Book Review: Crucified Dreams edited by Joe R. Lansdale

Like any self-respecting horror fan, I’m a huge fan of Joe R. Lansdale’s work. So, I was very excited to check out this collection of short stories Lansdale had hand-picked to appear in Crucified Dreams. In the introduction, Lansdale explains how he set out to capture stories that were similar to his maverick writing style, and I think he has done a fine job with the selections featured in Crucified Dreams. He has plucked unsettling, off-kilter stories from the very best horror authors out there (among them Stephen King, Harlan Ellison and Lansdale himself) that span nearly four decades.

From the back cover:

A naïve young woman witnesses a brutal murder and discovers the soul-deadening price of being a New Yorker. The family man quits smoking with the sinister assistance of a family-friendly corporation. A truck driver takes a simple shortcut, and lands in a living hell and a battle to the death. An aging Hollywood screenwriter’s career is on the wane until he reinvents himself as a less principled man.

Crucified Dreams reaches down through the gutters into the shadowy depths of the imagination. These are the savage tales that unite noir with horror and the ordinary with the unfathomable. Combing the urban, the paranormal, and the downright terrifying, these award-winning stories go where your deepest fears—and inner demons—are already realized.

Classic tales from horror masters reside within the near 400 page collection, and while I enjoyed all of the stories, I did have a few favorites. Harlan Ellison’s “The Whimper of Whipped Dogs” left me breathless and paints quite a gloomy picture for apathetic city-dwellers. “The Mojave Two-Step” by Norman Partridge and “Front Man” by David Morrell show the danger of following fortune and glory, one from the view of a stolen ice cream truck barreling through the desert toward Vegas and the other through the eyes of an award-winning but aging screenwriter looking for work in shallow Hollywood. I wholeheartedly enjoyed the characterization of the two leads in Jeffrey Ford’s “Coffins on the River”, about two old artists who take quite a trip that results in a terrifying ghostly encounter. “Copping Squid” by Michael Shea is an excellent Cthulhu-inspired tale set in the ‘hood, and Ellen Klages gives us an eerie look into an alternate universe through the perspective of a little girl in “Singing on a Star”. “Nightbeat” by Neal Barrett, Jr. offers up another alternate (or future) world filled with made-up words that conjure up a beautiful yet sinister landscape.

These are but a few of the 19 tales featured in Crucified Dreams, and while those mentioned were my favorites I must say that all the short stories in the collection were well worth reading and left an indelible imprint upon my psyche. The collection is a mix of the gritty and graphic with the subtle and psychological and will be a welcome addition to any horror fan’s book collection.

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Book Review: Deadcore - Four Hardcore Zombie Novellas

Deadcore is a collection of four zombie novellas edited by Cheryl Mullenax and published by Comet Press. The book contains zombie stories from authors Randy Chandler, David James Keaton, Edward M. Erdelac and Ben Cheetham.

The collection kicks off with “Dead Juju” by Randy Chandler, a novella that immediately sucked me in with its fast pace and gruesome action. It follows a mysterious figure that seems to bring death and destruction wherever he goes while all hell breaks out when the dead won’t stay dead. Chandler weaves different characters’ stories together to create a terrifying tapestry about the end of the world. I loved the many different characters that were featured in this story and the mysterious “eye in the sky” phenomenon that occurs prior to the zombie outbreaks. This was my favorite story in the collection.

“Zee Bee and Bee (aka Propeller Hats for the Dead)” is the next short story in the book. This tale by David James Keaton tells about the cast of colorful characters that work at a zombie-themed bed and breakfast where guests pay to basically role play in their own personal Night of the Living Dead. This story had an interesting concept, but unfortunately I just couldn’t get into the writing style. There is some pretty clever dialogue that horror fans will appreciate, though.

The third novella is “Night of the Jikininki”, a story set in a prison in feudal Japan. When a murdered inmate rises from the dead and starts infecting everyone within the prison walls, a mad monk, a petty thief and a renowned samurai must band together to try to escape the fortified walls. I enjoyed Edward M. Erdelac’s historical accuracy, brutal carnage and interesting characters with this tale.

Ben Cheetham’s “Zombie Safari” is about a hunting trip to kill a new kind of wild game – zombies. However, things start to go wrong for the humans when the zombies become the hunters. “Safari” was a very tense, character-driven story that I enjoyed a great deal. The bleak, isolated setting along with the weary characters reminded me of an old Western where men relied on the guns and tracking to survive.

Deadcore’s four novellas are gruesome, funny, tense, bloody and entertaining as hell. Each of the stories is distinctive and unique, so you never feel you are reading stale material. If you love extreme zombie fiction, you’ll definitely want to check out Deadcore!

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Magazine Review: Shock Totem Issue 3

Shock Totem is an awesome up-and-coming horror publication that features short stories, interviews and reviews. I’ve reviewed their first and second issues, and now their biggest issue yet, #3 is out!

This issue is their most impressive yet, featuring short stories by John Skipp, Aaron Polson, Joseph Morgado, Amanda C. Davis, Tim Lieder and many, many more! The publication also boasts interviews with bizarro author D. Harlan Wilson and the singer/guitarist of Ghoultown, Count Lyle, plus an amazingly touching article from Mercedes M. Yardley and a cool new series called “Bloodstains and Blue Suede Shoes” that focuses on music of a decidedly darker nature.

In a magazine packed so full of excellent stories and articles it is really hard to pick just a few favorites. As usual, editor K. Allen Wood kicks things off with an informative and entertaining note. In this issue he discusses the digital revolution in publishing and how technology can change entire industries in such a short span. I always dig Wood’s editorials, but this one really made me appreciate the changing landscape of how we enjoy literature. Then Tim Lieder starts things off with his dizzyingly fascinating “Bop Kabala and Communist Jazz”. I cannot even begin to describe this short story, but fell in love with Lieder’s writing. I just cannot resist sentences like “Fifty-two dead in a church on a Sunday morning. Ed K. with his double life and me with my rude flesh, my sinful eyes and my debased hypocrisies.” or “The clouds took the sky and the wind tortured the chrome.” I am itching to check out more of Lieder’s writing after reading this gem!

Another favorite is the second story in the book, “The Meat Forest” by John Haggerty. This grim little tale is about a remote prison situated smack dab in the middle of the “meat forest”. There is a reason why so few prisoners attempt escape, because everything out there eats…I loved the dismal prison setting of the story and the idea of a forest that devours everything. Kinda shines new light on the saying “a rolling stone gathers no moss”.

The third story, “Drift” by Amanda C. Davis is a real keeper as well. We’ve all felt the biting cold, especially this past winter, but what if the cold, and more specifically, snow, literally bit?? Throw in a family who thinks they have a five-year-old with a wild imagination coupled with a snow phobia and you’ve got yourself “Drift”.

Okay, now that I’ve gotten to the third story in the publication I’ve come to the conclusion that ALL the stories contained therein are my favorites and I will just end up listing them all if I keep going like this! How could I not mention John Skipp’s story “Worm Central Tonight!” that shows us the perspective from a corpse-eating worm? Or “Day Job” by Merrilee Faber about how even angels, after years of living amongst imperfect humans, can snap and switch teams. And then there is the tense “A Birth in the Year of the Miracle Plague” by Jeremy Kelly about kids growing up amidst the rubble of a post-apocalyptic world…with the threat of the resurgence of a plague closer than they know. Plus, there is the melancholy ghost story “Wanting It” by Aaron Polson. Next is Joseph Morgado’s “Eye, You” an amusing and frightening look at the Twitter/Facebook/YouTube, instant-gratification, ego-driven generation and how the wired-in technology that chronicles the minutia of our everyday lives can have deadly consequences. I thought this story was so relevant and absolutely adored it! “Stitched” by Christopher Green gives us a look at the world of a cutter who is convinced people fade away and disappear if he doesn’t cut himself and stitch himself back together. Next is the 2010 flash fiction contest winner, Steven Pirie, and his story “Ruth Across the Sea”, set perhaps some time in the Dark Ages and features a woman trying to save her lover from the executioner’s rope. The weird world of “Duval Street” is examined by Mekenzie Larsen in the next tale. The magazine closes with S. Clayton Rhodes creepy tale “Mr. Many Faces”.

