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West of Dead a Nathaniel Caine Adventure
Fans of Joe R. Lansdale, Robert Davis, and Adam Millard will love this fast paced tale of the Weird West.
What good is a six-shooter against a horde of the undead?
Nathaniel Caine wants to forget the War and see the frontier, and a trip by stagecoach seems like the perfect way. When the stage pulls into a deserted way station with obvious signs of violence, but a disturbing lack of bodies, he suspects things are going bad. Things go from bad to worse when the passengers fall under attack by people that should be dead, and Caine must call on old skills just to survive. He'll also need the help of a fellow passenger who knows more than he's telling if the restless dead are to be put back in the ground.
Eric Bahle stopped going to his real job so he could be a full time digital author and storyteller. He loves being in the woods with his bow or on the water in his kayak. He lives in Pennsylvania with his lovely wife and a mongrel dog. He is working on his next bestselling story.
What good is a six-shooter against a horde of the undead?
Nathaniel Caine wants to forget the War and see the frontier, and a trip by stagecoach seems like the perfect way. When the stage pulls into a deserted way station with obvious signs of violence, but a disturbing lack of bodies, he suspects things are going bad. Things go from bad to worse when the passengers fall under attack by people that should be dead, and Caine must call on old skills just to survive. He'll also need the help of a fellow passenger who knows more than he's telling if the restless dead are to be put back in the ground.
Eric Bahle stopped going to his real job so he could be a full time digital author and storyteller. He loves being in the woods with his bow or on the water in his kayak. He lives in Pennsylvania with his lovely wife and a mongrel dog. He is working on his next bestselling story.
125 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 30, 2012
About the author
Eric Bahle
6 books18 followersEric Bahle stopped going to his real job so he could be a full time digital author and storyteller. He loves being in the woods with his bow or on the water in his kayak. He lives in Pennsylvania with his lovely wife and a mongrel dog. He is working on his next bestselling story.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
March 3, 2015
This was really good. A zombie tale set in the old west. I know everyone says zombies are overdone, but as long as the story has something new to say I think they are still interesting. This one really had it all. A great MC, some very interesting supporting characters, a strong story, an evil villain. It really was surprisingly good.
As far as complaints go, nothing major. I thought the MC was almost pushed to the side by the supporting cast, but the story was still great so I didn't see that as a big deal. I thought the racist character was portrayed a little strangely, although I suppose the idea was he had a change of heart near the end.
I definitely recommend this to any fans of the Weird Western genre, as this one is pretty much exactly what the genre is all about. I'm looking forward to more from Mr. Bahle!
As far as complaints go, nothing major. I thought the MC was almost pushed to the side by the supporting cast, but the story was still great so I didn't see that as a big deal. I thought the racist character was portrayed a little strangely, although I suppose the idea was he had a change of heart near the end.
I definitely recommend this to any fans of the Weird Western genre, as this one is pretty much exactly what the genre is all about. I'm looking forward to more from Mr. Bahle!
January 1, 2013
This is the fifth book I've read in the sub-genre of zombie-western. I like the genre, and this one did not disappoint. Fast-paced and easy to read, I was hooked from the very start. The character development was very good, and the start prior to the zombies showing up reminded me so much of all those western movies I enjoyed as a kid.
It was nice to see a "traditional" zombie story, based on voodoo and a Bokor. Even so, it also has the Romero tradition of gory deaths with lots of blood and guts.
I'm looking forward to more adventures with Nathaniel Caine, zombies or not.
It was nice to see a "traditional" zombie story, based on voodoo and a Bokor. Even so, it also has the Romero tradition of gory deaths with lots of blood and guts.
I'm looking forward to more adventures with Nathaniel Caine, zombies or not.
August 25, 2012
Well done Old West zombie novella. It's short, just a couple of big scenes after the intro. I do have a beef though. In an opening scene they make a big deal about a kid giving the hero Cain a gun that can shoot cartridges or load and fire like a black powder weapon. It's the kind of scene that is an obvious foreshadowing but I don't remember ever seeing the weapon get used.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 5, 2015
This was a fun read for the most part. The pace was great, strong prose, good solid feel for the setting. At first, I was torn on the reason for the zombies. I won't spoil it but I will say it ended up as an interesting mix of old and new. I definitely look forward to Caine's next adventure.
