The Book of Murdock [Hardcover]

I've been reading Loren Estleman's books for years, and I always enjoy settling in with a new story about his iconic characters, Detroit PI Amos Walker or US Deputy Marshal Page Murdock. Estleman is one of those writers that effortlessly flits back and forth between tough guy detective fiction and Western fiction. He also does some wonderful purely historical driven stories based on real people and real events.

His latest Page Murdock novel is almost a self-serving pastiche of a narrow niche in Western fiction: the gun-toting Biblical preacher. This character has been seen in a number of novels and movies, and oral history of the Old West is peppered with legends about this kind of man. Of course, back in those days everyone in the West was someone else before they became who they were. That was one of the chief reasons people headed West.

In this novel, though, Page's boss Judge Harlan A. Blackthorne assigns the US deputy to travel to Texas to bring in a gang of masked robbers that have been labeled the "Blue Bandannas." Page, and the reader, don't buy the judge's reasoning that he would rather deal with the gang down in Texas than wait till they reach Montana, which would be at the other end of a long trail drive.

I'll admit, this conceit stretched credulity for me. I just wasn't a believer. Thankfully Blackthorne has reasons beneath the surface that come to light. But the reader is treated to a heck of a journey before getting to see that.

The book is divided into parts, and that slows the action a bit. I was anxious to get into the conflict between Page and the outlaws. I wanted the smell of gunsmoke and the threat of certain death.

However, Page has to first undergo an intensive training session with a defrocked priest that turns out to be one of the most interesting characters in the book. Estleman has obviously spent time around men of the cloth or done a lot of research on the subject. Several bits of what would be considered throwaway lines were great entertainment and information. I'd hoped Page would bump into the character again, but that's just not going to happen.

Events take an interesting twist down in Texas as well. He crosses paths with Colleen Bower, an old acquaintance from bedrooms and across pistols, that he's learned to respect and maybe fear.

The action in this one is slow, and when it comes at the end, it's over in almost a rush of gunplay. Everything gets sorted out satisfactorily. The thing that really held my attention throughout this novel is the smart and witty dialogue. Page can hold his own with the judge, a man of the cloth, and the hard-bitten Texas Ranger who knows he's undercover.

I wished there had been more to the church business, wished I could have seen more of Page dealing with his parishioners, but he did have his hands full with his assignment. I'm looking forward to the next entry in the series.

Page Murdock is a deputy U.S. Marshall in Montana in 1884. He has done a lot of things over the years but not once has he gone undercover as a preacher. That is about to change as Judge Harlan A. Blackthorne wants him to do just that and to do it in Texas Panhandle town of Owen. By going undercover as a man of the cloth it should be easier for Murdock to track down a gang of bandits operating in the Texas panhandle who might eventually make their way Montana if left unchecked. The reason is flimsy at best and Murdock knows there has to be more at stake than just the vague possibility that the bandits might expand their operations all the way up to Montana. Still, one does not say no to Judge Blackthorne.

After a two week crash course in religion, Murdock is sent to Texas as Brother Bernard Sebastian of the Church of Evangelical Truth. A crash course in religion and wearing a clerical collar does not necessarily make him a good fit for an undercover job as a preacher. It does not change his natural inclinations or his responses when confronted. What it does do to Murdock is to make him reconsider the world and his role in it. That may not last too long thanks to be increasingly bold actions of the bandits, a shady woman from his past, and the plain fact that his notoriety that has followed him all the way to Texas. A place and a people he hates on every level.

Murdock is a caustic character and one that frequently makes comments about others in highly entertaining fashion. He does not pull his verbal punches and so readers are frequently entertained with laugh out loud moments as Murdock tells folks in public and in private exactly what he thinks. Not to mention the occasional zings in internal character dialogue. Humor is just as much a part of things here, as is the mystery of the bandits, a failed romance, and the meaning of god and faith, among other story elements. Murdock is just one of many real and interesting characters in this 271 page western novel. The result is a very good read from multi award winning writer Loren P. Estleman.




Material supplied by the good folks of the Plano, Texas Public Library System.


Kevin R. Tipple © 2010

This was a typically great Estleman story that was marred by a pathetic scanning/OCR effort. There were so many typos that is often made it difficult to follow the exact story thread. Considering that the publisher set a price that was the same as a new, hard copy version, it's especially inexcusable. Part of the blame lies with Amazon because they apparently never review their offerings. I note that most of the other Estlemen titles that I have downloaded are equally rife with scanning/OCR typos.

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