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The Magpie Coffin (Splatter Western) Paperback – March 21, 2020
- Print length210 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- Publication dateMarch 21, 2020
- Dimensions5 x 0.53 x 8 inches
- ISBN-101950259250
- ISBN-13978-1950259250
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Product details
- Publisher : Death's Head Press LLC (March 21, 2020)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 210 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1950259250
- ISBN-13 : 978-1950259250
- Item Weight : 8.4 ounces
- Dimensions : 5 x 0.53 x 8 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #1,129,003 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #14,520 in Westerns (Books)
- #35,167 in Horror Literature & Fiction
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
Wile E. Young is an author who not only has a price on his head but also
specializes in southern themed horror stories, both terrifying and
bizarre. His novels include Catfish in the Cradle (2019), The Perfectly Fine House (2020), and the Magpie Coffin (2020). His short stories have been featured in various anthologies
including the Clickers Forever (2018), Behind the Mask- Tales From the Id
(2018), Corporate Cthulhu (2018) and And Hell Followed (2019).
Customer reviews
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Top reviews
Top reviews from the United States
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Salem Covington is an outlaw notoriously known as “Black Magpie”. He’s a brutal killer, a collector of stories and souls. When Salem learns that Dead Bear, his mentor and a Comanche shaman, has been murdered, he seeks vengeance.
I was captivated by this story from the get go. It felt gritty, cinematic, and barbaric, which makes sense since splatter westerns are typically a sub genre of horror films that focus on violence and gore. The primary theme here is blood thirsty vengeance and I was transported into the late 1800s and the Wild West, where I could see and touch every detail Wile E. Young had to offer. The writing is insanely good, the characters dark, and the story severe.
Let me tell you, there are some depraved and rancid characters in this story and I enjoyed reading about each and every one of them. Was I completely obsessed with the character Salem? Absolutely. He is full of violence, darkness, and hidden secrets. He’s a gunslinger with a nefarious heart who has stepped into the realm of arcane magic. There are some impressive, gasp-inducing, bloodcurdling scenes. Young’s mastery at descriptive language brings the blood, sweat, and bones out of the rough and tumble American west. This is one of those stories that makes you feel alive even while the characters within meet their demise.
I recently started reading horror western mashups this past year and I’m obsessed. Needless to say I cannot wait to read more of Deaths Heads Press’ splatter westerns! If you are looking for a wicked great read then pick up THE MAGPIE COFFIN.
Salem Covington is an outlaw notoriously known as “Black Magpie”. He’s a brutal killer, a collector of stories and souls. When Salem learns that Dead Bear, his mentor and a Comanche shaman, has been murdered, he seeks vengeance.
I was captivated by this story from the get go. It felt gritty, cinematic, and barbaric, which makes sense since splatter westerns are typically a sub genre of horror films that focus on violence and gore. The primary theme here is blood thirsty vengeance and I was transported into the late 1800s and the Wild West, where I could see and touch every detail Wile E. Young had to offer. The writing is insanely good, the characters dark, and the story severe.
Let me tell you, there are some depraved and rancid characters in this story and I enjoyed reading about each and every one of them. Was I completely obsessed with the character Salem? Absolutely. He is full of violence, darkness, and hidden secrets. He’s a gunslinger with a nefarious heart who has stepped into the realm of arcane magic. There are some impressive, gasp-inducing, bloodcurdling scenes. Young’s mastery at descriptive language brings the blood, sweat, and bones out of the rough and tumble American west. This is one of those stories that makes you feel alive even while the characters within meet their demise.
I recently started reading horror western mashups this past year and I’m obsessed. Needless to say I cannot wait to read more of Deaths Heads Press’ splatter westerns! If you are looking for a wicked great read then pick up THE MAGPIE COFFIN.
The main character is the best part of the book. He is an amoral anti hero with a great back story that is revealed gradually to keep you interested. I don't know if the books are interconnected but I would love to read about this guy again in future additions.
If you like gothic horror in a western setting are not too easily upset by violent, bloody action you will enjoy this read.
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (4.5 rounded up)
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The Magpie Coffin follows Salem Covington (and can we just appreciate that badass name?): A tortured gunslinger out to avenge the murder of his mentor. He’s kicking ass and taking names...actually, he’s taking names, stories, and body parts...and leaving a trail of dead bad guys as he makes his way across the Old West. This is the first book in Death’s Head Press’s Splatter Western series and I AM HERE FOR IT🙌 Naturally, I’ll be sharing a Clint Eastwood style review for this one.