May 4, 2016
I love a good zombie story. Throw in the unique challenge of dealing with them in a western setting, with less technology and none of the fancy weapons of modern day, and my curiosity gets tweaked.
Early into the story, I knew I wanted to know more about Nathaniel Caine. He wasn’t that surprised about the idea of flesh eating zombies, so I wondered what else he might have bumped up against in his past.
It’s an odd group of passengers sharing the stage coach. Most don’t detect anything wrong when they pull up to the deserted way station. A few know right away somethings wrong. It doesn’t take long for the zombies to attack and its a humdinger to get out of there alive.
I was imagining how bad it is when zombies attack you in your car. Think how much worse to be in a windowless stagecoach pulled by horses. Zombies like horse flesh too. I remember how bad it went for Rick Grimes on The Walking Dead show when he was riding a horse through town.
The only place even close to them might not be safe either. The zombies had to come from somewhere. And one passenger seems to know a whole lot more than he should about the phenomenon.
This was a fun one. There were some interesting characters, a new twist on zombies, and a super villain. There has to be a villain in an apocalypse, right? This guy was a real scum bag. Made it interesting to see whether he made it out alive or eaten, or maybe turned into one of the undead.
There’s a second book available with Nathaniel as the main character and I plan to see what he encounters next.
Solid writing made this an easy read and even though it was a short story, it felt big.
Early into the story, I knew I wanted to know more about Nathaniel Caine. He wasn’t that surprised about the idea of flesh eating zombies, so I wondered what else he might have bumped up against in his past.
It’s an odd group of passengers sharing the stage coach. Most don’t detect anything wrong when they pull up to the deserted way station. A few know right away somethings wrong. It doesn’t take long for the zombies to attack and its a humdinger to get out of there alive.
I was imagining how bad it is when zombies attack you in your car. Think how much worse to be in a windowless stagecoach pulled by horses. Zombies like horse flesh too. I remember how bad it went for Rick Grimes on The Walking Dead show when he was riding a horse through town.
The only place even close to them might not be safe either. The zombies had to come from somewhere. And one passenger seems to know a whole lot more than he should about the phenomenon.
This was a fun one. There were some interesting characters, a new twist on zombies, and a super villain. There has to be a villain in an apocalypse, right? This guy was a real scum bag. Made it interesting to see whether he made it out alive or eaten, or maybe turned into one of the undead.
There’s a second book available with Nathaniel as the main character and I plan to see what he encounters next.
Solid writing made this an easy read and even though it was a short story, it felt big.
July 19, 2013
Enjoyed this.
Really well written.
It won't be everyone's cup of tea - exclude anyone not into Westerns or Zombies... but that leaves everyone else!
Reads much like a Western movie, or an episode of Bonanza or something (not that I've watched that since I was a kid... but it's not quite like a Young Riders episode... just goes to show, there should be MORE Western TV shows!).
Good fun. What more does a book need to be?
Really well written.
It won't be everyone's cup of tea - exclude anyone not into Westerns or Zombies... but that leaves everyone else!
Reads much like a Western movie, or an episode of Bonanza or something (not that I've watched that since I was a kid... but it's not quite like a Young Riders episode... just goes to show, there should be MORE Western TV shows!).
Good fun. What more does a book need to be?
January 19, 2013
This is a fun, entertaining smash up of classic western and zombies. The cast of characters are reminiscent of Stagecoach dealing not with highway robbers but zombies. I especially enjoyed the main character, Nathaniel Caine, because he's such a cool dude. There's a rich assortment of characters and a solid story.
December 26, 2013
I'm not a huge fan of westerns, so I liked this novella more in spite of its theme than for it. In any case, if one has to read a western, it better be as much fun as this one and having zombies in it certainly helps. Not exactly literature, but extremely entertaining, with strong characters, tons of action and very good seriously impressive writing. Would make a great movie. Recommended.
October 8, 2012
Weird western,a favorite genre, tells story of religious cult that turns into zombies.
April 30, 2014
This was a really good read. I was hooked from the beginning to the end. Looking forward to the others in this series!
