The Last Ranch

A Novel of the New American West

By: Michael McGarrity

Narrated by: George Guidall

Length: 14 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's summary

The grand saga of an American ranching family continues in The Last Ranch, the final, mesmerizing book of New York Times best seller Michael McGarrity's gripping and richly authentic American West trilogy.

When Matthew Kerney returns to his ranch in the beautiful San Andres Mountains after serving in Sicily during World War II, he must not only fight to recover physically and emotionally from a devastating war injury, but he must also battle attempts by the US Army to seize control of his land for expanded weapons testing.

Forced off public grazing lands, banned from gathering his cattle on high mountain pastures, and confronted by military police guarding a high security army post on the northern reaches of the range, Matt finds himself at the center of a heavy-handed government land-grab. The reasons behind this surge of secrecy and control become clear when Matt witnesses the boiling, blinding explosion of the first atom bomb at Trinity Site.

As he struggles with an aging, stove-up father no longer able to carry a heavy load at the ranch, an ex-convict intent on killing him, and a failing relationship with a woman he dearly loves, Matt must draw upon all his mental and physical resources to keep his world-and the people in it - from collapsing.

Following the New York Times best-selling Hard Country and its sequel Backlands, The Last Ranch enthralls with the deeply rich, sometimes heartbreaking Kerney family saga as it steps brilliantly into the mid-20th-century world of the new American West.

©2016 Michael McGarrity (P)2016 Recorded Books

Glad McGarrity Switched

For those of you who are long-time fans, you will recall the Kevin K. series of mystery/crime novels. When the author first switched over to the history of the family I was dismayed...
but I decided to read the first one even though I am NOT a fan of westerns.
I am so glad that I did, because what followed was an engaging saga of the Kerney family beginning, I believe, at the end of the 19th century. The Last Ranch brings us close to the time when the mystery/crime series begins, except not quite... because Kerney does not yet have his limp from a rodeo injury....
So I hope there's more to come. Excellent book, excellent series.
Guidall is the narrator for this, just as he was for Tony Hillerman's books. Guidall is a real pro and does his usual superb job.

Great Trilogy, Great Narration by George.

I listened too this whole trilogy and loved every second of it. This is my second time listening to it. I’m sure there will be another.

Disappointing Ending after Riveting story

The ending was very unsatisfying for such a marvelous tale. Far too many unanswered
questions about Kevin. I felt like I had fallen off a cliff.

McGarrity is a grand writer and he could still prepare for another book by ending better.

The end of an era

The last book in the Kerney Family Trilogy. The firsts book covered the time when John Kerney first moved into the rugged and wild territory of New Mexico in 1875 to settle and work off the land. In it we are also introduced to his son Patrick who fought in Cuba with Teddy Roosevelt’s Rough Riders and who also has two sons. The oldest son dies in France in WW I. The family breaks up and Matthew grows up with his mother. It ends on that note in 1918. The second book starts with the rapidly declining health of Matt’s mother and her death, pushing the young boy Matt back to the ranch with a father he barely knows and who doesn’t know how to have a relationship. Matt begins to enjoy the ranch, but not his father, and has dreams of an education. The stock market crash, the depression, and the dust bowl along with falling cattle prices locks him on the ranch and this book is the struggle to keep it going. When the US enters World War II, Matt follows in the footsteps of his father and older brother and serves in Sicily where he becomes a hero, but is injured and sent home. This third book picks up the story there. 

The world that he has returned to has begun to change in a way that few understood at the time. The US Army is taking over land in the Tularosa basin. Most ranchers did not own the land that their cattle grazed on, but simply had land leases making it easier to move them off the land. The Kerney ranch grazed mostly on land that they owned and Patrick was determined to hold on to the ranch that his grandfather had built. They find themselves confronted by armed soldiers when they try to round up some strays that had drifted off their land. Their ranch is soon surrounded and they have to pass through military checkpoints when they leave or return. Once at the top of a ridge, they spot a high tower being built and concrete bunkers a long distance away. Matt witnesses the explosion of the first atom bomb and knows that it was not an accidental weapons storage explosion as the newspapers reported. 

The book is a story of bringing all these things together around Matt’s story--the history of the area, the struggle to keep the ranch, a father who is no longer to help out as much as before, and struggles to find his place in the world along with his own personal relationships. And, it continues with his son Kevin, who like his ancestors also finds himself in the latest American war in Vietnam. 

I didn’t feel that this was quite as good as the first two novels, but that’s not to say that it wasn’t a very good book. The plot was not artificial and seemed real. The author provides intimate details of the area and the history. One of the things I like about all three books is their historical and geographical accuracy. I was disappointed by the ending. Certainly a story can’t always resolve everything, but there was too much that was left hanging at the end. However, that may be because the author has already written a number of books about the last Kerney of these books, Kevin, who becomes a detective. These three books are prequels to give the family history of Kevin. Though I haven’t read any of those books, the prequels are good on their own. 

A beautiful story!

Wonderful story. I love this trilogy especially when narrated by one of the best voices ever!

Excellent author and as always a terrific narrator

I am thoroughly impressed with the book. I hope there is more in the series.

Great Book!

I loved this book! I wanted to listen right up to the end! Try it you will like it!

Great trilogy

I highly recommend this trilogy. It is New Mexicos equivalent of Lonesome Dove. If you like Elmer Kelton you will love this author. George Guidalls narration brings it to life as always.

Very well done.

This was the last of the three books and all three books were great.

The narrator was perfect for the content a was consistent across the three books.

Wonderful Sequel

I couldn't wait to order and read (Listen) when I saw a sequel to Badlands & Backcountry, it answered a lot of questions about how the Family lost the Double K ranch.
And Guidall is priceless.