Merkabah Rider: Tales of a High Planes Drifter Review!

Ashe Armstrong returns with a review of Merkabah Rider: Tales of a High Planes Drifter!

Greetings once again, Emporium readers. It's Ashe and I'm back with another review. A solo read this time around. I bought and promptly devoured Edward Erdelac's Merkabah Rider: Tales of a High Planes Drifter. And since Mark's a busy guy, I offered to once again lend a hand with a review. That being said, shall we?

If you're not already familiar with the book, well, you could scroll down to Mark's Christmas post but I'll save you the trouble. Merkabah Rider is about a Jewish man from a mystic order who can travel the planes of existence. That's all I'll say as far as details of the story goes because, quite honestly, finding out the details of the order and the things that take place as you read them is just plain fun. The book is made up of four stories which each take place in a different locale as our protagonist, The Rider, travels the southwestern portion of the US.

The first story is a right proper hook, believe me (they all are, really though). The Rider wanders into a dirty little town that's showing some rather angry teeth towards anyone of the Jewish persuasion. We find out why. In the adjacent area is a place called “Little Jerusalem.” In this place, children have started to go missing. The Rider aims to find out why.

Now, as I said, this first one is a good hook because it gives you a taste of everything these stories are about. The Rider is established as a driven man with a steel core but very unusual. And without giving too much away, we're very quickly shown just how unusual he really is. I really don't want to show much more because I enjoyed myself so much seeing what was happening in this fantastic setting.

The second story is set in Mexico in a sleepy desert town. As if that weren't western enough, here comes the weird: a voodoo man and a strange sandstorm. The third story of the Rider's travels involves an unstoppable gunman, a Christian preacher and a mountain town. And rounding things out is a fantastic end cap that shows just how human the Rider really is, even in his dealings with demons and greedy bandits. It also sets up perfectly for the sequel, The Mensch With No Name.

Erdelac's writing reminds me of Robert E. Howard's. Quite a compliment, by my standards. It's fluid, it gives good description and the pace when the action picks up keeps you reading. His phrasings are a bit more modern than Howard's, not that that's a bad thing. There's a smattering of Lovecraft in there and in fact, if you're like me and love Howard's and Lovecraft's stories, you will utterly adore this book. Fans of Lovecraft will get as excited as I did, I think. Erdelac's knowledge of Jewish mysticism and mythology is utterly fantastic as well and he weaves in Jewish words wonderfully. They are a bit jarring at first if you're unfamiliar with their pronunciations or meanings but the latter part is remedied with an included glossary in the back.

Mr. Erdelac has done a phenomenal job here and give us all not just a genuinely amazing weird west story, but a great story period. He makes beautiful use of the religious aspects used. The use of mythology and religion reminded me a bit of Mike Mignola's writing for Hellboy too. And I know I've left some of the story details pretty bare here (and I'm aware that you can find a bit more details around the Emporium of the Amazon page) but I wanted to make it clear how fun these stories are. I don't want to ruin any details ahead of time. The surprises are fantastic and you will absolutely be hooked.

My only real complaint about the book is the actual physical book itself. It's a little small in the width so you have to pull it open a little wider sometimes to read the words that are near the spine. It's minor but another six of an inch would've helped this problem. Still, it's an independent company so it's totally understandable. I'm sure that Mr. Erdelac, like I would no doubt feel, was thrilled to get the book published.

So, to sum up, it's weird, it's western, it's fun, it's exciting, it's dark, it's amazing. Buy it, devour it, enjoy it, thank me later. And do Mr. Erdelac a favor and just buy both books because trust me when I say, you're going to want them both.

Happy Holidays from the Weird West Emporium!

The Holiday times are here and New Years is right around the corner! There are no more shopping days left until Christmas, but that doesn't mean its too late to find some great books to cozy up to during these long cold winter nights! Here are a few last minute items I wanted to mention that will take you through the holiday season and into the New Year!




