Sometimes a book comes along, grabs you by the shirt collar and drags you along for a ride you didn’t know you wanted to go on. The Magpie Coffin by Wile E. Young is one such book.
Salem Covington has been collecting souls of men on the frontier. When word gets to him his Mentor, the Comanche Shaman Dead Bear has been killed, Covington sets out on a mission of revenge.
I enjoyed the author's style of writing, the book is told in the first person, and it puts you in the boots of Covington, one of the baddest men in the West. The book holds up on its splatter end of the bargain, offering up plenty of blood and violence. There’s a reason men fear Covington, and Young shows you often.
The Magpie Coffin is an absolute blast from start to finish, I was never bored, often intrigued, and found myself wanting to jump right back in whenever I had to stop. I had such a good time with this book I ordered the physical edition before I even finished reading my kindle copy.
Another plus for me was the world Young crafted. I feel like there is so much lore in this book and I absolutely have to know more. There are some parts of it that seem confusing at first, but as more is uncovered it will start to make sense, although I do wish we got to see more of the backstory surrounding Covington and the more fantastical elements of the story. Hopefully Young will return to this world.
The opening salvo in DHP’s Splatter Western starts things off with a stick of dynamite. I can only hope the rest of the series can match the quality of book one. The Magpie Coffin is one hell of an introduction to the author and easily my favorite novel from the publisher.
4.5/5 Stars
John is a native of Cranston, Rhode Island. He served 4 years in the United States Marine Corps, deploying twice to Iraq and Afghanistan. He’s a lover of all things horror, pizza and cheeseburgers. When he’s not reading or watching boxing he spends his time with his amazing wife and two beautiful sons.
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I loved this book and that was great review. Can you recommend any others similar to this one? I haven’t had much luck trying to find any.