Reviews Archives - Cemetery Dance Online

Review: Unworthy by L. Marie Wood

Cemetery Dance OnlineDecember 17, 2025November 30, 2025ReviewsElizabeth Broadbent, L. Marie Wood, Reviews, UnworthyLeave a comment

cover of Unworthy Unworthy by L. Marie Wood
Mocha Memoirs Press (September 2025)
Reviewed by Elizabeth Broadbent

Fans of psychological horror, rejoice: Unworthy, L. Marie Wood’s “novel in stories,” has dropped. Wood is a recognized virtuoso of the subgenre, her list of awards as long as it is genre-spanning, and readers craving true literary terror will find the fix they need. Unworthy marks the fifth installment in the author’s “Open Book Universe,” but like its companions — The Open Book, The Tales of Time, The Tales of Time: The Lost Stories, and poetry collection Imitation of Life — the novel also stands on its own. Continue Reading

Review: Play Nice by Rachel Harrison

Cemetery Dance OnlineDecember 15, 2025November 30, 2025ReviewsHaley Newlin, Play Nice, Rachel Harrison, ReviewsLeave a comment

cover of Play Nice Play Nice by Rachel Harrison
Berkley (September 2025)
Reviewed by Haley Newlin

“The world will drive a woman insane, then point and laugh.”

In Rachel Harrison’s new gothic and paranormal horror novel, Play Nice, a stylist and influencer named Clio returns home following her mother’s sudden death. Alex left the house to Clio and her sisters who immediately wish to sell it. After all, it’s where their mother lost her mind. Continue Reading

Review: Ghost Confessions by John Shirley

Cemetery Dance OnlineDecember 12, 2025November 30, 2025ReviewsGhost Confessions, John Shirley, Joshua Gage, poetry, ReviewsLeave a comment

Ghost Confessions by John Shirley
Jackanapes Press (November 2025)
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

John Shirley has written novels, short stories, TV scripts, screenplays, song lyrics, poetry, and various forms of nonfiction. His books number more than eighty, including numerous novels of sf, dark fantasy, horror, thrillers, and westerns, and twelve short story collections. He has won the Bram Stoker Award for his collection: Black Butterflies: A Flock on the Dark Side, and the Spur Award for his Western Gunmetal Mountain. He has also written one non-fiction book, Gurdjieff: An Introduction to His Life and Ideas. As a musician, Shirley has fronted his own bands and written lyrics for Blue Öyster Cult and others. His newest collection of poetry and song lyrics is Ghost Confessions.Continue Reading

Review: The Girl, The Priest, and The Devil by Theo Prasidis

Cemetery Dance OnlineDecember 10, 2025November 30, 2025Reviews, The Comic VaultColumns, Joshua Gage, Reviews, The Comic Vault, Theo PasidisLeave a comment

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The Girl, The Priest, and The Devil by Theo Prasidis
Dead Sky Publishing (December 16, 2025)
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Theo Prasidis is a Greek writer and graphic novelist, published by Image Comics, TKO Studios, Scout Comics, and Dead Sky Publishing. He writes quixotic fantasies about hidden folklore, bizarre rituals and wistful dreams. His newest folk horror graphic novel is The Girl, The Priest, and The Devil.Continue Reading

Review: I Was a Fashion School Serial Killer by Doug Wagner, illustrated by Daniel Hillyard

Cemetery Dance OnlineDecember 8, 2025November 11, 2025Reviews, The Comic VaultColumns, Daniel Hillyard, Doug Wagner, I Was a Fashion School Serial Killer, Joshua Gage, Reviews, The Comic VaultLeave a comment

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I Was a Fashion School Serial Killer by Doug Wagner, illustrated by Daniel Hillyard
Image Comics (December 16, 2025)
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Doug Wagner is an American comic book writer whose Image Comics include Plastic (co-created with Daniel Hillyard), The Hard Place (with Nic Rummel), Gun Candy (with Brian Stelfreeze), and The Ride (with too many to list). He’s also written titles such as I.C.E., World of Warcraft: Bloodsworn, Legends of the Dark Knight, and Witchblade/Red Sonja. Doug can be found hiding out in Park City, Utah where he spends his days creating madness, frolicking down the slopes with his lovely wife, and reveling cuddle time with the sweetest kitty in the world. His newest graphic novel is I Was a Fashion School Serial Killer.Continue Reading

Review: Seth’s Christmas Ghost Stories (2025)

Cemetery Dance OnlineDecember 3, 2025December 2, 2025ReviewsBiblioasis, Reviews, Seth, Seth's Christmas StoriesLeave a comment

covers of Seth's Christmas Ghost Stories Seth’s Christmas Stories (2025)
Biblioasis (November 2025)
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand

How do I know it’s the holiday season? Is it when the stockings are hung by the chimney with care? Is it when Mariah Carey appears, like magic, on my radio?

