The Devil’s Playground
By 1860, America’s east has been settled and California’s Gold Rush is old news. New finds are petering out, so eager prospectors swarm the Rocky Mountains in search of places where a man can strike it rich. In 1857, brothers James and Granville Stuart leave their Iowa home and trek westward. They hope for the same adventure their father had in the California goldfields. Instead, they hear of promising finds in southwest Montana’s creeks. The Stuart brothers will need grit to survive, and luck to thrive.
Nearby is Terra Incognita – unknown lands – in the high mountains of Wyoming, where trappers tell wild tales of steaming geysers and mountains made of glass. However, when the famed explorer Jim Bridger guides an army expedition to investigate these freaks of nature and map the unknown lands, they are defeated by deep snows. The Devil’s Playground will not reveal its secrets for another decade.
With claim jumpers, Indians defending their territory, and treacherous sheriffs, the goldfields of Montana are just as hazardous as the boiling geysers of Yellowstone. Robert Bartsch explores this beautiful, often deadly region in The Devil’s Playground. Mr. Bartsch is clearly familiar with the area and thoroughly researched its complex history for his debut novel. It’s tough to keep such a broad-ranging story and large cast of characters focused, but Mr. Bartsch does a fine job, and writes gripping tales of survival. If you enjoy tales of the Old West, give The Devil’s Playground a try.
