The Preacher by Ted Thackrey Jr

It all begins with a poker game, but that's not where it ends.  The Preacher has come to look into the death of a local man.  They're talking about suicide or accident, but Preacher thinks it might be murder...

Brash Books sent me a copy of this book to read for review (thank you).  It has been published, so you can grab a copy now on Amazon.

This story has the feel of the old pulp novels.  The men are tough, hard to kill, and they're sure they're always right.  The women are all women, but some are tougher than others.  If you want action, you've got it in this story.

The Preacher is an interesting character.  He started out studying to be a priest.  He survived Vietnam but came back and left the order.  It can be hard to believe in God in a land of war.  He made several friends while recovering from his wounds and he'll need them all before this story is over.

He's in a small town in New Mexico that looks like time forgot it.  There are two important men running the town and they have plans that no one else knows about.  Unfortunately, those plans and the Preacher don't mix. With someone trying to acquire the land after the man's death, he thinks he needs to find out who that someone is. 

Add in a new girlfriend, a good sheriff and a crazy deputy and some local cowboys who intend to have some fun with the new guy in town and things start heating up right at the start.  It gets worse when more people start dying.  The Preacher has to watch all his cards or he might be the next one going down...