St. Joseph author publishes new historical fiction novel focused on city history and real events

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV) -- A St. Joseph native, author and journalist has just published a new historical fiction book about St. Joseph and its surrounding history, titled "Surviving the Twisted Trail: Redemption in the Heartland."

For longtime journalist and author Kenneth Kieser, the road to his latest book began not in a library or archives, but in the back seat of his grandfather’s car, driving through the streets of St. Joseph.

“That was my first taste of history,” Kieser said. “They would tell me about this place and that place, the Jesse James house, the train, this and that. From then on, it just became something I love to study.”

Now at 73, Kieser has channeled a lifetime of local knowledge into his newest novel, “Surviving the Twisted Trail: Redemption in the Heartland,” an historically accurate work of fiction set in St. Joseph in 1890.

The book was published on April 15, 2026, and is already finding readers nationwide and overseas.

The novel follows a Texas Ranger who goes undercover in St. Joseph after his uncle, a part-owner of the local stockyards, contacts him with a mission to dismantle a violent cattle rustling scheme where beef is disappearing.

Kieser notes that the era immediately following the Civil War left St. Joseph divided, roughly half Union and half Confederate.

In his story, the rustlers are portrayed as sons of Confederates stealing “Yankee beef.”

“I introduce a lot of other characters, too,” Kieser says. “St. Joe has always been a big wrestling town, so I have a wrestler in there. And halfway through the book, I have a maniac. But I won’t go into more details. You’ll have to read it.”

Writing historically accurate fiction comes with pressure, Kieser admits, especially in the age of the internet.

“If I mention that a soldier is on a McClellan saddle, someone is going to look that up and say, ‘Hey, those weren’t invented yet when this was supposed to take place.’ So you’ve got to be careful with every single detail. You’ve got to check it and double check it.”

To ensure accuracy, Kieser worked closely with local historians and the St. Joseph Museum, reading journals, travelling, and getting insight from experts.

“The trick is getting everything as historically correct as possible, and then fitting my characters and my fictional places in.”

Kieser is especially passionate about St. Joseph’s architecture, which he says rivals any city in America.

“If you take the time to look at it, some of the buildings are kind of crumbling or look kind of dirty. But if you stop and look at the sides of the buildings, the ledges, the statues and things, it’s incredible work. At one time this was quite an amazing town, and in my opinion, it still is.”

He points to the mansions on Hall Street as an example.

“I’ve been inside one of them. The doors are ten or twelve feet tall. Around the country, you don’t see as much history as you do here.”

Kieser is no stranger to the writing life, having written eight books over a fifty-year journalism career, including Western novels based on his family and “Missouri’s Great Flood of 1993: Revisiting an Epic Natural Disaster.”

That book is tied to a photo exhibit at the Wyeth-Tootle Museum, featuring many of Kieser’s own photographs.

“They were selling the book in the gift shop,” he notes. But “Surviving the Twisted Trail” is different.

“I always wanted to do an historically correct fictional story about St. Joe. I’m 73 years old, and I figured if I’m going to do it, I better do it now.”

The book took two years to complete, working alongside historians to get the details right.

For aspiring writers, Kieser suggests a thoughtful approach.

“If you want to be a writer, write. Sit down and don’t think the story out. Just start putting the story in and let it take you where it wants to go. If you think of the ending before you start the beginning, it’s not going to be a very long book.”

He also suggests watching real people.

“Find somebody you love and put that into the characters you love. Find somebody you just can’t stand, and put that into the characters you hate. If you don’t give your character everything, they become a cardboard cutout. This is the one time on earth a human can play God.” He added. “To be a fictional writer, you have to be the greatest liar in the world. I try not to be a big liar, but I think I’m pretty good at it.”

Keiser hopes readers take away a love of history from his writings.

“A lot of my heart is in St. Joe. I don’t live here anymore, I live down toward Kansas City, but a lot of my heart is here. I want people to read this and not think a word about me. Think about the history. Think about my characters. That’s what I want.”

Kieser will be signing copies of “Surviving the Twisted Trail: Redemption in the Heartland” on June 18th from 6 to 8 p.m. at Riverside Red X in Riverside, Missouri.

He is also hoping to schedule a book signing in St. Joseph soon.

The book is available through Amazon, Kindle, and Barnes & Noble.