Cemetery Dance Reviews

Review: ‘Modern Mythmakers: 35 Interviews with Horror & Science Fiction Writers and Filmmakers’ by Michael McCarty

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘Modern Mythmakers: 35 Interviews with Horror & Science Fiction Writers and Filmmakers’ by Michael McCarty

 

mythmakersModern Mythmakers: 35 Interviews with Horror & Science Fiction Writers and FIlmmakers by Michael McCarty
Crystal Lake Publishing (February 2015)
424 pages; $15.99 paperback; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by David Simms

Books of interviews tend to be fascinating reads for hardcore movie fans, writers, and super fans, but they serve a small niche audience. Reaching out to a larger audience is often a tougher task. Mike McCarty nails it with a fun, insightful, and educational read that should entertain all of the demographics it targets.

McCarty has a great voice and style that elicits deep answers from those interviewed, going beyond the expected as readers will find great anecdotes about these celebrities which is pure gold. Continue Reading

Review: ‘Odd Man Out’ by James Newman

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘Odd Man Out’ by James Newman

oddOdd Man Out by James Newman
Bloodshot Books (November 2016)
150 pages; $8.99 paperback; $2.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Odd Man Out was originally released as a signed limited edition from Thunderstorm Books, but this truly is a book everyone should get to read, so now it’s deservedly getting the wide release treatment from Bloodshot Books.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Haven, Kansas’ by Alethea Kontis

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘Haven, Kansas’ by Alethea Kontis

havenkansascoverHaven, Kansas by Alethea Kontis
CreateSpace (October 2016)
308 pages; $19.99 hardcover; $11.28 paperback; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Alethea Kontis is already a very successful writer, but one I’ve never had a chance to read, until now. Haven, Kansas may be a YA novel, but it is certainly not without its scares.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Slipping’ by Lauren Beukes

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘Slipping’ by Lauren Beukes
slippingSlipping: Stories, Essays & Other Writing by Lauren Beukes
Tachyon Publications (November 2016)
264 pages; $9.75 paperback; $9.26 e-book
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand

 

Lauren Beukes’s work as a journalist in South Africa, where she covered topics ranging from slums to shark diving, gave her a sharp eye for detail and a sharp ear for dialogue. These tools are employed to great effect in in Slipping: Stories, Essays and Other Writing.

Continue Reading

Review: ‘Wrathbone and Other Stories’ by Jason Parent

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘Wrathbone and Other Stories’ by Jason Parent

wrathboneWrathbone and Other Stories by Jason Parent
Comet Press (October 2016)
160 pages; $12.95 paperback; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Jason Parent’s new collection, Wrathbone and Other Stories, includes some wonderfully original tales of horror.  There may be only 5 stories in this collection, totaling 160 pages, but each tale is deserving of your attention. If you have yet to discover Jason’s work, this book will serve as a worthy introduction.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Vyrmin’ by Gene Lazuta

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘Vyrmin’ by Gene Lazuta

vyrminVyrmin by Gene Lazuta
Bloodshot Books (October 2016)
360 pages; $13.99 paperback; $2.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Before I get to the review, just a quick comment about the publisher, Bloodshot Books. I really admire the effort being made to find books that either had a limited print run or have gone out of print over the years and giving them new life in the digital age by releasing them in paperback and e-book formats. Earlier this year, they gave this treatment to The Awakening by Brett McBride, a wonderful coming of age story and one of the best books I’ve read in 2016.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Nightmares: A New Decade of Modern Horror’ edited by Ellen Datlow

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , 1 Comment on Review: ‘Nightmares: A New Decade of Modern Horror’ edited by Ellen Datlow

nightmarescover1Nightmares: A New Decade of Modern Horror edited by Ellen Datlow
Tachyon Publications (November 2016)
432 pages; $12.79 paperback; $7.99 e-book
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand

Ellen Datlow has been charting the course of horror fiction for over 35 years. In that time, she has maintained a balanced perspective in her numerous anthologies and collections, always casting an appreciative eye toward the established masters of horror while shining a light on the talent tasked with carrying the genre forward.Continue Reading

Review: ‘The Last Firefly of Summer’ by Robert Ford

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘The Last Firefly of Summer’ by Robert Ford

lastfireflyThe Last Firefly of Summer by Robert Ford
CreateSpace (July 2016)
64 pages; $5.95 paperback; $1.99 e-book
Reviewed by Kevin Lucia

Over the past few years, Robert Ford has become the go-to writer when it comes to emotionally-wrenching fiction. Give him a little bit of your time and eventually, without fail, he’ll have your heart on a platter. The Last Firefly of Summer is no exception. With lean prose and and a powerful voice, Ford spins a tale about summer love gone wrong, and a vengeful adoration which must be satisfied. Continue Reading

