Cave Grave: Wild West Tales

by Shawn Kuruneru

Writer/artist Shawn Kuruneru (The Goddamn Tragedy) explores stories of double-crossing desperation—and hopeless humanity—set against a backdrop of the lawless West in this duology of wild tales. 

In Cave Grave, the art of double-crossing is taken to a new extreme as three struggling thieves attempt to pull off the heist of a lifetime—only to realize they’ve stolen more than they bargained for.

In Poor Moon, a cowboy searching for purpose turns to bounty hunting. Catch, return, reward—it’s simple, until he picks up a bounty that’ll change his life forever. Until the hunter becomes the hunted . . . 

Genres: Graphic Novels, Westerns, Comics

160 pages, Hardcover

Published March 3, 2026

About the author

Canadian born artist Shawn Kuruneru received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec. Kuruneru’s work is in the permanent collection at the Portland Museum of Art, Whitney Museum of American Art, Special Collections of the Frances, Mulhall Achilles Library in New York, NY; The National Gallery of Canada Library Collection, Toronto, Canada.

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

My Selling Pitch:
A graphic novel featuring two generic Western stories.

Pre-reading:
Yeehaw.

(obviously potential spoilers from here on)
Thick of it:
Bigfoot?

So what’s in the bag?

Not the insta love.

Post-reading:
It’s pretty, stylized art, but the stories didn’t do anything for me. They’re both pretty bleak. The messaging is really there’s no reward for being a good person, so take what you can get. The plotting is simple. I would’ve liked to see more complex storylines and characters.

Who should read this:
Western fans

Ideal reading time:
Anytime

Do I want to reread this:
No

Would I buy this:
No. I’d get this one from your library if you’re interested.

Similar books:
* Falling in Love on the Path to Hell by Gerry Duggan-graphic novel, historical, western, enemies to lovers romance, magical realism
* Hotblood! by Toril Orlesky-historical, urban fantasy, western graphic novel, queer romance
* The Pale Knight by Peter Milligan-historical, graphic novel

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Brian Shevory · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many thanks to Oni Press and NetGalley for allowing me to preview Cave Grace: Wild West Tales by Shawn Kuruneru. I was not familiar with Kuruneru’s work, but according to his biography and commentary at the end of this collection, he is a comic artist from Canada who independently published these stories, but Oni Press has now compiled them into one collection for distribution to a larger audience. I’m glad that they did because these were cool stories with creative and atmospheric artwork. When I initially saw that these were Wild West tales, I assumed that they were stories about gun fights and double crossing; while there are those elements to these stories, they also have a kind of supernatural or spectral feel to them. Furthermore, the simple color-scheme of browns, orange, black and white creates adds to the focus on the characters and their actions while also highlighting the desolate and lonely environment that these characters stalk through, both seeking fortune and escaping danger. The first story is “Cave Grave,” and it is a great story of deceit and trickery, but also with a clever twist. The dialogue is simple and not complicated, and I especially loved the scenery images that are interspersed between the different scenes. I think those images help to not only communicate the change of scenery, but also emphasize the kind of isolation and loneliness of these characters. I won’t get into the twist in the story, but it was unexpected, and yet it shifted not just the story, but also the genre conventions, moving the story more towards and supernatural story. It was great, but I felt that it ended somewhat suddenly and wished it went on longer. The second story is “Poor Moon,” and while it is more of a traditional western story about a bounty hunter, there’s also a kind of spectral element to the story where the characters are all hunted in some ways by their pasts. The story moves quickly, starting with the ending, and then allowing the main character, Held, to tell us how he ended up chasing Cassie the Killer for the large bounty on her head. Held is a veteran of the war, although his crescent moon tattoo indicates he fought for the East, as we later learn. He becomes lost after the war, but finds bounty hunting a way to make money so he can enjoy the pleasures of life. While out pursuing one bounty, he encounters another ruthless bounty hunter named Algar who eventually takes Held’s eye. Held recovers, but vows vengeance on Algar, and through his pursuit of Cassie, it leads Held to one more fateful encounter with Algar. The story is tense, and like “Cave Grave,” I loved the atmospheric art between scenes. Although there is great scenery art that captures the mood and tone of the story, there’s one scene where Held is recuperating from losing his eye that truly captures “the dark places of his mind.” These few panels really stuck out to me as I was reading. Both stories move quickly and are hard to put down once you start reading them. Furthermore, the art work helps to convey the emotions and tones of the stories. Don’t let the simple color-scheme fool you; it adds to the themes of loneliness and isolation, and helps to simplify the outlook on the characters’ intense focus on money, greed, or revenge. This is a great collection of stories, and it made me want to check out more of Shawn Kuruneru’s work. I hope that Oni Press decides to publish more of his work. Highly recommended!

