It was 1890, the time of the gunslinger. The town was Bergen, in the American Midwest. The young man, who’d fled from the home of his father to pursue the monasticism of his hero St. Francis, had completed his exodus from worldly society by taking up refuge in the forest near Bergen. There he built a stone hut, devoting his life to the practice of prayer.

Meanwhile, in town, where the Sheriff resided, and where Jewel, his wife, kept watch over everyone, the townsfolk were fully committed to mediocrity, and their drudgery had become a religion in itself. One day, when a criminal was caught stealing bullets, and, while being indicted, had stabbed the Sheriff’s stomach, the turmoil of it all drew Jewel to the forest, where she sought consolation from her friend, the monk. Finding him in prayer, and receiving encouragement, after reporting to him the incident with the Sheriff and the thief, the Spirit led the monk into town with Jewel, to shed light on more than just this one incident alone.

This new western novel—from the author of Erland, Clementine, and Jeffrey Rezerzek—is a contemplative experience, within the old west, formed solely, in love, for the meditative listener.

Editor’s note: Guns, whisky, and hangings are included.