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Review: 'The Haunting of Lake Manor Hotel' edited by Nathan Hystad and Samanda R. Primeau

Cemetery Dance OnlineJune 2, 2016ReviewsFeatured, Josh Black, Nathan Hystad, Reviews, Samanda R. Primeau, The Haunting of Lake Manor Hotel1 Comment

The Haunting of Lake Manor Hotel edited by Nathan Hystad and Samanda R. Primeau
WoodBridge Press (April 2016)
202 pages; $13.99 paperback; $0.99 e-book
Reviewed by Josh Black

It’s been over a hundred and fifty years since a plague ravaged the area around Lake Manor. With few left to bury them, the corpses were unceremoniously dumped into the lake by their surviving loved ones.

Years later, Lake Manor Hotel is alive with the shadows of the dead. Within the hotel’s 13 rooms, there are 13 tales to tell. Guests will face evil demons, ghosts, creatures from the lake, and the worst monsters of all: the ones within themselves.

13 will check in, but how many will check out?

Review: 'Babylon Terminal' by Greg F. Gifune

Cemetery Dance OnlineJune 1, 2016Reviews- Frank Michaels Errington, Babylon Terminal, Darkfuse, Featured, Greg F. Gifune, ReviewsLeave a comment

Babylon Terminal by Greg F. Gifune
Darkfuse (June 2016)
$99.00 hardcover; $16.99 paperback; $4.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

I can’t say I always connect with a Greg F. Gifune story, but I always try to read his work. He challenges me as a reader and Babylon Terminal did just that. This is not a casual read, it’s not light material. I feel I had to work for every bit of enjoyment I got out of this book, but it was worth it.

There is some stunning wordcraft in this story. At times Gifune’s prose is close to breathtaking. There is powerful, rich dialogue, as well.Continue Reading

Review: 'Borderlands 6' edited by Olivia F. Monteleone and Thomas F. Monteleone

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 30, 2016ReviewsBorderlands 6, Featured, Olivia F. Monteleone, Reviews, Thomas F. MonteleoneLeave a comment

Borderlands 6 edited by Olivia F. Monteleone and Thomas F. Monteleone
Borderlands Press (June 2016)
258 pages; $50.00 limited edition hardcover; $15.99 paperback; $5.99 e-book
Reviewed by Josh Black

It’s been 26 years since Tom Monteleone brought us the inaugural volume of Borderlands. That volume and subsequent ones have been filled with stories that veer off the beaten path of genre tropes, journeying instead into the uncanny, the inexplicable, the unexpected. There’s a twelve year gap between this sixth volume and the fifth, but in this case the adage proves true: Good things come to those who wait.Continue Reading

Review: 'The Moving Soul' by Joshua Criss

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 25, 2016ReviewsFeatured, Joshua Criss, Reviews, The Moving SoulLeave a comment

The Moving Soul by Joshua Criss
Self-Published (October 2015)
262 pages; $9.95 paperback; $1.99 e-book
Reviewed by Josh Black

“Three hundred and thirty-five years ago, a settler in the Virginia colonies completed a sacrificial spell and buried a legendary occult book for the next one destined to find it. Now, that person has…”

The Moving Soul is a supernatural thriller that focuses on three main characters, all students at Jamestown University in Virginia. Louis is a meek, socially awkward kind of guy, Carolyn is the girl he longs for and eventually ends up in a relationship with, and Darin is his new roommate. Darin also happens to be a real piece of work, a sociopath who’s seeking everything he needs to complete a spell that will grant him immortality. When he makes a certain sacrifice and reaches that goal, he intends to taunt, torture, and kill for eternity.Continue Reading

Review: 'The Everything Box' by Richard Kadrey

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 23, 2016ReviewsFeatured, Reviews, Richard Kadrey, The Everything BoxLeave a comment

The Everything Box by Richard Kadrey
Harper Voyager (April 2016)
368 pages; $17.14 hardcover; $15.29 paperback; $12.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

“Earth. Four thousand years ago. Give or take.” When this is the opening line in your new novel, it better be epic. The verdict? Richard Kadrey delivers again.

