Review: ‘Crow Shine’ by Alan Baxter

Crow Shine by Alan Baxter
Ticonderoga Publications (November 2016)
$29.99 hardcover; $22.99 paperback; $4.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

The first short story I ever read by Alan Baxter was “In Vaulted Halls Entombed,” which featured a group of soldiers chasing terrorists into a cave in Afghanistan only to see them trapped by something their training never prepared them for. Since then, I always get excited when I see his name attached to an anthology.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Savage Jungle’ by Hunter Shea

Savage Jungle by Hunter Shea
Severed Press (April 2017)
198 pages; $11.95 paperback; $4.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Fresh from their adventure in Scotland, Natalie McQueen and her brother Austin are called upon to aid Henrik Kooper in his quest to find the lost city Gadang Ur and the elusive Orang Pendek. Go ahead and Google it. You’ll find it’s every bit as much of a thing as Bigfoot, Yeti, The Jersey Devil, and The Loch Ness Monster—all cryptids Hunter Shea has written about in previous books. As a matter of fact, Savage Jungle is a sequel to his book Loch Ness Revenge.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Embers: A Collection of Dark Fiction’ by Kenneth W. Cain

Embers: A Collection of Dark Fiction edited by Kenneth W. Cain
Crystal Lake Publishing (March 2017)
217 pages; $13.99 paperback; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Embers: A Collection of Dark Fiction features twenty-five stories. In any collection of this size, there are bound to be some hits and some misses along the way. Fortunately, there are more of the former, leading me to suggest this work be added to your personal TBR list.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Feral’ by James DeMonaco & B.K. Evenson

Feral by James DeMonaco & B.K. Evenson
Anchor/Blumhouse Books (April 2017)
320 pages; $9.57 paperback; $11.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Ever read a book with all the right ingredients, one that’s well written, has characters you care about, tells a story with a beginning, a middle, and an end, yet leaves you feeling disappointed?

That’s exactly how I feel about Feral, the new novel from the powerhouse team of James DeMonaco and B.K. Evenson. Continue Reading

Review: ‘Jackals’ by Stuart R. Brogan

Jackals by Stuart R. Brogan
CreateSpace (January 2017)
356 pages; $13.95 hardback; $2.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

I don’t know about you, but I hate it when I’m reading a horror novel and I know who’s gonna die. Jackals is NOT one of those novels and I loved it. It begins with a big surprise and delivers one powerful punch after another, right to the unexpected end.Continue Reading

Review: ‘We Are Always Watching’ by Hunter Shea

We Are Always Watching by Hunter Shea
Sinister Grin Press (March 2017)
460 pages; $18.59 hardback; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Due to dire circumstance, Matt Riley, his wife, Debi, and their fourteen-year-old son, West, had to move in with West’s Grandpa Abraham. Grandpa insisted the place where he lived was haunted. That was fine with West, because “(he) devoured horror books like they were M&Ms.” I loved the mentions of popular horror podcasts and magazines, as well as a number of today’s most-read writers within the genre.  Continue Reading

Review: ‘The Garden of Delight’ by Alessandro Manzetti

The Garden of Delight by Alessandro Manzetti
Comet Press (March 2017)
250 pages; $14.95 paperback; $4.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

The Garden of Delight is a sexually charged compilation of stories from Alessandro Manzetti. Most have been previously published, but a few of the tales are new to this collection. All the stories share a similar tone and spirit as they explore human decadance through the centuries. When it comes to sexual relations, nothing is off limits.  Continue Reading

Review: ‘The Haunted Halls’ by Glenn Rolfe

The Haunted Halls by Glenn Rolfe
Shadow Work Publishing (December 2016)
280 pages; $14.99 paperback; $2.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

It’s been a while since I’ve read a good in-your-face horror novel. Don’t get me wrong, I read and enjoyed an abundance of excellent work in 2016, but when I compare them to The Haunted Halls, the latest from up-and-coming horror writer Glenn Rolfe, they’ve all been rather tame.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Behind Her Eyes’ by Sarah Pinborough

Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough
Flatiron Books (January 2017)
320 pages; $18.18 hardback; $12.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

There’s a quote from Benjamin Franklin at the beginning of Behind Her Eyes. It provides a clue, of sorts, as to the devilish nature of the story which follows.

Three can keep a secret if two are dead.

Continue Reading

Review: ‘The Final Reconciliation’ by Todd Keisling

The Final Reconciliation by Todd Keisling
Crystal Lake Publishing (February 2017)
106 pages; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

First, some background on The King in Yellow. Prior to season one of HBO’s True Detective series, many folks had never heard of Robert W. Chambers or his book of short stories by the same name. The book is named after a fictional play with the same title. The first half of the book features highly esteemed weird stories, and has been described by critics as a classic in the field of the supernatural. There are ten stories, the first four of which mention The King in Yellow, a forbidden play which induces despair or madness in those who read it.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Greetings from Moon Hill’ by Anthony J. Rapino

Greetings from Moon Hill by Anthony J. Rapino
Precipice Books (October 2016)
300 pages; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

I wanted to love Greetings from Moon Hill and I can’t quite put a finger on what went wrong. Conceptually, it’s a great idea. A small town “tucked into the folds of the Pennsylvania countryside.” A place of “Unseen things that are all around us. Impossible flowers, witches, interdimensional beings, murder cover-ups” and more. These are all things I love, so what went wrong?Continue Reading

Review: ‘The Rib From Which I Remake the World’ by Ed Kurtz

The Rib From Which I Remake the World by Ed Kurtz
ChiZine Publications (September 2016)
350 pages; $10.39 paperback; $7.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

The Rib From Which I Remake the World  is one of those books which doesn’t fit neatly into any category. Is it noir? Horror? Psychological Thriller? Occult? The list could go on, but truthfully, what Ed Kurtz’s latest is, is a helluva read.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Blue Demon’ by David Bernstein

Blue Demon by David Bernstein
Sinister Grin Press (December 2016)
134 pages; $11.99 paperback; $2.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

David Bernstein is rapidly becoming a MUST READ author for me.  His stuff tends to be raw, gripping, compelling and, above all, imaginative. Sometimes played for fun, but more often for vengeance.Continue Reading

Review: ‘The Fathom Flies Again’ by James Walley

The Fathom Flies Again by James Walley
Ragnorak Publications (January 2017)
286 pages; $13.95 paperback; $5.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

If you read The Forty First Wink, the debut novel by James Walley, then you’ve more than likely been waiting for the second book in the trilogy, and why not? Book one was so much fun. Walley writes with a whimsical flair I find nowhere else in my ever-growing library.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Devils in Dark Houses’ by B.E. Scully

devilsDevils in Dark Houses by B.E. Scully
DarkFuse (August 2016)
510 pages; $19.99 paperback; $5.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Having never read anything from B.E. Scully before, I had no idea what to expect. Truthfully, I didn’t anticipate being entertained as completely as I was. Devils in Dark Houses is a set of four equally powerful novellas set in the author’s home state of Oregon. The stories are all connected through a pair of homicide detectives assigned to the individual cases.Continue Reading