A well written graphic novel, with great artwork and an excellent story set in the wild west.

 Stern is the town undertaker. He has no friends, family or associates and exists on the margins of life in his town. He maintains the grave yard, holds funerals and reads his books. His life takes an interesting turn when he is asked to perform an autopsy on a man who dropped dead in the local brothel. Stern does the autopsy only to find out that the deceased man was actually murdered.

 When a young girl from the local brothel is arrested, Stern decides to get to the truth but the town is one of dark secrets, dark history, historical resentment and ingrained injustice. 

As Stern seeks the truth his actions draw him into the centre of town life, but they also mean that he may stay on the margins for good.

This is a gritty and engrossing graphic novel set in the wild west. The civil war had been fought and some families still feel repercussion. The town has a history of death and darkness but is Stern able to wade through it and solve the crime?

Copy provided by publishers via Netgalley in exhange for an unbiased review.

Set in 1882 in the little town of Morrison, Kansas, Elijah Stern is the town's undertaker who enjoys a solitary life. One day, this well-read man who also dabbles in forensic pathology was asked to perform an autopsy on Charles Bening. His findings led him to believe that Charles did not die from natural causes but was murdered instead. Another body showed up a few days later and again evidence pointed to a murder. Not only that these murders may be connected, they may also share a connection with Stern's past.

A good plot albeit slow-paced. But the good story build-up is worthy of your patience! There was definitely a mystery element in the story but not too much. Generally clean language used and I appreciate that. Characters are developed quite well and there is connection with Stern's character. The illustrations are actually quite good where the right colors and characters' expressions definitely set the mood for this story and complement the smooth flow of the story.

Overall, this is quite an enjoyable read. I am not a Western story fan but I would definitely read the next volume as the plot was intriguing for this first volume.

I enjoyed this Western comic. Great art. I especially liked the depictions of the undertaker.  The story was well-plotted.