Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: Behemoth by HP Newquist 
Behemoth by HP Newquist
Bloodshot Books (October 2019)
362 pages; paperback $16.99; e-book $3.99
Reviewed by Janelle Janson
Nothing freaks me out but also intrigues me more than a cult. They are just so fascinating. What kind of cult? Is it murderous? Doomsday? Is it polygamist? How do they brainwash people? Or better yet, is it a religious cult with the most insane secret I’ve ever read? Well folks, buckle up because this one is a doozy.Continue Reading
Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: The Cipher by Kathe Koja 
The Cipher by Kathe Koja
Meerkat Press (September 15th, 2020)
236 pages; $17.48 paperback; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by Sadie “Mother Horror” Hartmann
There’s kind of this unofficial debate among readers concerning those who enjoy unlikable characters and those who need protagonists to be tolerable in order to invest in their story.
I like despicable, flawed people. I think protagonists should be as varied as the people we encounter in real life. I don’t need to like people in order to emotionally invest in their stories — sometimes, hating them is just as fun as loving them.Continue Reading
Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: Fishing for Dinosaurs by Joe R. Lansdale 
Fishing for Dinosaurs by Joe R. Lansdale
Subterranean Press (November 2020)
378 pages; $40 limited edition hardcover; $6.99 e-book
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand
In his introduction to this, his latest collection, Joe R. Lansdale writes, “It’s no secret that I like to write a variety of stories in a variety of genres, and my favorite of those is the Lansdale genre.”
Lansdale goes on to explain what that genre is, but all you really need to do to understand the “Lansdale genre” is to read the stories that follow the introduction. Reading these stories is like taking a peek into Lansdale’s mind, a one-of-a-kind universe where cowboys fire six-shooters at Tyrannosaurus Rexes; where apes don space helmets and fly to the moon; where one-eyed space aliens tend bar in an old mining town saloon.Continue Reading
Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: Boinking Bizarro edited by Brian Asman and Danger Slater 
Boinking Bizarro edited by Brian Asman and Danger Slater
Death’s Head Press (December 2020)
138 pages; $9.99 paperback; $4.99 e-book
Reviewed by Anton Cancre
Porn parodies. We know ’em. We love ’em. Except maybe Porn of the Dead. I don’t think anyone was asking for someone to go that far with it. Maybe Joe D’Amato. Look, I got a bit sidetracked. Point is: why the heck didn’t anyone think of doing porn parodies of classic literature before now?
Take Autumn Christian’s “The Thottery, by Shirley Jacksoff.” That title alone should print solid gold bricks that fall like rain from its moistened nethers. Or “The Martian Cumsicles by Ray Fatberries (Charles Austin Muir).” And “A Bird Came Up My Walk and I Put It in my Vagina by Emily Getta Dickinson.” That last one deserves an award.
But it isn’t all just the titles. Stories here range from the pure goofball oddity of Max Booth III’s “Tit, by Stephen Kink” to the satire of a satire that is “American Sly-ho by Breast-Eatin Ellis” from our dear friend Jessica McHugh. Then there is the raw heartache and fury we all have come to expect from Betty Rocksteady encapsulated in “Pinnochio’s Big Dick Energy, by Cucko Cuccoldi.” The less said about Johnwayne Comunale’s “The Receiving Tree, by Shell Silversteen” the less prepared for that particular ball of what-did-I-just-experience you will be.
Point is, Boinking Bizarro is exactly what it says on the tin, with just that smidge more to make for a special surprise. I liked it so much that I bought a physical copy just so the pages could get stuck together.
Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories Graven Images, ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: Remina by Junji Ito 
Remina by Junji Ito
VIZ Media (December 15, 2020)
256 pages; $19.99 hardcover, $15.99 ebook
Reviewed by Danica Davidson
At first it looks as if everything is working out for 16-year-old Remina. Her father, a scientist, won the Nobel Prize for discovering a wormhole. When an unknown planet from a different dimension comes through the wormhole, it makes her father even more famous and celebrated, and he names the planet Remina after his daughter. Buoyed by this fame, Remina the girl uses it to get into the entertainment industry and became a celebrity in her own right.
But then the planet Remina keeps heading toward earth, moving faster than should be possible. Moving faster than the speed of light, even. As it goes, it destroys the planets on its path. It appears to have eyes that look out, and giant tongues that can attack planets. It doesn’t take people long to figure that the planet Remina will destroy earth as well.Continue Reading
Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories Graven Images, ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: Mieruko-chan by Tomoki Izumi
Mieruko-chan by Tomoki Izumi
Yen Press (November 17, 2020)
146 pages; $13 paperback, $6.99 e-book
Reviewed by Danica Davidson
Mieruko seems like an average high school girl, but she keeps seeing hideous monsters wherever she goes. She’ll be standing out in the rain waiting for the bus when she’s joined by a monster with socket-less eyes, a gaping gut, and faces staring out from its insides.
