Guest Review: Chris Farnell reviews Horns by Joe Hill

I met Chris Farnell on a trip to the British Library for a tweet up and jaunt around the "Out of this World" exhibition. He is the author of Mark II and can be followed on Twitter.

He agreed to do a review of Horns by Joe Hill (and saved me late in the game, so that I could have all 32 guest slots filled! Thanks Chris!)

Ignatius Perrish spent the night drunk and doing terrible things. He woke up the next morning with one hell of a hangover, a raging headache . . . and a pair of horns growing from his temples. Once, Ig lived the life of the blessed: born into privilege, the second son of a renowned American musician, and the younger brother of a rising late-night TV star, Ig had security and wealth and a place in his community. Ig had it all, and more - he had the love of Merrin Williams, a love founded on shared daydreams, mutual daring, and unlikely midsummer magic. Then beautiful, vivacious Merrin was gone - raped and murdered, under inexplicable circumstances - with Ig the only suspect. He was never tried for the crime, but in the court of public opinion, Ig was and always would be guilty. Now Ig is possessed with a terrible new power to go with his terrible new look, and he means to use it to find the man who killed Merrin and destroyed his life. Being good and praying for the best got him nowhere. It's time for a little revenge; it's time the devil had his due.

Okay, before starting this review properly, I need to address the elephant in the room. Joe Hill is the son of a popular horror novelist who we will call ******* ****. To review this book purely in terms of how it compares to ******* **** would be a disservice to both writers, and this reviewer is above such obvious comparisons. That the book shares similar attitudes to horror, religious themes, family and the darker side of human nature is completely by the by. And so this review will not, for instance, say that this book bears comparison to ******* ****’s earlier classics, and that if you liked those you’ll really enjoy this. Whether or not it’s true (it is) I’m not going to say it, because that would be plain lazy.

We all clear on that? Good. Then I’ll begin.

Horns is a lot of things, it’s a story about grief, a religious parable, and weird sort of superhero story. The religious aspects of the story address the old problem, “If God exists and he loves us, why do horrible, horrible things keep happening to nice people who don’t deserve it?” It’s a question that’s asked a bunch of different ways throughout the book, and God never turns up in person to answer it. Even Satan never really shows his hand here- there’s just Ignatius, with horns and his awesome name.

But the horns aren’t just a barrier to well-fitting hats and a decent haircut. Whenever Ignatius is in the presence of another person, that person is overwhelmed by the need to confess all their sins- both the ones they’ve committed, and the ones they want to commit. What’s more, on confessing a sin they want to commit, people seek Ignatius’s approval, and if he grants them permission, they’ll go right ahead to do it. Like the best monsters/superheroes, the horns’ powers have strict limitations- mainly, that Ig can’t command people to do anything that they do not want to do.

This is where the superhero aspects of the story come in. Ig is a character who has had terrible things happen to him, and his given powers that allow him to do a huge amount of evil, but he resists that and turns the powers to a better purpose.
It’s a book that lives up to its horror label. There are some genuinely scary and disgusting descriptions- including one scene that caused me to stop reading for a while because I didn’t want to throw up on the coach.

It’s not a book without flaws, it has the Christopher Nolan-esque quality of being a story about men motivated by the rape and murder of a woman. That said, Ig’s girlfriend Merrin is a character who still manages to have a life of her own, and the writer is all too happy to show us the parallels between Ig’s idealised view of the woman he loves and the delusional stories Merrin’s rapist tells himself about her.

The thing that most surprised me about this book is that it’s actually incredibly optimistic about people. In the first chapter of the book Ig comes across as Alcoholic, Despondent 90’s Anti-Hero version 3, but as his story, and his back story unfold, you discover this is a character driven by a powerful need to be and do good. Likewise, his power is custom built to show you the very ugliest sides of human nature (How confident are you that you want to hear with complete honesty what your parents, or your best friend or your lover thinks of you?) but the story shows that there is so much more to us than our darkest fears and desires.

Thanks Chris!

