Special Feature: Brennan LaFaros and 'Buzzard's Edge'

It's been 15 years since Noose Holcomb perpetrated the Buzzard's Edge Train Robbery of 1872, leaving Rory Daggett an orphan. Settled in with a new family and a second chance at life, Rory never quite sheds the thirst for revenge.

When one of the gang members returns to Buzzard's Edge, Rory's life is violently upended once more. Capturing the rogue spurs on a furious chain of events that pits Rory against each member of Noose's gang, every one more twisted and terrifying than the last, in order to work his way to their leader.

With the help of a fellow orphan whose life Noose turned upside down and the town's sheriff, Rory will stop at nothing to be the man who ends Noose's reign of terror, but can he do it without becoming the man he seeks to kill?

I happened upon ‘Noose’ randomly a few years ago, seeing Brennan’s work on his social media and being in the mood for what I thought would be a quick slice of Western horror.

This excellent novella stayed with me ever since, and I was so glad to see that the stories of Buzzard’s Edge are being reprinted by Brigid’s Gate.

The tale of an orphaned boy growing up to seek revenge moves with perfect pacing between moments of genuine pathos and sheer rage-inspired action. Rory Daggett is a relatable hero fighting a monstrous villain, and there are moments when it truly seems as if there’s no way for him to succeed. One particular twist had me literally exclaiming ‘Oh no!’ - the setup leading down a path that suddenly dead-ended, leaving Rory in even more difficulty than before. How can one man succeed against an ever-stranger (and more powerful) gang of desperados, with the tiny force at his side?

The Weird West atmosphere is fantastic (in every sense), and I loved the lonely, surviving-on-the-frontier vibe which combines beautifully with a sense of liminality - as if the frontier isn’t just about geography, but otherworldliness as well.

This book definitely left me wanting more. So I was very glad to see…

Six months after the death of Noose Holcomb, Buzzard's Edge rests in an uneasy quiet, but can a town that resonates with such hatred remain peaceful for long?

Dark forces conspire to chase Rory Daggett and his mute adopted daughter, Alice, into exile, framed for a crime they didn't commit.

With a new sheriff and a notorious killer for hire tracking their every move, the two must choose between starting a new life and saving the soul of the town that betrayed them.

Poor Rory Daggett just can’t seem to catch a break. Just when things look like they’ve settled down with his quest for revenge satisfied, another mess of problems is knocking at his door.

Brennan LaFaro clearly loves Rory and Alice, but as is the nature of these books, has them facing even more otherworldly challenges in a tale that’s both action-Western and mystery. The stakes are higher than ever before, and when it’s a race against time with every resource at hand being kicked away, what are our heroes supposed to do to save not only the town, but also the world beyond?

I love that there’s only one perspective in these books, almost as if Rory’s telling the tale like an old Western movie voiceover. The twists and turns kept me turning the pages to figure just what the heck is going on, and the rules of physics are soon thrown to the four winds as the legacy of Noose doesn’t want to die…

Buzzard’s Edge is loosely drawn, allowing for greater scope in future books (I hope), but it reminds me of a Wild West ‘Twin Peaks’. Nobody’s quite what they appear on the surface and there’s an undercurrent of the supernatural that just seems reasonable after a while. Rory’s seen enough to know that he needs to keep pushing at the boundaries of reality in order to succeed, while still holding on to his humanity and his friends. It’s utterly gripping, and like its predecessor, had me gulping it down in one sitting.

Alone in the desert and covered in blood, Josiah Dennis comes across an abandoned town, and two unlikely storytellers burdened with sharing its history—past, present, and future.

Rogue gangs of vampires, young witches, flayed cadavers, giant lizards, and men with dark hearts dwell in these pages, looming over Buzzard’s Edge, a town full of people struggling to survive in an unforgiving Arizona frontier.

So, sit down a spell, and settle where the daybreak ends.

Back to Buzzard’s Edge we go, with a collection of stories old and new that show just how weird this little frontier town is. And once again, I’m entirely here for it.

I love Brennan’s own logic within his worldbuilding, as the laws of nature twist when the sun goes down or some unforeseen boundary is crossed, leaving those facing their monsters to fight or fall. His writing is so skilful that even if the reader has only just met these characters a few pages ago, we’re rooting for them and trying to figure out what they can do to survive - if that’s even the best option.

I also appreciate that these are Westerns told with a nod to modern sensibility. Yes, society’s morals and values were different in those times, but the mix of black and white, male and female, able-bodied and crippled, coloniser and native are all drawn sensitively, as humans making their way in a very lethal environment. If you’ve read the other books in this series, even the truly villainous have their motivations - everybody feels real in a world where the unknown simply needs to be dealt with.

These are campfire tales with bite. Bring something to defend yourself with, maybe a bit of strong liquor, and settle down to enjoy.