More Steam! From E.E. Burke

Get Lost in a Race for Riches

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Just as the Civil War was cooling off, a different kind of conflict heated up—the battles between powerful railroads. 

Steam! Romance and Rails is a Western historical series set during the era when America expanded its boundaries as fast as men could lay track—a time when passions and ambition were destined to collide.

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Yesterday, I introduced Her Bodyguard, the second book in the series. Today, we’ll focus on the first book, Passion’s Prize. These two novels take the perspectives of opposing railroads locked in a fiercely contested construction race.

Her Bodyguard follows the troubled Border Tier Railroad and the settlers’ riots sparked by greed and ambition. One woman, whose life is endangered when she stakes everything on the railroad, finds out the most dangerous man may be the one she hires for protection.

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 Passion’s Prize focuses on the story of the Katy Railroad and three very different women caught up in the cutthroat competition: a spy, a former Madam and a railroad heiress. 

Within Passion's Prize are three novellas penned by me, Jennifer Jakes and Jacqui Nelson (all Golden Heart finalists in 2010).  

We conceived our novellas within the context of the same historical event with an overarching plot line running throughout. Our characters play important roles in each others' stories. While we released our novellas separately, in my opinion the reading experience is better if you take it as a whole. 

Between now until Sunday, I’ll be blogging about a variety of topics related to these books and the series, and giving away lots of freebies. Make sure you sign up below for the drawing.

The Katy Railroad Then: a raucous railway 

Passion's Prize hones in on the Katy’s early days, after the railroad was first organized and was rushing to lay track through Kansas on its way to Texas.  Here's picture of the line that we wrote about. The race took place a point south of Salina, Kansas to the border of Oklahoma (then Indian Territory). 

Soon as the Katy went into operation, the line earned a wild reputation.

As track was laid, towns would spring up. Brothels and keno joints would appear before the first legitimate settlers staked out their land. 

In Muskogee, one man was shot and buried before the first train passed through, and three others were killed as the first cars screeched to a halt.

A rough element followed the Katy, men who became known as “terminuses” because they hung out at the existing end of the line, plundering, robbing, shooting things up and causing general mayhem. 

Bandits so frequently held up the trains the Katy had to arm railroad workers. 

One of the men charged with keeping order in Denison, Texas, was Jesse Lee “Red” Hall (Guess the color of his hair!)

Hall was known for always getting his man--or men as it were. One time, he reputedly walked into a saloon unarmed and arrested seven outlaws. Another story tells of how he cross the county in a buggy, found the wanted man he was looking for, and then handcuffed them together and rode back to Texas, where the man was tried and hung.

Periodically, throughout the building phase and later, during the early “wild days,” the government sent in troops to keep order and drive out the riffraff. 

In time, things settled down and the Katy became a very successful railroad. 

The Katy Railroad Now: a biking trail 

After the Katy stopped operating in the late 1980s, portions of its rail bed were purchased and turned into a hiking and biking trail.

 My favorite stretch of The Katy Trail is near the little town of Rocheport, MO. This part of the Katy Trail runs right alongside the Missouri River and is very scenic.

The historic town of Rocheport, once a steamboat stop, is just off I-70 near Columbia, Missouri. 

There are several lovely Bed & Breakfast Inns, including my favorite, The Schoolhouse. (Yes, it’s an old schoolhouse).

Speaking of Bed & Breakfast Inns, my newly released novel, Her Bodyguard, features the Lyons Twin Mansions in historic Fort Scott, Kansas. 

This lovely Victorian mansion--actually twin mansions--now functions as a Bed & Breakfast Inn. I used one of the buildings (the largest one you can see) as a model for my heroine's home. And I got the idea of writing a story based on Fort Scott after staying here several times. 

The innkeepers are wonderful, the town has many historic sites (including an authentic frontier fort that is a National Historic Site and a National Cemetery). Fort Scott is also located along the old Katy line and was an important stop for the railway for many years.

To celebrate the release of Her Bodyguard, I’m holding a drawing for a two-day stay at this Victorian mansion. You can enter that drawing at my website. 

Today, you can sign up for your chance to win one of the books in the Steam! series. Use the raffle tool below. You'll notice you can improve your chances by tweeting, liking my page or following me.

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What's your favorite biking or hiking trail? Or your favorite B&B? Leave a comment and enter the drawing for a free book!