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Review: Witch 13 by Patrick Delaney

Cemetery Dance OnlineJune 2, 2022May 29, 2022ReviewsJoshua Gage, Patrick Delaney, Reviews, Witch 13Leave a comment

Witch 13 by Patrick Delaney
Oblivion Publishing (June 7, 2022)
358 pages; $28.99; $17.99 paperback; $3.99
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Award-winning author Patrick Delaney grew up in varying cities in the greater Los Angeles County, where he attended Canyon High School. Throughout his childhood he pursued various forms of art, from writing short stories to drawing and modeling. Throughout his undergraduate career he gradually polished his debut novel Dante’s Town of Terror, which would go on to win the gold medal in the Independent Publisher Book Awards(IPPY) in the horror category for 2018. His most recent novel is Witch 13.Continue Reading

Review: Generation X-Ed edited by Rebecca Rowland

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 31, 2022May 23, 2022ReviewsDave Simms, Generation X-Ed, Rebecca Rowland, ReviewsLeave a comment

cover of Generation Ex-ed Generation X-Ed edited by Rebecca Rowland
Dark Ink (January 2022)
350 pages; hardcover $27.71; paperback $19.99; e-book $9.99
Reviewed by Dave Simms

What’s the coolest generation in the history of mankind? Those born from 1965 to 1980 know this by heart and feel for those peons who look up to us. The best horror movies? Same — what’s better than what we grew up with? A bit, but not much. As for the horror writers, the novel was king and those fortunate enough to be conceived during this amazing time have a dark streak in their DNA that casts a long shadow.

Review: The Fervor by Alma Katsu

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 25, 2022June 1, 2022ReviewsAlma Katsu, Dave Simms, Reviews, The FervorLeave a comment

cover of The Fervor The Fervor by Alma Katsu
G.P. Putnam’s Sons (April 2022)
319 pages; $27.00 hardcover
Reviewed by Dave Simms

Sometimes a book comes along that is so special, it moves rather than frightens the reader, and gives a history lesson that likely won’t be found in anything we experienced in school.

When that same book also is relevant to society today, especially in the past few years within this country, it makes for an event that transcends genre.

The Fervor is that book.Continue Reading

Review: Helpmeet by Naben Ruthnum

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 23, 2022May 23, 2022ReviewsHelpmeet, Joshua Gage, Naben Ruthnum, ReviewsLeave a comment

Helpmeet by Naben Ruthnum
Undertow Publications (May 24, 2022)
94 pages; $11.99 paperback
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Naben Ruthnum is the author of A Hero of Our Time, and Curry: Eating, Reading, and Race. He lives in Toronto and also writes thrillers as Nathan Ripley. His newest horror novella is Helpmeet.

“Helpmeet” is an outdated term for a spouse. Updated to “help mate,” it’s defined as “a helpful companion or partner, especially one’s husband or wife.” In this novella, Dr. Edward Wilk is dying of a disease that’s rotting him from the inside out. His wife, Louise, is there to support and help him until his dying breath, but she realizes that his ailment is not actually a disease, but merely a transformative phase leading to something far darker or insidious than readers could possibly imagine. Continue Reading

Review: Silk Hills by Brian Level and Ryan Ferrier

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 19, 2022May 16, 2022ReviewsBrian Level, Joshua Gage, Oni Press, Reviews, Ryan Ferrier, Silk Hills, The Comic VaultLeave a comment

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Silk Hills by Brian Level and Ryan Ferrier
Oni Press (May 24, 2022)
176 pages; $24.99 hardcover
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Brian Level is a cartoonist, tattooer, and a writer who has contributed to premiere comic books including Star Wars, Batman, Spider-Man, Avengers and Deadpool. Ryan Ferrier is a Canadian comic book writer, published by every major North American comics company, and best known for his original comic series such as Kennel Block Blues, Death Orb, I Can Sell You A Body, the highly celebrated D4VE trilogy, and the acclaimed graphic novel Criminy. Ryan has also written for some of pop culture’s most beloved properties, including Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Marvel’s Deadpool, DC’s Batman, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, G.I. Joe, and Planet of the Apes. Their newest graphic novel is Silk Hills, a really strong paranormal horror story that is sure to entertain readers.Continue Reading

