The season is set in California, and focuses on three detectives, Ray Velcoro (Colin Farrell), Ani Bezzerides (Rachel McAdams) and Paul Woodrugh (Taylor Kitsch), from three cooperating police forces and a criminal-turned-businessman named Frank Semyon (Vince Vaughn) as they investigate a series of crimes they believe are linked to the murder of a corrupt politician.
In Vinci, a Californian industrial town on the edge of Los Angeles, police detective Ray Velcoro (Colin Farrell) drops off his son Chad at school.
In reality, he was contacted years ago by corrupt businessman Frank Semyon (Vince Vaughn), who gave him the information he needed to find the man.
As Vinci plans for a real estate development near a new high-speed rail line, Semyon, who is now a white-collar criminal, is working on the deal in order to present it to Russian oligarch Osip Agronov (Timothy V. Murphy).
Meanwhile, Ventura County Sheriff's Office CID agent Antigone "Ani" Bezzerides (Rachel McAdams) and her team conduct a raid on a suspected illegal brothel, which turns out to be a legal porn studio.
She and her partner Elvis Ilinca (Michael Irby) visit a New Age meditation center run by Bezzerides' father, Eliot (David Morse), who states that Vera used to work there.
Velcoro and Detective Teague Dixon (W. Earl Brown) check Caspere's house, which is filled with erotic art and evidence pointing to a kidnapping.
Velcoro later visits his son at school and sees that he is not wearing his expensive new sneakers; Chad states that a bully named Aspen Conroy broke into his locker and damaged them.
The site's consensus states: "Strong performances by the season two True Detective cast make for a compelling hour of television, even when the story takes a little too long to get going.
"[13] Roth Cornet of IGN gave the episode a "good" 7.5 out of 10 and wrote in her verdict, "By its very nature True Detective Season 2 is poised to be compared with its predecessor.
Club gave the episode a "B−" grade and wrote, "'The Western Book Of The Dead' excels at setting up a mystery but lacks for satisfying drama, if only because these characters aren't so interesting on their own.
"[15] Britt Hayes of Screen Crush wrote, "'The Western Book of the Dead' isn't an incredibly strong episode, but it is a rather solid introduction to the dark and grimy world of Season 2 — and it firmly establishes itself as independent from its predecessor in the process.
"[17] Gwilym Mumford of The Guardian wrote, "For so much of this episode, the connective tissue between this quartet remains hidden, as if writer Nic Pizzolatto is happy just to wallow in the murk and misery of their circumstances.
"[19] Jeff Jensen of Entertainment Weekly wrote, "We have a three-headed narrative, pocked with vice and steeped in themes of sin, penance, and flailing redemption.
"[21] Kenny Herzog of Vulture gave the episode a 3 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "This True Detective introduces us to ostensible protagonists even further removed from their humanity than Rust Cohle or Marty Hart, with that much more work to do if there's a chance at redemption.
"[23] Carissa Pavlica of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 4.3 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "We couldn't ask for a better cast of actors to embody the characters introduced in 'The Western Book of the Dead'.
Whether they'll find the same simpatico rhythm that Rust Cohle and Marty Hart found by the end of Season 1 remains to be seen, but all of the elements are certainly within this group for magic to happen.
"[24] Shane Ryan of Paste gave the episode a 7.8 out of 10 and wrote, "Of course, the rawness of tone persists, and it makes 'The Western Book of the Dead' a compelling hour of television.