Synopsis
In the West, there are worse things to fear than bandits and outlaws.
Demons. Monsters. Witches. James Crowley’s sacred duty as a Black Badge is to hunt them down and send them packing, banish them from the mortal realm for good.
He didn’t choose this life. No. He didn’t choose life at all.
Shot dead in a gunfight many years ago, now he’s stuck in purgatory, serving the whims of the White Throne to avoid falling to hell. Not quite undead, though not alive either, the best he can hope for is to work off his penance and fade away.
This time, the White Throne has sent him to investigate a strange bank robbery in Lonely Hill. An outlaw with the ability to conjure ice has frozen and shattered open the bank vault and is now on a spree, robbing the region for all it’s worth.
In his quest to track down the ice-wielder and suss out which demon is behind granting a mortal such power, Crowley finds himself face-to-face with hellish beasts, shapeshifters, and, worse … temptation. But the truth behind the attacks is worse than he ever imagined …
The Witcher meets The Dresden Files in this weird Western series by the Audible number-one bestselling duo behind Dead Acre.
Review
Damn that was a fun wild western fantasy. It was like supernatural meets, Deadwood. A wild west roller coaster of a read full of outlaws, shootouts, demons, angels, and monsters.
Cold as Hell is the first book in the Black Badge series and is co-written by Rhett C. Bruno and Jaime Castle. This book has been on my radar ever since I read the short story “Dead Acre” and “James Crowley” is just one of those characters that sticks with you for a long time.
From the beginning of the book, I was hooked, drawn line and sinker. This story has just about everything I look for in fantasy. It’s fast-paced, action-packed, hilarious, and a protagonist that doesn’t take shit from anyone.
I love it when two authors can come together and create something special, and Rhett C. Bruno and Jaime Castle have just done that, collaborating their fantastic writing, making relatable characters, and a fantastic plot to make a story that is so hard to put down.
A few years after James Crowley, an outlaw is gunned down by his gang. He finds himself in purgatory, the reason he is not in hell because he serves the White Throne, another name for heaven. A man who can not die and a bounty hunter hunting all sorts of demons and supernatural entities.
His next mission is to find out who is responsible for a strange bank robbery in Lonely Hill. But the bank hasn’t been robbed by ordinary outlaws. An outlaw who is able to conjur ice is possessed by a demon is bringing havoc and robbing the region blind.
Spurred on by his angelic handler Char, James Crowley must hunt down the demon and put an end to the robbing spree before all hell breaks loose.
What an ending, with a fantastic twist. Check out the audible version narrated by Roger Clark. Bringing James Crowley’s voice to life. He makes it sound like a movie in your mind. I can’t wait to read the second book. I very highly recommend….😁
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