April 16, 2019
Zombie and
I really enjoyed the book. It was a very good read. I can't wait to see what happens in the next book
I really enjoyed the book. It was a very good read. I can't wait to see what happens in the next book
September 21, 2013
Imagine Clint Eastwood as an Old West Zombie Hunter.
That pretty much sums it up. Nathaniel Caine is a sort of high plains drifter, or maybe he's a pale rider. Either way, when the stage coach he's riding in stops at a way station for supplies, Caine and his fellow travellers get more than they bargained for. And from there on in, it's pretty much all zombies, all the time. This has all the usual suspects: the cocky young man, the timorous merchant with the beautiful daughter, the megalomaniac zombie priest, and of course, a stout-hearted cast of redshirts - the stable boys and coach drivers who give their lives for the furtherment of plot.
But what it doesn't have is anything new.
Don't get me wrong, what Bahle has done here he has done very well. The writing is crisp and confident, the gore is present but not overdone, and his zombies shamble with the best of them. But I believe each book in a genre should attempt to do something more than simply restate the classic themes of that genre. Show me a zombie who can fly. Or a voodoo priest with a heart of gold. Or have the plucky young waif girl turn out to be the mastermind. I don't sail with the zombie navy very often, so maybe I'm out of step with the expectations of all the real zombinistas out there, but from my perspective, Nathaniel Caine needs a bit more of the unexpected.
Yeah, that'd do it. Flying zombies. Put a twist like that in and I'll jump on that stage coach with both feet.
That pretty much sums it up. Nathaniel Caine is a sort of high plains drifter, or maybe he's a pale rider. Either way, when the stage coach he's riding in stops at a way station for supplies, Caine and his fellow travellers get more than they bargained for. And from there on in, it's pretty much all zombies, all the time. This has all the usual suspects: the cocky young man, the timorous merchant with the beautiful daughter, the megalomaniac zombie priest, and of course, a stout-hearted cast of redshirts - the stable boys and coach drivers who give their lives for the furtherment of plot.
But what it doesn't have is anything new.
Don't get me wrong, what Bahle has done here he has done very well. The writing is crisp and confident, the gore is present but not overdone, and his zombies shamble with the best of them. But I believe each book in a genre should attempt to do something more than simply restate the classic themes of that genre. Show me a zombie who can fly. Or a voodoo priest with a heart of gold. Or have the plucky young waif girl turn out to be the mastermind. I don't sail with the zombie navy very often, so maybe I'm out of step with the expectations of all the real zombinistas out there, but from my perspective, Nathaniel Caine needs a bit more of the unexpected.
Yeah, that'd do it. Flying zombies. Put a twist like that in and I'll jump on that stage coach with both feet.
January 4, 2013
This zombie novel is based on the concept of voodoo zombie. The writing is good and the characters fun to read. Nathaniel Caine, the lead character, is nicely written.
Our story starts with a stagecoach trip to through a wild part of the West. The passengers encountered an empty way station and their troubles start then as they learn what zombies are. No new grounds in ideas were presented but the action fight scenes are fun.
Everything is done well until near the end of the book. In the finale, the author took a lot of short cuts or couldn't figure out ways to address the extra characters. As a result, he completely left out explanations of things or people that were mentioned in the previous chapter.
You were left with "ummm, what happened to the 20-30 women who were imprisoned in that house?" As far as the book went, they suddenly didn't exist anymore.
It's still a fun book and I would recommend it.
Our story starts with a stagecoach trip to through a wild part of the West. The passengers encountered an empty way station and their troubles start then as they learn what zombies are. No new grounds in ideas were presented but the action fight scenes are fun.
Everything is done well until near the end of the book. In the finale, the author took a lot of short cuts or couldn't figure out ways to address the extra characters. As a result, he completely left out explanations of things or people that were mentioned in the previous chapter.
You were left with "ummm, what happened to the 20-30 women who were imprisoned in that house?" As far as the book went, they suddenly didn't exist anymore.
It's still a fun book and I would recommend it.
August 28, 2016
This is a fast-reading zombie western horror and is worth checking out if any of those genres interest you.
Bahle has introduced the character of Nathaniel Caine and set the stage for several more western horror tales.
3 1/2 STARS
Bahle has introduced the character of Nathaniel Caine and set the stage for several more western horror tales.
3 1/2 STARS
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews