The Education of Young Dalton Reid

by Ed Robins

On the planet Gaea, opportunities are hard to come by. Setting out for the Tanami frontier, young Dalton Reid hopes to make his fortune with nothing but his horse and the last few bits in his pocket. Before he can even begin, the dastardly Roscoe, professional cattle rustler and murderer, cheats him out of his savings.

There’s no shortage of folks in Hensonville willing to give Reid the education he needs to survive, if he’s willing to play by their rules. Paloma Griswell’s ready to work him to the bone on her ranch. The straight and narrow is what old Marshal Rawlins expects. Bellyaching Chip Reegan just wants to put him in his place. Even Roscoe wants him to join the gang as they plan their biggest heist yet.

Only Reid can decide what type of man he wants to be as he seeks fortune and fame–or will it be infamy?

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Inspired by classic westerns, the Gunslingers of Gaea series is a science fiction / western mash-up devised in the best traditions of the dime store paperback. It is part of the 10 Cent Universe – a genre-bending macrocosm – that began with the science fiction / mystery series The Starship Australis Mysteries.

146 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 30, 2025

About the author

Ed Robins has been writing since the age of eleven. Robins’ father was an avid consumer of speculative fiction and raised Ed on a steady diet of television shows, books and movies to spark his imagination.

If there’s anything Robins likes more than science fiction, it’s old things, especially books. It inspired him to create The Ten Cent Universe by mashing together the styles of old dime store masters with modern science fiction.

Robins currently resides in Wichita, KS with his wife and two children, and tells too many "dad jokes".