Review: Cold West by Clayton Snyder

Blurb:

Bastard. Killer. Husband. Father. His wife cold in the ground, and two young boys to feed, Wil Cutter turns to what he knows: Violence. But a bounty is never just a bounty, and blood is never spilled in drops. Forced to ever more violent acts, he’ll have to ask himself: Is Hell too far to ride?

Review:

We start with a funeral. 

Wil Cutter is burying his wife, a woman who tore him away from his mercenary life of bloodshed and introduced him to love. He’s got two young sons to raise, a history of violence, and a lack of options. 

The first third of this novel follows the plot of Unforgiven pretty much beat for beat. It introduces some interesting world-building and the worlds’ magic system, as well as establishing just who Wil Cutter is. He’s relentless, but tired; cynical, but tenacious. Synder brings Cutter to life with deft skills and a consistently strong voice. I was all in with Wil by the fifth page. 

“Give me a gun and I’ll hurt whoever you point me at. Hand me a bottle, and I’ll try to drown in it. Anything to be away from those memories, the things you can’t talk about.”

The book cocks its fist and delivers multiple emotional punches throughout. It’s a bleak book without many happy tales, and at times feels like everything grimdark can and should be. Scattered throughout are real people fighting against a bitter world that hates them, but they carry on regardless. 

A particular highlight for me was when Cutter hears the tale of a condemned prisoner. They talk about legends and nightmares, and at the end of the chapter, nothing is confirmed. It’s just two men talking about life and horror, and it works. 

“They say when a man meets the love of his life, all the mean goes out of him. Sometimes in small bits, like venom leaving the blood, sometimes in great rushes, like an open artery.”

Action packed but also character driven and full of Cutter’s thoughts and judgements, I’d recommend this for fans of grimdark (with Michael R Fletcher referenced throughout), Unforgiven, or Ed Mcdonald’s Blackwing. This is a bleak tale, full of death and cynicism, and one that deserves praise for its voice, character work, and action.