It’s just after the great flood and the angel Qaphsiel is sent by God to finish off mankind, but he misplaces the Instrument of Destruction. Fast-forward to the present day where a number of individuals and groups are closing in on The Everything Box. Of course the usual Kadrey wit abounds. It’s a story filled with magic, where literally anything is possible.Continue Reading

Review: 'Mongrels' by Stephen Graham Jones

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 18, 2016ReviewsBlu Gilliand, Featured, Mongrels, Reviews, Stephen Graham JonesLeave a comment

Mongrels by Stephen Graham Jones
William Morrow (May 2016)
320 pages; $19.39 hardcover; $12.99 e-book
Reviewed by Blu Gilliand

The werewolves of Mongrels roam the South like a pack of feral dogs, surviving on the very instincts and abilities that often work directly against them. They live in ratty trailers, work an endless parade of menial jobs, subsist on road kill and strawberry wine coolers. They sneak into town under assumed names and sneak out under the cover of night when things go bad. And they always go bad.Continue Reading

Featured review: 'The Fireman' by Joe Hill

Bev VincentMay 16, 2016ReviewsBev Vincent, Featured, fireman, harry potter, helen reddy, Joe Hill, mary poppins, Reviews, rush, Stephen King, The Fireman, The Stand, toto1 Comment

The Fireman by Joe Hill
William Morrow (May 17, 2016)
768 pages; $18.82 hardcover; $14.99 e-book
Reviewed by Bev Vincent

The Fireman, Joe Hill’s fourth novel, is an apocalyptic tale in which a deadly disease destroys the world. If this conjures thoughts of The Stand, it’s not a coincidence. Hill is on record as saying that the book is his version of The Stand “soaked in gasoline and set on fire.” In his dedication he says he stole “everything else” about the book from his father other than the title.

The illness that spreads like wildfire is Draco incendia trychophyton, a spore rather than a virus. People exposed to it do not burn with a fever—they simply burn. First, lesions develop. Some are almost decorative, resembling scales, hence the illness’s nickname: Dragonscale. Victims are mostly asymptomatic until they suddenly catch fire, usually when under stress. It’s a devastating and terrifying disease, because the conflagration takes out others in the vicinity. Buildings burn, then city blocks, and cities, and more.Continue Reading

Review: 'Kill Switch' by Jonathan Maberry

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 9, 2016Reviews- Frank Michaels Errington, Featured, Joe Ledger, Jonathan Maberry, Kill Switch, ReviewsLeave a comment

Kill Switch by Jonathan Maberry
St. Martin’s Griffin (April 26 2016)
544 pages; $9.99 paperback; $9.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Is it to early to add this to the list of my ten favorite reads of 2016? Kill Switch, by Jonathan Maberry, is that good. It’s hard to imagine many books to be published the rest of this year being better than this new adventure in the Joe Ledger series.Continue Reading

Review: 'Suicide Stitch' by Sarah L. Johnson

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 4, 2016ReviewsFeatured, Reviews, Sarah L. Johnson, Suicide StitchLeave a comment

Suicide Stitch by Sarah L. Johnson
EMP Publishing (March 2016)
188 pages; $12.00 paperback; $4.99 e-book
Reviewed by Josh Black

Suicide Stitch is the debut collection of Sarah L. Johnson, a writer whose work runs the gamut from horror to literary to science fiction to erotica. The stories here reflect that range of style and voice. They’re billed as “sexy, transgressive, and intelligent, comprised of eleven tales that explore the sinister side of love,” and that’s an apt description for the highlights of the bunch.Continue Reading

Review: 'Altar' by Philip Fracassi

Cemetery Dance OnlineMay 2, 2016ReviewsAltar, Featured, Philip Fracassi, ReviewsLeave a comment

Altar by Philip Fracassi
Dunhams Manor Press (April 2016)
53 pages; $7.19 paperback; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by Josh Black

Have you ever been swimming in a lake, far from shore, and found yourself wondering what might be lurking in the black depths below? There’s a primal fear being tapped, and with Altar, Philip Fracassi taps into it not through a lake, but a public swimming pool. Brightly lit, sections clearly delineated, lifeguards at the ready should anyone find themselves in need of assistance… A few rough patches notwithstanding, it says a lot about Fracassi’s skill as a storyteller that this novelette works as well as it does.Continue Reading

Review: 'The Damned' by Andrew Pyper

Cemetery Dance OnlineApril 27, 2016ReviewsAndrew Pyper, Featured, Jonathan Reitan, Reviews, The DamnedLeave a comment

The Damned by Andrew Pyper
Simon & Schuster (February 2015)
304 pages; $21.24 hardcover; $13.82 paperback; $11.99 e-book
Reviewed by Jonathan Reitan

Canadian author Andrew Pyper began his career by writing “literary thrillers” but now he’s been focusing his time on some amazing works of “literary horror” such as his latest, The Damned.