Besides all of these amazing short stories, this issue of Shock Totem contains informative reviews and the entertaining interviews with Wilson and Count Lyle plus an awesome introduction to their new music series “Bloodstains & Blue Suede Shoes”. This issue shows how much love and devotion has been put into Shock Totem and this publication is definitely turning into a must-read for me! I’m already looking forward to the next issue…

Seek it out…you won’t be disappointed!

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Book Review: Morbid Curiosity Cures the Blues edited by Loren Rhoads

You might recognize the name Morbid Curiosity, as it was a nonfiction magazine from 1997 to 2006 that has quite a cult following. Though the magazine has been defunct for some years now, its popularity has never really waned…and because of that editor Loren Rhoads compiled some of the best true stories featured in the magazine’s pages and put them in this delightfully dark book!

True Stories of the Unsavory, Unwise, Unorthodox, and Unusual…with that description on the front cover titillating me, I couldn’t wait to explore Morbid Curiosity Cures the Blues as soon as I received it. In fact, it wasn’t relegated to my tottering stack of books needing review, but immediately was set by my favorite reading spot. My fingers were itching all day to pick up the book, and when I was finally able I flipped through the pages with gusto!

Here’s the synopsis from the back of the book:

For ten years, Morbid Curiosity was a one-of-a-kind underground magazine that gained a devoted following for its celebration of absurd, grotesque, and unusual tales – all true – submitted from contributors around the country and across the world. Loren Rhoads, creator and editor of the magazine, has compiled some of her favorite stories from all ten issues in this sometimes shocking, occasionally gruesome, always fascinating anthology.

This quirky book is filled with tales from ordinary people – who just happen to have eccentric, peculiar interests. Ranging from the outrageous (attending a Black Mass, fishing bodies out of San Francisco Bay, making fake snuff films) to the more “mundane” (visiting a torture museum, tracking real vampires through San Francisco), this curiously enjoyable collection of stories, complete with illustrations and informative asides, will entertain and haunt readers long after the final page is turned.

I don’t know what draws me to the morbid, the unusual, the weird or the downright offensive. I like to think it is mere curiosity, but I’m sure there’s also a darker nature at work here. The same dark nature that we all share, in varying degrees, that causes us to slow down when passing a horrible car accident.

The experience of reading Morbid Curiosity Cures the Blues is also like rubbernecking; you know you shouldn’t be so interested, but you can’t help staring (or in this case, reading). You get sucked into the whole peculiar experience, whether it’s reading about loss of innocence, weird customs, grave-robbing, surviving a bomb explosion, hanging out with sanguinarians, necrophilia, assisted suicide, etc. It’s a very voyeuristic experience as you are given a glimpse into ordinary people’s lives that take an extraordinary turn.

The novel is nicely balanced in tone – the stories range from scary (“Lock it Behind You,” “This Is a Very Old Scar”), heartbreaking (“Killing Max”, “A Night in the House of Dr. Moreau), depressing (“Souvenir of Hell”), gross (“DIY Urology”) and shocking (“Holiday in Genoa”), but all are fascinating. My personal favorite stories included “The Keeper of the Shop” by Jill Tracy, a bittersweet tale about the mysteries of life; “Going into Tombs” by Hugues Leblanc about exploring and photographing the interiors of old mausoleums; “Feed” by Katrina James, about vampires in San Francisco; “Halloween Hell” by Mary Ann Stein, about managing a Halloween super-store; and “Blood Gags” by Frank Burch, about making fake snuff films.

Morbid Curiosity Cures the Blues is a collection of the strange, the shocking and the sinister, but at the same time the stories are all so personal that they are also heartfelt and heartwrenching. These stories go beyond mere voyeurism, as through them you take a journey with the authors themselves to some very dark places. Like the authors, you won’t emerge unscathed, but perhaps you’ll have a deeper understanding of the dark side of the human psyche, including your own.

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Magazine Review: Shock Totem Issue 2

Finally, after a year Shock Totem is back with its second issue and I couldn’t be more thrilled! I was again impressed by the glossy cover of the magazine, which looks more of like a slim book rather than a magazine. The cover design by Hicham Haddaji is eye-catching and I couldn’t wait to dive into the contents!

The editorial by K. Allen Wood is an informative read on publishing the second issue and explanations of the delays the Shock Totem team encountered. The basic reason the second issue was delayed was quality…the people hard at work on the magazine wanted to make sure they had high quality as well as variety for their future issues. I can’t argue with that…if waiting meant a higher quality mag than I can be patient!

And, wow, what an astounding collection of short stories the second issue contains! Like issue one, I was immensely impressed by both the variety of content and its high quality. All of the short stories contained in the magazine are worthy of a read, but I did have a few favorites!

Kicking things off was “The Rat Burner” by Ricardo Bare. The story tells of the Jacob, known to others as “The Guide”, who takes paying customers to a mysterious door that seems to grant wishes…with dire consequences. The characters were so well developed in this story, as was the setting of the ghetto. You could almost smell the trash, rat droppings and general decay of the neighborhood where Jacob lives and conducts business. “The Rat Burner” was a fantastic story to kick off this collection.

I also enjoyed Vincent Pendersgast’s “The Rainbow Serpent”, based on the Aboriginal myth. It tells the tale of Gavin, out for revenge against his ex. However, his bus ride turns quite surreal as the Rainbow Serpent seeks to punish this law-breaker. I haven’t had much exposure to myths from Australia, so this story was very interesting and unique. I also loved its nightmarish visuals and tone; the story really felt like one of those nightmares you just can’t wake up from (I mean that in the best way possible!).

Another favorite (probably my favorite of the collection) was “Pretty Little Ghouls” by Cate Gardner. It’s about a little girl facing the death sentence in prison…but turns out she is no ordinary child. This was only one page long, but it was just so haunting and creepy with plenty of surprising elements that is was amazingly effective. And I absolutely loved its unsettling story!

Lastly, I loved both “Messages from Valerie Polichar” (Gra Linnaea and Sarah Dunn) and “Leave Me the Way I was Found” (Christian A. Dumais). They both deal with modern technology and how connected we all are through the internet.  “Messages” deals with Facebook and “Leave Me” deals with YouTube and viral videos.  Both are extremely timely and I love how they both made technology so creepy!

Those are my favorites, but, honestly, it was tough just to choose a few to feature because all of the stories in Shock Totem were taut, tense and full of suspense! There is even a nifty section at the end of the book where each of the authors explain their inspiration for the stories featured in the magazine. I absolutely loved how they discussed their influences for their stories!

The second issue of Shock Totem is another wonderful collection of short stories that is very much worth picking up. It also contains an interview with author James Newman and reviews of films, books, music and video games. Those who put together Shock Totem haven’t had an easy time putting together this wonderful magazine for all of us to enjoy, but despite their hardships they’ve put together a stunning second issue that I highly recommend!

Support independent publishers and order your copy of Shock Totem today!

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Book Review: Sick Things - An Anthology of Extreme Creature Horror

As a follow-up to their Vile Things: Extreme Deviations of Horror anthology, Comet Press has released Sick Things: An Anthology of Extreme Creature Horror, edited by Cheryl Mullenax. Does it live up to its “extreme” tag and the high-quality of Comet’s past releases? Read on to find out!

