A+ world-building in this one. The Wyrd West is set in the post-apocalyptic Canadian prairies–a new wild west only with magic. Alongside the traditional gunslingers, desperados, First Nations people, saloon owners and courtesans, there are also necromancers, elves, gnomes, Mantis-folk, and some steampunk technology. Even the common elements have been tweaked to be just a little different–the courtesan’s guild runs a spy network and the saloon owner has a prosthetic hand.  I especially enjoyed the gunslingers’ magic and code of honour: the Mark of Cain they wear after killing a bandit, the vigil to the Lord and Lady, the blessed ammunition.

When I saw that this was originally serialized in six installments, I was a little afraid that it would be linked short stories, but it reads like a novel, building from start to finish to a high-stakes conclusion. The story follows half-elf Graham and his journey as he goes from apprentice to full-fledged gunslinger.

Quibble: Chapter one starts with an action scene, then flashes back in chapter two to just before chapter one and picks up again after the events of chapter one in the third chapter… and I just didn’t really see the point.