Twins Danny and Ashleigh Orchard are polar opposites. While Danny is timid and kind, Ashleigh is overpowering and downright evil. Ash harbors early psychotic tendencies and terrorizes anyone near her. A house fire ultimately claims her life and almost takes Danny’s as well.Continue Reading

Review: 'I Hate Fairyland, Vol. 1: Madly Ever After' by Skottie Young

Cemetery Dance OnlineApril 25, 2016Reviews- Frank Michaels Errington, Featured, I Hate Fairyland, Image Comics, Madly Ever After, Reviews, Skottie YoungLeave a comment

I Hate Fairyland, Vol. 1: Madly Ever After by Skottie Young
Image Comics (April 26 2016)
128 pages; $8.41 paperback
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Okay, I’m not the biggest fan of comic books, but when I Hate Fairyland came into Cemetery Dance for review, I took one look at the synopsis and knew I had to check this out.

What a trip. Artist and author Skottie Young has concocted a colorful, imaginative, raw blood fest that’s reminiscent of the old Fractured Fairy Tales…on acid. I love the artwork. It reminds me of the old Garbage Pail Kids cards I collected back in the day, only with more blood.Continue Reading

Review: 'Psycho: Sanitarium' by Chet Williamson

Cemetery Dance OnlineApril 22, 2016ReviewsChet Williamson, Featured, Psycho, Psycho: Sanitarium, Reviews, Robert BlochLeave a comment

Psycho: Sanitarium by Chet Williamson
Thomas Dunne Books (April 2016)
288 pages; $19.73 hardcover; $11.99 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

Norman Bates has been institutionalized with the deaths of four people on his hands, four murders that we know about.

If you’ve never read Robert Bloch’s 1959 novel Psycho, not to worry, Chet Williamson provides an excellent synopsis to get the reader up to speed on the events which precede Psycho: Sanitarium. Personally, I went back and read the original work so it was fresh in my mind as I read this new volume. I’m glad I did as this gave me a feel for the writing in both books. If I didn’t know better, I could easily see how the two could have been written by the same author.Continue Reading

Review: 'The Sound of Time' by Jeremy Essex

Cemetery Dance OnlineApril 20, 2016Reviews- Frank Michaels Errington, Featured, Jeremy Essex, Reviews, Samhain Publishing, The Sound of TimeLeave a comment

The Sound of Time by Jeremy Essex
Samhain Publishing (February 2016)
60 pages; $2.10 e-book
Reviewed by Frank Michaels Errington

The Sound of Time is a quick and surreal novella. The story takes place during the late night move of a business from its old location to its new. As the old place is emptied out, it becomes rather creepy. A discussion of time, and the perception of it, sets the mood for some truly bizarre events.Continue Reading

Review: 'Underwater Fistfight' by Matt Betts

Cemetery Dance OnlineApril 18, 2016ReviewsFeatured, Matt Betts, Raw Dog Screaming Press, Reviews, Underwater Fistfight1 Comment

Underwater Fistfight by Matt Betts
Raw Dog Screaming Press (April 2016)
98 pages; $12.95 paperback; $4.99 e-book
Reviewed by Anton Cancre

Matt Betts has been making a name for himself as a novelist lately, but that isn’t how I got to know him. I was first introduced to Matt as a poet, via his superb collection See No Evil, Say No Evil. A guy who wrote poems about cool stuff, like Godzilla and Monsters and Why You Should Totally Leave The Beach. A guy who reveled in the silly and absurd, but could find glimpses of the sublime and occasionally heartbreaking between the lines. Underwater Fistfight is a return to form that I have been waiting for, lo these many intervening years.Continue Reading

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