From the back cover:

Over-endowed aliens invade earth with one purpose: to mate with human females. A filmmaker documents a devil-worshipping blood cult – and becomes the main subject. A farmer with an unnatural affection for his livestock gets a special gift when his wife is bitten by a werewolf. An employee finds his new boss sexy and attractive – and so do the flys. Pissed off, flesh-eating cows take over a dairy farm. A musician returns from the dead to avenge his wife’s murder, with the help of a mysterious black possum. The Allies find a secret weapon, a monstrous blob with an insatiable appetite for dead human flesh. A chef creates his ultimate dish: an anatomically correct golem made out of leftovers. A mythical demon preys on unsuspecting college girls. And many more…

Wow, Sick Things is definitely one deviant, extreme collection of stories! I made the mistake of reading this during my lunch break and it was definitely a challenge to keep my food down! If you can think of the most vile, disgusting thing imaginable, it’s probably in one of the tales of this collection.

While all of the stories are effective, one stood out as my personal favorite. The Hansel and Gretel-themed Evil, Bent and Candy-Sweet by Tim Curran is a grotesquely beautiful short story with imagery so strong you can almost smell it. I loved the author’s descriptions (“The sky had been slit open, oozing tangles of red blood and seams of yellow fat at the horizon.”) as well as his characters, including Brother, Sister and of course the evil witch. There is just something so malignantly magnificent about this story, weaving its dark, twisted perspective into the fairy tale imagery. The collection is worth buying just for this story alone!

Other favorites of mine included Heat by Daniel I. Russell, about a farmer who is into bestiality that gets more than he bargained for when his wife turns into a werewolf, Jimmy Sticks and the Outlaw Critter of Doom by Michael Boatman, about a murdered man that comes back as a zombie to extract revenge on his and his wife’s killers, and The Special Son by Jeffrey Hale, about a special needs boy who discovers just why he is so special when his semen mixes with spider eggs to produce a whole new ghastly creature.

While the four stories above were my personal favorites, all of the seventeen stories in Sick Things are worth checking out. All of them have a high gross-out factor and gorehounds will be delighted by the visceral scenes contained in each tale.

If you are an extreme fan of horror looking for the ultimate in disgusting, vile and disturbing fiction, Sick Things: An Anthology of Extreme Creature Horror is a must-read…just make sure you have your barf bag handy!

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Book Review: The Living Dead 2 edited by John Joseph Adams

Ah, short story collections, how I love thee! Seriously, is there anything better than bite-sized horror tales? They are perfect for when you don’t have much time in your day but still want to sneak in 30 minutes of mayhem into your schedule. Being a busy bee myself, I love short horror stories for this very reason, and therefore was totally stoked upon receiving The Living Dead 2, a collection from varying authors edited by John Joseph Adams that is a follow up to his first volume of The Living Dead, called by Barnes and Noble “the best collection of zombie fiction ever”.

As the name suggests, the theme of this short story collection is…zombies!! They are another fave of mine, so I eagerly dug into the book’s 43 diverse zombie tales. At around 500 pages, this is one hefty tome, but it certainly packs the best of the best within its numerous pages! With contributions from horror authors Max Brooks, Cherie Priest, David Wellington, John Skipp, Brian Keene, Amelia Beamer, David Moody, Kim Paffenroth, Jonathan Maberry, Sarah Langan and many, many more, the book boasts quality along with its quantity!

All of the stories contained within The Living Dead 2 are sure to delight any horror and zombie fan, but personally I have a few favorites.

My personal favorite is “The Price of a Slice” by John Skipp and Cody Goodfellow, about the last functioning city in the world, San Francisco, after the zombie apocalypse. The organized and fortified city is now using remote controlled zombies to wipe out small pockets of resistance, and these zombots are controlled by video game jockeys. Except, some of the zombies are starting to think and act on their own…The tale focuses on a well-liked pizza delivery boy who finds himself at the wrong place at the wrong time facing down these zombots. The characters and setting are extremely well-developed in this story, and I just raced through it to find out what happened at the end! I loved its mix of social commentary, sci-fi, action and horror!

Coming in for a close second favorite is Brian Keene’s “Lost Canyon of the Dead”. This tale mixes a Western, zombies and dinosaurs to create an utterly unique, mesmerizing and bone-crunching tale!
Another unusual and original tale is “Twenty-Three Snapshots of San Francisco” by Seth Lindberg, a story told entirely by the lead character as he describes 23 photographs that occurred leading up to, during and after a zombie outbreak. Pure genius and wonderfully written!

Other favorites included steampunk/zombie hybrid “Reluctance” by Cherie Priest, the surprisingly unexpected tale of the “Last Stand” by Kelley Armstrong, the action-packed and surprisingly sweet “Dating in a Dead World” by Joe McKinney and Genevieve Valentine’s truly frightening “And the Next, And the Next”.

Like its predecessor, The Living Dead 2 truly is one of the great zombie short story collections out there and you are definitely getting a lot of bang for your buck here! Kudos to editor John Joseph Adams for putting together another memorable anthology sure to delight zombie and horror fans everywhere!

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Book Review: Dead Set - A Zombie Anthology

Zombies…what more can really be said about them? Our culture is inundated with zombie imagery in films, video games, magazines and books, familiar to pretty much anyone. In the horror genre there are dozens of new zombie films and books every year, so it’s amazing that fans aren’t fed up with the whole zombacalypse theme. However, it seems that despite the genre being flooded zombie stories, fans can’t get enough of them and the subgenre seems stronger than ever.

So I was stoked rather than chagrined when I received Dead Set: A Zombie Anthology, edited by Michelle McCrary and Joe McKinney. Despite the hundreds (thousands?) of zombie novels, films, etc. I’ve experienced, I couldn’t wait to dive into another one, this one with short stories from authors like Lisa Mannetti, Lee Thomas, Bev Vincent, Harry Shannon, David Dunwoody, Nate Southard, Boyd E. Harris and many more.

The anthology is divided into sections, starting with Origin, The Plague Begins, moving on to In Dubious Battle and Losing Ground and ending with And to the Dust Returneth. This was an interesting and effective way to organize the anthology, giving it a more cohesive feel.

I enjoyed all the stories contained in the anthology, but my favorites included “Recess” by Rob Fox, about kids battling zombies on the playground; “Hatfield the Usurper” by Matthew Lewis, about a stunt man who decides to take full advantage of the lawlessness the zombie apocalypse brings; “Ruminations from Tri-Omega House” by David Dunwoody, a story that really makes us care about the lead character before pulling the rug out from underneath us at the finale; “Recovery” by Boyd E. Harris about “good” zombies who have been re-introduced back into society but face discrimination from most humans; “Survivor Talk” by Mitchel Whitington about a survivor-turned-radio-host that decides to risk making a dangerous trek to join other survivors; and “Good Neighbor Sam” by Mark Onspaugh that featured skewed points of view and a totally unexpected twists.

My top favorites out of the whole anthology were “Category Five” by Richard Jeter, “Pierre and Remy Hatch a Plan” by co-editor Michelle McCrary and “That Which Survives” by Morgan Ashe. “Category Five” is set in New Orleans during a fierce hurricane and follows a group of locals holed up in a bar who must battle against rising flood waters as well as zombies. I loved the original premise of the story as well as the evocative setting and colorful characters. Quite a nice little surprise at the end as well! Michelle McCrary’s contribution to the anthology is the comical “Pierre and Remy Hatch a Plan” in which two lovable but bumbling rednecks decide to steal the local tiger mascot to protect their property against zombies…but all doesn’t go as planned. McCrary crafts memorable, humorous characters and an engaging storyline. The anthology ends with the stunning “That Which Survives” by Morgan Ashe, in which a scientist describes all that’s been done to study zombies and find out what caused them…only to finally make a devastating discovery. This complex tale hits you right in the gut with its implications and features some relevant social commentary to boot!

Dead Set is a wonderful zombie anthology and shows that there is still life in the sub-genre! All of the stories were unique twists on zombies and featured unforgettable characters, situations and settings. This indie anthology is well worth your time so check it out!

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Book Review: Let Me Die a Woman by Alan Kelly

Blending ‘50s pulp novel sensibilities with modern potty-mouthed wit and characters pulled from a John Waters film with a cybergoth twist, Let Me Die A Woman is a kick ass debut from Irish author Alan Kelly!

