SIX NOTCH ROAD the first book in The Joshua Trail Trilogy, is an epic western in the tradition of The Outlaw Josie Wales and The Searchers. It is the story of a peaceable Welsh Coal Miner of immense size, but easy disposition who pursues Six Brothers who murdered his wife from the Coal Mines of Pennsylvania to the Gold mines of California. Over the course of this pursuit, he learns how to be a deadly gunfighter, but a new love clouds his reason just when he needs the killer instinct the most.“... Eli checked The Colt Peacemaker he kept in a cross-over holster. He hefted it to assure himself it was ready if need be. Once an awkward feeling to hold, it was now a source of much comfort to him. Now, it belonged in his hands and he had total confidence in his ability to use it. Where a pick axe handle had once felt comfortable in his hand, but was a source of drudgery and pain - the feel of a gun handle was now a source of power and joy. Then, his thumb felt the handle of his Peacemaker absent the one notch he wanted most of all ...” Lew Osteen is an award-winning writer known for his painstaking research in the writing of novels based on historical events. In researching The Joshua Trail Trilogy, he spent years in the California gold country, joined historical preservation groups and reviewed countless documents relating to the gold rush era. As a result, The Joshua Trail Trilogy is not only a riveting action narrative, but a story that will take the reader on a journey of discovery through one of the most turbulent and entertaining times in American history.