Angel of the Abyss - by Ed Kurtz - Wonderfully executed crime novel

5 of 5 Stars     Review copy

Footage from a lost film from the age of silent movies is discovered and Graham Woodard is brought to Hollywood from his home in Massachusetts to work on restoring and preserving what's been found.

Unknown to Graham when he takes the assignment, there is a reason the film has been "lost" all these years and certain people will do whatever it takes to keep it's secrets from being revealed.

Angel of the Abyss was to be the debut film of a new starlet, Grace Baron, formerly Grace Baronsky, from Boise, Idaho.

There are two stories here.  The one where Graham Woodard and his friend Jake Maitland are trying to find the rest of the film, while becoming embroiled in a series of murders, potentially their own, and another about the actual making of the film and what really happened to it's star.

The author, Ed Kurtz, does a very nice job of pacing the two stories, revealing the secrets a bit at a time, and dove-tailing them nicely at the book's end, where all is revealed.  The characters are fully developed, even bit players are richly fleshed out.

Crime novels are generally not my thing, but there are definite similarities between the crime and horror genres and there is certainly a touch of horror in Angel of the Abyss.

Due to be released on December 2, 2014, Angel of the Abyss is published by Darkfuse and will be available at Amazon.com.  You can pre-order the book now at Amazon and if you subscribe to Kindle Unlimited you can read this one at no additional charge .

Highly recommended.

Dark Screams - Vol 1 - edited by Brian James Freeman and Richard Chizmar - A novella length mini anthology

4 of 5 Stars     Review copy

Dark Screams - Volume One is the first in a new series of  mini-horror-anthologies from Hydra, the ebook imprint from Random House, focusing on science fiction, fantasy and horror.

Richard Chizmar is the founder/editor and publisher/editor of Cemetery Dance magazine and Cemetery Dance Publications.  Brian James Freeman is the managing editor of Cemetery Dance Publications.  They are both well-respected horror writers in their own right.

Dark Screams - Volume One begins with "Weeds, " by Stephen King.  This was originally published in 1976 by Cavalier magazine and appeared on the big screen as a part of Creepshow.  Until now this short story has never appeared in any collection   "Weeds" is the tale of  what happens when Jordy Verrill sees a meteor come crashing to earth on his New Hampshire farmstead on the Fourth of July.

The remaining four stories are originals to this collection from Kelly Armstrong, Bill Pronzini, Simon Clark, and Ramsey Campbell.  That's one impressive line up.  Each author plays to their individual strengths leading to a strong and varied set of stories.

I do wish there had been more stories, but the good news is, by keeping the collection small, the publishers are able to keep a low price point and there are plans for at least another three books in the series over the course of the next year from writers like Robert R. Mccammon, Richard Matheson, Peter Straub, Jack Ketchum, Clive Barker, and Ed Gorman.

Dark Screams - Volume One will be made available for download on December 9th, 2014 and can be pre-ordered now through Amazon.com.

Recommended.

Skinjumper - by Lincoln Crisler - A solid first horror novel

4.5 of 5 Stars     Review Copy

It's hard to believe that Skinjumper is Lincoln Crisler's first novel.  It seems like I've been reading his stuff for years.  But, then again, he has written more than 30 short stories, two novellas and edited couple of successful anthologies, so if you're a fan of the horror genre you may have heard the name before.

Skinjumper is a well thought out, imaginative, tale that begins with a attempt to bring a family pet back from the dead.   Amateurs and the occult, what could possibly go wrong?  The attempt fails, but several years later, Terry Miller discovers an unexpected consequence.

Anything more would involve major spoilers, but the title should be enough to give you a clue as to what that consequence might me.  This "Talent" is enough to keep him one step in front of the police as he racks up a bit of a body count.  As is often the case, Terry's desire for revenge may prove to be his undoing.

Crisler does an excellent job of keeping the reader guessing right to the very end.

Skinjumper is available now in paperback and for the Kindle from Amazon.com.  Published by Ragnarok Publications.

Strongly recommended.

The Hungry 6: The Rule of Three - by Steven W. Booth & Harry Shannon - Another strong entry in the Sheriff Penny Miller saga

5 of 5 Stars     Review copy

When last we left our intrepid zombie fighters, Sheriff Penny Miller, her sometime lover, Scratch, Captain Karl Sheppard, Rolf and the cadaver dog Dudley, the group had been heading down the highway in a stolen police cruiser.

In the epilogue of The Hungry 5: All Hell Breaks Loose, we are led to believe that same cruiser is taken out by a missile launched from a drone following the cruiser.

I figured that could very well be the end of one of my favorite zombie series, but thanks to some creative thinking, authors Steven W. Booth and Harry Shannon are back with book six.  Good news for fans of this entertaining set of books.

In The Hungry 6: The Rule of Three the objective is to find and eliminate the Triad, the three masterminds behind the program that caused the zombie apocalypse and now plan to use their mistake to do the unthinkable.

Once again, Sheriff Miller and what is left of her friends are in the thick of things. "Thirty-six hours was barely long enough to complete her assignment .  It was finally here, the end game. It meant the eradication of the United States, and perhaps all of North America if things went as planned."

Returning to this series was like putting on a set of warm gloves on a bitter Winter day.  Sheriff Penny Miller, Queen of the snarky dialogue is back in form.  Scratch is as surly and protective as ever.  Rolf is still a bit out there, although we learn much more of his story and he contributes in a big way.  And then there are the zombies...lots of zombies.

