Tag: Horror

All Hallows by Christopher Golden

Posted on November 7, 2025 by - Book Review

I have a favorite Halloween song, and it’s pretty atypical. Back in 2003, Austin band Li’l Cap’n Travis put out a single called “To All the Trick-Or-Treaters” (you can listen to it here).

Perhaps, unknowingly (though it would be fantastic if he was familiar with the track), Mr. Golden has, basically, fleshed out a lot of details of the song in All Hallows.

It’s Halloween 1984 in Coventry, MA, and things are not well on Parmenter Road. While kids are getting ready for trick-or-treating, a family tradition haunted forest, and a neighborhood party, and two families are, seemingly, falling apart, something supernaturally malicious appears to be creeping into the block.

Four children, in decades old costumes and faded makeup, have intermingled themselves in with the bands of trick-or-treaters going up and down Parmenter Road in search of candy. Once confronted, the strangers beg for protection from the threat of The Cunning Man, who is actively pursuing them.

Needless to say, all sorts of weird shit entails.

I picked up this novel because I absolutely love Mr. Golden’s previous works, and it was near Halloween time. I could not have picked a better read if I tried.

The thing with Mr. Golden’s approach is that he has this arcane ability to fully submerge the reader into the environment he is creating. Little details make all the difference, and really flesh out this tiny suburban vignette.

The cast of characters is the real icing on the cake. There are a lot, and I mean a lot, but all very compelling. The diversity, range of age, emotion, and mental state really cement All Hallows as a irresistible read. Along with the opportunity of eldritch horror, you have normal every day family situations that run the full range of emotions. I especially appreciate that the reader doesn’t always have the full picture.

Just what exactly did Ruth and Zack do? We’ll never know.

Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix

Posted on November 4, 2025 by - Book Review

It is the Summer of 1970, and, in St. Augustine, Florida, exists the Wellwood House, a home for wayward girls to be tucked away from public view so they can have their babies and then return to a “normal” life.

Run by the very very stern Miss Wellwood, each girl is stripped of her identity and, instead, given a botanical name to build a personality around.

This, chiefly, is the story of Fern, a fifteen-year-old girl who finds herself having been delivered to the Wellwood House by her irate father.

Fern navigates the massive change that has happened in her life, and makes friends with some very unlikely characters. There is Rose, a headstrong hippie type who is continually plotting a way to escape the home and keep her baby; Zinnia, a pianist waylaid by the pregnancy, but absolutely sure she will return to marry her baby’s father; and Holly, a fourteen-year-old scrap of a wild child.

Life in Wellwood House is very harshly controlled, and there are very few freedoms. One of said freedoms is a bookmobile that comes periodically. It is through this bookmobile that Fern gets her hands on a book of witchcraft, and then things change, drastically, for the girls.

I really really wanted to like this book, but I found it somewhat dreary and mundane. There were definitely sections of it that were riveting and suspenseful, but, by and large, it feel a tad flat for me. I’m sure it was intentional, but the pacing seemed to be very very slow. There was a ton of repetition followed by little sparks of chaos.

The character and story development were very well done, but I feel like there was a lot of other aspects where this novel could have excelled and fell flat. Mr. Hendrix is a fantastic writer, and sets a wonderful stage, but this one just wasn’t for me.

Show Me Where It Hurts by Robert E. Stahl

Posted on October 23, 2025 by - Book Review

I’m a big fan of short fiction. Short horror, even better. I remember, as a child, devouring Stephen King’s Skeleton Crew, Night Shift and Nightmares & Dreamscapes. There is just something about an author’s ability to convey a sense of terror in just a handful of pages that is magical.

Mr. Stahl has this magical power. Show Me Where It Hurts is an eclectic collection of both prose and poetry with a definite dark slant. The first story, “The Weeds and the Wildness Yet” hooked me immediately. It had a very classic Creepshow feel that really fostered nostalgia in me.

“Ghosts on Drugs” was a fever dream of chaos that I actually had to read twice. It was such an amazing snippet of pure creativity that conveyed the quick plot perfectly.

I could go on and on, but part of the joy of short fiction is discovering how each piece makes you feel. I will say, however that “The Trouble with Goblins” was my absolute favorite. It’s not often that I laugh out loud at the office lunch table, but that one got me. I also closely aligned with “Death By Kittens,” a lovely tableau that builds an entire scene in a single delightful paragraph.

Do yourself a favor and pick up this collection.

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones

Posted on September 3, 2025 by - Book Review

It’s been a very good time for new creative slants on vampire novels, recently, and The Buffalo Hunter Hunter is a prime example.

The setup is pretty atypical for a horror read. In 2012, a diary written by a Lutheran pastor back in 1912 is discovered in the walls of Montana church. The majority of this delectable bit of historical fiction is, indeed, this diary.