The novel opens with a rather innocuous scarecrow festival in a small town…or so it seems. Before long, the scarecrows set their button eyes on the inhabitants of the small town and massacre everyone in sight. The scarecrows, who are actually beings from another plane, have much more far-reaching plans than slaughtering a whole town, though…

Years later, horror journalist extraordinaire Bunny Flask is fired by the sleazy owner of her beloved Blood Rag Magazine and replaced by rival Alice Fiend. Seething with resentment and seeking revenge, Bunny decides to confront Alice but uncovers a horrific plot to destroy the human race in the process.

Let me Die A Woman is pulp fiction paradise! It is a gritty and gory tale of femme fatales, hellacious heroines, malevolent males and apocalyptic action that really rocked my socks off! It may be a short 109 pages, but every single one of those pages packs a wallop. It is extremely fast-paced, and once I picked it up I read the whole thing in one sitting because I didn’t want to put it down.

Given the skill of writing, it’s hard to imagine LMDAW is author Alan Kelly’s debut novel. His voice is one of a seasoned storyteller and he unfolds the violent and heated plot in such a way that holds you enraptured the entire length of the book. Kelly describes everything so vividly that the novel comes to life in your head and it feels like you are reading/watching an exploitation-style ‘50s B-movie, complete with monsters, aliens, gender-bending characters, chainsaws, strong women, outrageous dialogue and plenty of violence! In homage to exploitation/horror films of the past, Kelly even names several chapters after recognizable films, including Sorry, Wrong Number, Shivers, Female Trouble, Razor Blade Smile and Bad Girls Go to Hell, among others!

The characters are all a lively bunch, their colorful personalities taking cues from real-life horror queens like The Chainsaw Mafia founder Shannon Lark (an obvious inspiration for the chainsaw-wielding BFF of Bunny Flask) and Rue Morgue’s former editor, Jovanka Vuckovic (Alice Fiend’s vivid red hair being a reference to her). Kelly writes them all whip-smart, independent and hell-on-wheels.

Let Me Die A Woman is a no-holds-barred and over-the-top love letter to cult films in all their kitschy glory. With inspirations from grindhouse, exploitation, sci-fi and horror genres Kelly’s debut has a manic energy and originality that seems unrivaled within current genre offerings and comes highly recommended from yours truly.

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Book Review: The Best Horror of the Year - Volume Two

Ellen Datlow has done it again! Not only has she compiled seventeen great short horror stories for this collection, but she has also given us, dear readers, an exhaustive run-down on notable horror literature releases of 2009, from books to anthologies to poetry to magazines. If you want a complete year in review for horror literature, look no further than The Best Horror of the Year – Volume Two!

Most of the stories in this collection are quite enjoyable, but there are a few that stood out more than the rest. The collection is kicked off with a bang with Suzy McKee Charnas’ Lowland Sea, a clever take on Poe’s famous The Masque of the Red Death. An entourage from the Cannes festival secludes themselves from the “Red Sweat” in a director’s isolated and impenetrable mansion…but they can’t escape the virus forever.

In the stunningly jaw dropping each thing i show you is a piece of my death by Gemma Files and Stephen J. Barringer, a strange “background man” starts showing up in different movies, TV shows, etc. but no one has a clue as to how he got there. A digital hoax is suspected at first, but his strange appearances remain unexplained. The story is told entirely in email communications and instant messages between two filmmakers, transcribed interviews, official documents, police transcripts and so on. It’s an entirely inventive and intriguing narrative structure, with the added menace and mystery of the “background man”.

These two stories described above were my favorites of the collection, but many more grabbed my attention, including Lonegan’s Luck by Stephen Graham, about a Wild West salesman spreading a zombie virus from town to town, The Lion’s Den by Steve Duffy, about strange happenings at a zoo, Strappado by Laird Barron, about an exclusive art installation that’s to die for, The Lammas Worm by Nina Allan, about a strange girl that falls in with a circus sideshow and Technicolor by John Langan, another creative take on Poe’s Masque of the Red Death.

If you are looking for a great guide to some of the best horror literature published in 2009, pick up a copy of The Best Horror of the Year – Volume Two. It’s worth picking up solely for its superb write-up of numerous horror books, magazines, stories, etc., but as an added bonus the short stories also included are excellent examples of the cream of the crop of horror literature.

This is the second Best of Horror collection from Ellen Datlow I’ve had the pleasure to read, and I’m already looking forward to the third detailing the best of 2010!

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Book Review: The Best of Joe R. Lansdale

Even if you don’t think you’ve ever heard of Joe R. Lansdale, I bet you have. Have you seen Bubba Ho-Tep? Or perhaps watched the Masters of Horror episode Incident On and Off a Mountain Road? Well, both of those were adapted (pretty faithfully, I might add) from Lansdale stories. The witty, outrageous and unforgettable dialogue from Bubba Ho-Tep is pure Lansdale while the heart-stopping action in Incident shows he can build a terrifying story.

I was fortunate enough to receive an early review copy of The Best of Joe R. Lansdale, due out March 2010, which collects many of Lansdale’s most acclaimed, weird and wondrous stories! The collection features sixteen of Lansdale’s short stories, including the previously mentioned Bubba Ho-Tep, Incident On and Off a Mountain Road, as well as Mad Dog Summer (my personal favorite from this particular collection), Godzilla’s Twelve Step Program, the non-fiction Hell Through a Windshield and many more odd and outrageous stories!

Lansdale’s writing style ranges from shocking to sentimental, but always surprises with its down-home style and wicked wit. All of the stories contained in this collection are well worth reading. Lansdale’s outlaw-style writing, complete with colorful characters and provocative settings, pops from the pages and makes you eagerly beg for more remarkable tales. This is Texan storytelling at its best – rude, crude and offensive! His stories have a tall tale feel to them, and though they contain many unpleasant circumstances and characters there is also an underlying sentimentality to them. They are both sweet and sour, but leave the reader satisfied in the end.

My favorite story in the collection is Mad Dog Summer, about a young boy in backwoods 1930’s East Texas who finds himself caught up in a sinister and grisly murder mystery. The story is built around the legend of the Goat Man, who legend says roams the woods and preys upon wayward folk. This story sent chills up my spine, especially as told from the point of view of a young boy. The frightening images of the Goat Man standing on the edge of the woods pretty much made me want to dive under the covers. It also deals with issues of racism, harsh (in)justice, intolerance, growing up and learning to do the right thing no matter what. These themes and the well-drawn characters as well as the details that Lansdale incorporates into the story really pulled me in. I truly did not want to put this story down and had to read it from beginning to end!

The strength of Lansdale’s stories rest squarely on the shoulders of his colorful characters, who are usually piss-full of vinegar and colorful language. They mainly hail from the hearty backwoods of Texas or other rural places, living hard lives and encountering many strange creatures, including zombies, mummies and even albino mules. Lansdale breathes spectacular life into these characters as he has them encounter some truly extraordinary experiences. And then there is just the pure and unbridled imagination of Lansdale – where else can you find a crotchety old Elvis stuck in a convalescent home with a black JFK or Godzilla on the road to recovery from his propensity to destroy things? There is nothing in horror literature like the characters in a Joe Lansdale story, that’s for sure!

The Best of Joe R. Lansdale is a must-have book for the lover of the weird, the champion of the bizarre and the fan of the outrageous. If you are looking for a unique experience that will leave you equal parts stunned and nostalgic, frightened and amused, look no further than the “high priest of Texan weirdness” himself, Joe Lansdale.

In Lansdale’s own infamous words, “Come on in – the weirdness is fine.”

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Book Review: Creeping Shadows - Three Dark Tales

Creeping Shadows is a novella anthology that contains three different stories from authors Alan Draven, Brandon Ford and Jessica Lynne Gardner. The novellas differ from historical supernatural horror, to a story based on recent true events to a tale about an ancient Aztec curse. I loved the variety of the stories and how they each offered something completely different to readers!