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The good...I love an antihero I can root for and Salem Covington had me in his corner in record setting time. He gave me ‘Roland from Stephen King’s Dark Tower series’ vibes which I LOVED. The plot, pacing, and secondary characters were all fantastic. The storyline was a perfect mix of western and horror, and I enjoyed the dark magic element as well. The dialogue is top notch, particularly Salem’s lines, and that ending! 👌🏼*chef’s kiss*
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The bad...While I appreciate that the story of Salem, aka “The Black Magpie”, leaves room for a prequel/sequels in the future (YES PLEASE!!), I wanted just a bit more about the cursed guns and how they affected those that used them.
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The ugly...This is a Splatter Western and if I wasn’t sure what that meant before, I know now...and I’m a HUGE fan! The scenes with violence and torture are plentiful and they don’t hold back; at the same time, they never go too far.
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The Magpie Coffin held my attention from the first line to the last, and I immediately wanted to start all over again. This tale of revenge isn’t for the faint of heart, but I loved it. I’m not sure if the rest of this series will hold up to the bar set here, but I can’t wait to find out!
Salem Covington is on a mission of brutal revenge after some vicious heavies kill his old teacher. But what they don’t know is Salem is far more vicious still. With his Gun (yes, capital ‘G’) whispering to him, he hunts them down one by one, a younger hostage-who-becomes-companion riding with him.
I don’t want to give much away. I went in pretty blind, only the back of the book blurb informing me of what I was in for. Young did not disappoint. The characters were well-drawn, the setting of the old west was vivid but not overwhelming, and the action was brutal and shocking. Let’s just say Salem Covington doesn’t let pesky things like morality and conscience bring him down.
I enjoyed this book very much, even though I started with SW#2, Hunger on the Chisholm Trail by M. Ennenbach. This pair of fine Splatter Westerns has sparked a hunger in me for more like them, and I can’t wait to see the rest of this series out for the world to devour.
Seriously great, and it’s apparent from this work how much Young has grown in his craft. He’s one to watch, but THE MAGPIE COFFIN is one to read. And now.
Top reviews from other countries
A fast paced revenge story set in the Wild West with a bit of horror magic thrown in.
A quick and fun read.
I rarely read Westerns. I’ve known many who do – often ex-soldiers, for some reason – but while I enjoy the occasional Clint Eastwood movie, my experience with them is minimal.
I finished this book in two days. That’s only because I a) had other work to do and b) wanted to not consume it all in one quick gulp!
Salem Covington is an ex-soldier, having survived the American Civil War intact in body… but not in soul. We discover that he and his brother made a deal, and he has to follow through on that. His legend is notorious, and when he walks into a bar, the scar on his face means only fools challenge him (and of course, they do).
But that’s only part of the story. Salem spent a whole mess o’ time (yes, he speaks like that) learning what could be called ‘magic’ from his local Native tribe – and the tale begins when he learns that his esteemed teacher has been killed by A Right Gang of Bastards.
So because his deal means that he can’t be killed by any bullet except that from a particular gun, and as the titular Black Magpie he has to avenge his teacher’s murder, he grabs up the body (coffin and all), acquires a random sidekick, and sets off to fulfil his task.
This book has the subtitle of ‘A Splatter Western’, and yes, it’s gory in places. But I think that’s actually a misnomer. I’ve studied American history, and this book seems to nail the cynical attitudes and yet ‘interesting’ sense of honour held by folks in the (very) Wild West at that time. A war has ended that saw more people dead than any other in history, until World War One. People are doing their best just to get by. Violence is a familiar neighbour.
Salem tells the story, and while you sometimes get the urge to wince at his actions, it can’t be argued that he’s absolutely justified in what he does. He may be a Bad Man, but those he fights are so very much worse. By the end, I was cheering him on.
Given my limited knowledge of the fictional West, I admit to seeing parallels between this and the TV show Firefly. That carries an undercurrent of desperation as well, survival against the odds, and doing what has to be done, even when it seems foolish or dangerous.
Salem’s no hero, by his own admission. But he’s the one we’ve got – and by the conclusion, I was sad to see him ride off into the sunset. I very much want to know what he gets up to next.
The additional quirk of including Native tribal magic means you’re never quite sure what’s going to happen next. Is the corpse talking to Salem, or is he imagining it? Does it matter? And if it didn’t, where did that bear come from?!
This is an excellent tale, engrossing and memorable. It deals respectfully with the spirits of the Old West, be they Blue, Grey or Red, and every character is well drawn. I was especially pleased to see some strong women arrive in the narrative, even if they weren’t always the most pleasant. Assume nothing about anyone in this book.
Absolutely recommended, and already looking forward to what this fine gentleman writes next.