To say that this novel is a slow burn is an understatement. Arthur Beaucarne, a.k.a, “Three-Persons” is the Lutheran pastor and author of the diary. Good Stab is a Blackfeet Indian turned vampire who has sought out Arthur to confess his sins.

What progresses is a wild recitation of Good Stab’s life, the plight of the Blackfeet, and the horrors of the Marias Massacre. At any given point, Arthur is unsure if Good Stab is spinning him a wild yarn, or telling him the truth.

Yes, some of the language is hard to follow. Staying true to tradition, Dr. Jones uses many Blackfoot terms for the various animals and experiences laid out in this story. I did find it absolutely necessary, however, in holding with the historical nature of the diary document.

Per usual, I’m not going to give anything away with this review. I will say that the character development is absolutely masterful, and the last quarter of the book was so wild and unexpected that I devoured it in a single setting.

This is a novel that will take up a good part of my headspace for a very long time.

Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab

Posted on August 12, 2025 by - Book Review

I adore Ms. Schwab’s writing, and she has proven to surprise me again and again with her ability to shift gears, and styles, with each release. Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil is no different.

Queer vampire stories are definitely not new, but Ms. Schwab introduces some new twists that make this novel incredibly enjoyable.

Yes, some folks might get fatigued with all of the time and storyline jumping, but I think it is used masterfully as a story driving device. As we float through time with María, then Sabine, Charlotte, and Alice, we learn the history of how each of their lives was deeply affected before their change.

One thing that I really enjoyed was the way the destinies of these three women unfurled before them, and how their choices and actions molded who they, ultimately, became, and how it really impacted each of the other main characters.

The historical whirlwind was pretty interesting to watch unfold, and Ms. Schwab’s writing style really lends itself to that sort of depth. We’ve seen her masterful world building in her various other novels, so working with a semi-realistic backdrop of modern history was an interesting change.

Overall, I thought it was a very beautifully written book that I devoured quite quickly. Watching the personalities of the characters change was a fascinating exercise in how their sense of humanity drastically changed through each level of adversity. Old fans of Ms. Schwab are going to love it, and I think new fans will be intrigued to dive into more of her back catalog (which I highly recommend).

Wake Up and Open Your Eyes by Clay McLeod Chapman

Posted on January 23, 2025 by - Book Review

One of the most enjoyable things about picking up the new offering from Mr. Chapman is that you never know what you are going to get. Ghost Eaters put a lot of folks off fungi, Whisper Down the Lane brought back a whole lot of PTSD surrounding the “Satanic Panic,” and I’m not even going to go into the crustacean trauma surrounding What Kind of Mother that I still have.

Wake Up and Open Your Eyes did not disappoint in the slightest.

The story opens innocently enough. Noah Fairchild is a liberal family man living in Brooklyn who has distanced himself a bit from his Richmond, Virginia family after their years-long slide into the far-right cable media. When Noah’s mother leaves a voicemail rambling about the “Great Reawakening,” and Noah can’t reach her for clarification; he gets a tad concerned and sets out for Virginia to get to the bottom of this.

What Noah finds is an utter nightmare, that, it turns out, isn’t just confined to his family: people across the country appear to be infected with a media-fueled demonic possession; fueled by exposure to television, apps, and other content.

One of the things I appreciated the most in the presentation of this story was the implied multimedia presentation of the situation. Switching between recounts of TikTok feeds, news reports, personal videos, and other sources, the reader gets a quick snapshot of the insanity that seems to be spreading though the nation. The fever dream inclusion of Anderson Cooper as an imaginary narrator at one point really just drives the insanity aspect of this story home.

Plus, I have to add, I picked one hell of a week to binge this one: the transition of power in the US government.

As always with Mr. Chapman, Wake Up and Open Your Eyes is very worth picking up. It’ll very much make you question where the “sickness” comes from. Just a bit of FYI, it has absolutely every single content warning that one might be able to think of. Definitely not for the faint of heart.

The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean

Posted on December 30, 2024 by - Book Review

Imagine eating a book, map, magazine, etc. and being able to retain the information in it? Imagine also that you are part of a not quite human society ruled by rather draconian patriarchs, and daughters are basically passed off to other bookeater families to ensure their lines continue.

Oh, but there’s a twist. Not all children born are book eaters. Some come out as mind eaters: which is a source of great shame for The Family.

This is the premise of Ms. Dean’s The Book Eaters. We follow the story of Devon, a young woman who is desperately trying to find some resolution to sticky situation of having a mind eater child, and has escaped The Family.

I’m not sure who recommended this marvelously dark novel to me, but I loved it. There is oodles of intrigue, espionage, and a fair amount of unbridled panic, as Devon tries to find a hidden family that could have the Redemption she needs to help her son.

