The Beaten Territory

THE BEATEN TERRITORY finds Annie Ryan running a second-rate brothel in 1890s Denver with an eye toward expansion. By chance she encounters Lydia Chambers, a society woman suffering from a laudanum habit and a bad marriage, who owns a prized property on the infamous Market Street. Annie's fortunes at the brothel turn on her niece Pearl, a pretty young girl swept up in Denver's underworld of jealousy, booze, and vice--until murder stalks the good-time girls and puts everyone's future in doubt. A rollicking tale of blurred lines, flowing booze, played-out miners and upstairs girls, THE BEATEN TERRITORY delivers a compelling look at the intrigues of the Wild West, where women were enterprising and justice could be had . . . for a price.

Randi Samuelson-Brown is a Colorado native who lives in Denver with her husband and two evil (yet adorable) cats. She has a B.A. in history, with postgraduate research in Irish history from Trinity College, University of Dublin, Ireland. When not writing or reading she enjoys exploring old ruins, soaking up the atmosphere in old mining towns, traveling wherever the spirit moves her, and discovering intriguing stories that spark the imagination. She is a member of the Lighthouse Writers Studio in Denver, Women Writing the West, and the Historical Novel Society. Randi has also participated extensively in the UCLA Writers Program and has a few publication credits under her belt. The Beaten Territory is her first published novel