Lett Halsey, a middle-aged mine worker, had a brother who up and died in Shakespeare, New Mexico. Letts' brother left him the Roxy Jay, a hotel/bar/house of ill repute. Conman/shifty entrepreneur Sam Ransom is running from authorities and upset investors, and ends up picking up a "dead" mine in Shakespeare. It is the depression and ruin is everywhere. Sam Ransom sets up the deal, hires Lett as his foreman, and begins to dupe investors. Meanwhile, Lett falls for the only working "girl" in Shakespeare, Delight Jones, who is the only outlet for his boss Sam. To everyone's surprise, the dead mine Lett and his hired crew are "improving", shows a rich vein of ore. On the 4 ^th of July, the biggest celebration the area has ever seen is thrown for all of the jobless, hungry people that have gathered to work for the opening of the great "new" Last Chance mine.  

This is a great book. This reviewer actually chuckled out loud in places, (which takes some doing). It has everything: Love, death, pathos, successes, and failures. It even has a bartender that cannot cook, but is not paid. The only thing this reviewer did not find was mystery. There is conflict, swindles, heartfelt moments of romance, and heart-tugging scenes of rescue, both the mine accident type and the orphaned child saving. The characters are real, warm, pathetic, heroic, heartless, and wonderful. The heroes win (sort of) in the end. This book makes one want to look for others from the same author.  Ken Hodges is a good author, giving reality to his words, and painting a great picture in the minds of readers. This reviewer looks forward to new efforts from Ken Hodges, and highly recommends this work.

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