Review: The Headsman by Cristina Mirzoi

cover of The HeadsmanThe Headsman by Cristina Mirzoi
Independently Published (January 2022)
41 pages; $3.50 e-book
Reviewed by R.B. Payne

One of the joys of living abroad is meeting new writers and connecting as storytellers. Living in Europe, that means meeting poets, writers, and artists from various countries and cultures. 

Cristina Mîrzoi is Romanian and English and also speaks Spanish and French. She is a member of the European Dark Fiction Writers group. She is a new writer, emerging onto the scene. It’s my pleasure to introduce you to her and encourage you to take the time to support her by reading her tale.

Without delay, then, let’s review The Headsman by Cristina Mîrzoi.Continue Reading

Cover Reveal and Exclusive Excerpt: Michael J. Seidlinger’s ANYBODY HOME?

Cemetery Dance is proud to join our friends at CLASH Books to reveal the cover of Michael J. Seidlinger’s upcoming home invasion novel, Anybody Home?

cover of Anybody Home? by Michael J. Seidlinger

Continue Reading

Review: Sleepwalkers: Round One by Izzi Breigh

cover of SleepwalkersSleepwalkers: Round One by Izzi Breigh
Somnium Publishing LLC (Feb 22, 2022)
332 pages; $19.99 paperback
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Izzi Breigh, raised by a family of peacocks, grew up on a rutabaga farm. She now resides in a small cottage made entirely of pinecones. Izzi enjoys knitting shirts for starfish, rooms without corners, and peddling time. Her day job is filling hourglasses with precisely the right amount of sand, which she sells for two copper pennies every Saturday at her local flea market. Hide and seek is her favorite sport and though she has repeatedly spotted Waldo, she has yet to figure out where in the world Carmen Sandiego is. Her newest book is Sleepwalkers: Round One, a dark middle-grade book that will thrill readers young and old alike.Continue Reading

Review: Dancing With Maria’s Ghost by Alessandro Manzetti

cover of Dancing with Maria's GhostDancing With Maria’s Ghost by Alessandro Manzetti
Independent Legions (December 2021)
65 pages; $11.90 paperback, $2.99 ebook
Reviewed by Anton Cancre

Alessandro Manzetti always does a great job of evoking a narrative with his poems. He has figured out a great balance of information given and withheld within the swirling images his poems paint that hints at the larger narrative beyond what we are given. I love it. So, when he has a narrative stretched over fifteen poems, you know I’m in. Continue Reading

Bev Vincent explores Gwendy’s Final Task

Stephen King News From the Dead Zone

“The Tower Is Strong”

There’s a lot going on in Ben Baldwin’s artwork on the cover of the Cemetery Dance edition of Gwendy’s Final Task, coauthored by Stephen King and Richard Chizmar. The dominant figure is the enigmatic Richard Farris, who has burdened Gwendy Peterson with custody of a mysterious and dangerous box of buttons on two previous occasions. In the foreground we see an illustration of a town or a city and what looks to be a rocket or a shooting star.

But what’s that behind Mr. Farris? Could it be…could it possibly be…the Dark Tower? This image generated a lot of discussion and debate when it was first revealed. The Gallery Books cover for the final book in the Gwendy trilogy puts the question to rest—the central image is the Tower and, in the foreground, a field of red roses.

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Gwendy’s Final Task by Stephen King and Richard Chizmar: Last DAY to Win a Copy Signed by BOTH Authors!

Plus: An Update on the Variant Binding!

Tomorrow is publication day for Gwendy’s Final Task, which means today is the LAST DAY to enter the giveaway for one of THREE copies signed by Stephen King and Richard Chizmar! Read all the details on the website before time runs out!

For those who missed the video Richard Chizmar posted explaining the challenges of printing Gwendy’s Final Task, and why there are two versions of binding, here is a link!

Bindings

For the completists out there, the best way to find the gray version is to order a copy from Amazon or pick one up at your local chain bookstore. The best way to get the green binding is to order directly through the Cemetery Dance online store (or to get lucky at your local bookseller).

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Thank you, as always, for your continued support and enthusiasm!

Interview: Editor James Aquilone Kickstarts Kolchak

banner that reads The Comic Vault

Moonstone Books and editor James Aquilone recently took to Kickstarter to launch Kolchak: The Night Stalker 50th Anniversary Graphic Novel, featuring 11 original stories based on the series featuring monster-hunting report Carl Kolchak. Participating authors include Jonathan Maberry, Kim Newman, Peter David, and more.

While the initial Kickstarter campaign has finished after reaching its goal, the creators are still accepting late pledges.

Danica Davidson recently sat down with Aquilone to discuss the project for Cemetery Dance.Continue Reading

Review: The Taking of Jake Livingston by Ryan Douglass

cover of The Taking of Jake Livingston by Ryan DouglassThe Taking of Jake Livingston by Ryan Douglass 
G.P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers (July 2021) 
244 pages; hardcover $14.39; $10.99 e-book; $35 audiobook (or 1 Audible credit) 
Reviewed by Haley Newlin 

It seems impossible to turn something so pretty so ugly, but it’s not. Everything turns ugly after it’s dead.

