"*** 3.5 stars out of 5, rounded up for Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ ***

First of all, let me begin by saying that my expectations were high. Very high, in fact. Anybody lurking on r/horrorlit knows this book is a total darling there. So, if that wasn’t the case, I might have enjoyed this more.

Let’s start with the good stuff. Great characters. It’s been some time since I last cared about fictional characters this much. Yeah they’re a bit cartoonish in a sense but written very well, you can’t help but care about them. Another thing that I really liked here was the setting. You can tell Buehlman did his due diligence and researched the period well. That’s one thing to do an extensive research. What sets Buehlman apart though is his ability to create a very vivid atmosphere and setting with all that research.

In terms of what I didn’t like, I think the biggest shortcoming of this book is the plot. It’s practically non existent. Very very weak plot. I’m all for plotless stories if that’s what the author is going for as a narrative choice but that clearly wasn’t the intention here. If it wasn’t for the characters and the setting, I would’ve easily DNF’ed this ones. Also, I thought the ending didn’t really land.

Overall, despite the negatives, I enjoyed this book a lot. Definitely recommend if historical horror is your jam."

"This was a good western horror story!"

"The premise hooked me like no other SGJ book has, and while interesting it plodded along slowly until ramping up at the near end of every chapter. Tiring but still enjoyable."

"This volume was great!"