Masterton has never been afraid to go all out in his books and it is no different with Prey.
Combining a crazy mash up of haunted house, alternate realMasterton has never been afraid to go all out in his books and it is no different with Prey.
Combining a crazy mash up of haunted house, alternate realities, time travel, and Lovecraftian tropes doesn’t seem like a recipe for success, but true to Masterton from, it works pretty well here. I had my doubts as this book started to really stray into some weird territory, however by the last few pages, I was actually quite surprised how well all the various strings tied together in a way that made sense when you take into consideration just how crazy this novel is.
Prey is typical Masterton with the prefect amount of spooks, gore, and black humor. The creepy crawlies are here and feel pretty unsettling at times. The blood and guts are prevalent and pretty gratuitous, but feel a bit more restrained than say Black Angel,/I> or some of Masterton’s more unhinged works. Even the dark gallows humor is done better than in other books.
Since Prey delves into the pseudo-science of alternate reality and time travel, some of what Masterton presents wouldn’t work in real life (but then again this IS a horror novel so why take it seriously?)....more
As in previous issues of this series, Ken-W and Dave Kendall know how to write a story in the Dredd universe that is truly eerie, creepy, dark, violenAs in previous issues of this series, Ken-W and Dave Kendall know how to write a story in the Dredd universe that is truly eerie, creepy, dark, violent, gory, and a total departure from usual Judge Dredd fare. Their reimagining of Judge Death and his minions is a nice modern touch, as is the way they retell his origin story, along with the rest of this alternate reality of a future world gone insane. While not as great as the first volume (then again I don’t know if anything can be since it was so different and unexpected), this 3rd collection gets things back on track with the continuing main story arc, as well as the vignettes of other characters and events occuring at the same time. It’s exceptionally dark and unsettling, made all the better with Kendall’s truly bleak and violent artwork. There is still a lot of story to be told in this series. I hope Ken and Kendall keep this one going because it’s such a fun trip. ...more
Sharks and fireworks and unrelenting carnage, Red, Great White, and Blue is Brian G. Berry doing the things he does best. Which should surprise absoluSharks and fireworks and unrelenting carnage, Red, Great White, and Blue is Brian G. Berry doing the things he does best. Which should surprise absolutely no one since, time and time again, Berry has proven he can take the most ridiculous ideas and end up crafting something totally different and off the wall…after all, this is the same author who penned a story about a shark in snow and a shark in space. And when he’s writing about sharks, he’s totally in his element. Red, Great White, and Blue is irreverent, and totally ridiculous, but it works and ends up being a ton of fun, perfect for the 4th of July holiday. Just make sure next time you purchase some fireworks, you avoid anything with a Shark logo on them…they might be imbued with the spirit of a killer…...more
After staring at the gloriously creepy cover and reading a handful of glowing reviews praising its disturbing and dark content, it made sense that I wAfter staring at the gloriously creepy cover and reading a handful of glowing reviews praising its disturbing and dark content, it made sense that I would pick up When I Look At the Sky, All I See Are Stars. I was excited, expecting something along the lines of Felix Blackwell’s Stolen Tongues colliding head on with The Exorcist and some Lovecraftian cosmic horror.
Instead, ...All I See Are Stars is a huge disappointment and the only creepy thing about it is its cover.
If I had to summarize my thoughts, it all boils down to the lack of anything totally original with these pages. Stred tries to make his story of possession and the cosmic horror of higher beings his own but really pulls liberally from other authors’ previously written works. The cosmic beings are ripped straight from Lovecraft while many of the scenes of possession are basically plagiarized moments straight from the pages of Legion (right up to the animal noises and cocky manner in which the possessed antagonist speaks).
I might have been a bit more lenient on my review of that was the only issue, however ...Stars also suffers horribly from a lack of a good editor. Multiple times this story skips tenses for no reason, going from past to present and then back again all within the same sentence as if Stred wanted this to be in one tense, changed it after a while, and then forget to make sure every paragraph followed along. Maybe he was trying for a literary horror feel? Either way, it doesn’t work and feels cheap. There’s also some typos and general lack of cohesiveness that makes this confusing such as rapid POV shifts without any kind of context.
I really did want to like this one since it seems to be garnering a lot of attention on the internet, yet, I gotta be honest, this one didn’t do it for me nor does it make me want to give Stred another try. ...more
Sonnet, known for her controversial splatter punk novels, hones her short story skills in Psych Ward Blues, a collection of various horror sh4.5 Stars
Sonnet, known for her controversial splatter punk novels, hones her short story skills in Psych Ward Blues, a collection of various horror shorts ranging from redneck creature horror, Lovecraftian, eldritch dread, and religious terror. All of which showcase her incredible talent in the independent horror scene.
