The year is 1915. The place: the Texas-Mexico border, where revolution simmers south of the Rio Grande and the Texas Rangers stand as the thin line between order and chaos. When the Rambler Club arrives from Wisconsin, led by the irrepressible Cranny Beaumont, they're looking for excitement. What they find is something far more consequential: a world where their courage will be tested against smugglers, revolutionaries, and the genuine dangers of a turbulent border. Cranny Beaumont is exactly the kind of hero early boys' adventure fiction was built for: reckless, big-hearted, incapable of sitting still when there's trouble to be found. His companions Bob Somers, Dave Brandon, Tom Clifton, Dick Travers, Sam Randall, and their friend Don Stratton form a fellowship of action. With Sergeant Robson Howell and Private Carl Alvin of the Texas Rangers as their guides, the boys are thrust into a world where the adventure they craved comes with real stakes. This is boys' adventure fiction at its most earnest: full-throated, optimistic, and unafraid to believe that courage and friendship can overcome any obstacle. It captures a particular moment in American history when the frontier was still recent memory and the Texas Rangers were still legendary. For readers who love unpretentious adventure tales with genuine heart, this delivers exactly what it promises.