One of my favorite things about this novel was Ms. Dean’s use of flashbacks to help flesh out Devon’s education and situation. Through this, we learn that what has been accepted as the history of record regarding certain events definitely isn’t.

While she is a wild and unruly character, it is very easy to sympathize with Devon. She is definitely a victim of her own circumstances, and, honestly, not very likable throughout most of the story, but does develop a sideways sort of redemption when everything goes down towards the end.

I would definitely love to read another novel set in this particular universe.

Lightfall (The Everlands Trilogy #1) by Ed Crocker

Posted on October 15, 2024 by - Book Review

** This book was provided to me by St. Martin’s Press & NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review **

Lightfall is a book about vampires, werewolves and sorcerers. In fact, it might be the most innovated novel about vampires, werewolves and sorcerers that I’ve read in decades, and I do not say that lightly.

Mr. Crocker has managed to create a world of immortals and make the reader worry about their humanity. This book really tilts everything with its politics and hierarchy plays. That this is Mr. Crocker’s first novel is even more amazing. Some authors just have the gift right out the gate.

The city of Lightfall is a fallback haven for the vampires who were basically chased out of their primary city of First Light by the very mysterious Grays. Blood determines the rules, and if you are nobility, you have access to the powerful blood, and if you are a worn, you get basic stuff that causes you to show age over time. Nobody leaves Lightfall in fear of being killed by the Grays.

One problem, though. The city’s ruler’s youngest son is murdered, and by some ingenuity, and a lot of luck, palace maid Sam finds the only substantial clue. What entails pulls in a magic-less sorcerer cult, an apex predator werewolf, and a whole lot of mystery and intrigue.

This book is super high on my best books of the year list, and it doesn’t even come out until January 2025! The way Mr. Crocker has written each character’s point of view is masterful, and the worldbuilding is absolutely top notch. It’s been a very long time since someone brought something this dynamic to the genre without it falling back on cliche. This is a novel that came to me out of left field and I could not be happier.

Let me just tell you that the last quarter of Lightfall is an insane roller coaster that had me guffawing and gasping with each turn of the page. I absolutely cannot wait for book number two, and I will be giving many friends “raincheck” Christmas presents so I can get this in their hands come January.

House of Bone and Rain by Gabino Iglesias

Posted on September 25, 2024 by - Book Review

“All stories are ghost stories.”

I’ve sat on reviewing this book for a couple of weeks. This isn’t because I didn’t like the book (I loved it), it’s because words about this book need to be thought out. House of Bone and Rain is wonderful horror writing, but it’s far more than that. Mr. Iglesias has managed to tuck a massive amount of social commentary into a novel about five pretty different teenage boys living in Puerto Rico seeking revenge while a hurricane is about to hit.

Now what I just wrote seems like a pretty standard plot approach, it’s the individual bits of it that make this so profound. Puerto Rico is a country with a fascinating culture and history. I won’t delve into to much here because that actually gives away some of the plot (I do hate spoilers), but there has always been a bit of an air of mystery surrounding the island.

As Bimbo and his friends seek out revenge against the biggest drug kingpin on the island, with a storm ready to strike, House of Bone and Rain begins it’s spiraling decent into chaos and madness.

My favorite thing about this novel is the timing between the supernatural and the hurricane. As Maria starts to swell, so do the strange things the boys encounter. This parallel really enhances the experience, and adds a significant degree of tension.

While I thought a couple of the side stories were just flavor to take a break from the insanity that the boys were undertaking, they turn out to fold right in and be some of the most significant aspects to what happens with Bimbo and his friends.

It’s not often that one finds harsh realities in a fantastical horror story, but Mr. Iglesias really delivers it here. The amount of grief and devotion just cannot be matched.

Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica

Posted on May 15, 2024 by - Book Review

A warning before I get going: this book is profound but incredibly brutal.

In a world where all meat (and all animals) have become poisonous to humans thanks to a virus, humans are now bred to be the primary source of meat. “Special meat” if you will.

Marcos, the primary character, has not had the best go of things lately. His child died, his wife left him, and his father is in a care home suffering from dementia.

Then, out of the blue, Marcos is gifted a female “head” of the highest quality. Disenfranchised by what the world has become, and how his life has spiraled, Marcos begins treating this “head” more and more like a person.

I’m not going to lie. While this book is insanely short, it has probably been one of the hardest things I’ve read in years. The accepted brutality is just so nonchalant, and that really makes it a very hard pill to swallow. The writing is just beautiful — especially considering this is a book translated from Spanish — but the subject matter, along with the day-to-day descriptions of humans as livestock really sinks in.

That doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy the book. I love the hell out of this, and I think it’s something that everyone should read. If anything, I think it leans towards sympathetic while the society went very brutal.

The ending alone is worth the ride.