The first story, Vengeance is Mine by Alan Draven, re-envisions the the tale of Jack the Ripper. The infamous Whitechapel butcher, whose actual name is Vincent Fowler in this story, starts off attending the prestigious Royal Academy of Surgeons of England but gets kicked out for a distasteful prank as well as his low social rank (his mother was a prostitute and he feels the Academy has always looked down upon him for that shameful fact). After traveling to America, Fowler returns many years later to seek his vengeance on London and begins killing prostitutes. Yet, as much as he relishes spilling their blood and bodily organs, he begins to be haunted by a specter of one of his victims…and this ghost just won’t quit until she gets revenge!

I really enjoyed how masterfully Draven wove true facts throughout his fictional story, even paying attention to the little details! The whole class war aspect of the Jack the Ripper case, in which he was supposedly trying to draw the attention of the aristocrats the the poorer areas of London, was even explored! And his hatred of prostitutes is very well established as his own mother was one. As someone who is very much interested in the macabre Jack the Ripper case, I definitely appreciated Draven’s careful following of the facts in the case and how his own interjections fit squarely into the facts as well.

Furthermore, the novella was very quickly paced and a very exciting read. It was interesting to get to take a peek inside Jack the Ripper’s head and see exactly what he might have been thinking. Plus, the gory killing scenes were quite shocking, even if you already knew all about the case and its victims. The inclusion of the supernatural was an added treat!

The next novella, Merciless by Brandon Ford, was probably my least favorite and didn’t seem to quite fit within the other two novella’s supernatural themes. It is based on a true story about two young high school girls abducted by a madman. They are brutally raped and beaten within an inch of their lives, but they work together to try and escape the madman’s clutches, even as he drives them further and further away from anything familiar.

There is no doubt that Merciless is a horrifying story, but its unfortunately something we read about in the news every day (the original story it is based on is here) and I don’t necessarily want to read about it in my leisure time. While the story is well-written, it just doesn’t offer anything new or original like the other two stories contained in this anthology. Still, this is more personal preference and there is no denying the talent of Ford’s writing…I just wish the subject matter had been a bit more engaging.

The last story, Sugar Skull by Jessica Lynne Gardner, is probably my favorite of the anthology. Someone or something is killing Latinos with a rare poison that the police can’t track down. The victims all had a sugar skull shoved down their throats coated with what appears to be a Central American poison. When Annabel’s father is also found dead, she, with the help of her mother and a forensic specialist, must track down the killer, who appears to be tied to an ancient Aztec curse.

Sugar Skull was a fantastic story that I just couldn’t put down! More so than the other novellas in the anthology, I found myself glued to the pages of Sugar Skull, rooting for the characters to solve the supernatural case! I really loved the uniqueness of the story and appreciated that the author used Dia De Los Muertos and Aztec legends as the backdrop for the tale. I also thought that the villain turned out to be very frightening! I still get the heebie jeebies when I think about it! I also enjoyed the tragic backstory of the villain and the sacrifice it took to finally stop the killings.

Creeping Shadows is an extremely engaging, creative and worthwhile anthology. It definitely lives up to its title and you will definitely be checking over your shoulder after reading the stories contained in Creeping Shadows! I highly recommend this book to pretty much all horror fans, because it definitely has something for everyone!

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Book Review: Murderland Part 1 - H8 by Garrett Cook

Imagine a future where killing is legal and fashion is dictated by famous serial killers like Jack the Ripper, Gacy, Bundy, etc. and serial killers are celebrities, obsessed over by fans. “Reap Chic” dominates, and Reap kids dress to emulate their favorite serial killers, from Victorian garb for Jack the Ripper to clown suits for Gacy. Serial killers are called “psychopomps” and their kills are celebrated. Cafes and bars serve food like “The Sharon Tate” and the “Mary Kelly” and are decorated with serial killer letters, artwork and blood, much to the delight of most of the population.

This is the sickening future envisioned by Garrett Cook in his slim-yet-no-less-satisfying novella, Murderland Part 1 – H8. In Murderland, serial killers are rock stars, complete with groupies and their own merchandise. Yet, one moves amongst them undetected…and his name is Jeremy Jenkins. Jeremy is sickened by the behavior of most “psychopomps”, especially since he too is a killer…but one that kills with purpose. He is convinced that beings from another dimension are turning women into breeding machines…so he has to kill as many women as he can before they are impregnated by the “Dark Ones”. Jeremy just might be the most successful “psychopomp” out there, but he doesn’t seek celebrity…he just wants to save the world from the “Dark Ones”. Yet, as Jeremy finds himself running into more and more psychopomps, he is driven to kill these worthless “entertainers” as well.

Murderland is a very inventive and dark novella from Garrett Cook. From chapter to chapter it moves from first person to third person…and we also learn there is something else inside Jeremy controlling or guiding his actions. Cook has truly created a memorable world in Murderland. The Reap subculture is intriguing and seems entirely plausible, especially today when people already revere some serial killers (like the huge following behind Charles Manson). I loved Cook’s descriptions of all the crazy Reap kids and their different costumes, from the “Whitechapel whores” (Victorian) to the “Bundy girls” (prim college co-eds) and everyone in-between.

I also loved the progression of the character of Jeremy. Whether viewing him from his own perspective or an outside perspective I could never truly tell if he was just batshit insane or if there really was “Dark Ones” invading the world as he believed. This ambiguity just made the novel even more exciting and kept me on my toes. Also, while he acted like a monster when he killed the “impregnated” women, I actually enjoyed it when he went after the (in)famous serial killers who pissed him off. I also thought he was a very clever killer – killing his victims in different ways, leaving different signatures, etc. I had mixed feelings for Jeremy at the beginning of the novel, but he quickly grew on me and by the book’s end I couldn’t wait to read more about him!

Cook has written a very fast-paced, engaging novella with Murderland Part 1- H8. It ends with a real cliffhanger, and I can’t wait to read the next installment to see what happens next!

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Book Review: Dark Delicacies III - Haunted edited by Del Howison and Jeff Gelb

In the third collection of short stories from Dark Delicacies, a Burbank bookstore that has all a horror fan could ask for, we are treated to new short stories from illustrious authors like Chuck Palahniuk, Mick Garris, Heather Graham, Simon Clark, Axelle Carolyn and even a new poem from Clive Barker! All the stories are unique, set in different locations with diverse characters facing their own horrors. Yet, after reading each and every one of the tales in Haunted that is the exact feeling you’ll be left with. You’ll be disturbed, anxious and a little spooked after finishing these stories, and those feelings won’t quickly dissipate. Instead, just like a ghostly apparition they will linger long after you’ve finished all the stories and closed the book. Are you ready to be haunted? Then keep reading…

With any Dark Delicacies book you know you are getting the cream of the crop in regards to authors, and Haunted is no different. All of the stories contained within the 300+ pages will knock your socks off! Kudos must be given to editors Del Howison (proprietor of the Dark Delicacies store) and Jeff Gelb (who gives us a fantastic intro) for compiling such talented contributors, whether they are well-known or not.

While all of the stories are absolutely stellar, I do have my personal favorites of the anthology. My absolute favorite is The Architecture of Snow by David Morrell, about an editor tracking down a reclusive author. While this is not an outright horror story and more of a personal journey of the lead character (though it does have its tension-filled and horrific moments), it is a very touching story that shows there are many different ways to be “haunted”. Morrell writes with a fluidity that sweeps you away and carries you into his imagination and  into the very story so you feel like you are standing alongside the characters.

