Review: 'Goblins' by David Bernstein

Goblins by David Bernstein
Samhain Publishing (August 4, 2015)
210 pages, e-book $4.24, paperback $14.99
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

GoblinsDavid Bernstein makes his home in NYC and is likely hard at work on his next novel. David writes all kinds of horror, from hair-raising ghost stories to gore-filled slashers to adventure-filled apocalyptic tales of terror. Recent works include The Unhinged, Witch Island, and Apartment 7C.

His latest book, Goblins, is a genuine monster-fest featuring…are you ready for it? GOBLINS. I don’t think you can call that a spoiler since it’s the title and there’s a nice picture of one right there on the cover.Continue Reading

Review: 'Devil's Pocket' by John Dixon

Devil’s Pocket by John Dixon
Gallery Books (August 4, 2015)
352 pages, e-book $8.99, paperback $10.99
Reviewed by David Simms

DevilsPocketJohn Dixon gave the YA world a much needed punch to the throat last year with Phoenix Island, a novel that was filled with brutality, humanity, and intelligence. It launched the television series Intelligence, but even better, won the Bram Stoker Award for “Best YA Novel” this past May.

Sequels in book series usually tail off a bit, even in the most successful books, typically a rehashing of the first book. What does Dixon do? He takes a wide left turn into uncharted territory where it could have been disastrous for the many fans he accumulated.Continue Reading

Paper Cuts: Option This! Vol. 1

PaperCuts-web

Paper (n): material manufactured in thin sheets from the pulp of wood or other fibrous substances, used for writing, drawing, or printing on
 
Cut (v): make (a movie) into a coherent whole by removing parts or placing them in a different order.

Option This! Vol. 1

Welcome back, this is the second installment of Paper Cuts, a column about horror film from a horror reader’s (and writer’s) perspective. Huge thanks to everyone who shared the last post, read it, or sent me their thoughts, whether public or private. I was really overwhelmed by the response.Continue Reading

An Interview with Del Howison: Revisiting 'Nightbreed' with 'Midian Unmade'

An Interview with Del Howison:
Revisiting Clive Barker’s Nightbreed with Midian Unmade

MidianUnmadeCoverDel Howison is the co-founder and owner of Dark Delicacies, an independent horror bookstore in Burbank, California. Howison has co-edited several collections, including Midian Unmade, his recent collaboration with Joseph Nassise. Recently, he took a few moments to discuss this latest project with Cemetery Dance Online.
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Antics on the Web: 'Talking About Death with Children with Dr. Earl, Part 1' Review

Antics on the Web: ‘Talking About Death with Children with Dr. Earl, Part 1’ Review
by Robert Brouhard

DeathToChildrenThe Internet is filled with everything. Search for something on Google, and you’re likely to find it. Some of it is amazing and beautiful. Some of it is odd and disturbing. Some of it is an amalgam of miasma and sensuality. You may even find ways to talk about Fluffy or your grandma’s passing with your children. The cartoon video of “Talking About Death With Children With Dr Earl Pt. 1” is probably not your best choice though.

Jamie Loftus and her friend Kelsey Lawler ran across a strange 8-track from 1976 in the attic of the Lawler & Crosby Funeral Home in Massachusetts. Why were they in a funeral home’s attic? The world may never know. Per the YouTube video’s description, a man named “Dr. Earl A. Grossman” (SP) made 8-track tapes during the 1970s discussing death with children and distributed them to New England funeral homes. Doing some research on the Web, I couldn’t find anything about “Earl A. Grossman.” Using a touch of Google-fu, I came to see that this is actually Dr. Earl A. Grollman, a Rabbi from Belmont, Massachusetts who has written many books for grieving families including the 1971 runaway hit Explaining Death to Children. His books have even been used at Harvard. Yes, I informed the maker of the video, Jamie Loftus, of the man’s actual name. It turns out that Jamie wasn’t wearing her glasses when she transposed the name in her notes. Oops. Jamie Loftus did all the work animating this video with Dr. Grollman’s audio.Continue Reading

Review: 'B-Movie War' by Alan Spencer

B- Movie War by Alan Spencer
Samhain Publishing (November 2014)
248 pages; $10.28 paperback/$4.24 ebook
Reviewed by Damon Smith 

b-movie-warVery quickly into B-Movie War, I realized that it’s a sequel to Spencer’s other B-Movie books, all of which are also published through Samhain. However, outside of a few cameos and references, knowledge of the previous books isn’t necessary to understand what is happening in B-Movie War.Continue Reading

Review: 'Devil's Breath' by Greg F. Gifune

Devil’s Breath by Greg F. Gifune
Darkfuse (July 2015)
90 pages, $3.99 Kindle
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

devils_breathGreg. F. Gifune is a best-selling author, called “one of the best writers of his generation” by both the Roswell Literary Review and author Brian Keene. Devil’s Breath is his newest novel published by Darkfuse. “Devil’s Breath” is a real thing – go ahead and Google it. It’s pretty scary stuff and was the direct inspiration for this wonderful work of fiction.Continue Reading

