This was a deeply horrifying, unsettling and masterfully crafted horror novel. The scariest stories are the ones that interweave real events, and real people.. This was my first Stephen Graham Jones after having many of his books of my TBR list for years. While the subject matter is incredibly tragic, it is also very necessary for readers to read. Invaluable addition to the horror genre and one of the best horror books this year already. Will definitely be purchasing this one for our popular reads section at my work library.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a review copy.

I'm having a hard time getting my thoughts together about this book. It was interesting, beautifully written, and tough as all hell to get through. It is an excellent book, but very challenging, and I feel like it would be wrong to say that I "enjoyed" it. The vampire lore is some of the most unique and interesting that I've read. I love it when an author can take a familiar concept and make it entirely their own, and Stephen Graham Jones succeeds in spades. Emotionally, though, it chewed me up and spit me out. 4.5 stars

I continue to be in awe of Stephen Graham Jones. Everything I've had the opportunity to read by him has been incredibly visceral. The writing embeds itself into your heart just a little bit. The Buffalo Hunter Hunter is of course no exception. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced digital copy. I've already got my physical copy preordered and I can't wait to add it to my shelf.

The story has a great premise but seems to be lacking in the execution. Stephen Graham Jones proves he is quite knowledgeable when it comes to the history of this time period. I was excited to start this one but it was so difficult to slog through. I felt like I was reading a history text book instead of a horror novel. The beginning of the story does next to nothing to pull you in and just feels like you are sitting in a classroom.

This is an excellent novel that offers a truly unique intervention into the vampire tradition. It is grounded in its world and expects the reader to do the work to understand that world. This is one of my favorite things to chew on in a piece of fiction, working with the writer to put things together and make connections as their narrative goes on. Stephen Graham Jones is an excellent dance partner in this.

Whew. I was intrigued by the premise and sucked into this book. What a haunting, horrifying, and riveting read. I love a good vampire book (who doesn’t) and this one offered a different, if not more compelling, take on the being. Don’t get me wrong, there were parts that left me grimacing - this is a story of revenge - but it was a compelling and heartbreaking read. Thank you for the opportunity to read this book!

This is a really well done, well written novel - I wasn't sure about the two frame settings at first but it does pay off. Good Stab is also just a fantastic, complex, tragic character to read about. That said, the content is pretty dark - it's based on a historical massacre and goes into the atrocities committed against the Native tribes of that area. One of the frame stories also features the POV of a racist white man. There's also a lot of animal killing (I mean, as you would expect from the title) and animal TW <spoiler>skinning of buffalo while they're still alive</spoiler>. While I would definitely recommend this, it's not something I would re-read.

I'm a pretty big SGJ fan already. He's had a miss or two, but on the whole, I enjoy his books. But this one might as well have a book jacket blurb that says, "Jones' best so far!" Because it truly is.

Although it does retain the native element for which he's known, that's where the similarities to his other books end. This was something totally different and refreshingly new for him. Its closest competitor would be "The Only Good Indians," but honestly, this one blows that one out of the water.

It's a slow burn, but it's 100% worth it.

There are a few trigger warnings: mostly animal deaths. So be aware of that going in.

But if you can get past that and a few other TW, this book is a truly spectacular read. The characters are incredibly fleshed out, and the fact that the story intertwines real-life history with the narrative is just so good. I also love the interesting take on vampires Jones decided on. (Don't worry -- they don't sparkle in the sun!) They do, however, do things that you don't see very often in vampire lore.

I could go on about this book for ages, but really, I can sum up my review in these 8 words: I have nothing but love for this book.

The premise of this book sounded amazing. It just wasn't for me. I found it to be very slow and difficult to get through and stay engaged. I like Stephen Graham Jones, but he has been hit or miss for me.

“This, I believe, is the story of America, told in a forgotten church in the hinterlands, with a choir of the dead mutely witnessing.”

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter was a heavy story, which I read mostly at night with the covers pulled over my head. Until I had to get up and turn on a light, that is, because I was so thoroughly creeped out.

It was clear from the beginning that Stephen Graham Jones took his research seriously. Good Stab’s language from the 19th century was fascinating, and I had to stop myself from looking up every word, place, and event mentioned in the novel in order to immerse myself in the story.