[Cody · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC

I'd like to thank OniPress and NetGalley for the chance to give "Cave Grave: Wild West Tales" an early read in return for an honest review.

In "Cave Grave", we get two unique Wild West stories, each told in vivid reds, giving both tales a unique visual quality. I loved the styling of both of the stories, and the stories themselves really worked well. I found the first story to be a bit more interesting than the second one, but I think I liked the visuals a bit more for "Poor Moon". This really was a lot of fun to get to read, and I really would like to see what else Kuruneru has done and will do in the future.

Be sure to check "Cave Grave: Wild West Tales" out when it is published on March 3, 2026!

[Tasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

The artwork in this graphic novel is different from what I typically gravitate toward. But the stories needed this type of artwork and style. All reds and blacks with other hues to accompany it, fits these two. To me, the red and black represents the remorse, fear, and devastation told in these two stories.

The first story, Cave Grave, was a lot of fun. It definitely fits the whole Wild West theme. Nice little story with art that works well for it.

I was not expecting the endingfor the second story, Poor Moon. It took a turn that was so out of the ordinary. Overall, not a bad story, not too shabby on the artwork, and the ending makes this a worthwhile read.

[Melki · Rating 3 out of 5]

You don't often see graphic novel westerns, so I was eager to give this one a try. I had a lot of trouble staying interested in the first tale, so two stars for that one. I genuinely enjoyed the second story of a bounty hunter lookin' to change his ways; that one gets four stars, so I'll go with three for the collection.

While the artwork is nothing special, I did appreciate the limited color palette: black and tomato red really seemed to fit the distressing theme of the book.

I won't be buying this one for the library where I work, but I will keep my eyes open for further books by this author.

Thanks to NetGalley and Oni Press for sharing.

[Bibliotekarien läser · Rating 4 out of 5]

A big thanks to #NetGalley and onipress.com for giving me the opportunity to read this e-ARC of #CaveGraveWildWestTales

This duology includes the stories "Cave Grave" and "Poor Moon", both set in the violent Wild West. Both stories are about people on the other side of the law, in the tough reality that made many commit crimes or murder for money. Well-composed plot where the unexpected takes a big place. I especially like the monochrome illustrations that make each page look as if they were soaked in blood.

[PhantasticReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Cave Grave: Wild West Tales Shawn Kuruneru gives us two short comics. In the first a robbery goes wrong, and in the second a bounty hunter runs into complications. The narration is spare, clipped, and only adds the exact clarification needed to the art.

There’s a coarseness to the art itself that suits the setting and the limited palette of black and orange on white really pops, letting Kuruneru have a lot of fun with lighting.

This is like seeing the kid making Sharpie comics in class grow up and get published. I look forward to seeing where else Kuruneru’s career takes him!

[Amelia Suedel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley and Oni Press for an eARC of this graphic novel in exchange for my review!

This was a quick read but it was fun! I enjoyed how the author tried to add some plot twists in there. The art was pretty simple and kept to a similar orange/red color throughout. The stories were short and enjoyable westerns, I think I am more drawn to longer graphic novels with more complex storytelling, I think a little more background on the characters and working up to the twists would have been more impactful.

[Chad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two short Westerns that Kurumeru originally self-published. The first is about a big score gone wrong. The second about a bounty hunter who feels a change is in order after going after a female bounty. Not bad. The art is all in shades of orange. I'm sure it's cheaper to publish single color comics.

[Luke · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*