[sufue]

Holy Moly is the 6th in the Blanco County series by Ben Rehder. It's on US Kindle Countdown for about 4 1/4 more days, at $0.99 before going up to $4.99.

link: http://www.amazon.com/Holy-Moly-Blan...dp/B00CENWPE0/

Spoiler:

"This guy is the funniest, freshest voice in Texas mystery writing today. His work stands out like a DayGlo parka in deer season."
—Rick Riordan, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Lightning Thief

Holy Moly: When televangelist Peter Boothe decides to build a megachurch on the banks of the Pedernales River, he thinks his biggest problem will be a few unhappy neighbors. However, when backhoe operator Hollis Farley unearths a rare fossil on the construction site---a discovery that could lead to plenty of embarrassing Darwinian publicity---the cover-up begins. Soon, Farley is dead, shot in the back with an arrow, and Game Warden John Marlin is asked to help with the case. What he and the local deputies find is a suspect list of biblical proportions: Could it have been the bitter geology professor? The private fossil collector with a somewhat unusual fetish? The minister’s wife who takes the Commandments rather lightly? Or the geriatric environmentalist with a mean right hook? Nothing is sacred in Rehder’s most laughable satire yet, a twisted tale of greed, corruption, infidelity, and, yes, paleontology.

REVIEWS FOR HOLY MOLY:

“Rich with clever prose, oddball characters and laugh-aloud plot twists. The author, an Edgar Award finalist, is a sharp stylist with an engaging and frequently irreverent sense of humor.”
— Dallas Morning News

“For those suffering Carl Hiaasen withdrawals, Holy Moly might be the perfect poolside fix come summer.”
— Texas Monthly

“A tale of lust, power and greed that unravels at breakneck speed…Rehder’s characters are always memorable, as are his satirical plots. His style is entertaining and fun to read.”
— San Antonio Express-News

“Edgar-finalist Rehder’s sixth Blanco County (Tex.) mystery may be the best to date in this rollicking crime series. Rehder’s satirical take on greed, faith and foolishness moves at a swift clip, punctuated with dizzy twists and even bittersweet turns, like a good toe-tapping, country and western tune.”
— Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)

“Ben Rehder in his hilarious Holy Moly places televangelists and the creationism vs. evolution debate under the microsope. [He] takes readers on an adventure into the multimillion-dollar realm of the televangelist on whose land the fossil was found, life in small-town Texas, and the inner workings of police investigation in the latest entry in this Edgar Award-nominated series. Combining sophisticated prose with down-home Texas crime, he leaves no part of Texas life untouched.”
— Library Journal

It's also probably worth noting that the first book in the series, Buck Fever, is still free, so you can try it out to see if you like the series. It was a finalist for a bunch of awards.

link: http://www.amazon.com/Buck-Fever-Bla...dp/B005MAA8LY/

Spoiler:

"Thanks to Ben Rehder, Texas now has its own Hiaasen. Don't miss it."
—Tim Dorsey, author of the Serge Storms mysteries.

Buck Fever: It's the week before deer hunting season, as close to a statewide holiday as you get in Texas, and the locals are getting restless. Game Warden John Marlin has his hands full with poaching complaints coming in faster than he can write out-of-season tickets. Then a call of a different sort comes in. A man dressed up in some sort of deer costume has been shot at the Circle S ranch, and witnesses are reporting a massive wild-eyed buck prancing about the pasture in a lovesick frenzy. Marlin's seen a lot in his years, but this is wilder than he could have imagined: the man in the deer suit is a good friend, and the whacked-out whitetail isn't exactly a stranger either. It's the beginning of a mad, frantic weekend in Blanco County, one that will see a few more men shot, an invasion by Colombians with more than hunting on their minds, and damn near the end of Marlin's life. Ben Rehder serves it all up with a huge helping of humor in this debut comic mystery that will firmly establish him as the funniest crime writer in Texas.

REVIEWS FOR BUCK FEVER:

“This debut novel is a complete success, tearing out of Texas chock-full of characters so nutty and events so strange it seems as if they must be real. The writing here is confident and vigorous; the tone is quintessentially Texan and relentlessly wry. There’s sure to be a long career for this happy, wacky series.”
—Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)

“This is a wild and crazy first novel, crowded with weird people, unusual relationships (both animal and human), and frequent humor that will appeal to fans of Carl Hiaasen, Tim Dorsey, and other comic mystery writers. Strongly recommended for most collections.”
—Library Journal (Starred Review)

“It’s been our pleasure to be among the first reviewers to take notice of several writers who eventually became best sellers, including Nevada Barr, Lee Child and Randy Wayne White. Ben Rehder has what it takes to join that group. Imagine Carl Hiaasen with a Texas accent…”
—Denver Post

“Briskly paced, amusing, spiced with deftly drawn good-old-boy portraits: an altogether promising debut.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“…side-splitting…akin to the Tom Robbins style of humor writing.”
—ESPN Outdoors

“Austinite Ben Rehder’s debut novel is the summer’s best find. With a nod and a wink to Carl Hiaasen, Rehder comes out swinging with a sardonic Tex-centric look at trophy deer hunters, beer-guzzling poachers, and Game Warden John Marlin—the man charged with keeping them all in line. Buck Fever is too fun to be legal.”
—Texas Monthly