The Last Day in Paradise

by Robert K. Swisher Jr.

Banjo Ortega, an old Mexican bandit who hates white people, and Rodney Slugger, a down on his luck white cowboy from Montana, are both men who know they are living relics of the old West. But they must hang onto what they are no matter the hardships. Banjo Ortega is 85 years old and scratches out a living on 80 acres of land in New Mexico that has been in his family for generations. William Cook, the new owner of the 167,000 acre Last Day in Paradise Ranch, wants Banjo's land for a subdivision and fences off a tiny trickle of water that Banjo and his ancestors used to water their few sheep. But Banjo will not sell. They must kill him. Rodney Slugger becomes the foreman of the Last Day in Paradise Ranch and meets Banjo when he has to fix the fence that Banjo keeps cutting so his sheep can drink. What first starts out as hatred slowly turns into a deep friendship. Together they fight the efforts of Mr. Cook and his gangsters to buy Banjo's land. This moving novel about the shrinking west, greed, love, devotion, and murder makes a statement that all mankind should have the right to live the way they choose and can work through their differences. ROBERT K. SWISHER JR. has been a ranch foreman and a mountain guide. He knows the outdoors and western history, and has successfully combined these interests in stories, poems and novels. He is also the author of THE LAND, FATAL DESTINY, ONLY MAGIC, THE LAST NARROW GAUGE TRAIN ROBBERY and LOVE LIES BLEEDING, all from Sunstone Press. Of THE LAND, PUBLISHERS WEEKLY said: "If there were a category of historical romances written for men, this moving novel would fit the bill."

276 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2004

About the author

I have been writing since 1967. To date I have placed twelve novels with traditional publishers ranging from young adult to historical fiction. My novels received good reviews from Publishers Weekly and others. Over the past eight years I have indied eleven novels ranging from mysteries, humor, zanny love stories, literary, and an off the wall creative writing book based on a course I taught. I have worked for newspapers, outdoor magazines, and placed many short stories and poems with literary magazines.