Home » Posts tagged "horror books" (Page 18)

Book Review: 12 Hours (Selected Papers from the Consortium for the Study of Anomalous Phenomena #2) by L. Marie Wood

Cover art for 12 Hours by L. Marie Wood

12 Hours (Selected Papers from the Consortium for the Study of Anomalous Phenomena #2) by L. Marie Wood

Raw Dog Screaming Press, 2024

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1947879652

Available:  Paperback, Kindle edition

Buy:  Bookshop.org |  Amazon.com

 

Series editor RJ Joseph prefaces 12 Hours by explaining that the Consortium for the Study of Anomalous Phenomena publishes its Selected Papers when it finds evidence that something  “unattainable or previously disbelieved” has become reality, and introducing L. Marie Wood as an established academic and creative writer.

 

Wood’s creativity and mastery of the uncanny are evident in this stream-of-consciousness narrative of thoughts and observations by a foulmouthed cabbie attacked late at night by addicts in ski masks, and the aftermath. This is horror of the ordinary: events like this happen every day, although not from this particular point of view. Wood gives us clues to what is happening while revealing the cabbie to the reader as a complex and nuanced character with strong emotions, and using minute details to describe his state of being and the world he experiences. The novella length is perfect for this story focused on one character and what he goes through in a very short length of time, although the very end may frustrate some readers. It’s’ difficult to say more without spoiling the story and much of what makes it a fascinating read, so you’ll have to read it yourself to discover that.  Recommended.

 

 

Reviewed by Kirsten Kowalewski

 

Posted on August 3, 2024 by , Reply

Book Review: LGBT: Lust, Gore, Bloodshed & Terror by Wol-vriey

cover art for LGBT: Lust, Blood, Gore &Terror by Wol-vriey

 

LGBT: Lust, Gore, Bloodshed & Terror by Wol-vriey

Burning Bulb Publishing, 2024

ISBN: 9781964172002

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

Buy:  Bookshop.org | Amazon.com

 

The author himself has referred to his writing as ‘bizarro fiction,’ and this story certainly qualifies.  It also qualifies as a good improvement over his last two novels.  The book feels like a Greek tragicomedy of errors, with a lot of raunch, blood, and hilarious irony mixed in.  Oh, and a vampire, too.  And a witch.  And a crazed scientist/artist.  It’s a good read, for the excitement as well as the laughs, and it keeps you guessing all the way.

 

This is a ‘character web’ story, with four disparate main characters who barely know each other, and a host of secondary characters that slowly tie their fates together.  The main players are: Lavelle, a sex-crazed lesbian porn actress who is hounded by a lovestruck ghost; Greg, the elderly gay man cuckolded by his young trophy husband; Bryn, a lovelorn bisexual vampire eternally searching for her soulmate; and Tammi, a trans woman short on cash for gender affirmation surgery. It’s certainly an eclectic crew!   The four of them all plan on doing not-so-nice things to others to improve their lives, but…things just never seem to quite work out according to plan.  What makes the story fun, is all the unexpected ways things just go to hell in a handbasket.  Just when it seems that it might get predictable, the story swings off in an unexpected fashion.

 

The story does an excellent job pulling all the plot threads together a little at a time, and heaping delicious irony at every turn.  The characters are great fun, often due to their deadpan way of looking at things.  My personal favorite: one character’s initial response to winding up in everlasting Purgatory is, “this sucks already.”  None of the four main characters are particularly nice or sympathetic (well, maybe Greg, but only at first) and that works very well for the plot.  It makes it more fun when each of them reaps what they sow.  The whole story is completely over the top. The entire thing is a puzzle, guessing who is going to get killed, condemned, or cursed next, and it usually doesn’t happen the way you would expect it to.  The unpredictability of the story is one of its big selling points, and that alone makes it worth the read.

 

Bottom line time: it’s a good book from an author with a pretty large catalogue of stories to his credit This certainly ranks in the upper echelon of his works.  Just remember, this is ADULTS ONLY material, it’s not for your kids!

 

Reviewed by Murray Samuelson

 

 

Posted on July 31, 2024 by , Reply

Book Review: Gravebooks by J.A. White

cover art for Gravebooks by J. A. White

 

Gravebooks by J.A. White

Katherine Tegen Books, 2022

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0063082014

Available: Hardcover, paperback, Kindle edition, audiobook

Buy:  Bookshop.org |  Amazon.com

 

In this sequel to Nightbooks, Alex Mosher wakes up trapped in a nightmare of a strange graveyard of stories, commanded, mysteriously, by the witch Natacha (who kept him captive and died during his escape in the previous book), and her jackal friend Simeon. Each of Alex’s unfinished story ideas are buried in a grave.. Natacha tells Alex he needs to dig each grave up and open the coffin. Inside each coffin is a blank book. Alex has to take the book out and jump down into the grave world to finish the story. When he finishes, the book bursts into flames, but the text of the story is transferred to the world above as the grave world crumbles. Telling the story causes a flower to grow: the better the story, the more unusual the flower.

 

Natacha and Simeon kidnap Alex’s friend Yasmin to threaten Alex into doing his best work, but he makes a deal with them that if they leave her alone, he will write them stories every night.. Yasmin feels responsible for Alex’s situation, and seeks out another fairytale witch, Maria Goffell, doomed to cut the hair of the dead. Maria tells Yasmin  she will need objects that represent Yasmin’s greatest fears, and Yasmin realizes she will have to return to Natacha’s apartment, where she and Alex were imprisoned in Nightbooks. Yasmin finds items in the apartment she can use and is able to defeat Natacha, finally. Maria and Yasmin finally trap Simeon, and Alex is able to escape, resurrect his friendship with Yasmin, and defeat his writer’s block, for the price of a story read to Maria.

 

This had a slow start, but picked up fast, and was a great companion to Nightbooks, which I cannot recommend enough to horror-loving middle-graders. J. A. White knows how to write nightmares.

 

White also name-checks the authors from his dedication: Bradbury, Matheson, King, and Jackson are all Easter eggs in the book, making this a fun book for adults as well. It’s a great book for horror-loving parents to read with their kids. Nightbooks was made into an excellent movie: I hope Gravebooks gets a similar treatment. Highly recommended.

 

 

Reviewed by Kirsten Kowalewski

Posted on July 21, 2024 by , Reply
First « 1617181920 » Last