“Hey, can you see me?” it asks her. “You can see. Can you see?”Continue Reading
Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: The Worm and His Kings by Hailey Piper 
The Worm and His Kings by Hailey Piper
Off Limits Press (November 15th, 2020)
116 pages; $13.00 paperback; $6.99 e-book
Reviewed by Sadie “Mother Horror” Hartmann
Women in Indie Horror have a powerful voice and if that’s a surprise to you, take note of the popular Best Of Lists from horror reviewers as 2020 comes to a close. You will see these names: Laurel Hightower, Gemma Amor, Samantha Kolesnik, Sara Tantlinger, Gwendolyn Kiste, Cynthia Pelayo, V. Castro, Stephanie Ellis, Jessica Guess, Briana Morgan, and many, many more.
One name I saved for last and special mention. Hailey Piper. Hailey is one to watch. She has had a stellar year of releases starting with the breakout novella, The Possession of Natalie Glasgow. Then it was just one winner after the next: Benny Rose, The Cannibal King (Unnerving), An Invitation to Darkness (Demain Pub), and several short stories in various anthologies.Continue Reading
Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: Dog Star by Keith Minnion 
Dog Star by Keith Minnion
White Noise Press (May 2020)
344 pages; $12.99 paperback; $2.99 e-book
Reviewed by Dave Simms
Author and artist Keith Minnion has returned with a personal novel that’s part police procedural, part supernatural mystery. Alongside The Boneyard, one of the best horror novels of the past ten years, and the recent collection, Read Me, readers are treated to something new, although there are some tricky — and cool — connections to the aforementioned book.Continue Reading
Hope and Miracles: The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile (Two Screenplays by Frank Darabont) edited by Tyson Blue
Gauntlet Press (Fall 2020)
Signed and Limited Editions: $199.00 – $4,000.00
Reviewed by Rick Hipson
Preceding the twenty and twenty-fifth anniversaries of The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile comes Hope and Miracles, a literary celebration of two of Stephen King’s most iconic cinematic adaptations (Shawshank being the highest ranking film listed on IMDB). The book provides a cornucopia of behind-the-scenes insights, retrospectives, essays and more from writer/director Frank Darabont, Stephen King, RC Matheson and several others, including an exclusive interview from the late, but always great Michael Clark Duncan. Several never before released photos from Darabont’s personal archive are also included. Continue Reading
Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: Red Hands by Christopher Golden 
Red Hands by Christopher Golden
St. Martin’s Press (December 8, 2020)
320 pages; $27.99 hardcover; $14.99 e-book
Reviewed by Dave Simms
“Weird shit.” That’s Ben Walker. The expert on weird shit from the previous two entries which are standalone novels, Ararat and The Pandora Room, one of which left a scar few horror novels ever manage to accomplish while the other dug deep into thriller territory in a deliciously fun manner. How does Chris Golden follow this up? Red Hands.Continue Reading
The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy and Horror Volume 1 edited by Paula Guran
Pyr (October 2020)
440 pages; $15.53 hardcover; $9.99 e-book
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand
In her introduction to The Year’s Best Dark Fantasy and Horror Volume 1, editor Paula Guran writes “Most of these stories begin with a world you can identify with. Then…the world changes. The normal is subverted.”
My first thought was, “That’s horror fiction in a nutshell.” (My second thought was, “That’s 2020 in a nutshell,” but I don’t want to get into all that.)
The stories Guran has chosen for this, her eleventh volume in this series (the first ten were published by Prime Books), back up her assessment. These are stories of worlds that you will probably recognize; or, at the very least, be able to relate to on some level. These are stories of ordinary beings trying to persevere under extraordinary circumstances. These are stories of extraordinary beings looking to reshape the world around them. These are stories of what happens when “the normal” is intruded upon, wiped out, rethought….or undone.
A few highlights:
Rebecca Campbell’s “The Fourth Trimester is the Strangest” follows a new mother as she fights through a postpartum horror show. As her sleeplessness and fear ratchets up, so does the fear she and those around her feel for her baby, and for the damage that may come at her suddenly unreliable hands.
Sam J. Miller’s “Shattered Sidewalks of the Human Heart” depicts the surreal encounter between a New York cab driver and a post-King Kong Ann Darrow. The cabbie takes Darrow away from yet another vapid red carpet event, and unexpectedly finds himself privy to her plans to avenge the death of the god-like ape.
