New Releases by M Butler

Ed Butler is privileged to possess a wealth of stories about his ancestors, some of which have been passed down through generations, while others stem from his own experiences. These narratives often provoke more questions than they answer. For instance, how would one have survived in 1821, homesteading on land, if their husband disappeared while clearing land? How could a person endure a fifty-mile journey in an ox-drawn cart, traversing swampy forests with three young children, one of whom was too young for solid food? Do you know of anyone who left home at fourteen and returned only after nearly six years? Ed recalls that his father was the only person he knew who lived and traveled in a covered wagon and who trained and worked with three teams of oxen. His father milked cows for sixty-two years and had a remarkable connection with animals, long before the term "horse whisperer" became widely known. Ed's mother, with a two-year teaching certificate, taught in a one-room schoolhouse before her marriage and was adept at maintaining discipline in her classroom. Have you ever tasted dried Tennessee strawberries? How many people do you know who have owned a horse and carriage and driven it in a local parade? These stories, along with many others, are shared in this narrative. Ed provides context and explanations of terms to ensure modern readers can understand the way he was raised and how eight generations overcame the challenges they faced. He is gratified that many readers of the first edition have noted that similar stories of hardship and perseverance have been shared by the older generations in their own families. These stories, both his and those of others, form an integral part of American history. Ed hopes that readers will also take steps to preserve their family histories.

I didn't expect a perfect marriage.I didn't even believe they existed.What I didn't expect was to say, "I do" and then be completely forgotten....At least, that was how it started out. It just got more complicated from there, until it wasn't.Happiness was just around the corner, and maybe even, in time, the perfect marriage too.NOTE: This is an arranged marriage, enemies to lovers, second chance romance. The Robeson Family Novel Books are all standalone stories and may be read in any order.READER CONTENT WARNING: This is an arranged marriage situation, with all the angst that might imply, including the appearance of cheating by main characters. *There is no cheating once the characters agree to a real relationship, but that happens after they say "I do", if that is a problem for you, then this might not be the book for you.

Book 6 of 6 in the Aces High MC - Charleston Series (must be read in order)Ever Trust. It was something I didn't do anymore. There was one person I trusted beyond measure, and this time, he wasn't there to help me. I was going to have to put my faith, my life, in the hands of the people who had failed me so miserably for most of my life. I didn't have a choice because his life was the one on the line now. I needed him back at any cost. Even if that meant I'd have to rely on them. Deck We had a few good years before it all went sideways. When I realized why I was taken, I knew that even if I got out of there, I might still lose her forever. There was no way she would forgive me for this, even if everything wasn't as it seemed. Double-D I had already failed her as a father. Coming out of retirement was the only option though. I couldn't go back and make her childhood right, but I could make sure she got her happily ever after, or I'd die trying.

They were called "frail sisters," "fallen angels," "filles de Joie, " "soiled doves," "queens of the night," and "whores." They worked the seamy brothels, saloons, cribs, streets, and "hog ranches" of the American frontier. They were the prostitutes of the post-Civil War West. Daughters of Joy, Sisters of Misery details the destitute lives of these nearly anonymous women. Anne Butler reveals who they were, how they lived and worked, and why they became an essential element in the development of the West's emerging institutions. Her story bears little resemblance to the popular depictions of prostitutes in film and fiction. Far removed from the glittering lives of dancehall girls, these women lived at the boarders of society and the brink of despair. Poor and uneducated, they faced a world where scarce jobs, paltry wages, and inflated prices made prostitution a likely if bitter choice of employment. At best their daily lives were characterized by fierce economic competition and at worst by fatal violence in the hands of customers, coworkers, or themselves. They were scorned and attacked by the legal, military, church, and press establishments; nevertheless, as Butler shows, these same institutions also used prostitutes as a means for maintaining their authority and as a lure for economic development. Daughters of Joy, Sisters of Misery is based on an enormous amount of research in more than twenty repositories in Wyoming, Arizona, Texas, Colorado, New Mexico, and Kansas. Using census lists, police dockets, jail registers, military correspondence, trial testimony, inquests, court martials, newspapers, post return, and cemetery records, Butler illuminates the dark corners of a dark profession and adds much to our knowledge of both western and women's history.