DigiCat Publishing presents to you this special edition of "The Smiling Desperado" by Frederick Schiller Faust. DigiCat Publishing considers every written word to be a legacy of humankind. Every DigiCat book has been carefully reproduced for republishing in a new modern format. The books are available in print, as well as ebooks. DigiCat hopes you will treat this work with the acknowledgment and passion it deserves as a classic of world literature.

Max Brand (pseudonym of Frederick Faust) was one of the foremost western and pulp authors of his generation. The Smiling Desperado (1924) combines all of the exciting action elements for which he is best known.

An exciting saga of danger, adventure, and romance on the Western frontier

Konrad Ventana throws open the curtain to a perennial drama with a depth of language that can only be described as symphonic. Blazing with eye-opening drama, keen psychological insights, and layers of linguistic pyrotechnics, the reader is at once awed and entertained. This riveting drama follows the trail of a western outlaw biochemist of the subterranean territories through the neo-shamanistic dystopia, neo-contemplative hoo-ha, and blatant neoteny of the 1970's New Age movements on the hunt for more profound and sublime naturalistic roots. The reader will be stunned by the enduring power of 'artistic ideals' vis-à-vis wan and vapid 'philosophical idealisms' in molding the indomitable traditions of society. With this first Post-Lux Swan Song, Konrad Ventana manipulates language in a timeless theme as elegant as a classical ballet, as poignant as our heartfelt emotions, and as enduring as the resonance of a new and illuminating apperception. This most remarkable book is truly a picture window to behold.

Shortly after the end of war with Mexico, Kathleen Adams disgraces her family when she travels west to the New Mexico territory to teach school. In the midst of her travels, the notorious desperado Black Bart holds up her stage and unexpectedly steals something very personal from hera kiss. With that kiss, their bond is forever sealed. As they become inseparable and their lives inextricably intertwined, they realize they are meant to be together. They attend a Mexican fiesta in the nearby settlement of San Pedro and visit an infamous gambling hole called El Diablo. Meanwhile, she has aroused the suspicion of Hiram Brown, the town banker, who was also on the stage when it was intercepted by Black Bart. Kathleen has also befriended Brigitte, the Swedish lady who runs the boarding house where she gets her meals and in whom she feels she can confide. Suspecting that the banker has a plan in place to take Bart down, Kathleen tries to warn the desperado before it happens. Now that she has left behind a quiet existence for the excitement of the Wild West and found the love of her life, will she get to him in timeor lose him forever?