{"id":18967,"date":"2024-07-08T07:00:46","date_gmt":"2024-07-08T11:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cemeterydance.com\/extras\/?p=18967"},"modified":"2024-06-29T19:27:23","modified_gmt":"2024-06-29T23:27:23","slug":"review-slow-burn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cemeterydance.com\/extras\/review-slow-burn\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Slow Burn by Mike Allen"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"18971\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.cemeterydance.com\/extras\/review-slow-burn\/slow-burn\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cemeterydance.com\/extras\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/slow-burn.jpg?fit=183%2C275&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"183,275\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"slow-burn\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cemeterydance.com\/extras\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/slow-burn.jpg?fit=183%2C275&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-18971\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.cemeterydance.com\/extras\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/slow-burn.jpg?resize=183%2C275&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"cover of Slow Burn\" width=\"183\" height=\"275\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Slow-Burn-Mike-Allen\/dp\/1956522034\/ref=sr_1_1?crid=17N6OH3I0XLUA&amp;dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.EdB_o8USKujTEkc86pPOFLhKh7R4QcCp6WSE1SYbXmk.0MXjtXtrtTd25POua0a1vVuAU7GKEoRoDoDxPMD2Jo0&amp;dib_tag=se&amp;keywords=Slow+Burn+by+Mike+Allen&amp;qid=1719702349&amp;sprefix=slow+burn+by+mike+allen%2Caps%2C185&amp;sr=8-1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><i>Slow Burn<\/i> by Mike Allen<\/a><br \/>\nMythic Delirium Books (July 16, 2024)<br \/>\nReviewed by Joshua Gage<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As Christina Sng writes in the introduction to this collection, \u201cMike Allen is synonymous with the mysterious and the macabre.\u201d He\u2019s been a Nebula, Shirley Jackson, and World Fantasy Award finalist. He\u2019s won three Rhyslings from the Science Fiction Poetry Association. He\u2019s edited a number of award-winning books and anthologies. It\u2019s no surprise, therefore, that his newest collection, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Slow Burn,<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is yet another incredible read by an incredible horror author and editor. This collection of horror and dark fantasy poetry and short fiction needs to be on the shelf of any horror reader.\u00a0<\/span><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What makes <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Slow Burn<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> stand out among Mike Allen\u2019s other work is the range of voices Allen is able to demonstrate throughout this collection. A lot of this comes through his various collaborative pieces, which are scattered throughout. Whether it\u2019s composing flash fiction with Ian Watson or an experimental, three-voice performance piece with W. Gregory Stewart, Allen displays his talent for not just collaboration but also for matching the distinct voices of his collaborators. At no point in reading any of the joint pieces in this collection can one determine where one author stops and the other starts, which makes for a successful and seamless read.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That being said, Allen leaves plenty of room to showcase his own talents. Whether it\u2019s writing longer poems like \u201cThe Strip Search\u201d or shorter, tighter poems like \u201cThe Sacrifices,\u201d Allen\u2019s poetic talents are on full display here. Furthermore, his fiction is equally stellar, picking up where his last two collections (<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Unseaming<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cemeterydance.com\/extras\/review-aftermath-of-an-industrial-accident-mike-allen\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aftermath of an Industrial Accident<\/span><\/i><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) left off. There are stories set in Allen\u2019s nightmare worlds that cross over or prequel stories in other collections, so readers familiar with Allen\u2019s other works will be more than comfortable. However, for readers who haven\u2019t experienced Allen, there\u2019s plenty here to entice you into exploring more. His stories are fresh and visceral, so horror readers are in for one hell of a ride!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mike Allen is a master of horror, dark fantasy, and dark science fiction. His accolades and publishing credits are legion, and the poems and stories in <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Slow Burn<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> prove, once again, that they are not without merit. This is a strikingly dark collection of short stories and poetry, written both in collaboration with some of the major players in horror as well as on their own, so readers don\u2019t only get to sample Allen\u2019s private nightmares, but those of his close friends.\u00a0 If you have read any Mike Allen, you already know that you will want to buy this book and have it on your shelf. If you haven\u2019t read any Mike Allen, this is certainly a solid place to start your addiction, as any reader of horror will enjoy this collection immensely.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Slow Burn by Mike Allen Mythic Delirium Books (July 16, 2024) Reviewed by Joshua Gage As Christina Sng writes in the introduction to this collection, \u201cMike Allen is synonymous with the mysterious and the macabre.\u201d He\u2019s been a Nebula, Shirley Jackson, and World Fantasy Award finalist. He\u2019s won three Rhyslings from the Science Fiction Poetry &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cemeterydance.com\/extras\/review-slow-burn\/\" class=\"more-link button bg-gold white\">Continue Reading!<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Review: Slow Burn by Mike Allen&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[80],"tags":[506,2197,79,3180],"class_list":["post-18967","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews","tag-joshua-gage","tag-mike-allen","tag-reviews","tag-slow-burn"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - 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