“Conversations with the Sea Witch” by Theodora Goss tells of the meeting between a woman who was once a mermaid and an old sea witch. The two get together often to discuss the life-changing decisions they each made in the past, and how things turned out for them in the aftermath.
I’d call “About the O’Dells” my favorite of the collection. Pat Cadigan writes about a young girl who witnesses a murder, and who is (understandably) haunted by what she saw. Years later the killer — or someone the girl strongly believes is the killer — re-emerges, and the girl finds herself collaborating with a revenge-seeking ghost.
Guran has put together a solid collection here, filled with intriguing characters, fresh approaches to old tropes, and sound storytelling. This is definitely a great book to have around when you want something quick and good to read. It’s introduced me to a number of new names that I’ll be seeking out in the future. Recommended.
Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: Ink by Jonathan Maberry 
Ink by Jonathan Maberry
St. Martin’s Griffin (November 2020)
464 pages; $13.72 paperback; $9.99 e-book
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand
Jonathan Maberry first caught my eye nearly 15 years ago with Ghost Road Blues, which was both his first novel and the first novel in the Pine Deep Trilogy, which also includes Dead Man’s Song and Bad Moon Rising. The town of Pine Deep has popped up here and there in his work since the completion of that original trilogy, but with Ink it’s back center-stage.
For those of you who haven’t read the Pine Deep Trilogy yet, don’t worry — Ink stands on its own. I haven’t re-read those books since their original release, but that didn’t keep me from enjoying this book as its own story. However, I highly recommend picking them up — it’s a great trilogy, and reading them will certainly enhance your experience with Ink.
In this new novel, something is targeting citizens of Pine Deep and stealing their most precious possessions — their memories. It’s not just taking these moments from these people, it’s feeding on them, erasing them from existence. For many of the victims, memories are all they have, and losing them is the equivalent of losing their last tenuous grip on life.
I’ve long been in awe of Maberry’s talent. He does not write small books — I’d say 400 pages is about average for him. But his characters are so real, his scenes so vivid, you never feel bogged down. You come out of a Jonathan Maberry book not having read it, but having lived it. It’s the highest compliment I can pay to a writer, and Ink once again earns that accolade for its author.
Reading Ink was, for me, like returning to a place after along absence. It’s a place you once called home, and while lots of things are different now, there’s enough there that’s recognizable to bring those old feelings to the surface. Those feelings — those memories — are just what the monster in this book is feeding on. Losing those moments, those feelings, those memories, is a scary proposition, and Maberry’s work brings that feeling to dreadful life. Highly recommended.
Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: Bone Chase by Weston Ochse 
Bone Chase by Weston Ochse
Gallery/Saga Press (December 1, 2020)
336 pages; $26 hardcover; $9.99 paperback
Reviewed by Dave Simms
A hunt for giants? Ties to the Bible? Rival factions that stretch back eons?
This is easily going to be one of the hottest thrillers of the year. Imagine if you will, Dan Brown writing with the pacing of Lee Child with the adventure factor of James Rollins. If that’s not enough to crack open this book, nothing will. Did I mention there are giants?Continue Reading
Author Cemetery Dance OnlinePosted on Categories ReviewsLeave a comment on Review: WYRD and Other Derelictions by Adam L.G. Nevill 
WYRD and Other Derelictions by Adam L.G. Nevill
Ritual Limited (October 2020)
106 pages; $7.99 paperback; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by Sadie “Mother Horror” Hartmann
In the third collection of horror stories from Adam Nevill, something is missing. The “who” and the “what” and the “why” aspects of the story have been intentionally omitted from the narrative and it’s up to you, the reader, to discover and discern these things for yourselves.
Doesn’t that sound…
Horrifying?
Because it is.Continue Reading
Sadako at the End of the World by Koma Natsumi and Koji Suzuki
Yen Press (November 17, 2020)
146 pages; $15 paperback, $6.99 e-book
Reviewed by Danica Davidson
Sadako, the vengeful ghost villain from The Ring franchise, gets a new twist to her story in the manga Sadako at the End of the World.
The Ring started out as a 1991 novel written by Koji Suzuki (and is available in America from the publisher Vertical), and that spawned off into more books and then movies. Japan made two movie adaptations and South Korea made one before the franchise made its way to America with a 2002 Hollywood movie adaptation starring Naomi Watts. In America, “Sadako” was changed to “Samara Morgan.” The obsession with Sadako and The Ring franchise continues in Japan, where their most recent movie in the franchise (called Sadako) came out in 2019.Continue Reading
Copyright © 1988 - 2024 Cemetery Dance Publications / Performance Website by 2C