For pure Weird Western awesomeness and a stellar reference guide to the genre, pick up Paul Green's Encyclopedia of Weird Westerns: Supernatural and Science Fiction Elements in Novels, Pulps, Comics, Films, Television and Games which you can pick up HERE. Its a way more comprehensive read than the Weird West Emporium and has things Ill probably never get too. Also Paul has a great companion WEBSITE that picks up where the book leaves off.



Next up is Ed Erdelac's Merkabah Rider books, which can be gotten HERE and HERE in hard copy and eBook.

The story is:
The last of an ancient order of Jewish mystics capable of extraplanar travel, The Merkabah Rider roams the demon haunted American West of 1879 in search of the renegade teacher who betrayed his enclave. But as the trail grows fresher, shadows gather, and The Hour Of The Incursion draws near... Four novella episodes in one book.

A friend of mine has devoured both books and says they are spectacular; a definite must read!

Also, Ed has a great Website called Delirium Tremens where he explains the inspirations to his stories, a great trip report for the 2010 Steamcon convention (Which I failed to do a report on, oops), and many other things. You can read it HERE.

Also, check out this cool trailer that was made for the Merkabah Rider series!




The final book is the Buntline Special: A Weird West Tale by Mike Resnick. Its a different take on Wyatt Earp, Tombstone, and the gunfight at the OK Corral. I haven't had a chance to pick it up yet, but its getting a good reviews and could be just the thing to heat up those cold winter nights! You can get THIS at Amazon too!





And that about does it for me. As The Weird West Emporium moves into its second year I wanted thank everyone for their support and readship! Ive never actually taken on anything as large as this before and its really inspiring to know that people are not only liking my site but loving the Weird West in general. I love that there is an audience for it! Hopefully next year will get even bigger with the release of Cowboys and Aliens, (and maybe other stuff that hasn't been announced yet? The Lone Ranger perhaps?) Plus there will be a ton more stuff to talk about here at the Emporium. These past two years have barely scratched the surface of whats out there. (Actually it will be two years in April, so I shouldn't celebrate just yet!)

Also, I'm considering a (sort of) secret project that everyone will be able to participate on when its up and running, but more on that later.

I'm going to take a couple weeks off and the Emporium will be closed until January 10th, so until then I hope you guys have a safe and fun Holiday season! I hope you have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Merkabah Rider 2 and The Blood Bay!

For fans of Edward M. Erdelac's work, he's back with two more tales from the Weird West!

I hate to admit it, but I have yet to read Ed's first book in the Merkabah Rider series, Merkabah Rider: Tales Of A High Planes Drifter.....but in my defense, I'm a terrible book reader. My mind is always running around, and I'm always doing something. So sitting down to read a book takes a bit of a commitment.....I think I have a bit of ADD (or maybe I just drink too much caffeine).....but regardless, a good friend of mine DID read Merkabah Rider 1, and he said it was GREAT.

Well fans of the series have something to be happy about as the adventures of The Rider continue in Merkabah Rider: The Mensch With No Name

Damnation books describes it like this:

The Merkabah Rider continues his journey across the American Southwest of 1880 in search of the renegade teacher who destroyed his mystic Jewish order in the 2nd volume of this acclaimed weird western series. As the Rider unravels more of the mystery of the Hour of the Incursion, demons are the least of his troubles.

The book is once again an anthology, made up of 4 Short stories, The Infernal Napolean, The Damned Dingus, The Outlaw Gods, and The Pandaemonium Ride. These make up episodes 5 though 8 and tell the ongoing adventures of Erdelac's hero.

The book has been released as an ebook through the publisher's website and should be released in hard copy form within the next few weeks.

Also, for a comprehensive review of Mensch With No Name, head on over to Paul Green's Encyclopedia of Weird Westerns site where he actually reads books and doesn't drink too much caffeine!


And speaking of websites, if fans of Ed Erdelac's work haven't been going over to his blog, Delirium Tremens you are missing out. He writes up some fascinating explanations about his work and the inspirations behind his stories. There is a write up about Mensch With No Name, but what I'm specifically thinking of is the second story he released recently, The Blood Bay.

