The Buffalo Hunter Hunter just might be my favorite Stephen Graham Jones novel, and that’s saying a lot because I love his work. It has all the hallmarks of an SGJ story: detailed and voicey first person narration that often has to be combed through for breadcrumbs of information, a twist on standard horror tropes, humor, genuine scares, and a refreshing and irreverent take on American history from a Native standpoint. Here he tackles vampires and, in his usual fashion, takes a worn out trope and makes it entirely new and interesting. I loved the reworking of vampire mythology as well as the ways the novel uses real life atrocities, including the Marias Massacre, to shine a light on too-often forgotten aspects of Western history. There are also some totally bonkers reveals that I just loved—a great mix of humor and horror.

I could also write pages on this as an intertext to another favorite book—Stoker’s Dracula. Both are epistolary novels, and both are interested in ideas about foreignness, contagion, and the rapid development of technology/colonization in the 19th century. I already know I am going to be re-reading this one again very soon.

Thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for an early copy of this book.

This is what I've been waiting for from SGJ! This slow burn horror story is eerie, gruesome, interesting, and all the things I was hoping it would be.

This author shines when he shares indigenous culture and point of view. The storyline was unique and fascinating. I love slashers, but I'm glad he went somewhere new with this one.

Ultimately, he created a memorable vampire story that fits the genre without relying on already done tropes and cliches. It felt fresh and I loved how he constructed it all. I think this is my favorite of all his novels.

SGJ can do no wrong in my eyes. This book had me turning the pages and finished it within a day! Great addition to his collection!

Title: The Buffalo Hunter
Author: Stephen Graham Jones
Page Count: 448
Publisher: S&S/ Saga Press
Format: Physical ARC & Digital ARC
Release Date: March 18, 2025
General Genre: Horror
Sub/Genre- Themes: historical horror, vampires, Native American
What You Need To Know: This is my favorite SGJ novel so far. A vampire tale like you have never imagined. ( I didn’t think anything could beat The Only Good Indians, or I Was a Teenage Slasher) Pikuni ( Indian tribe- Blackfeet), Weasel Plume ( white buffalo Good Stab saved) , Napikwan ( soldiers, trappers) Three- Persons ( pastor taking confessional)
My Reading Experience: This book absolutely blew me away. A vampire novel like you have never imagined. This book was so beautiful and absolutely gut wrenching. I could not get enough. The journalistic style of how it was written was absolutely enthralling. The research of the Blackfeet Indian history, language and places were so well thought out and beautifully portrayed. I was completely entranced by this tale. It is like nothing I have ever read before. It was heartbreakingly beautiful.
Final Recommendation: If you enjoy historical horror, vampires, unique storytelling, or beautifully crafted stories that will weave their way into your psyche then this is the novel for you.

This is the SGJ I remember from The Only Good Indians - dark, unflinching, inventive, and brutal. The Buffalo Hunter Hunter is an incredible take on the vampire genre. A lot of thought went into the "rules" of vampirism for the book and SGJ uses those rules to create some fantastic scenarios across the book.
Using the pastor to record both perspectives is a really effective device and his descent as the story unfolds is gripping.
Full of history and well-researched insight into the time period and the traditions and culture of the Blackfeet, this is horror at its best - smart and chilling with enough familiar ideas to connect to but plenty of surprises as well.

SGJ, how do you do it? How do you constantly blow me away with your writing? This one is going to stick with me for a long time. I almost want to go back and reread the first half— that good. Slow burn historical horror at its finest. I especially loved the modern day timeline that we start and end the book with. I’m a sucker for epistolary elements and it was a win for me here. Everything about this felt very theatrical and played out in my head like a movie. I really think this would be a fantastic movie and someone needs to get that in the works asap.

This isn’t a review for the ALC, but I would be remiss to not mention just how incredible this audiobook was. It’s only March, but I’ll be shocked if this doesn’t end up my favorite audiobook of the year. They literally couldn’t have done a better job. SGJ has a very conversational flow to his writing that translates well to audio, but this one even more so.