Another two of my favorites deal with self-mutilation, with the first being Mick Garris’ Tyler’s Third Act about a down and out director who decides to make some money by giving the YouTube generation what they want…blood. Weaved throughout the story is also a cute love story…though it doesn’t end up so cute in the end. I loved the social commentary Garris offered with this tale, both about desperate people in the entertainment industry who are getting slammed hard by the recession as well as the public’s extreme view on what qualifies as “entertainment”. In a morbidly funny tale, Richard Christian Matheson tells us How to Edit. The author in the story keeps “editing” his life, continually cutting things out…including appendages he doesn’t think he needs. Matheson writes with a bitingly satirical tone that I just love!

Another favorite is Heather Graham’s Mist on the Bayou, about a touristy “haunted house” on the Louisiana bayou whose grisly tableaus of murder turn out to be a little more real than expected. And yet, wrapped up in that is also a very satisfying “haunted” story – of the haunted plantation house itself as well as a character in particular that doesn’t even realize they are being haunted. I loved Graham’s descriptions of the mansion, of each scarily themed room within the house and of the surrounding setting. Just the descriptions themselves give the story a spooky feel!

Starlets & Spaceboys by Joseph V. Hartlaub is one of the most bizarre and inventive pieces in the anthology. During a hot-air balloon festival in New Mexico, a teenager meets what she thinks is the man of her dreams. He tells her he is a manager for a band and they are testing out new type of music delivery technology – in pill form. If she takes the pills over the span of a week, she will begin to hear music in her head. Turns out, “swallowing music” is pretty bad and she soon finds the music drowning everything else out…not to mention her “dream man” turns out to be more like a nightmare. This story is truly one of the most original in the book and is so peculiar that it borders on bizarro.

I wish I had the space to go on to mention many of the other great stories, including Axelle Carolyn’s ghoulish Resurrection Man, John R. Little’s shocking The Slow Haunting, Maria Alexander’s elegantly stunning “Though Thy Lips are Pale”, Victor Salva’s satisfying The Wandering Unholy, Chuck Palahniuk’s inventive Fetch and many others. All of the stories within Dark Delicacies III: Haunted are phenomenal and not one of them is disappointing. Editors Del Howison and Jeff Gelb deliver yet another high-caliber and talent-packed anthology of terrifying tales. If you are looking for a guaranteed ghoulish time, this Haunted tome is sure to send shivers of pleasure (and fear) up your spine!

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Book Review: Hellbound Hearts edited by Paul Kane and Marie O'Regan

Hellbound Hearts, edited by Paul Kane and Marie O’Regan, is an eerie anthology based on the Hellraiser films and the original novella The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker. Inside the pages of Hellbound Hearts you’ll find short stories from such famous names as Neil Gaiman, Steve Niles, Sarah Langan, Mick Garris, Kelly Armstrong, Christopher Golden and many, many more.

The book begins with an introduction from the man himself, Clive Barker, who without none of this would be possible. He goes on to speak of the legacy his novella and ensuing Hellraiser films have left in their wake, but is wary to take credit for creating a “mythos”. And yet, here we are, with countless well-known writers eager to feed from this mythos and produce their own tales of pain and pleasure. As Pinhead might say, the Hellraiser mythos will be legendary, even in HELL (where it’s probably already quite popular!)!

All of the short stories contained within the anthology are truly splattacular, but I do have a few favorites that stuck out as noticeably as Pinhead’s nails sticking out of his cranium. My absolute favorite of the bunch was Sister Cilice by Barbie Wilde. Wilde is best known for her portrayal of the female Cenobite in Hellbound: Hellraiser II, but she is also an accomplished dancer, performer and writer. Her short story absolutely stunned me with its simplicity yet complex character. It tells of Sister Nikoletta, who though appears devout, has violent sexual fantasies and is slipping further and further away from the faith. She one day discovers an old tome called the Grimorium Enochia that tells how to call the Cenobites and enter their world of exquisite pain. The story sounds simple enough, but the character of Sister Nikoletta is so conflicted and perverse that I was just drawn into the story and it stuck with me long after I had finished the anthology.

Another of my favorites was Only the Blind Survive by Yvonne Navarro. This tale really stuck out because it is steeped in Native American lore. It tells of a Native American warrior that stumbles across an odd sand painting in the desert and runs back to his village to tell the elders as it is one of the signs that a gate to evil will soon be opened. Spirit warriors must face off against the evil that slithers from the gate, and the tribe’s people can only be saved if they cannot see the creature, which is known to feed on fear after someone sees it. This take on the demonic was probably the most unique of all the stories considering its far removed setting and Native American setting.

I also wholeheartedly enjoyed Kelly Armstrong’s The Collector, about a puzzle solver who gets herself involved with an online puzzle contest whose final test is solving a very peculiar puzzle box. The delicious twist at the end definitely made this one of my favorites! Other standouts included The Confessor’s Tale by Sarah Pinborough, Every Wrong Turn by Tim Lebbon, A Little Piece of Hell by Steve Niles and The Dark Materials Project by Sarah Langan.

It is truly amazing how Clive Barker’s work could go on to inspire so many different terrifying tales. Each and every one is worth reading and it was painful to try and pick out just a few to talk about when all of the stories are so stellar. Each of the authors captures the aesthetic and themes of the Hellraiser mythos, all the while tweaking it just enough to make it their own. What truly makes this anthology so exciting is how many different directions authors can go with Barker’s legacy. From Native American lore to the future of science behind “Shadow DNA”, there is really no limit to how writers can reinterpret and retell the Hellraiser mythos. And, yes, I disagree with Mr. Barker because he truly HAS created a mythos with distinct stories, rules and characters that are instantly recognizable and that I think will stand the test of time.

Horror fans that relish shocking literature as well as Cliver Barker and Hellraiser fans are sure to enjoy Hellbound Hearts. Don’t torture yourself, get your copy today!

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Book Review: The Dark Verse, Vol. 1 by M. Amanuensis Sharkchild

The Dark Verse, Volume 1: From the Passages of Revenants is a collection of 26 fantastical short stories from the darkly imaginative mind of author M. Amanuensis Sharkchild. Sharkchild’s stories were first featured on his self-produced podcast “The Dark Verse” where he would release a fantastically horrific story every two weeks.

The podcast developed quite a following and led to the stories being collected into The Dark Verse Volume 1. This is a beautifully black-bound book with a silver foil cover and black dusting that contains some of the most bizarre and engaging stories I’ve ever come across. The tales tell of distant dimensions and unbelievable beings all the while oozing with an otherworldly atmosphere.

Each and every one of the stories drew me in with the eloquent and sophisticated writing of Sharkchild. Delving deeper and deeper into the great unknown, Sharkchild conjures visions of horrifying monsters and mysterious worlds beyond our own. He creates a window that peers into the black abyss, and the result is that things from the unknown start to look back.

Some would be quick to point out the similarities between Sharkchild’s esoteric style and H.P. Lovecraft’s writings, but though they appear similar I would argue that Sharkchild has a very distinct and unique way of unveiling his mysterious stories. I will say that like any good horror author, Sharkchild’s stories will leave you unhinged as you get a glimpse of the strange species that permeate his imagination and have scrawled themselves into this book.

For example, in the short story What the Flesh Cannot Keep the “Haunter Behind Space” is described by the poor mortal who sees it as “eyes that covered every surface, the souls within them, and the vulgar, detestable complacency of existence that saturated every ounce of its being”. Of course, seeing such a creature would prove fatal to any mortal…

One of my favorite stories is The Changing of the Feyth, told in two parts, about feyths, which are regarded as demigods in their realm. The feyth protagonist describes his race as such: “Our flesh is ash gray and its texture is that of leather. Our eyes are as black as coal and our teeth are as sharp as swords. Our ears are large and so are our noses. We grow to be tall as giants, but our bodies always keep the same slenderness, no matter what our strength or what we consume. Our only master is the Almighty of Shadows…” The story is about how one feyth turns against his brethren and is filled with bloody battle, ghosts and even fairies.

In the story titled Between the Corridors, a small child is haunted by the “Midnight Apothecary”, a nightmarish vision that invades his very mind. It perverts childhood innocence and memories of balloons and ice cream with a menacing and sinister parasitic creature that invades the child’s mind and won’t let go until he relinquishes it.

