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Book Review: Goblin by Josh Malerman

Goblin

 

Goblin by Josh Malerman
Earthling Publications, October 2017
ISBN: Not available
Available: Limited edition numbered hardcover copies, direct from publisher only

 

It’s the time of year when horror is in the air, a celebrated author is called up, and Earthling Publications turns out another Halloween masterpiece. This year, the newest superstar in the genre, Josh Malerman, takes the helm and delivers one of the best offerings in the history of the series. Malerman, fresh off the success of his second novel, Black Mad Wheel,  and the news that his novel Bird Box will soon be a major motion picture, displays consummate skill in Goblin, a book comprised of six novellas all taking place in the small town of Goblin, Michigan.

 

Goblin, Michigan is Derry. It’s Oxrun Station. It’s Cedar Hills. It’s Green Town. It’s all of us in our hometowns, and yet, it’s something brand new.. Think of Goblin as Derry’s disturbed little brother, filling the reader with uneasy pleasure from cover to cover.

 

“A Man In Slices” shows that friendship can be a tricky concept, as a boy does whatever he can to help his lonely friend, at any cost. “Kamp” is a lighter tale, about a man petrified of a seeing a ghost. Everyone in Walter’s family has, and he knows his time is coming. How he copes with the expectation will make many readers feel a bit better about their own issues with  things that go bump in the night.”Happy Birthday, Hunter” displays the heart and obsession of a man who cannot give up the hunt. Nash’s addiction comes to a boiling point during his 60th birthday party, when he decides to kill Goblin’s most prized game in the north woods, a place from which no one ever returns.”Presto” is a love affair with magic, the oldest and darkest kind, where a young boy seeks to learn the secrets behind his favorite performer in a story that channels classic Bradbury.”A Mix-Up At The Zoo” details the inner struggle of Dirk, a man who switches jobs to become a tour guide in a zoo, a far cry from his other employment in the slaughterhouse. He finds a talent for understanding the mighty beasts within the cages but feels a certain darkness brewing when he drifts off in thought. In “The Hedges,” mazes, both ones built out of corn and the famed topiary in the film version of “The Shining,” emerge. Young Margot claims to have solved the unsolvable creation by Wayne Sherman.  What she finds at the end causes her to alert the Goblin police.

 

The mythology about Goblin’s history is richly drawn within these stories and connects them effectively, with a style that keeps the pages turning. Malerman has created a town that may even be darker than something that King, Grant, and Bradbury have created. Goblin should be listed on every horror reader’s itinerary, with the lights turned low and the night breeze creeping into the room. An incredible Halloween find for all. Highly recommended.

 

Reviewed by Dave Simms

Posted on November 1, 2017 by , Reply

Book Review: Horror Library, Volume 6 edited by Eric J. Guignard

Horror Library, Volume 6 edited by Eric J. Guignard

Farolight Publishing, 2017

ISBN: 9780996115988

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

“The Librarian will be looking for YOU.” With a tagline like that, I knew I immediately had to check out this book. Each story was selected by a former Stoker award winner, Eric J. Guignard, and he did not disappoint with what he included in the fantastic anthology. Horror Library, Volume 6 showcases twenty-seven new horror short stories—twenty-seven!—by new or under-published authors in the genre.

There are too many incredible stories in this anthology. Each one has a distinct feel, and a distinct way of lingering in the back of your mind. A son attempts to come to terms with his mother’s death, the horror that was visited upon him as a child, and finds out it really happened. When people go missing in the little town of Ophir, Eudora and Poppy, try to puzzle out what could be happening: Mountain lions? Sinkholes? A giant snake snatching them up? They find the answer in the ruins of the old Cartagena Hotel. Marta, a divorcée coming to terms with her situation, is disturbed at night by every noise in her old house. Her grandmother’s superstitions find a way to lurk in the back of her mind, emerging at night in the darkness of her old house. Marta also fears the old lumber truck that slows as it passes her residence. Who is behind the wheel, and what does it want, especially on Halloween night? Ethan and Earl, friends since childhood, are backpacking across Italy when the meet Il Mostro.  A man endlessly searching for his missing brother finds he may be looking for the woman with the red hands instead. Will he find either one? Andy and Julie need a plumber, but they get more than they bargain for when they call Bud. Gray attends some high school friends’ wedding, reminiscing about his lost love. An old man tells him Harlan Hall is angry. Gary resolves his feelings for his former love and appeases the Hall at the same time, whether he likes it or not. An elderly man loses an expensive package in an airplane restroom to an unknown creature hiding in the toilet, and the only one who can help him is a member of the American Neo-Nazi Strike Force. Which represents more evil: the Neo-Nazi, or the monster lurking in the loo?