Maybe, but the first sign is usually the arrival of a small package from Biblioasis, containing their annual set of Seth’s Christmas Ghost Stories.

The series was conceived to help preserve the age-old tradition of reading ghost stories on Christmas Eve. Each year, renowned cartoonist Seth chooses three classic stories and illustrates and designs a book for each. Printed in a stocking-ready size and featuring striking covers and Seth’s distinct illustrations, these are beautiful and uniquely collectible.

But of course, none of this matters if the stories don’t equal the packaging. This year, Seth has chosen three moody, atmospheric pieces to fill your season with holiday fear…Continue Reading

Review: Ghost Boys: The Graphic Novel by Jewell Parker Rhodes, illustrated by Setor Fiadzigbey

Cemetery Dance OnlineDecember 2, 2025November 11, 2025Reviews, The Comic VaultColumns, Ghost Boys, Jewell Parker Rhodes, Joshua Gage, Reviews, Setor Fiadzigbey, The Comic VaultLeave a comment

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Ghost Boys: The Graphic Novel by Jewell Parker Rhodes, illustrated by Setor Fiadzigbey
Little, Brown Ink (December 2, 2025)
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes is the New York Times bestselling author of several books for youth, including Ghost Boys; Black Brother, Black Brother; Paradise on Fire; and Treasure Island: Runaway Gold. She is the recipient of many distinguished awards and honors, including the Coretta Scott King Author Honor, the Green Earth Book Award, an NAACP Image Award nomination, the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award, and the Octavia E. Butler Award. Rhodes is the Founding Artistic Director of the Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing and Virginia G. Piper Endowed Chair at Arizona State University. Her novel, Ghost Boys, is now a graphic novel.Continue Reading

Review: Consensual Violence by Del James, Illustrated by Giulia Brusco Arjuna Susini

Cemetery Dance OnlineNovember 26, 2025November 11, 2025Reviews, The Comic VaultColumns, Consensual Violence, Del James, Giulia Brusco Arjuna Susini, Joshua Gage, lucha libre, Reviews, The Comic VaiultLeave a comment

Consensual Violence by Del James, illustrated by Giulia Brusco Arjuna Susini
Dead Sky Publishing (November 25, 2025)
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Del James is a meat-eating, pro-choice, sober atheist. He writes horror fiction, screenplays, and music. As a lyricist, James has cowritten songs with groups such as Testament, The Almighty, The Outpatience, and Guns N’ Roses, including two songs on GNR’s Grammy-nominated Use Your Illusion album. James has directed several music videos and written live television for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. His newest graphic novel, Consensual Violence, explores the dark underbelly of Lucha Libre wrestling.Continue Reading

Review: The Pulse Remains by Rob Grimoire

Cemetery Dance OnlineNovember 24, 2025October 26, 2025ReviewsElizabeth Broadbent, Reviews, Rob Grimoire, The Pulse RemainsLeave a comment

cover of The Pulse Remains The Pulse Remains by Rob Grimoire
Undertaker Books (August 2025)
Reviewed by Elizabeth Broadbent

In a Southern Gothic novel, the past returns to haunt the present. Emphasizing moral bankruptcy and degeneracy, particularly of the upper classes, the genre has traditionally been dominated by white people and white stories — William Faulkner, Flannery O’Conner, and Michael McDowell.

That tradition often omits or elides the contributions of Black authors: Toni Morrison, Zola Neale Hurston, Octavia Butler, S.A. Cosby, Tananarive Due, and Alexis Henderson. Like their white counterparts, these stories usually include traditional Southern Gothic tropes: the past intruding on the present, the moral and spiritual corruption of the elite, an emphasis on landscape and setting. Continue Reading

Review: Take Up Your Skin and Others by Jennifer Crow

Cemetery Dance OnlineNovember 21, 2025November 11, 2025ReviewsJennifer Crow, Joshua Gage, poetry, Reviews, Take Up Your Skin and OthersLeave a comment

Take Up Your Skin and Others by Jennifer Crow
Self-Published (November 2025)
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Jennifer Crow is grateful for friends whose words, artwork, and photography inspire both poetry and hope. Her work has appeared in a number of print and electronic venues over the years, most recently in Not One of Us, The Wondrous Real, and Abyss & Apex. Her newest chapbook, Take Up Your Skin is available directly from her or free to subscribers of her Patreon page.Continue Reading

Review: The Dead Husband Cookbook by Danielle Valentine

Cemetery Dance OnlineNovember 19, 2025October 26, 2025ReviewsDanielle Valentine, Haley Newlin, Reviews, The Dead Husband CookbookLeave a comment

cover of The Dead Husband Cookbook The Dead Husband Cookbook by Danielle Valentine
Sourcebooks Landmark (August 2025)
Reviewed by Haley Newlin

The Dead Husband Cookbook by Danielle Valentine is a worthy follow-up to the author’s motherhood-horror and debut novel, Delicate Condition. Delicate Condition inspired season twelve of Ryan Murphy’s American Horror Story: Delicate, starring Emma Roberts and Kim Kardashian.

