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screamdogreads's review
3.0
"The howling went on long into the night as the night watch kept their rotation around the mindless herd. A fresh mound of dirt, two sticks in a makeshift cross, and an empty pair of boots were the only reminder of a fallen friend."
Hunger on the Chisholm Trail is a viscerally upsetting, violent, brutal and disgusting tale of Western horror. From the very get-go, it's obvious that this is a Wendigo story, rather than fall into the typical however, Hunger on the Chisholm Trail offers a rather fresh and interesting take on the Wendigo, opting instead for more brutal showdowns than something more lore heavy. This isn't a particularly long novel, and it's all over pretty quickly, it is, however, a slice of brutally amazing, blood-drenched, gore-slicked fun.
The sense of time and place in this novel is intensely strong, M. Ennenbach transports us to the dusty plains, flings us down upon the beer soaked flooring of the saloons, and allows us to marvel in wonder at the shock of the monster. It's a strong entry into the Splatter Western series, not the best, but still a contender. The writing is just descriptive enough to immerse us in the world without becoming bogged down, allowing the brutality of the Wendigo to take the spotlight. It's a brilliant, fun and disturbing little novel, one that never takes itself too seriously.
Hunger on the Chisholm Trail is a viscerally upsetting, violent, brutal and disgusting tale of Western horror. From the very get-go, it's obvious that this is a Wendigo story, rather than fall into the typical however, Hunger on the Chisholm Trail offers a rather fresh and interesting take on the Wendigo, opting instead for more brutal showdowns than something more lore heavy. This isn't a particularly long novel, and it's all over pretty quickly, it is, however, a slice of brutally amazing, blood-drenched, gore-slicked fun.
The sense of time and place in this novel is intensely strong, M. Ennenbach transports us to the dusty plains, flings us down upon the beer soaked flooring of the saloons, and allows us to marvel in wonder at the shock of the monster. It's a strong entry into the Splatter Western series, not the best, but still a contender. The writing is just descriptive enough to immerse us in the world without becoming bogged down, allowing the brutality of the Wendigo to take the spotlight. It's a brilliant, fun and disturbing little novel, one that never takes itself too seriously.
"He blinked and looked up through the haze in his head. The thing stood in front of him. The skin stretched over ropy muscle and seemed to be at the verge of splitting. The head cocked as it stared down at him, as if trying to figure out exactly what it looked down upon. Lee knew the answer at that moment. It was looking at its next meal."
Hunger on the Chisholm Trail is a brutal bloodbath. The bodies do not stop dropping in this novel, it's absolute carnage throughout, it's pure violence, death, hatred and more violence. The monster of this novel is absolutely menacing, a true fright. Ultimately, this is a decent entry into an extremely great series, one that will bring joy to horror fans who are looking to experience a slice of the great American West.
"The West could be beautiful, as long as the untamed was respected."
tunnelrat47's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
skullheadface's review against another edition
5.0
Wow! This is one of the sickest Wendigo tales I’ve ever heard, a really nasty rampaging ghoul of a creature, with an unstoppable appetite, driven forth by pure evil IT WAS AWESOME!!! Mike keeps the heads rolling and the offal churning as the Wendigo plops and slops its way across the Chisholm Trail. Read this book. You’ll love it. What a great gore-score!!
5/5 Skulls
☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️
5/5 Skulls
☠️☠️☠️☠️☠️
beefmaster's review against another edition
2.0
Messy. Starts off strong but deteriorates into too many characters, too much poorly described action, and a silly ending.
castamere's review
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Murder, and Gore
esotericorder's review
4.0
I consider this a 3.5 just because it needed better editing before publication, there are some typos, "swa" instead of "was" and "as" instead of "has" as well as a couple of messy sentences/ paragraphs. Other than than it's a great pulpy action story featuring a cool monster. I admit that the first 30 pages weren't that gripping but after the appearance of the monster hunter this got really awesome! I would definitely recommend it!
johnlynchbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Here we go, book 2 of the Splatter Western series from Deaths Head Press. This time, Mike Ennenbach leads us along the dusty plains. As the series implies, the west is going to run red with blood.
This is my first book from the author but it won’t be my last. Something is hunting. It has a taste for human flesh. Can Karl Beck stop it?
This book is another slam dunk for DHP. It does the series proud in all aspects. There’s plenty of blood and guts for gorehounds. Monsters, saloons, humor. Good pacing and fun characters cap it all off. Everything is here. Ennenbach does an excellent job painting this western picture. I had a blast with this one and I feel fans of the first book in the series will find a lot here to love.
Please, give me more from this author and bring me book 3 ASAP
This is my first book from the author but it won’t be my last. Something is hunting. It has a taste for human flesh. Can Karl Beck stop it?
This book is another slam dunk for DHP. It does the series proud in all aspects. There’s plenty of blood and guts for gorehounds. Monsters, saloons, humor. Good pacing and fun characters cap it all off. Everything is here. Ennenbach does an excellent job painting this western picture. I had a blast with this one and I feel fans of the first book in the series will find a lot here to love.
Please, give me more from this author and bring me book 3 ASAP
brians_books13's review against another edition
2.0
This one just wasn’t for me. The concept was good, but the execution left something to be desired. The dialogue was bad (if I never see or hear the word “if’n, tarnation, or lily-livered” again it’ll be too soon) and even in the midst of killing and evil, everyone finds time to gather around to laugh it up at the prospects of someone kissing a whore. It didn’t help that my copy had typos and a couple missing words to boot. I would give it 2.5 stars but since I can’t, I’m rounding down instead of up.
bozzi1's review
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
2.75
I loved The Magpie Coffin so I was excited to read this second book in the splatter western series from Death’s Head Press. Maybe I built up too much hype, but I ended up being disappointed with this one. It was okay, just not the caliber of the debut story.
•
The premise is good. I love a creature feature and the Wendigo had all the potential to be a great one, handing out blood, gore, and death like Halloween candy. What was lacking for me was the backstory. I wanted to know where the Wendigo came from, what it’s motivation was, etc. I had similar feelings about the character of Karl Beck. I was immediately interested in his story, but all we got was an encyclopedia of different cryptids without any real depth.
•
While I enjoyed the gore, there were a few editing issues I couldn’t ignore and I had a very hard time with the dialogue. It was either too modern to be believable for the setting or too exaggerated to take seriously.
•
Horror fans might enjoy this one, but the biggest positive for me is definitely the gorgeous cover. I’m still eager to continue this series and hope the next one is more to my liking.
•
The premise is good. I love a creature feature and the Wendigo had all the potential to be a great one, handing out blood, gore, and death like Halloween candy. What was lacking for me was the backstory. I wanted to know where the Wendigo came from, what it’s motivation was, etc. I had similar feelings about the character of Karl Beck. I was immediately interested in his story, but all we got was an encyclopedia of different cryptids without any real depth.
•
While I enjoyed the gore, there were a few editing issues I couldn’t ignore and I had a very hard time with the dialogue. It was either too modern to be believable for the setting or too exaggerated to take seriously.
•
Horror fans might enjoy this one, but the biggest positive for me is definitely the gorgeous cover. I’m still eager to continue this series and hope the next one is more to my liking.
blatdriver's review against another edition
5.0
I love a good wendigo story, and this was no exception, I loved it, it was everything I was expecting, brutal, gory, with some excellent characters that you really feel for.