Tag: Reviews

Review: ‘Pinball Drugs Aliens Satan’ by Fiada Fey

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Pinball Drugs Aliens Satan by Fiada Fey
Furtive Labors (October 2015)
36 pages, $4.00 paperback
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Fiada Fey (1980-2008) was a St. Paul-based novelist, short story writer and cut-up artist. His prose, while lacking in craft, shows a lot of passion for the bizarre horror genre. Pinball Drugs Aliens Satan is his posthumous collection.

Readers will immediately feel Fey’s desire as a writer. His collection of stories speaks to an author passionate about the tales he has to tell, and readers will be able to empathize with that urge. Fey clearly had a vision for his art, and used cut-up techniques to attempt to bring that vision to life. Pinball Drugs Aliens Satan speaks of notebooks filled with stories and story ideas, and as a posthumous collection, leaves the reader wishing that Fey had had the time and skill to carry them out. Continue Reading

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

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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

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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: ‘Season of the Witch’ by Charlee Jacob

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Season of the Witch by Charlee Jacob
Necro Publications (September 2016)
367 pages; $15.95 paperback; ebook $3.99
Reviewed by Anton Cancre

A book of gorgeously rendered and lusciously poeticized violence. An on-the-cusp scream queen goddess of the local goth TV channel, who survived the brutal violence which tore her family apart, quite literally. A newly appeared 1-900 service that begs you to find the worst in yourself and reveal it to them. Gangs of thematically self-mutilating freaks roaming the streets. All through the background, the seductive voice of Pirsya Profana slithering between neurons. Welcome to the Season of the Witch.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Little Heaven’ by Nick Cutter

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Little Heaven by Nick Cutter
Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster (January 10, 2017)
496 pages; $19.87 hardcover; $9.99 e-book
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand

Little Heaven is the first major horror novel of 2017, and it’s going to take a monumental deluge of quality horror to keep it off of those end-of-year best-of lists that will start popping up 11 months from now.Continue Reading

Review: ‘The Fathom Flies Again’ by James Walley

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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: ‘The Progeny’ by Tosca Lee

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The Progeny by Tosca Lee
Howard Books (May 2016)
336 pages; $17.10 hardcover; $15.99 paperback; $13.99 e-book
Reviewed by Kevin Lucia

I first encountered Tosca Lee’s work in her debut novel, Demon: A Memoir. A moody, tense, gripping story about a down-on-his-luck literary agent and his encounter with a demon who demands he tell Its story told to the world, Memoir predicted big things for Tosca, big things which have come to pass. Continue Reading

Review: ‘Children of God’ by Craig Dilouie and Jonathan Moon

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Children of God by Craig Dilouie and Jonathan Moon
 Zing Communications (May 2016)
148 pages; $9.99 paperback; ebook $2.99
Reviewed by Anton Cancre

Cults are fascinating; the tragedy which follows so many of them doubly so. We sit on the outside, talking about how crazy those people must be. When all we see is the smoke and the bodies and the ramblings of their leaders, it is easy to disassociate ourselves. Continue Reading

Review: ‘The Train Derails in Boston’ by Jessica McHugh

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trainderailsThe Train Derails in Boston by Jessica McHugh
Perpetual Motion Machine Publishing (June 2016)
346 pages; $14.95 paperback; ebook $3.99
Reviewed by Anton Cancre

What in the ever loving…

Okay, the usual review format (hook, blurb, opinion) just ain’t gonna cut it here. Call me unprofessional or just a plain fool if you want. I’m okay with that. When a train runs this far off the rails, honey, you just have to look at the wreckage from a different angle.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Eyes Like Lighthouses When the Boats Come Home’ by Dane Cobain

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dane-cobain-eyes-like-lighthouses-when-the-boats-come-homeEyes Like Lighthouses When the Boats Come Home by Dane Cobain
CreateSpace (June 2016)
170 pages, $11.99 paperback; $3.49 e-book
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Eyes Like Lighthouses When the Boats Come Home is a self-published collection of poetry by British performance poet Dane Cobain. It shows a lot of enthusiasm and potential, but ultimately fails due to a number of basic craft issues. Continue Reading

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

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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

Review: ‘Where the Dead Go to Die’ by Aaron Dries and Mark Allan Gunnells

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wherethedeadgoWhere the Dead Go to Die by Aaron Dries and Mark Allan Gunnells
Crystal Lake Publishing (November 2016)
197 pages; $14.99 paperback; $4.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Been a while since I’ve read a great opening line, but this one drew me right in: The dead roam those halls.

Emily Samuels is starting new job and the protesters are out in force, complete with signs reading, “LIFE IS 4 THE LIVING”,“BRING OUT UR DED”,  “NO TOLERRENCE FOR BONE EATERS”, “LET’S FINISH THE JOB”.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Dead on the Bones: Pulp on Fire’ by Joe R. Lansdale

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dead_on_the_bones_by_joe_r_lansdaleDead on the Bones: Pulp on Fire by Joe R. Lansdale
Subterranean Press (December 2016)
296 pages; $40.00 hardcover
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand

“I was living in a pulp writer fury, a storm of imagination.”

That’s how author Joe R. Lansdale describes his early years, that delicate time when a steady diet of television shows, comic books and Edgar Rice Burroughs novels cemented his desire to become a writer. Dead on the Bones: Pulp on Fire is full of stories in which Lansdale seeks to honor those early influences that have given him—and, in turn, his readers—so much.Continue Reading

Review: ‘Clockwork Universe’ by John W. Dennehy

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clockworkClockwork Universe by John W. Dennehy
Severed Press (November 2016)
148 pages; $9.99 paperback; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Clockwork Universe is the debut novel from John W. Dennehy. Kevin Barnes is a commuter, headed to Boston from the Merrimack Valley in Southern New Hampshire. On the weekends he performs in a throwback punk band and he looks the part, with a purple Mohawk, diaper pins in his ears, and jackboots with crimson laces.Continue Reading

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

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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