[Book Review] The Magpie Coffin by Wile E. Young

On the back cover blurb of this book, it says, “The Magpie Coffin is an unrelenting tale of revenge, with precise brutality and extreme violence.” Well… I was sold!

The Magpie Coffin by Wile E. Young was exactly that; it was brutal and had some very extreme violence that had me cringing from time to time… But it also had a lot of heart!

Let’s dive in!

My Thoughts on The Magpie Coffin by Wile E. Young

When the story begins, we meet our main character, Salem Covington, who had been spending the evening with a woman. He decides to head to a saloon and once inside, discovers that there is a group celebrating the end of the Indian Wars. Once Mr. Covington learns that they had killed an old “medicine man,” the bullets begin to fly.

From that moment on, Mr. Covington is determined to get his revenge on the people that killed his teacher. No matter the cost.

Phew, what a bang to start with! It was all pretty calm, and then suddenly Mr. Young hits us with: “The bullet had found his eye, blood pouring from the liquefied remains of his socket.” And then we were off and running!

This tale was written so wonderfully! The storyline and the pacing were laid out perfectly. It wasn’t full-on action the whole time, but there sure was plenty of it! The action scenes played out like a movie in my head, while the violence had me wanting to read while peeking through my fingers. But don’t get me wrong, I absolutely loved that the violent scenes had me feeling a bit feeble!

The violence here was just so vivid. There are some scenes that I know I won’t be forgetting about any time soon. Like the rattlesnake scene for example. Ugh, that gives me a pit in my stomach just thinking about it!

I also greatly appreciated the breaths of fresh air that were the scenes where we got to know the characters a bit more. Salem Covington and Jake Howe are two characters that I loved both as individuals and as an unlikely duo. It was so fun to watch their relationship transform over time.

Salem Covington sure wasn’t a force to reckon with! I loved how intense and brutal he was. It was clear from the start that he wasn’t someone that you wanted to irk and wind up with his gun pointed your way. And while you teeter on the fence of being with Mr. Covington or afraid of him while reading, I guarantee you will be excited when some nasty souls meet their end when they cross paths with The Black Magpie.

There was one more element in this novel that I was so excited to see play out. It was super interesting and added a whole other layer to both the character development and the story overall! But, if you haven’t read this one yet, I’ll leave that discovery for you! If you have read this, then you know what I’m taking about.

My Favorite Passages from The Magpie Coffin

If Fate had plans for me tonight, she was sure as shit taking her time.

If anything decided to take me now, the devil would have to set an extra place at dinner tonight.

“Lies are a lot like a wrong note, Mister Covington; they just don’t ring right in the grand flow of things.”

Sometimes, you plan things from the start, but other times it’s all up to providence to see whether you catch a bullet or live to suck breath for another day.
And sometimes, an idiot is just an idiot.

My Final Thoughts on The Magpie Coffin

I had so much fun reading this! From the intense violence to the quick heartwarming scenes, I loved each and every second of it. From here on out, when I think about the American West, Salem Covington is going to come to mind.

I seriously need some more splatter westerns in my life! I also cannot wait to read more from Mr. Young very soon.

If you’re ready for a bumpy and bloody ride along the American West, you gotta check this one out!

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Thanks for reading!
And thanks again to Wile for sending me a copy after Corona Con!

Related Reading:

• Catfish in the Cradle by Wile E. Young
• The Perfectly Fine House by Stephen Kozeniewski & Wile E. Young