The Dead Husband Cookbook is another exploration of the daily horror of the female experience. However, it’s less body horror than you might expect. It’s a gritty mystery, each reveal more twisted than the last. I had a really tough time putting this one down.Continue Reading

Review: Moan by Junji Ito

Cemetery Dance OnlineNovember 17, 2025October 26, 2025Reviews, The Comic VaultColumns, Danica Davidson, Junji Ito, Moan, Reviews, The Comic VaultLeave a comment

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cover of Moan Moan by Junji Ito
VIZ Media (October 2025)
Reviewed by Danica Davidson

Junji Ito, a popular horror manga creator in Japan, has been getting increasingly known in America. More and more of his horror works are being released in English, with the most recent being Moan, a short story collection. The first few stories run on the long end, and then there are a couple of shorter pieces.

Each story shows off Ito’s masterful artwork. He knows both how to draw characters beautifully and how to set a mood. The stories also showcase Ito’s penchant for weirdness, creepiness and mystery.Continue Reading

Review: ADAK by Keith Minnion

Cemetery Dance OnlineNovember 12, 2025October 23, 2025ReviewsADAK, Dave Simms, Keith Minnion, Reviews, White Noise PressLeave a comment

cover of ADAK ADAK by Keith Minnion
White Noise Press (August 2025)
Reviewed by Dave Simms

When is an apocalypse novel not an apocalypse novel? When it’s ADAK by the incredibly talented Keith Minnion. ADAK shares some ingredients with Contagion, The Thing, and the best of the action-adventure novels of the ’70s and ’80s. It’s a thriller novel at heart that marries the theme of Michael Crichton with Preston and Child — intelligent, but never slamming the reader with scientific details that make readers’ heads spin.

Review: MrBallen Presents: Where Nightmares Live by MrBallen and Andrea Mutti

Cemetery Dance OnlineNovember 10, 2025October 13, 2025Reviews, The Comic VaultAndrea Mutti, Joshua Gage, MrBallen, MrBallen Presents Where Nightmares Live, Reviews, The Comic VaultLeave a comment

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MrBallen Presents: Where Nightmares Live by MrBallen and Andrea Mutti
Ten Speed Graphics (September 2025)
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Better known as “MrBallen,” John B. Allen is a former U. S. Navy Seal, the founder of the multi-platform content company Ballen Studios, and the creator and host of the popular podcast MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark & Mysterious Stories. Allen uses his platform to give back and founded the MrBallen Foundation with the mission to honor victims and support families of heinous crimes through education, training, and financial support.

Andrea Mutti began his career illustrating DNAction for Xenia Edizioni, Sergio Bonelli Editore, and Star Comics. He’s worked with Marvel, DC, Vertigo, MadCave, Stormking, Dark Horse, IDW, Image, BOOM! Studios, and more. His titles include Maniac of New York, Bunny Mask, Rebels, Batman Eternal, and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. He’s a member of the National UFO Center and resides in Sarasota, Florida. Continue Reading

Review: Nightmuse: Poems of Speculative Darkness by Scott J. Couturier

Cemetery Dance OnlineNovember 5, 2025October 13, 2025ReviewsJackanapes Press, Joshua Gage, Nightmuse, poetry, Reviews, Scott J. CouturierLeave a comment

Nightmuse: Poems of Speculative Darkness by Scott J. Couturier
Jackanapes Press (November 2025)
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Scott J. Couturier is a Rhysling-nominated poet and prose writer of the weird, liminal, and darkly fantastic. His work has appeared in numerous venues, including The Audient Void, Spectral Realms, Tales from the Magician’s Skull, Space and Time Magazine, Cosmic Horror Monthly, and Weirdbook; his collection of Weird fiction, The Box, is available from Hybrid Sequence Media, while his collection of autumnal & folk horror verse, I Awaken In October, is available from Jackanapes Press. His newest collection of speculative horror poetry, Nightmuse, is available on Jackanapes Press. Continue Reading

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