James Lee Burke: Rain Gods (USA 2021)

From the Publisher:
"America's best novelist" (The Denver Post) brings back one of his most fascinating characters -- Texas sheriff Hackberry Holland, cousin to lawman Billy Bob Holland -- in this heart-pounding bestseller.

In a heat-cracked border town, the bodies of nine illegal aliens -- women and girls, killed execution-style -- are unearthed in a shallow grave. Haunted by a past he can't shake and his own private demons, Hack attempts to untangle the grisly case, which may lead to more bloodshed. Damaged young Iraq vet Pete Flores, who saw too much before fleeing the crime scene, and his girlfriend, Vikki Gaddis, are running for their lives. Sorting through the lowlifes who are hunting down Pete, and with Preacher Jack Collins, a Godfearing serial killer for hire, in the mix, Hack is caught up in a terrifying race for survival -- for Pete, Vikki, and himself.

James Lee Burke: Rain Gods. A Novel. Simon & Schuster, ISBN: 9780753827451 (July, 2021), 528 p., $18.00.

James Lee Burke: Rain Gods (UK 2010)

From the Publisher:
James Lee Burke introduces a compelling new character: a sheriff with a haunted past on the hunt for a deranged killer.
Hackberry Holland is a man haunted by a chequered and traumatic past. A former POW from the Korean War, he has left everything behind to become sheriff of a dried-out, broken-down border town in south Texas. But Hack soon finds himself dealing with more than just his own demons when nine dead prostitutes are dug up behind a run-down church. The search for justice - and revenge - pits Hack against hired guns, drug dealers who operate on both sides of the border, and a psychotic killer known as The Preacher.

As Holland frantically tries to end the cycle of killings and bring justice to the dead girls, he discovers just how dark the deepest corners of the human heart can get, and how redemption can come in the form of a woman's love...

James Lee Burke: Rain Gods. A Novel. Orion Books, ISBN: 9780753827451 (June, 2010), 400 p., £7.99.

James Lee Burke: Rain Gods (USA 2010)

From the Publisher:
"America's best novelist" (The Denver Post) brings back one of his most fascinating characters -- Texas sheriff Hackberry Holland, cousin to lawman Billy Bob Holland -- in this heart-pounding bestseller.

In a heat-cracked border town, the bodies of nine illegal aliens -- women and girls, killed execution-style -- are unearthed in a shallow grave. Haunted by a past he can't shake and his own private demons, Hack attempts to untangle the grisly case, which may lead to more bloodshed. Damaged young Iraq vet Pete Flores, who saw too much before fleeing the crime scene, and his girlfriend, Vikki Gaddis, are running for their lives. Sorting through the lowlifes who are hunting down Pete, and with Preacher Jack Collins, a Godfearing serial killer for hire, in the mix, Hack is caught up in a terrifying race for survival -- for Pete, Vikki, and himself.

James Lee Burke: Rain Gods. A Novel. Pocket Star Books, ISBN: 9781439128305 (May, 2010), 668 p., $9.99.

James Lee Burke: Rain Gods (UK 2009)

From the Publisher:
Texas Sheriff Hackberry Holland is a former ACLU attorney and Korean War prisoner, and the cousin of much-loved Burke series character Billy Bob Holland. Running from a traumatic and chequered past to become sheriff of a dried-out, broken-down border town in south Texas, Hackberry soon find himself dealing with more than just his own demons after nine dead prostitutes are dug up in the desert. The search for justice - and revenge - pits Hack against hired guns, unscrupulous skin bar owners, drug dealers who operate on both sides of the border, and a psychotic killer known as The Preacher. Burke deftly combines intricate, engaging plotlines and original, compelling characters with his powerfully poetic prose to create a blistering crime novel that also stands with the best of American contemporary fiction.

James Lee Burke: Rain Gods. A Novel. Orion Books, ISBN: 9781409113409 (November, 2009), 434 p., £18.99.

James Lee Burke: Rain Gods (USA 2009)

From the Publisher:
When Hackberry Holland became sheriff of a tiny Texas town near the Mexican border, he'd hoped to leave certain things behind: his checkered reputation, his haunted dreams, and his obsessive memories of the good life with his late wife, Rie. But the discovery of the bodies of nine illegal aliens, machine-gunned to death and buried in a shallow grave behind a church, soon makes it clear that he won't escape so easily.

As Hack and Deputy Sheriff Pam Tibbs attempt to untangle the threads of this complex and grisly case, a damaged young Iraq veteran, Pete Flores, and his girlfriend, Vikki Gaddis, are running for their lives, hoping to outwit the bloodthirsty criminals who want to kill Pete for his involvement in the murders. The only trouble is, Pete doesn't know who he's running from: drunk and terrified, he fled the scene of the crime when the shooting began. And there's a long list of people who want Pete and Vikki dead: crime boss Hugo Cistranos, who hired Pete for the operation; Nick Dolan, a strip club owner and small-time gangster with revenge on his mind; and a mysterious God-fearing serial-killer-for-hire known as Preacher Jack Collins, with enigmatic motives of his own.

With the FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and a host of cold-blooded killers on Pete and Vikki's trail, it's up to Sheriff Holland to find them first and figure out who's behind the mass murder before anyone else ends up dead. In this thrilling and intricate work, James Lee Burke has once again proven himself a master storyteller and a perceptive chronicler of the darkest corners of the human heart.

James Lee Burke: Rain Gods. A Novel. Simon & Schuster, ISBN: 9781439128244 (July, 2009), 434 p., $25.99.