Buster Crabbe #2

Buster Crabbe and his sidekick Whiskers arrive in the desert town of Alkali to discover a troubling pattern: seventeen men have died from Gila monster bites in just six months—far more than should be possible. Dr. Nadine Parks, the town coroner, suspects foul play, and Buster agrees to stay and investigate, convinced a two-legged killer lurks behind the deaths. When Buster and Whiskers set themselves up as bait in Death Valley, one of them is ambushed and left in a pit of deadly reptiles, forcing Buster to track a mysterious attacker whose strength and cunning suggest something far more sinister than nature's accidents.

Whiskers and Sourdough set out for Dry Gulch hoping to catch the circus in town, but their journey takes a wild detour when they stumble upon some unexpected wildlife—and things only get more chaotic once they arrive and try to impress the Carson Sisters with a night at the show. Between runaway elephants, a case of mistaken identity at the sideshow, and one soaking-wet misunderstanding, these two old-timers find the circus is more trouble than entertainment.

Buster Crabbe and his sidekick Whiskers ride straight into a web of violence when they're mistaken for hired killers and forced into the service of the ruthless Mr. Black, who's systematically terrorizing homesteaders to seize their land. With Miss Turner—daughter of one of Black's victims—caught between her grief and a desperate need for allies, Buster must navigate a treacherous double life: playing along with Black's outfit while uncovering the truth before dawn breaks on a planned massacre.

In this tale from the Jersey Lily Saloon, Judge Roy Bean—the colorful Justice of the Peace of Langtry, Texas—uses his pet bear Bruno to enforce his brand of rough frontier justice, whether through punishment or practical joking. When a smooth-talking salesman named A.P. Betters makes a wager with the judge involving the bear's hide, he sets in motion a scheme for revenge that will test Roy Bean's honor and sense of humor.