The newest installment in the First Mountain Man series, titled Preacher's Hell, arrives with a mix of excitement and disappointment. This installment marks a significant departure, being the first in the series not to grace the mass-market paperback format, a casualty of publishing trends that seem designed to cater to shifting reader preferences and, frankly, confound loyal audiences. In an odd twist, the new paperback dimensions—5.47 x 8.21 inches—are now the industry standard, forcing Pinnacle to reassess its entire line of Johnstone Westerns. Gone are the days of two or three releases per month; this fully embraces a slower pace, with new titles emerging every other month starting in March 2026. The price hike to $15.99 for each paperback also stings, though a glimmer of hope lies in preordering discounts, as I discovered on Amazon [*]. Yet the landscape for Westerns feels as barren as the dry plains they depict. My local Walmart, once a treasure trove for Johnstone fans, now offers nothing but the latest watered-down YA fantasies, the kind that languish on shelves, untouched and unloved. Despite an employee's dismissal of Westerns as outdated, I can’t help but recall that the new titles are always sold out quickly in my neck of the woods—the genre is far from dead.
Preacher's Hell [*] begins at a desolate trading post nestled in the Bitterroot Mountains. At first, it offers the warmth of friendship with familiar faces, Audie and Nighthawk. But tranquility is short-lived. A brutal gang of thieves descends upon a young Indian woman and her grandfather, igniting a chain reaction of violence that shatters the moment. In the aftermath, with chaos swirling, the gang's leader, a sinister figure named Mack Ozark, slips through their fingers, leaving behind grief and a haunting charge. Before the woman dies, she entrusts Preacher with a mysterious bundle, revealing two blond-haired, blue-eyed infants—twins, undeniably precious, yet not her own.
Who do the twins belong to? What duty falls to a man like Preacher when thrust into such a delicate predicament? The only clue rests in the pair of gemstone necklaces adorning the babies, identified by Audie as star garnets from a nearby valley. Thus begins their perilous journey to unravel the truth about the twins’ mother. All the while, they remain acutely aware of Ozark’s relentless pursuit, driven by greed and bloodlust. He believes the father has absconded with a fortune in jewels, a treasure concealed within the very blanket that shields the babies. What he fails to comprehend is the ferocity with which a man like Preacher will protect these innocent souls, turning the tables on Ozark and sending him straight to hell.
In Preacher's Hell, I didn't expect highbrow narrative brilliance, but rather an adrenaline-fueled ride characteristic of Pulp Westerns. What I received was precisely that—a robust, action-packed adventure that left me gripping the pages. This tale subtly nods to the 1948 John Wayne classic 3 Godfathers, a retelling of the biblical Three Wise Men. In this reimagining, Preacher, Audie, and Nighthawk adopt the roles of the wise men, but instead of a single child, they come across twins—aptly dubbed Apollo and Artemis, a nod to the Greek mythology that would certainly have permeated the consciousness of frontier life.
The camaraderie between Preacher and his pals glimmers with a sense of purpose as they endeavor to safeguard the twins and navigate the treacherous path to their parents, if they are even still alive. A crazed villain and his cadre of murderous henchmen loom large, breathing life into a narrative replete with gunfights, bloodshed, and palpable tension.
The pacing is relentless, with sharp, vivid descriptions that kept me on the edge of my seat. The twins’ peril adds an emotional weight to the otherwise typical shoot-'em-up plot. Dialogue crackles with a campy charm, reflecting the era’s grit. The action sequences, numerous and visceral, brim with suspense and a ferocity that feels true to the genre.
Overall, Preacher's Hell [*] delivers an entertaining escapade. It’s not without its flaws, but for fans of Preacher, it’s undeniably a page-turner that captures the essence of a classic Western tale. ╌★★★★✰
⁓B.J. Burgess
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“The plot thickens… especially when you comment.” 〜B.J. Burgess