Dig Ten Graves made me an instant evangelist for Heath Lowrance so I must confess to having high expectations when I got my hands on That Damned Coyote Hill.
Lowrance has an enviable ability to create images which stay with you long after you’ve put the book down – Charon lashed to post in It Will All Be Carried Away haunts me every time I go shopping – and That Damned Coyote Hill begins with a portentous encounter between a lone rider and a strange, unholy beast. It is cinematic in intention and execution, Lowrance’s usual stripped down prose perfect for the moment.
Straddling the western and horror genres, Lowrance crafts a driving revenge tale, blood spattered and dust-stained, populated by folks you wouldn’t want to meet without a six-shooter at your hip and some who’d make you consider using it on yourself. Hawthorne is an attractive enigma, who feels like a series character in the making, and on the strength of this short alone I think he’ll pick up a quite a following.
If you haven’t read Lowrance before That Damned Coyote Hill is a good place to start, perfect autumn evening reading, but be prepared to want more.
That Damned Coyote Hill is out now on Kindle
loitering with intent 
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