This is book two written by Don Coldsmith in a series of three books written by different authors. The book is about the western end of Kansas River called the Smoky Hill River. The book is divided into three parts. Part one is about the initial exploration and mapping of the river and a trail was established along the banks of the river to the western boundary of the Kansas Territory.  The trail providing a shorter route to the mountains. The initial party had a Booth member who volunteered to participate in the excursion to map the river and the streams that empty into the Smoky Hill.

Part two is an extension of the story with two brothers from the same family as they are on a westward trip to find gold at Cherry Creek now known as Denver in the state of Colorado. They elect to use the trail of the Smoky Hill River that they had heard about from their uncle.  He was part of survey party who initially mapped the trail. The brothers have a disagreement as to which direction the trail went and they separated causing a division of the party and the separation of the brothers and a final division of their lives forever.

Part three continues the story with a third generation Booth who is in the military and wants to see and explore the land that took his father and separated his uncle completely from the eastern portion of the family. Many twists and turn happen and love comes to the last family traveler in the Booth family along the Smoky Hill River.

I definitely would recommend this particular book as a western about the far end of the Kansas River. Don Coldsmith is an author with great skills and we all miss him and the stories that he wrote and we can still be read the total body of his work.

By Louis L’Amour

This is a story about the movement west during a time when all was new and many men hungered for the power and wealth of the western land. The author begins the story with the mystery of a swamp and a young traveler going to the western rivers to ply his trade of building boats. Discovery of a dieing man in the swamp and then being joined by a peg-legged traveler that seemed to know more about him than would be expected. He holds his family name and secrets, from those he encounters.

A young girl, Miss Majoribanks, enters the picture and Talon is smitten by her beauty and freshness even though she seems to be completely oblivious of him except as a servant or employee. This encounter changes his mindset on what he is going to do in the immediate point in time. The events of the story produce a backdrop of intrigue and suspense to the travel that is under taken. The actions that need to be taken by Talon are directly reflected in his watchfulness of Miss Majoribanks.