Steampunk, Magic, and Gunfights…
If you’ve read my previous review of The Doctor and the Dinosaurs, you’ll know I read this Weird West Tales series in the wrong order. When I wrote that review, I looked up what else Mike Resnick had written and discovered there was an entire series, and that I read the last book first. The last book in the series was crazy fun enough, I decided to order the rest of the book in the series.
The Buntline Special is a wild, fun mashup of alternate history, magic, and steampunk. Tombstone, Arizona, gets a makeover: Thomas Edison lives there and equips the town with advanced inventions, making it the first city in America lit by electricity. (As a Buffalo native, I know that’s historically false. Buffalo was first to Nikola Tesla and Niagara Falls.)
The story reimagines the Earps in Tombstone and Doc Holliday arriving in a steampunk carriage made of bronze metal invented by Ned Buntline. (The real Buntline wasn’t an inventor, he was a writer.) Bat Masterson joins the story in a surprising way.
Geronimo and other Native shamans wield magical powers to keep the whites and America on the eastern side of the Mississippi. Geronimo tries to get Edison assassinated. Only Edison poses a threat to their magic. So, the Earps job in this retelling is to protect Edison. Holliday and Masterson are summoned to help them out.
There are robots, vampires, people brought back from the dead, and a touch of romance. The plot is crazy fun, and I feel like Resnick and I share author DNA.
Most of the story is told from Doc Holliday’s POV, giving it a sharp, entertaining edge. If you love inventive, creative speculative fiction or are just in the mood for a light, fun read, this series is definitely worth checking out. There’s something for everyone: history buffs, steampunk fans, magic lovers, western enthusiasts, and fantasy fans.