The Blood Bay is one of the short stories in the new Midnight Diner collection. Erdelac describes the story like this:

My own story is about a boy (Jonas) who comes to live on his father’s ranch following the violent death of his estranged mother in a freak accident. His father has remarried, and although Jonas takes to life on a horse ranch, he cannot bring himself to accept his father and stepmother. Then, in an attempt to win his son’s love, Jonas’ father brings him a skittish, wall-eyed blood colored mare and tells the boy he can keep it so long as he can get it to eat...

He also explains that his influences were John Steinbeck's The Red Pony (the bane of many a High School English students) and the Greek Myths of Diomedes and his Man-eating Mares. Particularly "Xanthos (or Xanthus, meaning ‘blonde’ or sometimes ‘bay’).....whom Hercules captured as his eighth labor."

I don't know about you but I think this sounds like a fantastic idea for a short story.....sort of The Red Pony in Hell! Edward talks about his inspirations at length in his article HERE, or if you want to be surprised the Midnight Diner collection can be found HERE, although I haven't been able to find a release date, but they are taking pre-orders.

UPDATE: Merkabah Rider: The Mensch With No Name is available now in both ebook and hard copy formats. They can be bought HERE

Merkabah Rider: Tales of a High Planes Drifter‏!

For your weekend reading pleasure, a new Weird Western book as been brought to my attention. Its called Merkabah Rider: Tales of a High Planes Drifter, from Damnation Books, written by Ed Erdelac, with some pretty sweet cover art by Cinsearae Santiago. Here is a description of the story, in the writers own words:

Set in 1879, it follows the adventures of The Rider, a Hasidic gunslinger, the last of an order of ancient Jewish mystics capable of extra-planar travel, as he tracks down the renegade teacher who betrayed and murdered his enclave. Along the way he encounters a cult of Molech worshipers bent on human sacrifice, a murderous possessed gunman, a powerful ju ju man holding a boom town in his sway, and a bordello full of antediluvian succubi.

I called it a "book" instead of a "novel" because in truth its an anthology of 4 different novellas, each telling a different adventure featuring "The Rider":

Blood Libel: In 1879, the children of the Arizona mining town of Delirium Tremens have begun disappearing. The law has tracked the missing daughter of a local reverend to the neighboring Jewish settlement of Little Jerusalem. Old hatreds are fit to boil over when a mysterious Hasidic gunslinger known as the Rider checks into the local hotel. He soon discovers a rogue element of the population has taken over the settlement and instituted a cult dedicated to the profane worship of the demon king Molech. The Rider sets out to bring it down, with the lives of the innocent Jews and the kidnapped preacher’s daughter in the balance. But as he sheds his physical form to do battle in the spirit world, an irate mob breaks into his hotel room and drags his unconscious body away. The Rider must smash the cult and return to his body in time to avert his own lynching…

The Dust Devils: An impenetrable dust storm blows the Rider into the border town of Polvo Arrido. Its affluence points to a town in the midst of a boom, but where have all the people gone? A ruthless bandit chief and his gang may hold the answer, or else a strange eyed ju ju man whose powers rival the Rider’s own. Then there’s the fact that the storm surrounding the town doesn’t seem to dissipate….

Hell's Hired Gun: When the Rider discovers a massacred Franciscan mission, he turns aside from the trail of his master to track down the perpetrator. He is rescued from a snowstorm outside the remote town of Gadara by an odd old preacher, who spins him a yarn about Medgar Tooms, a cursed gunman who walks the West at the head of a herd of voracious pigs, dragging the broken chains of all those who have tried to bind him. But this is no fantasy. Tooms is coming to Gadara, and only the Rider and the preacher stand in his way…

The Nightjar Women: The Rider comes to a town without children where nightly, evil is born again and again. In the coils of his most secret dreams, an antediluvian menace calls him...by his true name.

I love anthologies, and this looks like a lot of fun! I actually have a copy....but being the terrible reader that I am, I haven't had a chance to sit down with it just yet; but don't you make the same mistake! Merkabah Rider: Tales of a High Planes Drifter‏ is available in both print form and as a digital download for your Kindle HERE

You should definitely pick this up! We need to support more quality independent Weird West content! A review will be forthcoming.