Shot All to Hell: Jesse James, the Northfield Raid, and the Wild West's Greatest Escape

Shot All to Hell by Mark Lee Gardner recounts the thrilling life of Jesse James, Frank James, the Younger brothers, and the most famous bank robbery of all time.

Follow the Wild West’s most celebrated gang of outlaws as they step inside Northfield’s First National Bank and back out on the streets to square off with heroic citizens who risked their lives to defend justice in Minnesota.

With compelling details that chronicle the two-week chase that followed—the near misses, the fateful mistakes, and the bloody final shootout on the Watonwan River, Shot All to Hell is a galloping true tale of frontier justice from the author of To Hell on a Fast Horse: The Untold Story of Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett, Mark Lee Gardner.

Eight men at the top of their game. One town that refused to back down.

• The Northfield Raid: A minute-by-minute account of the most audacious bank robbery in American history and the heroic citizens who fought back against impossible odds.
• The James-Younger Gang: A deep dive into the lives of Jesse James, Frank James, and the Younger brothers, exploring how their time as Civil War bushwhackers forged them into the nation’s most feared outlaws.
• Eyewitness History: Woven from primary sources and firsthand accounts, this narrative separates fact from fiction and puts you on the streets of Northfield as the bullets fly.
• A Desperate Escape: Follow the grueling two-week chase across the Minnesota wilderness, from the near misses and fateful mistakes to the bloody final shootout on the Watonwan River.

It was the most famous bank robbery of all time, involving the legendary James-Younger gang's final, shocking holdup—the infamous Northfield Raid—and the thrilling two-week chase that followed. Mark Lee Gardner, author of the critically acclaimed To Hell on a Fast Horse, takes us inside Northfield's First National Bank and outside to the streets as Jesse James and his band of outlaws square off against the heroic citizens who risked their lives to defeat America's most daring criminals. With vivid detail and novelistic verve, Gardner follows the James brothers as they elude both the authorities and the furious citizen posses hell-bent on capturing them—one of the largest manhunts in the history of the United States. He reveals the serendipitous endings of the Younger brothers, Cole, Jim, and Bob, and explores the James brothers' fates after the dust settled, solving mysteries about the raid that have been hotly debated for more than 130 years.

A galloping true tale of frontier justice featuring audacious outlaws and intrepid heroes, Shot All to Hell is a riveting slice of Wild West history that continues to fascinate today.

“A freewheeling, yet meticulously researched, dual biography....Gardner’s passion for his subject shines through on every page.” - History Book Club

“A superbly written story, utterly enthralling and unforgettable. The first edition of this book is well worth collecting.” - Santa Fe New Mexican

“Absorbing.” - Sacramento Bee

“As gripping as any thriller.” - Library Journal

“Concise and fast-moving ...thrilling....[Gardner] uses meticulous research to give Garrett his due as more than just ‘the man who shot Billy the Kid.’ This dual biography of the Kid and Garrett goes beyond the books, songs, films and legends that have nurtured the generally accepted lore that Billy the Kid is a folk hero and Garrett a villain.” - Rocky Mount Telegram

“Digging beneath the myths and melodrama, [Gardner] begins in Las Vegas during Christmas week, 1880, when the capture and confinement of Billy the Kid made national headlines... Gardner’s extensive research and authoritative approach ground this compelling historical recreation.” - Publishers Weekly

“Rollicking. ... Equal parts violent melodrama and meticulous procedural... with enough bloody action to engage readers enthralled by tales of good versus evil.” - New York Times Book Review

“Rewarding. ... Gardner’s re-creation of the Northfield Raid... orchestrates the often-unwieldy particulars of the event with considerable virtuosity. ... It would be hard to imagine a more thorough account.” - Washington Post

“Thrilling.” - Kansas City Star

“To Hell on a Fast Horse...captures new dimensions of Old West legends Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid....a lively, fact-packed, shoot-’em-up tale.” - Colorado Springs Independent

“An elegant narrative that’s as entertaining as it is historically accurate… A must-read.” - Publishers Weekly

“Superb. ... Mr. Gardner earns an A+ for his research and an A++ for his writing. - New York Journal of Books

“Action packed…A gripping read and probably tells all there is to tell about a legendary group of psychopaths.” - Kirkus

“[This] bullet-by-bullet account... sheds considerable light on a neglected aspect of the gang’s life of crime... well done.” - Booklist

“Engaging....the author captures Garrett’s tenacity, which finally brought Billy’s career to an end.” - Washington Post

“Evocative...Gardner renders a time, place and a people with sincerity and accuracy.” - Santa Fe Reporter

“Gardner uses original eyewitness accounts and newspaper reports at the time, both of which add a you-are-there quality. He also delves into the century-long mystery surrounding Garrett’s murder years later, and arrives at a surprising conclusion.” - New York Post

“Gardner writes in a detailed, dramatic journalistic style....this isn’t ‘just another book’ on the subject.” - Albuquerque Journal

“It’s a mystery why Billy the Kid is such a beloved Western figure. He was a punk, an outlaw murdering in cold blood. But we love him, and we are suspicious of the sheriff who brought him to justice.” - Denver Post

“The double-helix relationship between Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett is one of the abiding fascinations of the West. No one has come closer than Mark Lee Gardner to capturing their twin destinies and their inevitable final collision....you can almost smell the gunsmoke and the sweat of the saddles. ” - Hampton Sides, author of the New York Times bestsellers Blood and Thunder and Ghost Soldiers