Hard Country

by Jeffrey Deaver, C.J. Box, Heather Graham, Jonathan Maberry

Anthology in The Rough Country Collection

published April 2026

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The second book in The Rough Country anthology collection, Hard Country, brings new Western short stories by authors like Jeffery Deaver, C.J. Box, Jonathan Maberry, Heather Graham and others, with characters that we know and love, and new characters that are keen on upholding justice in a place full of violence, hardships, and difficult life for everyone living in the American West.

Justice is never clean. Out here, it’s personal.

From the dust-choked trails of the frontier to the shadowed backroads of the modern West, Hard Country portrays the raw, unflinching heart of Western crime, asking the same hard questions that have always defined the West: Who holds the line? Who bends? Who survives when justice comes due?

Featuring a powerhouse mix of award winners, fan favorites, and New York Times bestsellers—including C.J. Box, Jonathan Maberry, Jeffery Deaver, Heather Graham, W. Michael Gear, and M. William Phelps—Hard Country delivers a brand-new Joe Ledger story from Maberry, a sharp-turn Ty Dawson case from Baron Birtcher, and a thrilling Conor Armenta adventure from Jefferson Glass.

They’re joined by a formidable slate of Western and crime-fiction veterans—Johnny Boggs, Larry D. Sweazy, Phillip Thompson, J.B. Stevens, Paul Colt, Phil Mills, Jr., W. Michael Farmer, Mike Blakely, Rik “Yonder” Goodell, and more—each delivering fast-paced, high-stakes stories set in landscapes that feel carved from iron.

With punchy storytelling, characters who live and die by their own rules, and the same unforgiving edge that makes Western crime so unforgettable, Hard Country takes readers on a journey through the violence, sacrifice, honor, and stark beauty of the American West.

All proceeds benefit the U.S. Marshals Survivors Benefit Fund, supporting the families of those who gave everything in the line of duty.