The book is filled with excellent stories such as those mentioned above, so it is hard not to talk about each and every single one as there is not a bad one in the entire collection. For space sake, I’ll have to keep it down to those mentioned above with hopes they give you a general gist of the fascinating tales told by Sharkchild.

All of Sharkchild’s stories are inhabited by grotesque yet sometimes wondrous beings who have managed to break forth into our own world. These unimaginably horrific monsters populate these short stories, and Sharkchild’s writing brings them to startling and shocking clarity. His stories exist on a different plane, a dimension where unspeakable horrors lie in wait, ready to assault and invade our own existence. These are tales that could reduce you to madness as you marvel at their complex simplicity. Horror lies in fearing the unknown, and boy, does Sharkchild ever have a grasp of how to scare us!

Besides the articulate and intelligent way Sharkchild tells his stories, I must also comment on the overall aesthetic of the book, which is absolutely gorgeous. The outside of the hardback book is wrapped in a faux leather with silver foil stamping adorning it, as well as black dusting on the edges of the pages. Its presentation is impeccable, but only gets better when you open the tome, for inside is stunning artwork by John F. Stifter. Truly, this is one of the most beautifully books I’ve ever reviewed and Armored Books did a fabulous job with its design. This book, though no doubt well-read, will adorn my bookcase for a long, long time.

The Dark Verse, Volume 1: From the Passages of Revenants is an elite collection of fascinating and frightening stories that is sure to impress any horror aficionado who is looking for more peculiar tales rather than the standard slasher/zombie/vampire/serial killer novels that tend to permeate horror fiction. Its high quality is a rarity and I, for one, will treasure this book for a long while.

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Magazine Review: Shock Totem Issue 1

Shock Totem is a new print publication that is packed full of “curious tales of the macabre and twisted”. This richly bound magazine, with glossy, full color front and back covers beautifully illustrated by Robert Hoyem, looks like a novel, but is a periodical that not only boasts terrifying tales but also contains dark poetry, reviews and interviews. I had the exquisite opportunity to check out the first issue of the periodical and the expansive contents inside stunned me with their high quality.

The publication opens with an editorial by publisher and editor K. Allen Wood explaining the genesis of the magazine and how the title “Shock Totem” was conceived. The editorial is a perfect introduction to the publication and perfectly captures the excitement and challenges of an independent dark horror magazine. It really gives the reader insight on the complexities of undergoing such an endeavor, especially in these turbulent economic times.

From there, we move into the first short story, the imaginative and whimsical, but no less violent, The Music Box by T.L. Morganfield. The Music Box is about a child’s cherished toys that have a life of their own…and are fighting each other for the love of their owner. This tale brings back warm and fuzzy memories of childhood, when you believed that your stuffed animals came to life every time you left the room or turned your back. Of course, this story has a bit more violence and bloodshed than most childhood memories, but its fanciful tone remains!

Next, we have Murder for Beginners by Mercedes M. Yardley, about two first-time murderesses taking their first kill in stride. I love the wickedly dark humor of this piece as the two killers joke back and forth about their unfortunate victim! First Light by Les Berkley is a story steeped in the pagan and Celtic beliefs of All Hallow’s Eve and is a beautifully written ghost story. I will definitely be pulling this stunning story down from the bookshelf as the cherished month of October creeps closer!

All of the stories contained within Shock Totem are amazing, but Complexity by Don D’Ammassa is probably my favorite, and is a bit more complicated spin on the “ghost in the machine” story. The main character has noticed a certain intelligent design to technology and inorganic products, almost as if technology had a mind of its own and is evolving. Now that he has noticed this underlying force it has noticed HIM and he feels his life is in danger. I absolutely loved this story, and felt that it is especially relevant nowadays when technology basically rules our lives.

I loved the palatial oasis of an Arabic queen where Below the Surface, by Pam L. Wallace, is set. Jealousy, treachery, betrayal and a mother’s undying love for her son all play large roles in this sumptuous tale. Slider by David Niall Wilson is about an infamous baseball that killed a pitcher back in the day and is about to be auctioned off…but carries a deadly curse. The characterization of the two lead characters, the auctioneer and a mysterious old man, is what makes this tale so intriguing to read. Plus, it has one killer ending…

The second-to-last tale is Brian Rappatta’s The Dead March, about a lonely kid who has a special ability to raise the dead. It goes much deeper than a standard zombie tale, though, and has the ability to really make your skin crawl. This is my second favorite story in this issue and really makes me eager to see what Rappatta does next.

Thirty-Two Scenes from a Dead Hooker’s Mouth by Kurt Newton wins hands down for the best title in the magazine! It starts with a prostitute’s death and moves backward through select scenes in her life to show just how her life deteriorated. I really loved the concept of this story and especially loved its unique narrative structure.

Besides the high quality short stories, the first issue of Shock Totem offers readers interviews with legendary splatterpunk author John Skipp, musician and horror comic creator Alan Robert, and horror author William Ollie. In their review section, Shock Totem covers books, films and music. There are also a few dark poems scattered throughout the publication. The end of the magazine offers a very informative section in which the authors of the short stories talk about their inspirations for their respective stories. I loved reading about the back stories behind all the stories I had just read!

Overall, Shock Totem is an impressive small press publication that is impeccably edited and compiled. There is not one section of the magazine that I didn’t like and all of the stories contained within its pages truly impressed and entertained me. You can tell that it is made by horror fans for horror fans! Shock Totem definitely lives up to its tagline of “curious tales of the macabre and twisted” and I cannot wait to see what future issues bring us!

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Book Review: Season of Rot by Eric S. Brown

Season of Rot is a book from Permuted Press that contains five zombie novellas from Eric S. Brown. I hadn’t experienced any of Brown’s stories before this collection, so I didn’t know quite to expect with Season of Rot. Apparently, Brown is the go-to guy for zombie advice. He’s written five novels: Cobble, Madmen’s Dreams, Unabridged, Unabashed and Undead: The Best of Eric S. Brown and the upcoming World War of the Dead and Barren Earth. Jonathan Maberry even turned to Brown for expert advice for his book Zombie CSU: The Forensics of the Living Dead. Still, even though I am a big fan of Permuted Press I was a bit apprehensive about yet another zombie novel. Luckily, Season of Rot is a fantastic collection of novellas and Brown blew me away with his fast-paced and action-packed stories!

The first novella is entitled Season of Rot, and tells of a group of survivors holed up in the top floors of an abandoned hospital in a high rise building while hoards of the undead crowd around outside. They are running out of supplies and desperately need help…and one day their prayers are answered by a military soldier who promises to come get them and offers them shelter in a military bunker. Yet, this stranger is hiding an awful secret…something that threatens the survivors’ safety.

This was a really gripping, tense story that helped kick off the collection. I really enjoyed the development of the characters (even though most of them have short life spans in the story) and just from this one story I could tell I was in for a treat with Brown’s tales. It immediately threw me into the action and I got all caught up in the ensuing chaos. Plus, I really enjoyed the story of the stranger who suddenly appears and the frightening “transformation” of the undead.

The next short is titled The Queen, and it is my favorite of the novellas. To escape the zombies that have overtaken the world, a group of survivors live aboard a ship called The Queen. When they are low on supplies, they must risk heading to shore and facing the undead…but now it appears that the zombies are getting smarter and are learning to operate machinery…like boats and guns…

The Queen has it all – well-developed characters, a frightening concept (smart zombies?! Lord help us!) and lots of bloody action. I really liked how Brown started with three different stories of survivors, all horrific in their own right (one of them involves the zombies breeding humans for meat!), and then meshed them all together with the survivors meeting at The Queen. The ship setting definitely made it stand out from the standard post-apocalyptic tale and made it much more unique and exciting. Also, the fact that the zombies were smart made it all that more terrifying.

