Lawman or outlaw? Black-hatted "villains" and white-hatted "good guys" of the Old West walk the streets of our imagination. Hollywood draws a convenient line in the Western dirt, differentiating between the two. But in reality, at times it was difficult, if not impossible to distinguish who was who. Shadowy faces roamed the West. When Outlaws Wore Badges explores the world of lawman and outlaw wrapped into one person. At times the badge speaks, other times-the gun. Living in the Old West was not easy. Often, law and justice were left behind in the east, when men migrated to the open lands of the West. Some men took advantage of fluid regulations while others found themselves helping to invent and enforce law and order. A few men did both.

Robbed and beaten by outlaws, stagecoach guard James Colton vows justice and recovery of his grandfather's watch. Determined to find his heirloom, James hunts the outlaws, only to face an immoral sheriff who gives him no choice but to shoot. Charged with his murder, James's solitary hope is to get the bandits to confess to the sheriff's villainy. With older brother Trace along to help, James tracks the outlaws into Mexico. But after Trace is gravely wounded, James is ambushed by lawmen as he tries to take his brother across the border. The hangman's noose seems closer than ever. Will James prove his innocence?
It's 1860 southern New Mexico. "Border Ambush" exposes the American Southwest for what it really was--rough, tough, and brutal.
"Melody Groves has created a couple of characters, James and Trace Colton, that you'll really care about. She spins a Western story that reads like a Western should--full of hair-raising adventures and some really bad villains."--Bill Pinnell, author of "Terror on the Border"

Throwing a few drinks back at the bar is a timeless tale of humanity. In the American Old West, this tale played out in ramshackle huts and stylish establishments alike in some of the most unforgiving terrain imaginable. While the legendary Crystal Palace in Tombstone, Arizona, had little in common with the tent cities that sprang up in Leadville, Colorado, and Silver City, New Mexico, one common feature was the bars--constructed of planks of mahogany, cherrywood, or rosewood. These bars were often hauled across hundreds of miles of rugged terrain to arrive in various cities, where they would support the elbows, chins, and drinks of those who sought to quench their thirst. From the Grand Hotel in Bisbee to Rosa's Cantina in El Paso, Myke and Melody Groves tell the story of the front and back bars of twenty-five establishments in Arizona, Texas, New Mexico, and Colorado through a combination of historic background and photographs. This lively travelogue, complete with driving directions, will inspire visitors to the West's old mining camps, railroad towns, and ranching centers to stop in and belly up to the bar.

Don't miss the next exciting series entry following KANSAS BLEEDS and BLACK RANGE REVENGE Battling a wild horse, poisoned water, aggravated Apache, a fanatical Army officer, and other life-threatening trials, the four Colton brothers refuse to turn their three thousand longhorns around and head back to Mesilla. Determined to deliver the contracted beeves to Tin Town, California, James Colton drives men and cattle as hard and as fast as he can. The brothers hope to celebrate the end of the Civil War and the cattle drive by hoisting a beer in Tin Town. But Whid MacGilvry has other ideas. Killing James is not enough to exact his revenge. Destroying the entire Colton family will have to do. And where better than out on the range?

A BBC radio full-cast dramatisation of this much-loved classic adventure about a dog named Buck. In Yukon, Canada during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, strong sled dogs were in high demand. Buck is stolen from his comfortable home in California and sold into service as a sled dog in Alaska. He becomes progressively feral in the harsh environment, where he is forced to fight to survive and dominate other dogs. Sold to a group of inexperienced gold hunters, he is eventually saved by John Thornton, with whom he forms a deep bond. Exciting and action-packed, The Call of the Wild explores the timeless relationship between man and dog, and the draw of primitive instincts that pull Buck away from humanity towards the wilderness. Starring Robert Jack, Finn Den Hertog, Robin Lane, Nick Underwood and Melody Grove.

First Apaches, then Confederate Texans. The Colton brothers--James, Trace, and now Andy--must face not only their enemies, but their own personal demons. Driven to near madness by Apache brutality, nearly killing the sheriff, James chooses joining the Union Army over prison. Andy, the youngest brother, also joins, but only to keep James out of trouble. Trace, the oldest Colton, finds himself imprisoned by a sadistic Confederate officer and left alone to die.