Aside from “Ichthians” (which is well written, but borders a bit too close the extreme side of the genre for my particular taste) every one of the stories in this collection are amongst Sonnet’s best. “Young Un”, the opening story takes the cryptid legend of Sasquatch and turns in into something totally original. “Stilz” reads like a McCammon short, and “Last Hamburger Restaurant at the End of the World” could be straight from a Stephen King publication, if King was back to his coke snorting ways. However, it is the title novella that truly exemplifies just how strong of an author Sonnet is.
Taking her own experiences and melding it with a sick and twisted version of the Heaven we all have been taught about, “Psych Ward Blues” is sure nightmare fuel. I may not agree with the views the story tries to extol, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t thoroughly enjoy every minute of it. It’s dark, disturbing, and spits in the face of conventional theology. Yet, despite its bleak subject matter, it has heart and meaning as the characters Sonnet writes feel realistic as well as fully realized. But then again, that should surprise exactly nobody who has read more than one Sonnet book; her character development remains one of the best in the business.
Psych Ward Blues sat on my Kindle for months and I fully regret that I didn’t read this one sooner. ...more
It’s cocaine, clones, and chondryichthyes (sharks), in Brian G. Berry’s latest book. And since Berry has somehow become synonymous with shark3.5 stars
It’s cocaine, clones, and chondryichthyes (sharks), in Brian G. Berry’s latest book. And since Berry has somehow become synonymous with sharks, it’s no surprise that he was selected to pen the novelization of this ridiculously low brow and extremely dumb film.
But that’s not to say Berry’s writing is dumb. Hell no. In fact Cocaine Shark is Berry at the best he’s been in a long time.
Since sharks are obviously his wheelhouse, he takes an incredibly stupid storyline and makes it incredibly fun and almost original enough to feel like it’s fully his creation. There’s the typical Berry descriptive style, mixed with some great crime fiction and pseudo sci-fi silliness. The pacing is rocket fast, the dialogue is cheesy as hell (as to be expected), and the creature feature elements could be products of his own wild imagination since they’re so creative and over the top. Obviously this story and the film is was based off aren’t supposed to be taken seriously, so the fact that Berry agreed to take on the role of novelist shows he’s also not afraid to do the tongue in cheek goofiness that comes with this kind of territory.
I love me some deep and serious fiction but I also enjoy lighthearted and inanely entertaining stories as well. I’ve come to realize that few are as up to the task as Brian G. Berry. ...more
Witches and crime bosses unite in a bid to hold the city of LA hostage. The city’s only hope in stopping this hostile takeover are a jaded LAPD detectWitches and crime bosses unite in a bid to hold the city of LA hostage. The city’s only hope in stopping this hostile takeover are a jaded LAPD detective and his obese partner, along with a neighbor who just may be a witch herself. Together the 3 of them must band together to stop the evil magic of the trio of witches and, hopefully, save the city of Angels from becoming a haven for drug kingpins and gangsters alike.
If you think the plot for The 5th Witch sounds crazy, you aren’t wrong. In fact, the story is outright insane. But this is Graham Masterton after all, an author who continues to prove his mettle with both the concept and eventual execution of truly bizarre ideas.
Somewhere between immolation, puking up live frogs, isolated hurricanes, mass blindness, attacks from mirror demons, actual demons, helpful ghosts, and magicians using slight of hand magic tricks, this book works and ends up being a ton of fun.
While this lacks the spook factor of The Pariah or the malignant and mean spirited feel of Charnel House or The Manitou, The 5th Witch is fast paced, creatively gory, and original, while still demonstrating the Masterton sarcasm and black humor we have all come to expect from his 40 plus year career as a novelist. ...more
Was there any doubt that Mountford would end his already fantastic Haunted series on such a high note? After 5+ years of following him and reading preWas there any doubt that Mountford would end his already fantastic Haunted series on such a high note? After 5+ years of following him and reading pretty much everything he’s written, that answer should be an unsurprising no.
What is surprising, however, is just how damn awesome and nearly perfect the conclusion to this 9 book series ended up being.
Obviously any book or batch of stories about demons is going to be dark, and the Haunted books have been no exception, but my God, End of Days takes the cake on being one of the most bleak and dark novels I’ve read in a long time. For nearly all of its 290 pages, this story is pitch black in its plot and the events that occur. From plucked out eyeballs and helicopter crashes, from spinning vortexes of doom to an almost Lovecraftian and eldritch sense of inescapable doom, Haunted: End of Days s hands down Mountford’s crowing achievement in non stop desolation, creeping dread, and absolute devastation.