Review: Just Like Mother by Anne Heltzel

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 18, 2022May 16, 2022ReviewsAnne Hetzel, Haley Newlin, Just Like Mother, ReviewsLeave a comment

cover of Just Like Mother Just Like Mother by Anne Heltzel
Tor Nightfire (May 17, 2022)
320 pages; hardcover $26.99, e-book $13.99
Reviewed by Haley Newlin

The Stepford Wives meets Rosemary’s Baby in Anne Heltzel’s adult debut Just Like Mother.

On a GoodReads list, “Get Creeped Out With These 33 New and Upcoming Horror Novels,” I discovered Just Like Mother.

Heltzel’s novel became a haunting, inescapable image in my brain, with a wonderfully lurid cover featuring…. a baby doll. Continue Reading

Review: Dance Among the Flames by Tori Eldridge

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 16, 2022May 16, 2022ReviewsDance Among the Flames, Dave Simms, Reviews, Running Wild Press, Tori EldridgeLeave a comment

cover of Dance Among the Flames Dance Among the Flames by Tori Eldridge
Running Wild Press (May 24, 2022)
404 pages; $19.99 paperback; $9.49 e-book
Reviewed by Dave Simms

I love when a novel not only exceeds expectations but expands the limits of what’s expected. Dance Among the Flames is a story that demands a reader’s attention and exquisitely opens the mind to descriptions and concepts not found in books typical of this genre — or genres, as this combines elements of horror, historical, fantasy, and thriller novels into a dangerous, yet delicious concoction. It asks the reader to kick back, put their feet up and bleed their imagination into the fiction.

Review: Howls from the Dark Ages: An Anthology of Medieval Horror edited by P L McMillan and Solomon Forse

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 12, 2022May 1, 2022ReviewsHOWL Society, Howls from the Dark Ages, Joshua Gage, ReviewsLeave a comment

Howls from the Dark Ages: An Anthology of Medieval Horror edited by P L McMillan and Solomon Forse
Joshua Mortensen (May 12, 2022)
352 pages; $19.95 paperback
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

HOWL Society, located on Discord, is the most active horror book club on the web. With hundreds of members, the club offers readers the chance to join a supportive community where they can enjoy books alongside other horror-lovers while engaging in meaningful discussions and forming long-lasting friendships. Aside from serving as an organized platform for discussing books, HOWL Society is also home to a tight-knit group of horror writers. Additionally, members can participate in tangential conversations about horror films, horror games, and much more. Because the club aims to provide equal access to all readers and writers around the world, membership is 100% free. Occasionally, HOWL Society publishes anthologies, and their most recent is Howls from the Dark Ages: An Anthology of Medieval Horror.Continue Reading

Review: What Flies Want by Emily Pérez

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 11, 2022May 1, 2022ReviewsEmily Perez, Joshua Gage, Reviews, What Flies WantLeave a comment

What Flies Want by Emily Pérez
University of Iowa Press (May 11, 2022)
96 pages; $19.95 paperback
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Emily Pérez is an English and gender studies instructor and grade-level dean at Colorado Academy. She is the author of What Flies Want, winner of the Iowa Prize; House of Sugar, House of Stone; and the chapbooks Backyard Migration Route and Made and Unmade. She lives in Denver, Colorado. What Flies Want, her newest collection, is a dark collection of poems that deals with very real traumas — mental health, marriage difficulties, self-harm, etc. — and their very real consequences.Continue Reading

Review: Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 9, 2022May 1, 2022ReviewsChris Hallock, Flatiron Books, Hidden Pictures, Jason Rekulak, ReviewsLeave a comment

Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak
Flatiron Books (May 10, 2022)
384 pages; $25.19 hardcover; $14.99 e-book
Reviewed by Chris Hallock

