Todhunter Ballard was one of the select group of writers like Dashiell Hammett and Erle Stanley Gardner who were major contributors to Black Mask Magazine and Dime Detective. In "Drifter's Choice," Wade Pierce has no particular ambition and a reputation for irresponsibility. No one is more surprised than Pierce when he learns he has inherited his dead uncle's controlling interest in a small bank. When he is confronted by Sam Levitt who tries to force him to sell out, Pierce becomes stubborn. But he is not a gunman and he isn't prepared to commit murder. In "High Desert," Maria Mulrooney is held a virtual prisoner in a convent while her uncle controls the vast holdings that belonged to her father. Maria sees an offer of marriage from rancher Dan Halliday as an opportunity. Under her father's will, if she marries she has the right to assume ownership of her inheritance. Halliday sees an opportunity to get ahead. Maria and Dan are both tough and determined, but is it enough?

Todhunter Ballard was born in Cleveland, Ohio. He published his first Western novel in 1951. He received a Spur Award from Western Writers of America in 1965.

Genre: Western