If you love historical horror, slow burns with great payoff, and fresh takes on vampire stories then I highly recommend.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me a copy of THE BUFFALO HUNTER. It was an amazing read, and might be my new favorite of Dr. Jones' work.

Told as a narrative within a narrative, within a third narrative, this story covers nearly two hundred years of Blackfeet history. Etsy, an academic intent on earning tenure, is contacted by another university. A manuscript, a journal, written by her great-great-grandfather, Arthur, was found in a house, and Etsy sees this as a chance to make her name in academia by transcribing the journal. Arthur, a Lutheran minister, takes the confession of a supposed Blackfeet vampire, Good Stab, intent on righting the wrongs of a Blackfeet massacre.

What absolutely worked for this narrative: the epistolary style of narrative, the character building of the main characters, and Dr. Jones' take on vampire lore. I wanted more and more of Good Stab, and loved every minute he was on the page.

What I struggled with: the language at times was a challenge, but once you were in a flow, it worked .I did not feel really connected to Etsy, until nearly the very end, which I am not sure worked against the narrative. Some readers may find the narrative slow but stick with it.

As I said before, this might be my favorite of Dr. Jones' work. Thoughtful, dark, and captivating--it kept me invested from start to finish.

This one took me a while to get through because it was so dense and the writing was genuinely like something from over a century ago, but I loved this alternate history of vampires. I'm not even sure how to review this, because I was so impressed by how everything came together and the depths of Stephen's mind that I feel like a newly-legged fish trying to review the dry land I just stepped onto for the first time. It was so good.

This book was difficult to get through…..the writing was just incredibly difficult to follow.

Listen, this self-proclaimed bibliophile reads, alllll kinds of stuff. I was excited to read this off of the description and cover but oh did that excitement wain as I turned page after page.

I struggled to stay interested, to be captivated, to just understand it at times. I had to re-read portions more than once. I was bored, found my mind drifting and wanted to put it down out of frustration.

The premise is amazing, the execution was… lacking.

I see all these high ratings and ask myself how I missed the mark. I’ve read classics/ unique writing before, so I can deal with obscure language and styles, but this just didn’t hit the mark.

This isn’t an engrossing vampire read with all the mystical powers or elements I’ve come to know and love (and I love both Twilight AND Dracula the classic) but you may like it as a more historical realism piece.

A Blackfeet named Good Stab. A gluttonous Lutheran pastor. A 400+ year old “CatMan” with a grudge. Be prepared to experience a vampire tale like never before….

When Pastor Arthur Beaucarne’s journal is found lodged in the wall of church during modern day construction, it’s soon discovered that it contains a detailed confession like no other. When the pastor’s great-great granddaughter begins to ask questions as to why the Pastor suddenly disappeared in 1912, she soon finds that she may be getting more than she expected.

From there, we travel back to that time to Miles City, Montana, where a ghastly scene unfolds with a very unusual death. Someone - or something - is bleeding the townspeople dry. When Blackfeet Good Stab suddenly shows up at the pastor’s sermons and wants to share his confession, Beaucarne soon comes to suspect that he is behind it all - but is he?

This story then goes even further back, and submerges the reader into an exquisitely detailed account of Good Stab’s life from boyhood on, unfolding a truly heartbreaking and horrifying tale of death and revenge. This is also a journey of grief, putting the reader on the front lines of the atrocities that took place against the indigenous nations, the land and its beautiful creatures.

Filled with lore and legend, superstition and suspense, mystery and murder, guilt and gore, I can say without hesitation that I loved every word, every incredible detail of this historical masterpiece. Jones pulls you in, locks you in and doesn’t let go - and while you’re unpeeling and unpacking all of the layers, he makes you feel it all.

I can’t stop thinking about this and probably won’t for some time. This is my new favorite from Dr Jones.

This chilling historical horror novel plunges you into the stark landscape of 1912. Most of the narrative is from a journal of a Lutheran Priest, Arthur Beaucarne. It is tellings of a confession told to him by Good Stab, a Blackfeet man. It is of a vampire haunting the Blackfeet reservation. Getting revenge for his people who were tied to a brutal massacre of 217 Blackfeet.
A combination of horror and historical fiction that is chilling and thought provoking. It did lull at times and I also had moments of confusion. But this is definitely an interesting take of vampires.