At times I loathed this book, which seemed to drag on and on, especially in the first half. But I found that I couldn’t stop thinking about it and wanting to talk about it. This story was so much more than I imagined, and I found myself repeatedly surprised by its twists and turns, but also its soul-crushing depth.

When it comes to Stephen Graham Jones, I would read anything he writes without reading a word of the synopsis, and that’s how I recommend going into the Buffalo Hunter Hunter. Know that the journey will at times be arduous, but the story unfolds in such a satisfying way. This was a book that kept me up at night, at times because it was so creepy, but mostly because I was so invested in the story.

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter spun a tale of unimaginable horror and filled me with such gut-wrenching sadness for the historical treatment of Native Americans. While not a happy story, this is one that will stick with me for years to come.

I am a huge vampire fan, so seeing that one of my favorite horror genre authors was writing a vampire novel definitely made my 2025. Jones always does such a great job of winking at the source materials (he is definitely an author's author) while also making something entirely new. The book starts with Etsy, who is doing research and finds a manuscript from her ancestor which details a "confession" he received from a Native American who claims to be something more than human. I am a huge epistolary novel fan and this is how you do it. I was also impressed (but not surprised) at how distinct each section felt and the narrative voice differences were used to great effect in this book. The last section, which is mostly from Etsy's point of view, was more of the writing from Jones that I'm used to while the earlier sections, from Good Stab and Beaucarne's perspective felt different enough while keeping the sly humor I'm accustomed to.
This book also does not shy away from the horror elements, with so many scenes and imagery from this story being stuck in my head, including a memorable scene featuring someone on the cross. The new mythology for vampires was great too, with them turning into the creatures they feed on most, including humans.
Overall this was another big swing and it's over the outfield fence. I always kind of hate this idea, but I think this book would honestly make an incredible movie or tv show, since so many of the scenes are incredibly cinematic. But everyone should read the book first!

This is one of those books where once I finished, I dind't think I'd ever be the same again. Maybe that's dramatic, but that's how I felt.
This is not an easy book to read - both in subject matter and, for some, in text. The historical backbone of this book really happened in US History, althought its never mentioned in "regular" American schools. The Marias Massacre really happened - you can look it up. For some people, the mixing of English and Blackfeet words was confusing and hard to read, for me it was all part of the experience. I don't want it all translated if its the tale of a Blackfoot Indian - that is too colonial. You don't need to know what every single word means - you can probably look it up if you really want to know. Okay, I guess we should get inot the CAWPILE stuff as now we're kind of bleeding into that anyways.
Characters: 5/5 - These characters felt real. Good Stab represented the Blackfeet to me. I felt all these characters. Etsy got me through a rough day. I loved her chaotic nature and sarcasm. They are unique characters.
Atmosphere/Setting: 5/5 - This was Montana.... Blackfeet country.
Writing Style: 5/5 - For me, the writing style worked perfectly. Others are more hestitant about it. I enjoyed the mixture of English and Blackfeet language - it felt authentic. If it was all perfect English it wouldn't have felt right. I think Jones translated what we needed to know, provided imagery for us to determine some on our own and left others to our imaginations.
Plot: 5/5 - I did not see that ending coming at all. Good Stab plays the long long game...
Intrigue: 5/5 - Absolutely intrigued. I can't stop thinking about this book - even after I've finished it.
Logic: 5/5 - To me, it all made sense - even the ending which for some left them with questions. In my opinion - Good Stab was out for long term revenge. (Once you read this book, you'll understand what I mean - I think. Message me if you don't.)
Enjoyment: 5/5 - Enjoyment is 100% not the correct word here. But I loved this book with all my heart. Yes, it was hard to read. Yes, it made me cry (even the ackowledgements - yes I read those too!), and mae me sick - but it also made me smile and laugh.
Another 5 star rating for Stephen Graham Jones in my eyes!
Total: 35/7 = 5/5

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones is an intriguing read, but it didn’t fully capture my interest. While I love Stephen as a writer, I’m not always entirely invested in his works. There’s something about the Old West that feels dated to me, and any discussion of "Indians" brings that sensation even more to the forefront. That said, I did enjoy the eerie, almost Interview with the Vampire-like quality of the story, which added a compelling supernatural element. Jones’ signature style and psychological depth are always impressive, but this one didn’t quite resonate with me as much as some of his other works.