It's Arizona Territory at the start of the Civil War, and the Coltons are caught in the middle of it. In the end, it's all up to James to save Union troops from an Apache attack--if he can summon the courage to face his old torturers and their leader, Cochise.

"Melody Groves writes about the Southwestern frontier with real authority; a scholar's grasp of history, a keen sense of the land, and a well-honed edge for action that'll get your blood boiling. Historical fiction at its best."--Johnny Boggs, author of thirty books including his latest, "Northfield"

Many stories have been written about the exploits of Billy the Kid, the charismatic outlaw of the Old West. Some have been pure fiction, designed to entertain and excite. Purple prose writers began chronicling the exploits of Billy as early as the late 1870s. Others have been biographical, researched by historians or recorded by those who knew him, including his murderer, Sheriff Pat Garrett. But there was once a different side to the famous gunfighter, a softer more artistic side that seems at odds with Billy's reputation for shooting, killing, and robbing. Born Henry McCarty, he was also known by the names Henry Antrim, Kid Antrim, and William H. Bonney. He didn't shoot twenty-one men, as has been claimed. Four is a more likely number, three in self-defense. In Before Billy the Kid, author Melody Groves explores the early life of the infamous outlaw, the teenage boy who loved to sing and dance. The young man who was polite, educated, and popular. A boy who had the bad luck to be orphaned at fifteen and left with no one to guide him through life. How different history might have been if Billy had pursued his love of music instead of a life of crime.

Stranded in the rugged Sonoran Desert, stagecoach drivers James Colton and older brother, Trace, are captured by warring Apaches. Tortured and driven to the breaking point, James is used as a bargaining chip by the great Apache Chief, Cochise. James will die if Trace can't win freedom for Cochise's brother, imprisoned by the Army. Trace rushes to negotiate a trade, but the Army has other plans--attack Cochise and his warriors at Apache Pass.

It's Arizona Territory, 1861. Rage explodes across the Sonoran Desert, and blood stains the sand. Will the Colton brothers survive?

"Sonoran Rage" is the second book in Melody Grove's Colton Brothers Saga series. "Arizona War" is the third book in the series, and also published by La Frontera Publishing.

"Melody Groves takes readers on a memorable adventure into the Sonoran Desert. Unexpected plot twists, realistic descriptions and vivid writing keep you on edge--and turning the pages--as young stagecoach drivers James and Trace Colton face Cochise and his Apaches in a life-changing challenge for survival."--Cotton Smith, author of Western novels, including "Blood of Bass Tillman"

"Heart pounding, blood pumping, the cowboy nods, chute gate opens, and his world begins. Eight seconds of adrenaline rush. Eight seconds of gripping, pulling, and holding on. The animal under him bucks and twists attempting to dislodge the cowboy's seat but the rider sticks like glue. The buzzer sounds, the cowboy dismounts, tips his hat to a cheering crowd, and nods at his proud fellow riders. Just another day at the office."--from Ropes, Reins, and Rawhide

Melody Groves, a native New Mexican and former bull rider, examines the sport of rodeo, from a brief history of the ranch-based competition to the rodeos of today and what each event demands. One of the first topics she addresses is the treatment of the animals. As she points out, without the bulls or horses, there wouldn't be a rodeo. For that reason, the stock contractors, chute workers, cowboys, and all the arena workers respect the animals and take precautions against their injuries.Groves writes for the rodeo novice, explaining the workings and workers (stock handlers, veterinarians, clowns, "pick up" men, event judges, etc.) seen in the arena and behind the scenes. She then describes the rodeo events: bull riding, saddle bronc riding, bareback riding, steer wrestling, team roping, tie-down roping, and barrel racing. Interviews with rodeo legends in every event round out the "feel" for this breathtaking sport. Over ninety photos depict what is described in the text to more fully explain the rodeo, with its ropes, reins, and rawhide.