Truly amazing, I think its his best yet, it had echoes of anne rice, loved the mesh of history and signature dark humour of SGJ, this is dense, but that's not a criticism, it felt like a much longer book, again not a criticism, rich and decadent and I was fully absorbed the entire time whilst reading

I've been really interested in native americans' history recently, and i've always been a big fan of the horror genre—wether it's a book or a movie—so this was just perfect for me.

The story is told beautifully, and I also found the more historical parts very interesting. They shed light on profoundly sad events of America's history, and it is what makes it, in my opinion, an important read and I recommend it to anyone (even if they don't like horror) to read it.

It is far from a light and easy read, though. It is complex and heavy, and I would advise everyone to read a bit about the maria's massacre and to check the trigger warnings of this book prior to reading it.

However, i found it a bit confusing sometimes, and i had to go back and re-read many passages because I just kept forgetting what had happened, and a lot happened.

This book gave 100% Stephen Graham Jones. I love how it combined the horror of history with native Americans and a side of dark humor. His books always keep my attention

What a story. There are so many ways I can describe this novel: tragic, horrific, scary, morose, thrilling, violent, informative, epic - but the most apt description, I think, is simply that it's a modern-day classic. Or, rather, it's destined to be one, and to take its place alongside such towering horror works as Stephen King's The Stand or Dan Simmons' The Terror.

Stephen Graham Jones takes readers back to 1912, where a gluttonous pastor in Montana is approached by an enigmatic Blackfeet tribesman with an aversion to sunlight, who wishes to tell the pastor of his history - a history that may connect the two men in unexpected ways.

The book features the most unique take on vampires I have read in a long time, if ever. I won't spoil it here, but the author's blending of traditional vampire traits with other horror elements works very well, and he uses it to good effect.

The exploration of this time period is unsettling, and the idea of a Native American vampire roaming the Montana plains seeking revenge on both buffalo hide hunters and the creature that turned him into a monster is unsettling - from a supernatural perspective, and even moreso from a history perspective.

The characters of Good Stab and Arthur Beaucarne are deeply flawed, with both suffering their own regrets and addiction issues. In more ways than either would care to admit, they are alike, and neither is the "good guy" in this situation. The story is told from both character's perspectives, and both have a unique voice that draws you in.

There are incredibly thrilling moments, as well (moments with a cannon and with a buffalo stampede come to mind). And beyond all that, for someone who is not Native American, the book is very informative about things like the Blackfeet's culture and beliefs.

My criticisms are minor but affected the book from getting the perfect 5-star rating. The pacing can drag a bit, with multiple large passages dedicated simply to Good Stab surviving on the plains. There are chapters that are long, taking over an hour to read in some cases, where things play out slowly.

The ending is a bit overdrawn, and Stephen Graham Jones had the opportunity to end the story on an absolute gut-punch but decided to push through a few more chapters in order to wrap up a third, minor character's storyline. Don't get me wrong, the ending is still good, but there's a missed opportunity to really leave the audience in an emotional bind.

Absolutely check this novel out, especially if this sounds up your alley. At 448 pages, it's a bit of a commitment, but one well worth taking. The author has produced his best work yet, a story that serves as an effective vampire tale, but even more effectively as a reflection of American history and one of its darkest corners.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Saga Press for the ARC!

4.5/5

🦬🩸🏹Unvergänglich🏹🩸🦬

"What I am is the Indian who can't die. I'm the worst dream America ever had. "

What a journey this book was!

Interview with a vampire meets American Buffalo and collides with John Wick.

This was one of my most anticipated books of 2025, and not only did it live up to the hype. It surpassed it.

It reads epidosodically, a slow burn, world building and historically rich narration in journey entries from the journal of a sweet toothed Lutheran Pastor Arthur Beaucarne aka Three-Persons, in the late 1800's that goes from documenting his mundane life to the increasing disturbing "incidents" in his community of Miles City, Montana. One day, he meets a "Indian", Good Stab, who comes to service on Sunday, and soon after, he begins to record his story. The journal is later found by a day worker and given to his granddaughter, Etsy, in 2012. And the story takes off.