Just trust me and go and preorder this now. This has been an astounding read, in the best possible way, and ends up being about the cyclical nature of violence, debts coming due, and the dark places of our country's history where myth and fact overlap, and thrive. We get a combination of journal entries, written accounts of verbal testimony, and a third exciting section that almost didn't stick the landing for me, but ended up being the perfect cap.

Thank you to NetGalley and Saga Press for this advanced copy, official pub date March 18th! The Buffalo Hunter Hunter follows a vampire who haunts the Blackfeet reservation in the aftermath of the 1870 Marias Massacre, killing fleets of hunters responsible for the rapidly declining buffalo population. The story is mainly told through a series of recovered journal entries, a literary take on "found footage" horror.

I loved how this paid homage to both the vampire classics and to the real history of the American Midwest. I learned recently that a huge wave of eastern Europeans settled this area in nearly the same decade as Dracula was published – the Western and vampire genres have always been closely linked. Likewise, the horrors of settler colonialism have plenty of narrative parallels to vampirism. So of course, I was immediately intrigued by the premise of this book. And Jones delivered!! Not only did I learn a lot about a period of history absent from most textbooks, but it was presented along with some fabulous, creative gore that had me doing face journeys on public transportation (lol). This was equal parts disturbing, engrossing, and informative.

Now for the negatives, of which I have two. First, I reallyyy had to suspend my disbelief with the journal entry format sometimes. Loved the concept, but in some circumstances it didn't quite make sense. Second – and this is just my opinion – but this did not manage to meaningfully integrate women into the main plot at all. A common issue in horror, but unfortunately one that was present here.

Even with those faults, though, I thought the main themes carried the book well! Really excited for this to hit shelves, I think it's a much needed voice in the genre.

This was well written, and I see how it could be the best book for a lot of people but I just could not engage... Like it was a struggle for me. Maybe I was not in the right mindset? Either way the book deserves at least 3 stars because the writing was great. I feel bad not liking it as much as everyone else.

An epistolary novel that follows a vengeful Indigenous vampire in 1912 in the Old West/Frontier? LOVED! I liked this more than I thought I would and was hesitant at first because I recently read Wister’s “The Virginian” and strongly disliked it, but this novel got me out of the Old West slump “The Virginian” put me in. This is not my favorite novel of all time, but I loved the characters, the diary feel to it, the details involved, and the original plot that tied the setting and the characters together.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc!!

This, I believe, is the story of America...

This epistolary story is told in three parts. We have Etsy Beaucarne, a Communication and Journalism professor who is looking for a pathway into tenure by finding something important to publish. She thinks she gets her chance when she is contacted about a recently-found journal from 1912 maintained by her great-great grandfather, the Lutheran minister Arthur Beaucarne, ending right before his disappearance. Arthur's journal covers his series of encounters with a Blackfeet Indian man, Good Stab, who reveals to Arthur that he is a vampire - something Arthur refuses to believe, but will by the time Good Stab is done with his confession...

This is definitely and without qualification, the best story I've read from SGJ. He did something with vampires I didn't think you do could anymore - something new! They are glorious and I can't stop thinking about the way they function. I was extremely impressed with how each narrator sounded completely different from each other; I was never confused as to whose part of the story I was in. Good Stab's sections especially cut me to the bone. It is a slow-moving tragedy, with bursts of pure horror. I was on the edge of my seat, turning page after page. I even had to put the book down twice when I knew a terrible decision had been made that would have dire consequences, but this story is being told to us after-the-fact, and I knew it had already all gone wrong. This book is like a hand cupped to your eyes, forcing you to watch every moment of the white supremacist genocide attempt against the Blackfeet, to force you to listen to every excuse made for it after the fact, to feel pain. It made my heart hurt in a way no other horror novel has.

