Deputy Luke Cable's job has gotten a whole lot harder lately. He's been the acting marshal of Wiles, Kansas, since Marshal Ben Keely disappeared. It's up to Luke to keep the peace, and that's hard to do since the arrival of the Outlaw Train, a traveling collection of curiosities that includes the remains of notorious outlaws. Scar Nolan came to town right after the train pulled in. He's killed before and, unless Luke can stop him, he's aiming to do it again aboard the Outlaw Train. ————————- From an April 2012 Amazon reader review of an earlier mass-market paperback edition of OUTLAW TRAIN: Cameron Judd has long been a creator of fine western novels. Add OUTLAW TRAIN to that list. It's a story that contains some macabre elements not usually found in western stories, but Judd works them neatly into a novel with nice plot twists and strong character development. Judd has a real knack for describing the manners of small town life. Judd never writes formulaic westerns; he takes chances in his writing, and the result is almost always an entertaining tale … highly recommended. From a February 2010 Amazon reader review of an earlier mass-market paperback edition of OUTLAW TRAIN: "Outlaw Train" is an amazing novel. Dewitt Stamps, reformed drunkard and born-again Christian, and Luke Cable (acting town marshal) deal with the Outlaw Train. Where there's outlaws, dead or alive, there's trouble! This time is no exception. Luke Cable, as acting marshal, fills in for Ben Keely, who has disappeared, and finds himself faced with the Outlaw Train, packed with death, filled with mementos of those who have passed violently, and those dealing in it. The traveling exhibition of mummified villains, while a curiosity, draws undesirable elements. Such a man is Scar Nolan, and his arrival in Wiles begins a wave that threatens to engulf those who fight against it. Add a spiritualist/prostitute, a weather storm that threatens Wiles, and secrets no one wants made known, and Wiles is no longer the quiet place it once was. Cameron Judd writes a powerful novel that makes Dewitt, Cable, Nolan, Jimmy Willis, and Clara Ashworth jump off the pages. It is taut, engrossing fiction that is not just western literature, but just good literature ... Truly, given this novel 50 years ago, it might have been a fantastic film with Randolph Scott, John Wayne, Harry Carey Jr, Rex Allen, Katherine Hepburn, and Errol Flynn. Now, it is “just” a great novel! From a January 2012 Amazon reader review of an earlier mass-market paperback edition of OUTLAW TRAIN: Cameron Judd does a great job of keeping the reader interested. This tale had many fascinating characters that weaved twisted tale. Loved the whole story and I believe it would make for a great movie. From a December 2013 Amazon reader review of an earlier mass-market paperback edition of OUTLAW TRAIN: The train in "Outlaw Train" is two cars on a siding near Wiles, Kansas. I think Wiles is a hypothetical town, but the book implies it's not far from Hutchinson, close to the center of the state, northwest of Wichita ... The action occurs in the late nineteenth century, after the Civil War. The outlaw train is owned by two deceivers, and for an admission price, they claim to show embalmed outlaws, weapons and other criminal artifacts. Luke is acting city marshal in Wiles, filling in for Ben Keely. As acting marshal, Luke deals with a reformed drunk, with an unreformed prostitute, with murders and murderers, as well as with the operators of the outlaw train. The story moves fast, is five-star, and the outcome isn't predictable.