The First Mountain Man

 Preacher's Hell

by 

William W. Johnstone

&

J.A. Johnstone

They say the road to hell is paved with good intentions. For Preacher, that road begins at a remote trading post in the Bitterroot Mountains. At first, it’s a friendly reunion with his old buddies Audie and Nighthawk. But then, a young Indian woman and her grandfather are attacked by a vicious gang of thieves—and all hell breaks loose. When the smoke clears, the gang’s leader, who goes by the name Mack Ozark, .has escaped, the grandfather is dead, and the woman is mortally wounded. Before she dies, she begs Preacher to look after a bundle she is carrying. Inside, wrapped in a blanket, are two blond-haired, blue-eyed babies. They’re clearly twins—and clearly not hers . . .

Who do the babies belong to? And what is a man like Preacher supposed to do with them? The only clue is a pair of gemstone necklaces around the babies’ necks. Preacher’s friend Audie recognizes the stones as star garnets from a nearby valley, where they head off to find the twins’ mother. Along the way, they realize they’re being followed by Mack Ozark.. He knows the babies’ father stole a fortune in jewels. He knows the babies’ blanket contains a map to the hidden gems. But he doesn’t know just how far a man like Preacher will go to protect those little angels—and send a devil like Ozark straight to hell . . .

The last thing Preacher and his friends, Audie and Nighthawk, are looking for is trouble. But trouble finds them anyway—twice over—in the form of twin babies. Harmless, you’d think.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Mack Ozark is determined to get his hands on these children and will kill anyone who stands in his way. He’s already murdered their father and is holding their mother captive. Preacher decides this is one damsel who needs rescuing, and soon he’s neck‑deep in danger. As if that weren’t enough, Preacher has made an enemy of an Indian brave to add yet another layer of peril.

It’s another well‑crafted adventure packed with action, keeping the pages turning right up to the explosive finale. I thoroughly enjoyed this story—fresh, unexpected, and built on an exciting premise.

This story will be published on  Feb. 24. 

Thanks to Net Galley and Kensington Publishing for the ARC of this story.