Dead in the West, by Joe R. Lansdale

There are two types of people in the world: Those who think a Zombie Western is an awesome idea, and those who, strangely, don't.

Dead in the West is written for the former, but is good enough that even the latter may be converted. The story opens with some good old fashioned horror. A stage coach is set upon by...well, we don't see what the stage coach is set upon by, but it comes quick and is deadly. There is a creature, we know that much.

A Reverend comes to town, Jebediah Mercer. He carries a gun. Reverend Mercer is the quintessential Western man, owing much to Clint Eastwood's Pale Rider as anything else. He is a man of the cloth, but a hard and dangerous man, doing God's work with his gun.

The man was dressed in black from boots to hat, save for a dusty white shirt and the silver glitter of a modified .36 colt Navy revolver in his black sash waist band. His face, like many men of the Word, was hard and stern. But there was something definitely unGodlike about the man. He had the cool, blue eyes of a cold killer - the eyes of a man who had seen the elephant and seen it well. - pg 8

It isn't clear exactly why the Reverend has come to Mud Creek, but he has, and just in time to find himself in the midst of a zombie outbreak. Is there a better time to come to Mud Creek?

In the hands of any other author, Dead in the West could come across as exceptionally campy, but instead we are given a hard driven story laced with black humor and outstanding zombie action. There is a curse on Mud Creek, and that curse is the blessing of the reader because Lansdale is a master of this blend of action, horror, western, fantasy, and comedy, laced with dialogue so sharp it'll leave a scar.

The narration of Lansdale is not to be missed. The attitude drips off the page.

Dead in the West begins with the horror occurring off the page, with the screams cut off and the damage unseen. As Lansdale spins the story, the horror is more and more real, more in the face of the reader and builds until the violence and tension has to burst out and explode into one hell of a conclusion.

A Joe Lansdale novel is a vicious treat and Dead in the West has to be one of his best. This is not to be missed.


Reading copy provided courtesy of Night Shade Books.


One thing I wonder...is Reverend Mercer from Dead in the West the same as Reverend Rains from the Lansdale story "Deadman's Road"? There are differences, sure, namely how the choice of firearm and how said firearm is carried (sashes vs holsters), but how many gun toting Reverends can there really be?

The Big Blow, by Joe R. Lansdale

The Big Blow
Joe R. Lansdale
Subterranean Press: 2000

Galveston, Texas. 1900. The “Storm of the Century” is on the horizon. Prizefighter John McBride arrives in Galveston from Chicago to fight the local heavyweight champion, a black man named “Lil” Arthur Johnson. The men who have hired McBride are offering an additional $500 if he can kill Johnson in the ring. The stories of Johnson and McBride leading up to the fight are the core of The Big Blow, but Lansdale gives us glimpses of other aspects of Galveston life: prostitutes, the captain of a ship, a young couple getting romantic on the beach, a husband and wife traveling with their newborn son. This is context. The story is McBride, Johnson, the fight, and the impending hurricane.

Lansdale opens The Big Blow with a sentence so hot that it sets the tone for everything to follow. It is a sentence so ripping that you know that this is a book that you just have to read. It’s the opening sentence that grabs you. I don’t have the book in front of me right now, so I can’t duplicate it and won’t try, but suffice it to say that Lansdale states that the weather is as hot as two rates fornicating in a wool sock...only Lansdale flat out tells you what they are doing in coarser language. The opening is absolutely perfect.

The narration of The Big Blow fits around the characters Lansdale is writing about. The McBride sections are the most profane, both in narration and dialogue. The Jack Johnson sections are angrier, prideful, and resolute. The family with the baby is fearful.

The Big Blow is a slim novel, more a novella. It’s one hell of a read. Joe Lansdale is more than a master stylist, though his use of language is unrivaled. Lansdale is flat out a great storyteller. He’s the guy you hope to meet somewhere when you are waiting for a plane, a train, the next bus...and he lays out this incredible, unbelievable story that you’ve never heard before and you can’t stop listening. Lansdale is the guy you want to tell you a story, the guy you need to tell you a story. When he does, it’s a damn good one.

From the Publisher:

Galveston, 1900.
The New York of the south, with cars, electricity, and all the conveniences of modern life.

Galveston, 1900.
A prize fight pitting legend Jack Jackson versus a professional brought in to teach him his place.

Galveston, 1900.
Whorehouses, gambling, family life, a stark depiction of the times, and the points where history, reality, and modern myth intersect. They're all on display in a short historical masterpiece by award-winning author Joe R. Lansdale.

Galveston, 1900.
The hurricane of the century is coming, to destroy it all.

Hells Bounty

From the Publisher:

This nifty, nasty bit of work is for a truly hellish weird western we have scheduled for next year, a collaboration called Hells Bounty by none other than hisownself, Joe R. Lansdale, collaborating for the first time with his brother, John L. Lansdale. Look for ordering info in the new year, but in the meantime, we wanted to share Timothy Truman's spot on, pulpy cover.

I can't wait!