It was so good and immersive, the narration and language took me a little to get used to, but it is part of the journey and immersing into the book itself. If you wish for a simple read, with no note taking it, this book isn't for you. There will be notes on history, names, places, and soooo many quotes.

My two favorite ones were the one in the top and later on this one.

"You can't stop a country from happening, Good Stab."

"But we were already a nation," he said up to me. "We didn't ask you to come.

If you enjoy a historic read, a good world building and immersive, and heavily cinematic, I recommend this.

I already have loved all three prior books I've read from Stephen Graham Jones, and this makes the fourth one, five starts all.

I would love to thank NetGalley, Saga Press, and Stephen Graham Jones for the privilege to read and review this e-book ARC! Can't wait to read more!

“The depravity of man’s heart knows no floor, and everyone in this hard country has a sordid chapter in the story of their life, that they’re trying either to atone for, or stay ahead of. It’s what binds us one to the other.”
THE BUFFALO HUNTER HUNTER by Stephen Graham Jones is beautifully harrowing and I do not feel worthy of being able to review it. I humbly present the following but just know that my words are incredibly inadequate.
It all begins with a construction worker finding an old journal hidden away at a demolition site. The fragile journal is taken in to be studied and we get to read the story along with the great-great-great granddaughter of the journal’s author. This epistolary story tells of a pastor in a small Montana town in 1912 and the confession of Good Stab, a member of the Blackfeet Nation.
SGJ has created remarkably realistic characters and setting which make it all the more difficult for you to let go. I found myself wondering about Arthur and Good Stab any time that I could not be with them. I savored this book, not wanting to rush the agonizing horror as it was unfolding. I audibly gasped a few times while things fell into place for me.
The prose is timeless and it was so easy to get lost in the story. I became comfortable with the names that the Blackfeet used and the story played before my eyes like a cold dream.
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter is an intricately involved weaving of layers and layers of confession from one who is fully owning their guilt and from one who is icing in denial. This is probably my new favorite from Jones.

Coming March 18th from Saga Press

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephan Graham Jones shows us why he’s one of the most innovative voices in horror today. This isn’t just another vampire story, it’s a unique collection of historical fiction, horror and social commentary.

The writing is lyrical and visceral, immersing readers in a world where the lines between predator and prey blur in unexpected ways.

What sets this story apart is that it reimagines the vampire mythos through an Indigenous lens, transforming familiar tropes into something richer and more meaningful. Every scene builds tension, every detail matters, and by the end, you realize just how masterfully Jones has pulled the threads together.

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter is an absolute must-read.

DNF I’ve tried 4 times to read this and have fallen asleep each time. This is incredibly dry and boring and this is coming from someone who loves history and grew up in the largest native population in the Midwest and worked at my colleges indigenous museum. I got about 14% in before I gave up. There are no vampires yet but I’m guessing the story would be bland anyways as I’m not reading a book but reading the alleged MC’s great grandfathers journal. Synopsis is a huge let down to what this is.

This was a dark and dense novel, got sorta weird towards the end, in a creative writing type of way. I really appreciate this type of storytelling, and while I might not have understood everything that was happening, it was very good.

The story of Arthur Beaucarne and Good Stab told in an epistolary style took a bit to get used to, it almost seemed like jumbled journal entries but there is method to the madness. Reflecting on the history of Blackfeet and the Pikuni people, tragic and violent suffering of Native Americans in general cannot be diminished. Being killed just for who they are or what land they occupy, just because the white man wants it. It hurts. The details of the violent themes were very gruesome at times and I had to pause my reading couple times.

While the historical aspects are inspired by realistic events, the horror fiction really is a presence of its own. I found those parts very engaging and had me theorizing about reincarnation and the blood connections in Etsy’s chapters. Very mind bending stuff.

Do not skip the acknowledgements, I really liked learning about Jones’ inspiration behind the story, the research and certain plot lines, very creative. 4.5⭐️