Guest Review: Jason Baki reviews Nowhere Hall by Cate Gardner

Jason Baki has been a great friend of mine since I first started blogging and we attended Eastercon 2010 together. He has had a little break from blogging and now returns refreshed - including a lovely little review for me!

We Want To Live...

In the bathroom, wallflower mannequins stretch their fingers towards Ron. He can't ask them to dance. He's already waltzing with the other ghosts.

Someone stole the world while Ron contemplated death. They packed it in a briefcase and dumped him in the halls of the ruined hotel--The Vestibule. A nowhere place."

There have always been great female horror writers but in recent times there a number of new and very strong voices making themselves heard in the field of dark fantastical literature: Caitlin R Kiernan, Sarah Monette, Ekaterina Sedia, and Kaaron Warren are just a few examples, and I think we can definitely add Cate Gardner to that list too. I had not read Gardner before this, but I'll certainly not be forgetting her in a hurry now that I've read Nowhere Hall. From the outset this short chapbook highlights an extraordinary ability on the part of Gardner to instil a sense of dream like lugubriousness.

Ron Spence has had enough with life, feeling overlooked by the world, and fed up with his lot, he decides to end it all. Poised to step out in to oncoming traffic he backs out only at the last minute, or so it seems. What follows from this opening section of the story, is a marvellously written piece of dark surrealism.

After apparently failing to take his own life, Ron finds himself drawn towards a seemingly abandoned hotel - the Vestibule. He also finds an elephant handled umbrella with a tag which says "we want to live" on it. Taking the umbrella he enters the hotel, and discovers that far from being unoccupied, it is filled with the presence of ghosts and alive with a kind of shifting consciousness of its own. In this strange place, inanimate objects come to life and dance with the painful memories of Ron's own past. How much of it is real? And what it means for Ron's current state of being is largely up for conjecture. At the end I had my own suspicions about what had occurred, but I imagine others reading may draw different conclusions. Gardner has written this story in a deliberately obscure manner, but not, I should stress, in a way that is difficult to read or which leaves the reader dissatisfied. Rather, the obscure nature, and unsettling melancholic tone is part of its appeal.

I really enjoyed this chapbook and I continue to be impressed with the standard of releases from Spectral Press. If you like darkly surreal stories underpinned by strong emotion and visceral prose, then you absolutely have to check out this wonderful piece of writing by Cate Gardner. I'll certainly be eagerly awaiting her future work.

Nowhere Hall
By Cate Garder
Published in the UK by Spectral Press

For more on Cate Gardner visit her webpage here.

Thanks so much, Jason!

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

Jacob's grandfather tells him tales. Tall stories about peculiar people and his home on a magical island. As far as Jacob is concerned, these stories are just that - fibs, tales, something to pass the time. That is Before. After he discovers that there might be something to what his grandfather has said, and heads out on a journey to try and find the island from the past.

This is a quirky, beautiful, haunting, spooky little novel. I really had no idea what to expect going in - but did assume it would be a horror from the rather creepy photo adorning the front cover. I was left to uncover the secrets of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, and I hope that you decide to as well. I would hate to spoil anything, so will leave my discussions of the plot entirely. (I know that some people regard that reviewing technique as a complete cop-out, but I desperately want people to come to this novel with fresh eyes - it is a complete treat).

The prose is exceptional - leading the reader in a drifting manner through the first half of the novel, exploring Jacob's reaction to his grandfather's stories and his quiet life as an ordinary boy. At times it is quite stunning, and led me to think of such authors as Peter S Beagle. The second half of the novel increases the pace, with some exceptionally scary moments.

In fact, the best word to sum up Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is "atmospheric". I thought about old-time shows and circuses, featuring bearded ladies and the like. I thought about haunted houses and ghosts. Having the background of WWII to much of the novel gave it a weight and oppression. Some scenes drip with menace. Others show a dreary town haunted by its past. Altogether, this novel is atmospheric!

The atmosphere is increased by the wonderful archive photographs in sepia scattered through the novel. Riggs used them as his inspiration for the story, and you can see exactly why they created such a strange little tale. Indeed, the picture on the front cover of the novel shows a little girl in a dress - fairly ordinary. Until you look closely and see that she is hovering a foot above the ground. This manner of secrets being revealed is perfectly in tune with the prose of the novel.

