man after the Dancing M ranch, Middleton has no choice but to make a stand, though it may well cost him everything.

Dead Man's Ranch: Pre-order yours from Amazon.com today!

Dead Man’s Ranch, my latest novel, is officially released March 6. It’s my first for the Ralph Compton Westerns line for Signet and I’m already up to my elbows in my next one.

The book’s up for pre-order at all the usual spots, and can be found at most bookstores with a  Westerns section–including Walmarts nationwide. Yee haw! I hope folks have as much fun reading it as I had writing it. (And check out that tasty cover art!)

Click on the front and back covers for more Wild West goodness….