The Wave was next, which features a mysterious wave of energy covering the Earth and disrupting all electronic devices…oh, and turning most of the population into bloodthirsty animals. All forms of communication are down, there is no power and cars, flashlights, etc. don’t work. A small band of survivors head to an isolated military bunker, but with the infected closing in they must make one final stand for humanity…even with the chance that the mysterious wave of energy may have adversely affected the Earth’s sun.

With an unexpected, devastating ending, The Wave definitely had a strong impact. I love how Brown focused on several different survivors in several different locations (with some of them coming together for the finale). The infected are also smart in this one, tricking the survivors and making them give away their location. The infected can also move very fast, a situation that actually makes sense considering the radiation they were exposed to. Overall, The Wave is a very well-done, edge-of-your-seat story with a seriously downbeat, bleakly realistic ending.

Next is Dead West, where the undead have overtaken the Wild West and are eating their way to the eastern part of the United States. Only the Mississippi River stands in their way of eating through the East. A reporter is dispatched to ride into the front-lines of the war to find out just what is happening, but will he be able to make it back at all?

I really enjoyed the Wild West feel of Dead West, but I wish it had felt a little more historical. Take out the horses and it could have just been another zombie story. I just don’t feel that Brown captured that Wild West feel adequately enough. Besides that, though, there is plenty of zombie action to satisfy most undead fans. One particular scene involving undead orphans attacking the cavalry is priceless!

The last story of the collection is Rats. Rats have overtaken the country and command the undead to do their bidding. A group of survivors fights to get to safety, but will the rats be able to reach anywhere they try to hide?

I really loved this story, though I feel the awkward intro could have been left out as it is never mentioned again in the rest of the novella. The rats in question are scary, and there is an underlying theme of demons that gives this end of the world story even more oomph!

Season of Rot on the whole is an exciting, fast-paced read that handles various post-apocalyptic scenarios with gritty realism. The grim outlook feels far more realistic than any false hope survivors would experience in a real-life scenario. Season of Rot is an intense read that really makes me look forward to future novels from Eric S. Brown. This is post-apocalyptic fiction at its breakneck best!

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Book Review: Vile Things - Extreme Deviations of Horror edited by Cheryl Mullenax

Horror anthologies are the perfect bite-sized treats to discover new authors as well as appreciate established ones. Though it’s always nice to see a story by a “master of horror” I much rather like discovering new talent within a good horror anthology. Much to my delight, there was plenty of “fresh blood” to be found within the pages of the horror anthology Vile Things – Extreme Deviations of Horror.

Unlike some horror anthologies, there is no clear theme of zombies or vampires in Vile Things – just solid short stories from the likes of Ramsey Campbell, Graham Masterton, C.J. Henderson and many other horror authors, including some new names I’m now glad to be acquainted with. All of the stories are not for the faint of heart, as many times I found myself squirming and cringing at the disturbing and disgusting tales of horror held between the anthology’s pages. The title of Vile Things definitely says it all! In this fast-paced collection of 15 stories, I thought all were horrific, but a few stood out more than the rest.

My favorite short story was Maggots by Tim Curran. Set during the Napoleonic Wars, both on the killing fields as well as the main character’s hometown of Paris, Maggots is a grotesque tale of cannibalism and possession. Except that instead of a demon taking possession of the main character’s body, the host’s body is invaded and taken over by maggots that force him to eat the putrefied remains of humans. There is a lot of gore within this particular story, all made all the more disturbing in the detailed descriptions the author gives of the main character feasting on the bloated and rotting remains of corpses, all the while all too fully aware of the atrocities he is committing.

Another one of my favorites was Z.F. Kilgore’s tale, The Devil Lives in Jersey. I love Jersey Devil stories and this one definitely doesn’t disappoint. An ex-police detective moves to the Pine Barrens after inheriting a house from his deceased grandparents hoping to give himself and his son a fresh start. Soon, though, the town’s dark secrets involving a witch burning, mysterious disappearances and grisly murders come to the surface, and the ex-detective discovers his family is inexplicably linked to the town’s bloody past…and now it seems that something is killing again. This short story was extremely well-written, with heaps of disturbing imagery (characters eating baby corpses and a witch having sex with something otherworldly, among other graphic scenes) and felt like it had so much to offer that it would be better suited as its own book. I hear that Kilgore, a retired police detective himself, has more short stories planned around the main character, and I eagerly await them!

Other favorites included the cheeky Tenant’s Rights by Sean Logan, in which an off-kilter, nerdy tenant gets revenge on his playboy roommate/landlord, but with disastrous results. I loved seeing the arrogant landlord get his comeuppance, but it was also satisfying to watch the creepy roommate get his at the end of the story! I also enjoyed Coquettrice, by Angel Leigh McCoy, a disturbing look at a satanic cult hatching their very own cockatrice…and watching the main character change from innocent to deviant was pretty jarring as well! What You Wish For by Garry Bushell was an extremely satisfying tale as well, and much like Tenant’s Rights, we get to watch a vile character meet her bloody end.

I’ve only mentioned a few outstanding stories, but with few exceptions all the tales within Vile Things are marvelously macabre! They will make you feel nauseous (Fungoid by Randy Chandler), give you the creeps (The Worm by John Bruni) or just plain scare you (Again by Ramsey Campbell). The anthology’s stories contain incest, rape, deformities, abnormalities, the disabled, infestations, demons, monsters and plenty of graphic gore, blood and other bodily fluids that will have you wishing you read it on an empty stomach! The book definitely lives up to its title of Vile Things – Extreme Deviations of Horror so prepare to be disturbed and make sure you have a barf bag handy before reading!

Buy it on Amazon!

Book Review: Garden of Ghosts by Scott Thomas

I am absolutely enthralled by the Victorian time period. The whole gothic mystique of the period – from the aesthetic of the clothing and architecture to the morbid mourning photography and the ever-present obsession with death – just feels so morbidly romantic! So it was with pure delight that I delved into Scott Thomas’ The Garden of Ghosts, a collection of short ghost stories set in the Victorian era. Thomas has crafted an eerie, unsettling tome that perfectly captures the time period’s interest in the supernatural, not to mention that the romantically mysterious Victorian era seems like a perfect place to set ghost stories!

All of the stories are written in Victorian style and feel as if they were plucked right out of someone’s diary. From fog-shrouded London streets to the snowy New England countryside featuring haunted houses, murderous apparitions, fearsome expanses of fields and gardens, vengeful ghosts and more, Thomas creates subtly frightening tales in the vein of Ambrose Bierce and Edgar Allen Poe. Thomas’ stories creep under your skin, linger with you for days and follow you into many deep, dark nights.

My favorites in this collection include Rush-bearing, a startling tale whose horror sneaks up on you, the poetic and lyrical Pressed Flowers, the eye-opening Syringa Vulgaris, the Jack the Ripper tale Mr. Pickergill’s Unusual Oak-wood Box, the amusing The Haunted Tobacco, the disturbing story of suicidal sisters in In the Long, Weed-Haunted Summer and Winterberry, about unsettled ghosts of soldiers from the Revolutionary War. The rest of the stories are all equally enjoyable and I didn’t find one that disagreed with me. They all offer something different, and to my surprise each contains a different tone and voice so that no two are alike.

The stories have a delicate, polite way about them, but underneath their seemingly tame exteriors lies something chilling and shocking. Thomas usually waits until the end of a story to shock you with some ghastly revelation, but all the stories have an underlying sense of dread that run throughout them. Make no mistake, these stories will stay with you long after you’ve read them and will haunt your waking and dreaming moments! On more than one occasion I had nightmares about spectral spooks after indulging in Thomas’ tales before bedtime!

The Garden of Ghosts is a very limited edition (only 100 books were printed) published by Dark Regions Press, so I urge you to get your copy…before it’s too late! It is truly a hauntingly beautiful collection of ghost stories and is unlike anything out there today!

The Garden of Ghosts is now available on Amazon!