Jaded readers may approach new fiction with skepticism; however, Jason Rekulak’s eerie new work Hidden Pictures proves that the genre is ever-evolving. Rekulak’s latest character-driven work (following up his Edgar-nominated debut The Invisible Fortress) benefits largely from an isolated setting, clever twists, and a compelling protagonist who finds herself ensnared in a tragic supernatural mystery. The author layers his ghostly tale with intriguing psychological and cultural components that enrich its taut narrative, while exposing the sinister underbelly of its suburban setting. Continue Reading

Review: John Carpenter’s Night Terrors: Sour Candy by Kealan Patrick Burke and Jason Felix

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 5, 2022May 3, 2022Reviews, The Comic VaultBlu Gilliand, Columns, Jason Felix, John Carpenter, Kealan Patrick Burke, Night Terrors, Reviews, Sour Candy, The Comics VaultLeave a comment

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cover of Sour Candy John Carpenter’s Night Terrors: Sour Candy by Kealan Patrick Burke and Jason Felix
Storm King Productions (March 2022)
104 pages; $17.99 paperback
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand

Back in 2015, I had the pleasure of reviewing Kealan Patrick Burke’s then-new novella, Sour Candy. You can see the full review here, but I’ll include the plot summary from that review below:Continue Reading

Review: The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 5, 2022May 3, 2022ReviewsHaley Newlin, Isabel Canas, Reviews, The HaciendaLeave a comment

cover of The Hacienda The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas
Berkley (May 2022)
352 pages; $20.99 hardcover; $14.99 e-book
Reviewed by Haley Newlin

Lost to the wilds of war, death, and deceit, The Hacienda ensnares readers in its malevolent maw.

In Isabel Cañas’ debut novel, dread and unease snake up the spine of both the reader and characters in a tone as haunting as the mothers of gothic stories like Elizabeth Gaskell and Daphne du Maurier. Continue Reading

Review: Lust Killer by Ann Rule

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 4, 2022May 1, 2022ReviewsAnn Rule, Haley Newlin, Lust Killer, ReviewsLeave a comment

Lust Killer by Ann Rule
Berkley (May 2022)
288 pages; paperback $12.00; e-book $6.99
Reviewed by Haley Newlin

“In the face of cruel madness, calm, sane steps must be taken.” – Ann Rule

Ann Rule once again proves she is the exemplar of true crime books. After reading Rule’s The Stranger Beside Me: Ted Bundy: The Shocking Inside Story, one of her most famous and intimately written true crime tales, I knew I had to read more of her work.Continue Reading

Review: Fortunate by Kim Rashidi

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 3, 2022May 1, 2022ReviewsFortunate, Joshua Gage, Kim Rashidi, poetry, ReviewsLeave a comment

Fortunate by Kim Rashidi
Andrews McMeel Publishing (May 3, 2022)
161 pages; $14.99 paperback; $7.16 e-book
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

Kim Rashidi is a 24-year-old poet based in Toronto. She explores the cosmos through her words and has a soft spot for capturing love and life in the mundane. Writing about the lives, cities, and timelines that mirror back the romantic, she weaves reality with imagined possibilities. She holds an MA in English literature and has taken to poetry since she was 16. Her newest collection is Fortunate, a series of poems based upon the Waite-Rider-Smith tarot deck.Continue Reading

Review: The Ghosts of Rose Hill by R. M. Romero

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 2, 2022May 1, 2022ReviewsJoshua Gage, R.M. Romero, Reviews, The Ghosts of Rose HillLeave a comment

cover of The Ghost of Rose Hill The Ghosts of Rose Hill by R. M. Romero
Peachtree Teen (May 3, 2022)
452 pages; $18.99 hardcover
Reviewed by Joshua Gage

R.M. Romero is a Jewish Latina and author of fairy tales for children and adults. She lives in Miami Beach with her cat Henry VIII and spends her summers helping to maintain Jewish cemeteries in Poland. You can visit her online at RMRomero.com. Her newest book, a YA verse novel, is the ethereal The Ghosts of Rose Hill.Continue Reading

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