Unfortunately, I also must say this is terrible epistolary writing. SGJ has smacked face-first into one of its biggest pitfalls: constant quoted conversations between people recorded hours after the fact. It's SO bad. But... the sections from the perspectives of Good Stab and Arthur work because I forget that I'm reading a "journal" and fully buy it because it feels like I'm reading a memoir instead, and those often have long passes of quoted text you know aren't actual, direct quotes. Good Stab in particular is literally giving a verbal memoir to Arthur. It's poor Etsy that's the weakest link. Even a first-time journaler wouldn't be writing the way she does as she discusses her life and the diary. She makes very trite comments directed at "hackers" (the only people she can imagine ever reading her Word document) and also records sections verbally. Some of these passages breached into "note you pick up in a bad horror game" territory. It is a testament to the heart and the horror of the story that this glaring flaw doesn't reduce my opinion of it. It rises above its faults. This is going to be the 2026 Stoker winner for Novel, I'm calling it now.

Thank you to NetGalley and Saga Press for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Stephen Graham Jones has a peculiar style of writing that takes getting used to. I have read all of his books up to date and was really excited for The Buffalo Hunter Hunter.

Sadly, try as I did, I just could not get into this one. The writing seemed a bit trickier to navigate than usual with me having to research quite a few words to just understand what was being said. The pacing was too slow and the story just didn’t ramp up.

With that being said, Jones is still a spectacular writer but for whatever reason, this one just wasn’t for me. I do recommend fans of Jones to still give it a read and if your new to Jones, perhaps start with another of his novels first because as I said, his other books are fabulous!

Thank you NetGalley and Saga Press for allowing me to read this in exchange for my honest review.

There are a lot of things I didn’t learn about my country’s history until I got to college. One of these things was the decades-long efforts by the US Army to hunt the American bison to extinction, as part of the larger war on Indigenous peoples conducted by the American government. The idea—schemed up by General William Sherman and General Philip Sheridan—was to cut off the primary source of food and supplies for Plains tribes to make them more “amenable” to being forced onto reservations. That I’ve been able to see bison on my visits to Yellowstone National Park is a miracle. American bison are a glorious animal and the fact that we almost lost them, that they were hunted, skinned, and left with their meat poisoned turns my stomach. All of this is to say that, even though I shouldn’t cheer on the efforts of Good Stab in Stephen Graham Jones’s excellent new novel, The Buffalo Hunter Hunter, I couldn’t help applauding the extermination of some white buffalo hunters.

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter is built up of many layers of story-tellers. First, Etsy Beaucarne receives word of a very fragile journal purportedly written by one of her ancestors. The journal has to be handled incredibly carefully because even the gentlest touch will cause it to disintegrate, due to burn through from the iron gall ink used to write it. Through Etsy, we get to read the words of Arthur Beaucarne, a Lutheran pastor who lived and worked in Miles City, Montana before the First World War. And through the elder Beaucarne, we hear the incredible story of Good Stab. (The layers get even deeper when Good Stab recounts stories from others.)

For reasons of his own, Good Stab arrives in Miles City in 1912 to tell his story to Beaucarne. It’s hard not to be skeptical of what Good Stab says, initially. For starters, he claims to have been born in the 1830s, although he’s far too young-looking and spry to be that old. Good Stab claims to have been attacked by a monster he calls the Cat Man—a creature those familiar with Dracula will recognize. He tells Beaucarne that he’s still walking around even though he’s been fatally wounded many times. Good Stab doesn’t drink water and even candlelight hurts his eyes. Beaucarne is swept up by Good Stab’s story—how could he not?—though he grows very uneasy when Good Stab starts to drop hints about an 1870s massacre of Blackfeet by the US Army.

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter is a slow burn of a novel, punctuated by scenes of gristly violence as Good Stab fights his shadow war against enemies of the Blackfeet and the buffalo. Graham Jones is a master of blending real history with supernatural horror. And, just as he does in his Indian Lake trilogy, Graham Jones is so good at describing his wild settings that you can smell the pine and the bite of a prairie winter wind. He’s even better at creating morally complicated figures that, while I can understand (some) of their motivations, I would never want to meet on a dark night (or ever). I worry a bit that all of these superlatives might be too much hype but The Buffalo Hunter Hunter is an astounding novel.