I think one of the best things about this book is that the tales have a range of gore, naughtiness, and even some humor. Normally, I like visceral and brutal stories, but the authors selected for Horror Library Volume 6 have ways of communicating horror with the minimum of disturbing imagery, but the content…oh, the content of each expertly crafted tale is phenomenal.  This is the first Horror Library volume I have read. It makes me want to pick up the first five to see what they have to offer. Run out to get this immediately. Highly recommended.

Contains: gory bits, a little bit of sexual content, brief but spooky stalking

Reviewed by Lizzy Walker

 

Posted on September 25, 2017 by , Reply

Book Review: Ink Stains: A Dark Fiction Anthology (Volume 3) edited by N. Apythia Morges

Ink Stains: A Dark Fiction Anthology (Volume 3) edited by N. Apythia Morges

Dark Alley Press, 2017

ISBN-13: 978-1946050014

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

 

This is the third volume in a planned quarterly anthology of horror short stories published by Dark Alley Press.  The collection presents a variety of ghost stories, in which contemporary protagonists are stalked by ghosts from the distant or recent past, seeking solace, release or revenge.  The other Ink Stains anthologies in the series present stories about death and trust.

Volume 3 consists of 10 short stories of varying length, some written by seasoned writers and others by authors who recently entered the horror genre.  The three most interesting ghost stories were among the longest.  The greater length gave authors more time to develop characters and to add twists and turns to the plots.

New author Andrea Hansell wrote “A Visit from Elizabeth”.  A young couple, Mark and Bethany, buy a Nantucket sea captain’s house and invite former college classmates to spend a weekend.  However, Bethany is insecure and jealous of Mark’s gorgeous ex-girlfriend. Unknown to the couple, the house has a tragic history.  A sea captain built the house for his young bride, Elizabeth, then left to run the British blockade during the War of 1812.  The captain was captured and imprisoned.  Elizabeth was pregnant, and the British blockade caused famine in the island. Malnourished, Elizabeth had a stillbirth and died.  Her ghost watched her husband return, marry again, and raise a family in Elizabeth’s house. Elizabeth appears only to Bethany.  The ghost lures the frantic Bethany up to the house’s widow’s walk, where Mark is standing.  Elizabeth wants something, and will use Bethany’s jealousy to get it.

Diane Arrelle, a veteran horror author, is the author of “Misplaced”.  An elderly spinster, Miss Annamarie Place, visits an antiquated hotel in her hometown.  The room looks like it did over fifty years ago, when she was a teenager.  Annamarie has returned there because someone claiming to be her daughter called and asked to meet her.  But Annamarie has never been married or pregnant.  Could she have forgotten something so important?  Is dementia or psychosis robbing her of her memories?  When she looks into an old mirror, Annamarie hears a baby wailing, then sees the bed and walls covered in blood.  Bleeding, and in terrible pain, she relives what happened in that room.  Is this all a nightmare, or have Annamarie Place’s memories been truly misplaced?

Another new horror author, Olga Monroe, is the author of “The Amsterdam Chest”.  An English couple is renovating a Victorian mansion.  The wife, Francesca, sees the ghost of a teenage girl dressed in a black velvet dress with a corset and bone frame tapping on a large antique chest, purchased by her husband in Amsterdam.  The mansion and estate have a history of tragedy and mystery, and has passed through many owners over time. When the new owners drain a pond, they discover a headstone that has been submerged for over a century.  It has Latin inscriptions, but no name.  There are no remains.  Francesca recently lost her newborn baby.  She is still in mourning and keeps her dead baby’s clothes in the Amsterdam chest.  Only Francesca sees the ghost, and its appearances become more frequent.  At the same time Francesca becomes more nervous and apprehensive.  She is inexplicably wracked with guilt.  The ghost takes Francesca’s hand and leads her to the chest.  The ghost keeps knocking on the chest.  Its face is blurry at first, but finally becomes clear.  Who is she?  What did Francesca do?

These are the strongest stories in the anthology. Others are more predictable. Overall, the stories have well-paced, interesting plots. Fans of ghost stories should be pleased with the collection. Recommended.

 

Contains: gore

Reviewed by Robert D. Yee

Posted on September 15, 2017 by , Reply
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