Hidden among the mountains of northern New Mexico and southern Colorado stand the moradas—humble adobe meeting houses of the ancient and secretive brotherhood known as the Hermanos Penitentes. One such morada becomes the stage for a reckoning.
In the fictional town of Monte Rio, order unravels when respected Sheriff Gordo Trujillo abandons his badge and disappears into the mountains. With chaos rising, bitter Deputy Jim Crowther exploits an obscure law that forces the town’s coroner, Dr. Henry Schaefer, into an impossible role: acting sheriff.
Set over a relentless twenty-four hours in the early-1980s Southwest, In a Morada follows Doc Schaefer as he confronts violent criminals, entrenched corruption, Deputy Crowther’s dangerous ambition—and his own doubts—in a desperate attempt to save a town on the brink.
Frank Haug is a fourth-generation Coloradan raised along the Rio Grande in the San Luis Valley. An attorney, professor, and farmer, he writes Western fiction that explores justice, faith, and the struggles of small-town America. Drawing on the rugged history of the American West—where his great-grandfather once owned saloons in Colorado mining towns—Frank crafts stories that resonate with rural readers while capturing timeless human themes. He lives in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains with his wife and three sons, where they run a small farm raising sheep, chickens, and llamas.