And that’s not even mentioning how creative this book was. Many authors have tried the haunted house genre, as well as demons/possession, however I don’t think anyone has been so successful in melding the 2 together in such an original (and yes, spooky) way. Mountford makes BOTH of these aspects scary and makes both of them work damn near seamlessly.
I know this kind of horror won’t be for anyone (my mom probably would throw holy water on my kindle and pray for salvation if she read this or even knew it was something I enjoyed so much), however if you’re a fan of books about things that go bump in the night AND the armies of Satan taking over the planet, then you need to do yourself a favor and read this entire series ASAP. ...more
It seems like every year for the past 3 years I somehow pick up some weird or twisted Christmas themed horror book. With Slaughter House Pres3.5 stars
It seems like every year for the past 3 years I somehow pick up some weird or twisted Christmas themed horror book. With Slaughter House Press’s anthology Yuletide Nightmares, 2023 is no exception.
Whether it’s killer Santas, wax museums, or creepy Christmas inventions, the 10 short stories within from some of the most popular and talented indie horror authors, definitely deliver on this anthology’s title.
I think what really surprised me is just how solid this entire collection was. Out of the 10 stories, 4 were awesome, 3 were great, 2 were ok, and only 1 failed to do anything for me.
Even though I’ve kind of phased out of the extreme gore and solatterpunk genres of horror, Tim Curran’s “Santa’s Bloody Terror” once again reminded me why he’s the absolute king of descriptive horror. Harrison Phillips’s “The Kringle Conduit” was easily the most original and creative of this batch. “Keepers of Christmas” by Kristopher Rufty felt like a perfect homage to bizarro master Carlton Mellick III and Judith Sonnet’s “Abominations in Wax” stole the show for reading like a perfect love child of Wdgar Alan Poe and Robert McCammon. Even Tim Meyer’s “Like Stars” was a fun one that I enjoyed from beginning to end.
This may only be Slaughter House Press’s second release but if Brian G. Berry keeps publishing great stuff like this, there is no reason why his publishing house can’t start competing with some of the big boys. Severed Press, you better pay attention! ...more
When Brian told me the next “Shark Files” book was gonna be nuts, he wasn’t kidding.
Part rape revengeSpooktober 2023 Book 15
Well this was…different.
When Brian told me the next “Shark Files” book was gonna be nuts, he wasn’t kidding.
Part rape revenge story, part Chuck Tingle bizarro erotica, and a whole lot of nuts, Romancing the Dorsal is a screwed up, tongue in cheek short story choked full of blood, guts, and lots and lots of gratuitous shark sex. Yes. Straight up elasmobranchophilia. (Thats sexual attraction to sharks for all you laymen out there).
Obviously this story is Brian doing his typical Brian thing, writing for enjoyment and fun, so you can’t possibly take this kind of this seriously…cuz if you did, I’d have just as many questions for you as the seriously deranged main character in this one....more
Keene already took the world by storm with “The Rising” and it’s sequel “City of the Dead” so taking zombies to the ocean was aSpooktober 2023 Book 14
Keene already took the world by storm with “The Rising” and it’s sequel “City of the Dead” so taking zombies to the ocean was a no brainer and, unsurprisingly, another straight up banger of a novel.
Like previous attempts at the walking dead, Keene’s take is perfect from beginning to end, never once slowing down or trying to hard to be something it’s not. From a fantastic protagonist to the zombies that devour the living, there isn’t a single thing wrong with this book.
Sure his first 2 zombie books revitalized the zombie genre but it’s this one that is the best and, and is, in my opinion, probably his magnum opus. Why this one never seems to receive the love it rightfully deserves, I have no idea, but believe me, if you want a zombie novel that is action packed, gory as hell, has a lot of heart and contains one of the best endings in almost any book ever published, THIS is the book you need to be reading....more
A rare sequel that somehow manages to leave the original in the dust as Huston ups the ante with nearly every conceivable situatSpooktober 2023 Book 8
A rare sequel that somehow manages to leave the original in the dust as Huston ups the ante with nearly every conceivable situation of man eating slugs.
Breeding Ground is a truly insane horror novel, making Guy N Smith creature features feel like nursery rhymes in comparison. This book is chocked to the brim with blood, guts, graphic sex, unflinching and purely unrestrained violence on nearly every damn page.
Usually this over the top reveling in gratuitous violence turns me off, but Hutson makes every instance of spilled viscera unbelievably fun.
To be honest, this really should surprise not a single person who knows Hutson and his penchant for glorious trash. The dude made an unapologetic name for himself by penning these kind of stories and books like this prove why his name is so synonymous with horror. ...more
If you’re like me and already thought that laundry mats were kind of weird and creepy to begin with, then Brian G. BerrSpooktober 2023 Book 7
4.5 stars
If you’re like me and already thought that laundry mats were kind of weird and creepy to begin with, then Brian G. Berry’s latest story won’t do you any favors in convincing you otherwise.
