John Evan Harris

Bank robbers ... classroom bullies ... highwaymen ... a rampaging bull. The challenges young Henry Appleton faces, as he struggles to stand up for what he believes in, make this a classic 'cowboy' yarn. And it takes place not in the American West but in the rough-and-tumble world of Aotearoa New Zealand in the 1860s.Although Henry dreams of having his own rifle and becoming a gunslinger like Wild Bill Hickok, he is in most ways just an ordinary kid who's not looking for trouble. Trouble finds him.When he helps to capture bank robber Dead Eye Dick, the town is quick to call him a 'boy hero'. But his biggest challenge is yet to come - when he finds himself face-to-face with the murderous Richard Burgess gang. Will Henry have the courage to 'do the right thing'?Henry Appleton, Boy Hero is written by John Evan Harris in the voice of the self-acclaimed American dime novelist Johnny Slick - who himself was saved by Henry's quick thinking and bravery.The book is a prequel to Henry's encounters with the Burgess gang, told in The Physician's Gun.

Based on the notorious Maungatapu Murders of 1866, this action-packed historical novel is a gripping tale of murder and greed.Fifteen-year-old Henry Appleton lives on an isolated farm in Nelson, New Zealand. He devours dime novels about American cowboys and dreams of having his own rifle and becoming a gunslinger like Wild Bill Hickok. But his daydreaming becomes a terrifying reality when two strangers ride into town: the physician Zephaniah Smith, who is hunting down his wife's killer ... and the ruthless highwayman Richard Burgess who plans to rob a bank with his gang. Over the next three days, Henry is threatened, kidnapped, shot and left for dead in a riverbed. When the gang murders a group of travellers from the goldfields, the injured Henry is determined to help bring them to justice.