An Interview with Aaron Duran

An Interview with Aaron Duran

Aaron Duran is the driving force behind GeekInTheCity.com, where he produces audio dramas, hosts podcasts, and writes about all thinks geek culture. He also writes comics, and recently published his first young adult novel, Welcome to Grizzlydale. Recently, Duran took a few moments between projects to talk with Cemetery Dance Online.
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"Untitled": The Horror Comics Column by Mark L. Miller

“Untitled”: The Horror Comics Column by Mark L. Miller

HouseOfMystery-174Hi there. I’m Mark. Some of you might know me as Ambush Bug at Ain’t It Cool News, acting editor of AICN COMICS and AICN HORROR’s various posts, reviews, interviews, and podcasts. Others might know me as the writer of comic books such as Black Mask’s Pirouette, Zenescope’s Jungle Book, and various other projects. Still others might know me from my day job as a licensed counselor at a residential home for boy and girls in Chicago, the town where I hang my various hats. Whether you know me from these places or are meeting me here for the first time, the only thing you need to know is that I love horror in all forms and when Cemetery Dance approached me to write a monthly piece on horror comic books, you better bet I jumped at the chance.Continue Reading

"Terminal" by Kealan Patrick Burke

Cemetery Dance Online Exclusive Fiction
“Terminal”
by
Kealan Patrick Burke

“So, would you like my number?” she asked.

Perched on the side of the bed with his back to her, the rumpled sheets still reeking of sex, Adam closed his eyes and sighed silently. “Sure,” he said, tugging on his socks. He would give her his number because that’s how these things were supposed to go, but as soon as he was on the road, he would block hers. Getting whiny texts from some air stewardess (or whatever the hell they called themselves nowadays) would be just what he needed when he got home to his wife. Glenda was already suspicious, and with good cause. He had learned to be careful not to bring any evidence of his exploits home with him after the one time she found a pair of pink frilly panties in his suitcase, put there by one of his conquests while he’d been in the shower.Continue Reading

Review: 'Little Girls' by Ronald Malfi

Little Girls by Ronald Malfi
Kensington (June 2015)
384 pages, $10.35 paperback/$9.83 ebook
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

LittleRonald Malfi is the award-winning author of the novels Floating Staircase, Snow, The Ascent, and several others. He currently lives along the Chesapeake Bay where he is at work on his next book.

Laurie Genarro’s estranged father has passed away, an apparent suicide, and Laurie, her husband, Ted, and ten-year-old daughter Susan have traveled from Connecticut to Maryland to deal with the estate. When they pull up to the house on Annapolis Road Susan comments, “It looks like a haunted house.” Little did they know what they’d find.Continue Reading

Review: 'Working for Bigfoot' by Jim Butcher

Working for Bigfoot by Jim Butcher
Subterranean Press (June 2015)
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand

Working_for_Bigfoot_by_Jim_ButcherLong-time fans are likely to be the biggest benefactors of Working for Bigfoot, Jim Butcher’s collected trio of Harry-Dresden-meets-Sasquatch stories, but newbies (like me) may find it the perfect gateway into the world of the author’s popular Chicago-based wizard.Continue Reading

An Interview with Josh Malerman

An Interview with Josh Malerman

Josh Malerman is the author of Bird Box, a standout, Stoker Award-nominated horror debut. He is also the lead singer and songwriter for the band The High Strung. Bird Box continues to receive acclaim and win new fans more than a year after its initial release, and we’re pleased that the author was able to take some time away from preparing his follow-up novel to talk with Cemetery Dance Online.Continue Reading

Horror Drive-In: Reading in Public

HorrorDrive-In-web

Reading In Public

Like most Cemetery Dance readers, I am sure, I rarely leave the house without a book in hand. Sometimes I leave a deluxe edition home and have a travel book to take with me. I guess it is similar to how some people feel about carrying a gun. Better to have a book and not need it, than need one and not have it.Continue Reading

News from the Dead Zone #180: DRUNKEN FIREWORKS Review

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Featured review: Drunken Fireworks

drunken-fireworksThose of us who’ve read our work in public understand how difficult it is to keep an audience engaged for longer than about 15 or 20 minutes. Unless you’re a skilled performer (Tom Monteleone comes to mind among that group), the audience will get restless if you go on much longer than that.

Which is why the producers of audiobooks so often turn to actors as narrators. Or, as in the case of “Drunken Fireworks,” the new audiobook-only story from Stephen King, to someone like Tim Sample, who has produced the “Postcards from Maine” segment for CBS Sunday Morning. Other people in his category who come to mind are Garrison Keillor of The Prairie Home Companion or, a personal favorite, Stuart McLean from The Vinyl Cafe. These are raconteurs, people you don’t mind listening to for extended periods of time as they spin out their stories.Continue Reading