Feeling like a peak era Zebra horror novel and harkening back to badly produced and even worse executed 80’s VHS tapes, Laundry Mat is a schlocky, scummy, cheesy gorefest of a tale that’s well written, fun, and overall one of Berry’s best works since Snow Shark II.
Berry continues to pump out some of the most consistently pulp-ish novellas and shorts and does so with such regular frequency, sometimes I wonder if he sold his soul to the dark prince in exchange for the talent and wildly inventive imagination his books convey. ...more
One part coming of age, one part extreme horror, and all parts emotional, Beast of Burden surprised me in more ways than one.
Of course coming from JuOne part coming of age, one part extreme horror, and all parts emotional, Beast of Burden surprised me in more ways than one.
Of course coming from Judith, I wasn’t shocked in the moments of blood and violence, but in just how well written and deeply heartfelt much of this book ended up being. Unlike many splatter punk and extreme horror authors who just write characters to slaughter them in the most grotesque and violent ways, Sonnet’s characters are so full of gravitas and reality that when they are invariably killed, it’s actually sad, especially when the guys in this book feel relatable (who hasn’t feared growing up and losing all the fun teenage years bring?).
Extreme horror isn’t much of my jam anymore but when a novella like this, that bridges the gap between contemporary fiction and borderline splatterpunk and melds the two genres almost seamlessly, it’s hard to not sing the praises of the story and the author.
In Beast of Burden Judith Sonnet once again proves that she is one of the most underrated authors working in the independent horror scene today. ...more
While not as good as the first book in this series, Crabs on the Rampage is a better book than Origin of the Crabs or Killer Crabs.
Smith seems to narrWhile not as good as the first book in this series, Crabs on the Rampage is a better book than Origin of the Crabs or Killer Crabs.
Smith seems to narrow his focus more on the wonton destruction by the titular creatures and gives them an actual reason for their anger. There’s plenty of great deaths and one scene that involves an attempted escape through a blocked tunnel that rivals some of the best thriller novels out there.
Of course this is still Guy N. Smith so it’s schlocky as hell, full of bad sex, over the top deaths and prose that isnt exactly the most original thing written. Plus, this one has a bit too much focus on the death of innocent children (one thing I’ve gotten increasingly disgusted of as a parent of 2 kids myself.
Still though, it’s far from terrible and if unrestrained creature feature violence is your thing, this is a fun read. ...more
It’s sharks, ghosts, and water parks in Berry’s latest shark related novella (his 4th in about as many weeks).
This isn’t quite to the level of insaniIt’s sharks, ghosts, and water parks in Berry’s latest shark related novella (his 4th in about as many weeks).
This isn’t quite to the level of insanity of Commando Shark (my favorite of his shark files work), but make no mistake; Berry is the king of short paced and sleazy/schlocky creature features and Ghost Shark is no exception.
So if sex, gore, and lots of ectoplasmic selachimorphs, are your thing, along with a twisted tale that only Berry can pull off, look no further than this quick paced and fun little ode to the denizens of the deep. ...more
Take a resurrected raptor Dino with “freaking lasers” on its head, pit against the buddy cop duo of Lethal WeaponRaptornator, a story so insane, off tTake a resurrected raptor Dino with “freaking lasers” on its head, pit against the buddy cop duo of Lethal WeaponRaptornator, a story so insane, off the wall, and silly that it works…and works pretty well.
But then again, this is a Brian G. Berry creature feature so it should come as no surprise it to he pulled off a story so irreverent and ridiculous but oh so fun. ...more
Well this is a case of what you see being exactly what you get. Berry’s latest novella is exactly what the cover shows…a carnivorous cow/shark hybrid Well this is a case of what you see being exactly what you get. Berry’s latest novella is exactly what the cover shows…a carnivorous cow/shark hybrid that just so happens to fly and destroy everyone in a truly over the top spectacle of blood, guts, and gore who is unfortunate to be stuck in its ravenous path. And that’s about all there is to this one. It’s dumb. It’s silly. It’s probably one of Berry’s most ridiculous stories to date (which is saying something considering he’s already written about sharks in snow, sharks in space, and sharks haunting the hallways of houses). However, sometimes there’s nothing wrong with a ridiculous little novella that doesn’t take itself seriously and is meant to be a bit more tongue-in-cheek than some of the more extreme splatter punk horror out there. Anyone who knows me, knows I’ve phased myself out of gratuitous blood and guts, but here, I can make an exception as it’s pretty clear Berry did this one strictly for fun. Plus, the last chapter is fantastic, almost worth the price of admission alone. ...more
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