? Ryan Douglass, The Taking of Jake Livingston

I stumbled on The Taking of Jake Livingston through one of my favorite YouTube channels, BowTies & Books. According to the channel host, BookTube collectively held its breath for the release of this YA horror story.

And I can see why. Continue Reading

Review: Devil House by John Darnielle

cover of Devil HouseDevil House by John Darnielle
Farrar, Straus and Giroux (January 2022)
416 pages; $20.16 hardcover; $14.99 e-book
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand

Diving into John Darnielle’s Devil House is akin to entering a hedge maze: there are twists and turns ahead, and a few dead ends, and there will be times where you feel a little lost, but for the most part it’s a worthy journey.Continue Reading

Want some short fiction, novels, films, and other oddities? READ THIS!

Cemetery Dance fans take note! We want to update you on two Patreon pages you might be interested in supporting:

Billy Chizmar, who you may know from his short stories, the acclaimed novella Widow’s Point, or his award-winning short films, has just launched a Patreon page with some incredible rewards available including a signed movie poster if you’re one of the first 100 people to sign up! We’ve seen a sneak peek of what Billy is cooking up for his patrons, and it’s going to be amazing. Get in early before the best tiers are gone! Check out all the details here:

Chizmar

There’s also Brian James Freeman’s Patreon page, where he posts his writing and previews of Lividian projects, and where he publishes chapbooks and special edition books exclusively for his supporters. Thanks to the support of his readers, he’s been able to switch to writing full-time as of two weeks ago… not that any of us are counting! Check out his page here:

Freeman

Thank you, as always, for your continued support and enthusiasm!

Review: Dead Silence by S.A. Barnes

cover of Dead SilenceDead Silence by S.A. Barnes
Tor Nightfire (February 8th, 2022)
352 pages; $23.99 hardback; $13.99 e-book
Reviewed by Sadie “Mother Horror” Hartmann

Dead Silence makes use of well-loved tropes within the sci-fi horror sub-genre while introducing elements borrowed from popular modern thrillers. A genre mash-up that easily captivates its audience but struggles to utilize that up-front investment to maintain interest.Continue Reading

Horror Drive-In: Scaaaa-REEM!

banner reading Horror Drive-In and Mark Sieber and Cemetery Dance

I am the perfect age to be a slasher fan. Halloween was released when I was seventeen years old — roughly the same age as the victims in John Carpenter’s masterpiece. I saw it in a walk-in theater and the experience was truly transformational. I was on the verge of adulthood and this movie, which was based on an oft-told urban legend, felt like the beginning of something entirely new.

Halloween was a runaway success and along with the inevitable sequel, imitator movies were quickly made and released. The biggest of them is, of course, Friday the 13th. I was eighteen years old.Continue Reading

Review: I Hear the Clattering of the Keys by Jamie Stewart

cover of I Hear the Clattering of the KeysI Hear The Clattering of the Keys by Jamie Stewart 
Blood Rites Horror (November 2021) 
175 pages; $7.99 paperback ; $2.99 ebook
Reviewed by Haley Newlin

In the past, when I’ve read horror short story collections, I’ve found them a bit insular; they’re always too fast, and the payoff isn’t consistent.

I Hear The Clattering of the Keys is a horrific web of tragedy, love, and the supernatural — a complete antithesis of what’s turned me off to short stories in the past. Continue Reading

NEW Books From Robert McCammon Announced Today!

The King of Shadows
by Robert McCammon
A Deluxe Trade Hardcover from Lividian Publications!
Plus: FIVE New Robert McCammon Trade Paperbacks (One Signed!)

We’re pleased to report we will be getting copies of the new deluxe trade hardcover of The King of Shadows by Robert McCammon, the eighth volume in his acclaimed Matthew Corbett series, which is being published by Lividian Publications! This absolutely massive hardcover edition features Vincent Chong color artwork for the dust jacket (different from the Limited Edition) and also includes the ten black and white interior illustrations from the Limited Edition.

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Read more and place your order while our supplies last!

Lividian Publications is also publishing multiple volumes of Robert McCammon’s Matthew Corbett series in trade paperback for the first time ever later this year, and we’re pleased to report we’re getting some copies of the very special bundle set they’re putting together!

Due to the shortage of book paper in the world, there will be a limited run of the offset printed true first printings of these trade paperbacks.

For collectors who want all first printings, Lividian Publications has created a bundle featuring all five books, to be shipped together this summer, that are guaranteed to be from the offset run of first printings and will be marked as such on their copyright pages Robert McCammon has also generously agreed to sign signature sheets for a book in the bundle!

Supplies are very limited! Copies ordered individually via online retailers like Amazon, etc, will not be signed and might be print on demand copies.

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Read more and place your order while our supplies last!

Thank you, as always, for your continued support and enthusiasm!