"A little girl in a pink Disney costume with a golden plastic tiara emerged from the mob.  Her black hair was disheveled, little brown eyes rolled back, little mouth and lips attacking the air like sea creature suction on the smeared wall of an uncleaned fish tank.  Miller shot her through the head without a second thought."

If you've never read any of the Sheriff Penny Miller Saga, you really ought to start at the beginning and read them all, even though the authors do their best to make this a complete story that stands well on it's own.

From Genius Book Publishing, The Hungry 6: The Rule of Three, is available now for the Kindle from Amazon.com.

I you're a fan of zombie lit, don't hesitate to read this series, and if you've been reading these stories all along then I know you want to see how it all ends...or does it?

Definitely recommended.

Darknet - by John R. Little - Loved the OMG moment in this one. Horror at it's finest

4.5 of 5 Stars     Review copy

Wow.  I've been reading some very dark stuff lately and Darknet is one of the bleakest so far.  I may have to go watch a few episodes of "My Little Pony" or something to create a bit of balance in my life.

On the surface, the internet may seem like all fun and games, but then there's Darknet: a seedy underbelly to the web, where anything can be had for a price and presumably with complete anonymity.

Seattle radio personality, Cindy McKay, know to her 50,000 listeners as Cin, loves her job and is good at it.  Her home life is another story.  Although she loves her 10-year-old daughter, Avril, with all of her being, her violently abusive husband Tony is another story.

After interviewing Dr. Rusty Moore about the darkside of the web, Cindy decides to investigate further.  She downloads the software that would allow her to be online anonymously and goes exploring.  Later, "Darknet had been calling to her all day, vague rumblings rolling through her mind. Drugs, gun running, child pornography, livers available to purchase...Assassins for hire."

If you're anything like me, you probably think you have this one all figured out.  You might want to hold back on that assumption.  John R. Little has crafted one hell of a twist into his story and has created the single most despicable character I've read this year.

Darknet is, at times, devastatingly brutal in it's depiction of physical and sexual abuse and as a result, may not be for all readers, but if you can handle it, I think you're going to enjoy the surprises John R. Little has in store for you.

From JournalStone, Darknet, will be released on November 21st, 2014 and will be available through their website in a variety of formats.

A Shrill Keening - by Ronald Malfi - Strange novella with a touch of Lovecratian mythos

4 of 5 Stars     Review copy

Carl Thompson is institutionalized for the murder of his girlfriend.  Problem is, he doesn't remember committing the crime, even though he called 911.  He doesn't remember anything from just before her murder until after be wakes up in the hospital.

Carl's struck up a friendship with the facility's librarian and has been reading H.P. Lovecraft and Edgar Allan Poe, as well as books on the interpretation of dreams, meanings behind nightmares, and hypnotism.

Days are spent in therapy, with Dr. Lugando, but his nights find him on a boardwalk by the shore.  It's like he's living two realities simultaneously.  What he discovers in the alternate reality is where things get very strange and turn a little Lovecraftian.

All in all, I found A Shrill Keening  to be an interesting exploration of the mind of someone who's gone mad, even if we never learn more about what caused him to go crazy in the first place.

A Shrill Keening is the latest from Darkfuse in their ongoing novella series and is available for the Kindle at Amazon.com.  Plus, if you subscribe to Kindle Unlimited, you can read this one at no additional charge

I will point out that A Shrill Keening is not for everyone, but if you like stories that are a bit "out there," I can certainly recommend this quick read.

Dead World Resurrection - by Joe McKinney - The Collected Zombie Short Stories of Joe McKinney

4 of 5 Stars     Review Copy

Dead World Resurrection: The Collected Zombie Short Stories of Joe McKinney is a collection of nineteen stories of varying length from a master of the zombie sub-genre.

A number of the stories tie into Joe's Dead World novels, while others take a look into other post apocalyptic worlds.

In the Introduction, writer, David Moody lists what he believes make a good zombie story.  One of the points he makes is one I've mentioned before in my reviews, "Most of all, I think the best zombie stories are not about the zombies at all.  They're about the living: the people like you and me, trapped in the middle of an unimaginable nightmare and doing all they can to preserve what remains of their lives and loves from attack by the living dead."

The stories here have appeared in other publications over the years, but this is the first time they have been collected in a single volume.  Good news for zombie fans who may have missed these over the years.

I'm not going to comment on every story, just a few standouts for me, beginning with, "Resurrecting Mindy."  A charming tale that reminded me of "The Gift of the Magi," with zombies.

"Dating In Dead World" is about exactly what the tile would lead you to believe and I found it to be very enjoyable.

"Bury My Heart At Marvin Gardens," was another story that stood out for me.  I particularly liked the way it moved between an actual game of Monopoly and traversing the streets of Atlantic City during the zombie apocalypse

There is a comfort level a reader develops with certain writers.  I've often felt this way with Stephen King.  I feel it with Joe McKinney, too.  When I start reading one of his books or short stories, I get the feeling I'm in very capable hands.

After you've finished all of the stories, stick around for the Author's Notes where Joe gives some insight into each of the stories in the collection and then there's even more after that with "A Reader's Guide to Dead World."

There's a lot of bang for your buck in this collection from JournalStone.  Dead World Resurrection: The Collected Zombie Short Stories of Joe McKinney is available now in nearly all formats at the JournalStone website.

Recommended for lovers of all things zombie.