Nodaway Trail

By: David R. Lewis

Narrated by: David R. Lewis

Length: 6 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

Comfortable in his new life in Deer Run, young Ruben Beeler is called away by Marshal Marion Daniels to help in an investigation of murder and mutilation north of St. Joe. That begins a search for killers and leads the men northward into unfamiliar territory, pitting them against a family of outlaws who have ruled Nodaway County since before the Civil War.

Push comes ta shove right smart, an' things git hot an' heavy quick, as even Rube, an' Marion, an' Homer, out numbered an' outgunned, take to the dodge. It comes to be some desperate for all of 'em afore they git off the Nodaway Trail.

©2012 David R. Lewis (P)2013 David R. Lewis

He wasn't my Pard, but he was my friend.

Well written and excellent vocalizations by the author David R Lewis. The Marshalls deepen their Bond and brotherhood it their quest to bring a family of outlaws to justice.

Better than chicken stew and cornbread

Any additional comments?

Fantastic book in a fantastic series. Probably would be good as stand alone, but so much better if you start with book one and work your way through. Reuben is now married to Miss Harmony and a baby is on the way. Reuben sets on the trail to help Marshall Marion catch a couple of very bad cowboys who killed a woman and cut up the face of another. As usual, many things happen on the trail - some good and some bad. The best thing that happened in this book is that Reuben bought a mule. He named it Arlis the Mule, after his good friend Arlis the gunsmith. The mule is one of my favorite characters. Also, Reuben makes a new friend which is easy for Reuben to do because he is the sweetest (and deadliest) sheriff in the west. He is exceedingly easy to love. The characters in this series seem real due to the excellence of the writer. This writer is also excellent at writing dialog and knows how to weave a tale that keeps the listener enthralled.

The best of all is that the writer is the reader and he is the best possible person to read this book. His accents for each character are spot on perfect.. They are consistent and very distinctive. Even though the writing is excellent, I believe this book is enhanced by the performance of the reader. In my opinion, this is a DO NOT MISS book and series.

Unbeatable combination of writing and narration!

David R. Lewis has gone to the TOP of my list of favorite Audible authors! I never thought I'd be interested in cowboy stories, but just thought I'd try something different and the characters and story are GREAT with just enough humor. The narration is PERFECT and I am sure the Audible version is much better than just reading it, even though the writing is excellent. I have already recommended this series to several people and have gifted the first book to someone because I am sure they will love it.

Miss Harmony, Rube, and Arliss the Mule

The second in the series finds Ruben joining U.S. Marshal Marion Daniels on the hunt for a family of outlaws who ravaged and murdered a young woman. In the first book, we got to know Arliss, the gunsmith, and in this one, when one of the pack horses got hit by lightening while they were on the trail, Ruben buys a mule, which turns out to be a pretty good deal . . . and names him, Arliss. 😊 The mule stays right with them, doesn’t even need to be hobbled. Miss Harmony, Rube’s wife is expecting their first baby, so he’s a mite anxious to get back home and see to her, even though he does love being out on the trail again. The banter between Marion, Ruben, and Homer makes for some great entertainment. And I love that there’s always a clear line between right and wrong, good and evil. If I could change one thing, it would be that they would stop taking the Lord’s name in vain. Overall, great tale of the old west and excellent resolution.

Loved it! Already listened 3 times.

Makes my mouth water listening to the simple home cooked meals either eaten on the trail or in the small town café: chicken and dumplings, corn bread, fried chicken, beef steak, ham and eggs, fried potatoes, bacon, catfish, etc.. I grew up eating simple yet delicious home cooked southern meals steeped in beans and greens seasoned with pork meats.

I want to strap on the six shooters and carry the sawed off shotguns to bring the brutal outlaws to justice. I admire his saving the weak and innocent. If you think it's OK to help the weak, even if it means being the only law in a lawless land, against overwhelming odds, you will enjoy this book and other in the series: great heroic gunfight scenes. The protagonist is a simple, polite, innocent young man who cares about right and wrong and has the skills to stand up against wrong and fight for right. I loved it. But maybe I'm to be considered a chump. I was a Boy Scout as a child and grew up watching black and white TV of the 50's and 60's such as "The Rifleman" and "Wanted Dead Or Alive". I volunteered to serve as an officer in the Marine Corps during the last 4 years of the Vietnam war, influenced by watching "Combat" as a child. Yes, I'm a idealistic person but I have a soft spot for the strong who stand up for the weak.I loved this story. I recommend highly.

A series not to be missed.

I usually don't get sucked into a series as much as this one has grabbed me, especially one that is so far out of my genre. I could not help but love these simple no nonsense characters. I thoroughly enjoy their dry, hilarious humor and the emphasis that is put on the food and livestock of that day. The author is the narrator, which I don't think is ever a good idea, but this series would not be the same without his very good and distinct voices for each character. All around great stories that I highly recommend.

loved all 5 books of the trail series!

What did you love best about Nodaway Trail?

loved all of the trail series - wish there was more!

What did you like best about this story?

The characters Reben, Marion and Homer were so distinctive and real! I grew to love them!

What does David R. Lewis bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

listening is like hearing my father tell tales again!

Any additional comments?

I listened to these stories over and over - while exercising or just sitting and relaxing

Great story.

Love this series. Have all 8 & have listened to them dozens of times!
The narrator does an outstanding job.

Great book

This is the second book in the series.
Just loved the writing, the performance, the history. I felt like I was on the trail and how life was.
Ruben is a wonderful young man. The other characters are rich and colorful!

Amazing Performance

This story wasn't as captivating or as charming as the first. It felt more like a standard western. I tend to get drawn in to intro stories where they set the scene and build the characters. I like getting emersed into things. But like most stories once you get through that you get to the plot and the character development gets lost. At that point I tend to get a little bored.

The Author is impressive as the narrator. He does a fantastic job at bringing the story and characters to life and that draws me in 100%. Even though the story isn't captivating, the narration is. And, that makes it worth it alone.