The Arrow and the Setting Sun (Paperback)

They called him the Arrow: A man who chose to wound his own heart so that his people would survive.

"Being a cornerstone in Native American culture and religion, the environment is in itself its own character. The descriptions and knowledge of the land are beautifully captured by the author, transporting the reader to a place untouched by modern equipment and machinery." - Deidre E. Wright, MA - Heritage Management and Museum Sciences

A Top 15 Category Selection - Historical Novel Society's First Chapters Competition (2026). Recognized among elite Biographical Historical Fiction titles for historical accuracy and literary excellence. Check out these comments from the competition judges:

• "a well-written and immersive piece... a story that deserves to be told."
• "a heartfelt evocation of the loss of Ouray's world."
• "I'm not a huge fan of stories set in the American West, but this entry was impressive... I truly felt as if I was an observer in the middle of the action."

Chief Ouray of the Tabeguache Ute was a leader unlike any other. Brilliant, multilingual, and possessed of a quiet authority that commanded respect from warriors and diplomats alike, he navigated the impossible terrain between two worlds as white expansion swept across Colorado.

Told through the eyes of Chipeta, his wife and most trusted advisor, The Arrow and the Setting Sun follows Ouray's extraordinary journey from the mountains of Colorado to the halls of Washington and finally to a barren Utah reservation where his light faded but never truly died.

A powerful entry among literary historical fiction novels like Lonesome Dove and Where the Lost Wander. Essential reading for readers of Louise Erdrich, this is an unforgettable story of love, resilience, and the Native American struggle to maintain their way of life and their dignity.

"Any compassionate reader will experience along with Chipeta and Ouray the insult, anger and anguish as they discover that the ears listening to them COULD hear. They simply DID NOT CARE. With this discovery, the reader gains unfailing respect for the strength of two people who, despite their knowledge, continue to fight for their people." - Karen John - Curator, Brinks Reference Loft and Library, LaPorte, Colorado

Will Colt writes literary Western fiction where restraint meets reckoning. Across his novels, he restores interior humanity to faces often reduced to silhouette; men shaped by Civil War trauma, carving lives from hostile soil, a Ute leader negotiating impossible diplomacy during the upheaval of clashing cultures.

His work follow veins similar to those of contemporary authors Larry McMurtry, Wallace Stegner, and Cormac McCarthy, prioritizing historical integrity over mythological nostalgia and questioning what survives when everything changes rather than celebrating conquest as triumph. Themes recur organically: moral ambiguity, landscapes functioning as active witnesses, silent action carrying more weight than speech.

Raised on a cattle ranch in the Colorado Rockies, Will grew up reading Louis L'Amour and Zane Grey alongside literary giants from all around the world. He later moved to Jardín, Antioquia, Colombia where he lives with his Colombian wife. These dual geographies inform his interest in belonging and how places shape us even as we reshape them.

The MacLean Brothers series traces five brothers from post-war disintegration toward guardianship responsibility and standing firm with integrity. Standalone novels explore adjacent terrains: immigrant settlement (Where Rivers Run West), Indigenous diplomatic leadership (The Arrow and the Setting Sun). All remain philosophically connected while structurally independent.

He is currently working on the next installment of the MacLean Brothers series and developing young-readers adventures expected this holiday season.

Will Colt Westerns: Stories where integrity survives in a harsh land.