Review: ‘Dream Woods’ by Patrick Lacey

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘Dream Woods’ by Patrick Lacey

Cemetery Dance Reviews

dreamDream Woods by Patrick Lacey
Sinister Grin Press (October 2016)
318 pages; $16.99 paperback; $2.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

I love amusement parks, especially the old ones from my youth. The local ones were the best, where sometimes it seemed the rides were likely to fall apart while you were still riding them. The ones within an hour’s drive from where I grew up—Lakewood Park, West Point Park, and Willow Grove Park, all in Southeast Pennsylvania. In its dying days, the later was known as Six Gun Territory. I remember they used to have a small wooden coaster, The Scenic; exciting not because of it’s speed or height, but because of the way it always seemed like it could leave the track at any moment.Continue Reading

Review: ‘The Angel of the Abyss’ by Hank Schwaeble

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘The Angel of the Abyss’ by Hank Schwaeble

abysscoverThe Angel of the Abyss by Hank Schwaeble
Cohesion Press (October 31, 2016)
306 pages; $4.99 e-book
Reviewed by David Simms

Jake Hatcher is one badass character. He’s been to hell and back, fought for his country only to be put in prison, watched people he cares for die at the hands (or other deadly appendages) or demons and other creatures. In Damnable and Diabolical, Hatcher fought off hell and survived—barely—but has returned with a vengeance in The Angel of the Abyss. If readers aren’t familiar with the Stoker-winning first book, it’s okay. Catching up can be done afterwards. Each works somewhat as a standalone but are best served to be read in order.Continue Reading

Review: ‘The End of Halloween: Four Tales of All Hallows’ Eve’ by Greg Chapman

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘The End of Halloween: Four Tales of All Hallows’ Eve’ by Greg Chapman

Cemetery Dance Reviews

The End of Halloween: Four Tales of All Hallows’ Eve by Greg Chapman
Self Published (September 2016)
60 pages; $1.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

halloweenWriter Greg Chapman loves Halloween. Not exactly a bold statement; the man is a horror writer, after all. What makes this interesting, however, is that Greg is from Australia, where Halloween is not nearly the big deal it is in the United States.

In his novella length collection of short fiction The End of Halloween: Four Tales of All Hallows’ Eve, Greg writes with the passion of a long-time devotee of the holiday on which Americans are expected to spend 8.4 billion dollars in 2016.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery”: The Authorized Graphic Adaptation by Miles Hyman

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery”: The Authorized Graphic Adaptation by Miles Hyman

lotterygnShirley Jackson’s “The Lottery”: The Authorized Graphic Adaptation by Miles Hyman
Hill and Wang (October 25, 2016)
160 pages; $30.00 hardcover; $16.00 paperback
Reviewed by Danica Davidson

Shirley Jackson’s “The Lottery” is one of the most famous—and infamous—short stories of all time. People reading it for the first time aren’t prepared for the twist ending, and when it was first published in The New Yorker in 1948, it offended some people so much that they wanted their subscriptions canceled. Those not so easily offended, though, were riveted to the story, and those who couldn’t keep it out of their minds realized they’d been swept up by its power. Seventy years later, the story continues to haunt, and now it’s been adapted into graphic novel format, done by Jackson’s own grandson, Miles Hyman.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life’ by Ruth Franklin

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life’ by Ruth Franklin

Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life by Ruth Franklin
Liveright (September 2016)
624 pages; $25.14 paperback; $16.05 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Admittedly, I don’t read a lot of biographies. Not my thing. Nothing against them, I just prefer to spend my time reading fiction. That being said, when I saw there was going to be a Shirley Jackson biography, I decided to get out of my comfort zone just a bit.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Last Train from Perdition’ by Robert McCammon

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘Last Train from Perdition’ by Robert McCammon

Last Train from Perdition by Robert McCammon
Subterranean Press (October 2016)
181 pages; $35 hardcover
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand

Sometimes, horror is the perfect genre for exploring universal themes such as loss, isolation, or grief.

Sometimes, horror is the perfect genre for exploring how humans react to adversity, loneliness, temptation or, naturally, fear.

And sometimes, horror is the perfect genre to take a group of people, strand them on a train in the dark frontier, and unleash a siege of bloodthirsty creatures upon them.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Children of Lovecraft’ edited by Ellen Datlow

Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsTags , , , , Leave a comment on Review: ‘Children of Lovecraft’ edited by Ellen Datlow

Children of Lovecraft edited by Ellen Datlow
Dark Horse Books (September 2016)
384 pages; $12.81 paperback; $10.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Ellen Datlow has been editing science fiction, fantasy, and horror short fiction for over thirty years.  She has won numerous awards for her work and is certainly one of the best in the business. As a result, she attracts some of the best writers when she puts together a new project, and Children of Lovecraft is a fine example of this effect.Continue Reading