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2023 NYC Big Book Awards Winner in Western Fiction
2023 IPPY Awards Silver Medalist in West-Mountain – Best Regional Fiction
2023 Next Generation Indie Book Awards Finalist in Historical Fiction (Pre 1900s)
2023 Independent Press Awards Winner in Western Fiction
2023 New Mexico/Arizona Book Awards: Historical Fiction
“One of the top standalone Westerns in 2022.”
—True West magazine
“Gritty and fierce…Hardland is a powerful tale.”
—Chris Enss, Cowgirl Magazine Book Editor and New York Times award-winning author
“Highly recommended and thoroughly absorbing.”
—Midwest Book Review
“Ashley E. Sweeney minces few words as she unravels Ruby Fortune’s fate on the early Arizona frontier. Wild west performer, drug addict, ardent lover, mother, and murderer, Ruby’s story is gritty and unabashedly raw. She quickly learns she is sometimes no match for the trials that come her way, but she survives as only she knows how—with her strength, her wit, and her gun. Spellbinding from beginning to end.”
—Jan Cleere, Arizona-New Mexico Book Award winner of Military Wives of Arizona
“Ruby’s is a thrilling ride across the hard land of Arizona in the early 1900s as one woman takes on and tames the West. Sweeney’s third novel is a courageous stunner.”
—Gretchen Cherington, author of Poetic License
“Smart, savage, and bold as brass, Ruby Fortune’s strength and sense of survival explode from the pages of this portrait painted by master storyteller, Ashley E. Sweeney, using the harsh, historical Arizona Territory as her palette. Through captivating and unsettling events, Ruby’s independent spirit, ingenuity, and sheer guts held me hostage from the first vivid page to the last.”
—Laurie Buchanan, award-winning author of the Sean McPherson novels
“Ruby is a difficult woman, in the best way possible. She shoots, she kills, she enjoys lustful sex. She survives. She protects her children and the people she loves. Literature is filled with men like this. But there are very few Rubies. Reading her story, I reveled in her life-force. She is a newly described American archetype.”
—Shelley Blanton-Stroud, award-winning author of Copy Boy
“Ruby Fortune doesn’t harden her heart or break apart at the cruel hands of domestic abuse, but gains compassion and strength in her ultimate journey to wholeness by fighting for dignity and self-worth, loving fiercely those close and deserving, and by welcoming all to her table and more. A bright and resilient gem of a woman in an unforgiving land.”
—Debra Thomas, award-winning author of Luz
“Gritty, honest, and real. Sure to be on everyone’s TBR list.“
—Nancy E. Turner, award-winning author of Light Changes Everything
“Ruby Fortune defines grit and grace—she is the heroine we need in these times. Riveting and beautifully told.“
—Susan Tweit, award-winning author of Bless the Birds
“Ruby’s is a thrilling ride across the hard land of Arizona in the early 1900s as one woman takes on and tames the West. Sweeney’s third novel is a courageous stunner.”
—Gretchen Cherington, author of Poetic License
“Open the pages of Ashley Sweeney’s wonderful new book, Hardland, and you’ll find yourself in an 1899 Arizona Territory town so authentic you can smell the dust and feel the hot wind that brings it. As Sweeney’s charismatic and resilient character, Ruby Fortune, says, you ‘have to grow scales to survive here.’ Ruby is as vivid and unforgettable as characters come, and you’ll find yourself turning page after page as her life unfolds—because in Sweeney’s hands, Ruby’s life becomes as real as your own.”
—Susan Lang, WILLA Literary Award-winning author of Small Rocks Rising
“A powerful and gripping tale of survival and triumph over abuse, misogyny, and economic challenges. It rings as true in the 21st century as it did in the time frame in which it is set. A must-read!”
—Jim Jones, award-winning author of The Lights of Cimarrón
“It’s 1899 in Arizona Territory and life for Ruby Fortune, Girl Wonder on the Wild West circuit is like riding an eight-minute bull in a one-woman rodeo. One minute she’s hanging on and riding high; the next, life punches her in the gut and throws her to the ground, leaving her bloodied with more questions than answers. Knowing the gifted writing Ashley E. Sweeney has offered in her past works, this gripping and fast-paced novel is one of her best.”
—Deborah Swenson Book Reviews
“A well-written, bold, steely novel. Everyone needs to know a woman like Ruby Fortune.”
—Books and Pens on Green Gables
“In Hardland, Ashley Sweeney makes Arizona a character.”
—Booklist
“From the first sentence, Ruby Fortune leaps from the page, fully realized and vital, raw and unpolished, lusty and strong.”
—The Literate Quilter
“A vividly rendered story of survival in the Arizona Territory.”
—Kirkus Reviews
“. . . a Western that goes beyond most in depicting a strong female character whose changing perspectives and experiences make her a formidable survivor in an alien land. Libraries looking for Westerns that are high-octane in their action and female presence will welcome the opportunity to add both facets to their collections via the highly recommended, thoroughly absorbing Hardland.”
—D. Donovan, Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review
“Sweeney’s vivid storytelling immerses readers from the first page to the last. Brava.”
—Janis R. Daly, author of The Unlocked Path
“Sweeney’s stunning portrayal of this tough-minded woman is both compelling and memorable. The fast-paced and intense narrative reaches far beyond the classic Western genre for a wide range of readers who value survival, honesty, and love.”
—Historical Novels Review
“Hardland topples the Western genre, first by being from a woman’s point of view and by not romanticizing the American Old West. Written in present tense, the novel draws the reader into a most intimate look at a staunch heroine.”
—Midwest Book Review
“Sweeney demonstates a deft hand for rendering a compelling character (who) never surrenders to victimhood. Ruby Fortune has grit and is refreshing in her authenticity. Authentic is the key word here: in the fictitious town of Jericho, just north of Tucson, the desert heat shimmers, the air is redolent of creosote, and history is alive. This is a book to get lost in.”
—Arizona Daily Star
