Nemesis - by Joe Yogerst (Paperback)

About the Book

*A Special Limited Edition Signed Hardback*

A Dexter meets Deadwood mystery set in the biggest, baddest boomtown of the 1880: San Diego, California. The attraction wasn't gold or silver but cheap land, the promise of an oceanfront paradise where it never snows and rarely rains, and the too-good-to-be-true deals offered by local real estate merchants. In the wake of many bona fide settlers came the hucksters, con artists, and snake oil vendors--so many flimflam men (and women) that those who got duped called the town "Scam Diego." And in the middle of it all, two former best friends, U.S. Marshal Cradoc Bradshaw and San Diego Times reporter Nicholas Pinder, compete to catch bad guys--Pinder with his quill pen or Bradshaw with his sawed-off shotgun and Colt single action Army revolver. Their competition heats up when someone starts killing the town's movers and shakers. As the bodies pile up, the question becomes which of the former friends will track down the killer first?

Book Synopsis

Forget Deadwood, Dodge, and Tombstone, the biggest, baddest boomtown of the 1880s was San Diego, California. The attraction wasn't gold or silver but cheap land, the promise of an oceanfront paradise where it never snows and rarely rains, and the too-good-to-be-true deals offered by local real estate merchants. In the wake of bona fide settlers came the hucksters, con artists, and snake oil vendors - so many flimflam men (and women) that those duped called the town "Scam Diego." Abetting the crime and chaos was the nearby Mexican border, a convenient refuge for the rustlers, ex-Rebels, and banditos who floated back and forth across the unmarked frontier.

Caught up in this perfect storm are two men: U.S. Marshal Cradoc Bradshaw and San Diego Times reporter Nicholas Pinder. Best friends growing up, Bradshaw and Pinder are now sworn enemies - all because of a woman. Having once cooperated to catch bad guys, Bradshaw and Pinder now compete - Pinder with his quill pen or Bradshaw with his sawed-off shotgun and Colt single action Army revolver. The competition heats up when someone starts killing the town's movers and shakers. As the bodies pile up, the question becomes which of the former friends will track down the killer first?

Review Quotes

San Diego is a boomtown in 1888. As new development moves west, fortunes in land are made and lost. Suddenly, a wealthy man is killed. U.S. Marshal Cradoc Bradshaw and San Diego Times reporter Nick Pinder are drawn into the investigation of what eventually becomes a series of murders. But, like everyone else involved in the case, both men are hiding something. Bradshaw and Pinder grew up together; what made them enemies? Why is Bradshaw seeing a woman with a violent past, while Pindar neglects his marriage for work? The villain's point of view is presented in alternating chapters to create a sense of foreboding. Nemesis, as he calls himself in notes he leaves behind, is determined yet conflicted. What did his victims do to deserve their harsh and grisly deaths? The question at the heart of Nemesis--can two men put aside their differences to save the day?--appears in many westerns, but that traditional dressing belies the real heart of the novel, which is truly a psychological thriller.

About the Author

Joe Yogerst has worked as a writer, editor and photographer on four continents, and his articles on travel, business, culture and sports have appeared in the Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Examiner, International Herald Tribune (Paris), Conde Nast Traveler, CNN Travel, USA Today, BBC Travel, TIME, Newsweek and Travel & Leisure and 32 National Geographic books.

"Land of Nine Dragons" - about his journey through Vietnam - was named America's Best Travel Book in the Lowell Thomas Awards competition. "The Long Road South" about his four-month journey along the Pan American Highway between Texas and Argentina was named one of America's top two travel books by the Society of American Travel Writers. His latest National Geographic book - "50 States, 5,000 Ideas" - soared to No. 1 at Amazon Travel Books.

As a staff writer at MTM and Stephen J. Cannell Productions, he developed television movies and wrote episodes of TV shows like "Two" and the long-running "Silk Stalkings" murder-mystery series. He has an ongoing relationship with Craig Anderson Production in Hollywood and Creative Street Entertainment in Indianapolis, developing action adventures and sci-fi series and reality shows for network and cable TV.