I do have a quibble - as I always do where time travel and loops in time are concerned. It is too easy to see paradoxes and loopholes in the idea of people moving back and forth in time. If I thought too hard about what was occurring, my head started to ache with the logistics of it all.

Apart from that incredibly minor point, Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is an exceptional tale; one that is destined to become a classic. It is undefinable and entirely beautiful. I think this has managed to do the impossible and knock the Chaos Walking trilogy from my top spot this year. Well worth your money!

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness is the story of Todd Hewitt, a boy on the verge of manhood who lives in a place called Prentisstown. In Prentisstown there is Noise - every man, boy and animal (there are no women) projects their thoughts and can be heard. Pictures, shouts, dark thoughts, happiness - nothing is secret, all is shared. On a day leading up to Todd's birthday, he is wandering in the swamp near Prentisstown and hears an absence of Noise, something he has never encountered before. At this point Todd's life changes irrevocably and he is forced on the run from everything and everyone he has ever known.

This is the best novel I have read this year by a LONG way. It was simply tremendous - breathless, exciting and yet with a heart and morals and discussion points that lifts it far beyond the realm of most YA fiction. I would say quite honestly that it is about the best children's/YA book I have read EVER.

The novel lives and dies on how well you get on with Todd - the story is told from his first person perspective, even down to his heavy dialect. As such, you encounter words such as 'direkshun' and 'ain't' is used profligately. I could see that this might irritate some people reading The Knife of Never Letting Go, but personally I felt this gave the novel an immediacy and intimacy - you literally heard and felt everything Todd experienced. I particularly enjoyed the way Todd would correct himself, or talk directly to the reader ("Run!" I shout to Manchee, turning and making a break for the back doors. (Shut up, you honestly think a knife is a match for a machete?)

Another wonderful facet to the tale is the fact that animals are able to talk as well. The aforementioned Manchee is Todd's dog - and we learn at the start of the book that even though animals CAN talk, it doesn't mean they have anything profound to say: "Squirrel, Todd! Squirrel!" Manchee reminded me a great deal, in fact, of Doug from the Pixar film Up - an amusing sidekick in a lot of ways, but also capable of providing incredibly touching moments. Manchee was probably my favourite part of The Knife of Never Letting Go.

The titular knife represented, for me, the march into adulthood that Todd is forced to experience. Early on in the novel it is said that a knife makes no decisions, the hand holding it does - and thereafter is used to demonstrate the decisions that Todd must make as he becomes a man. There is also decent social commentary on what adulthood involves.

I liked the way that the fact it is the MEN who project the Noise, and the women who remain silent. It seemed rather a sardonic nod to the fact that this is almost role reversal from real life (or certainly what is perceived to be the case). It also allowed Ness to explore matters of importance to boys and men - not wanting to appear cowardly, discovering morals and lines of honour, how to treat women. All of these were represented both realistically and very sympathetically.

Honestly, I cannot wax lyrical enough about this book. I had seen it read and reviewed by others, but had very little interest. I only picked it up this time around because the third novel of the series has been shortlisted for the Arthur C Clarke award - and I am so glad that I was directed to do so. This novel FEELS important. It is horrific, funny and thoughtful by turn - and never less than brilliant.

Let The Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist

John Ajvide Lindqvist takes us to a dark place, a suburbia where disparate characters are thrown into each other's lives and vices are explored. Oskar is a young boy, bullied constantly, dreaming of killing his persecutors. One night he meets the mysterious Eli, and the two children gradually build up a delicate and tenuous friendship. As a backdrop to this, we watch as murders are committed and the people of Blackeberg come to realise that they are haunted by a vampire.

On the face of this, Let The Right One In is a horror story about a vampire - but it does not take long for the reader to recognise that this is, in fact, a story exploring the monstrousness of human beings. The latent urge in all humans to commit monstrous acts. We have alcoholics, drug takers, paedophiles and bullies. In that company, the vampire turns out to be the most compassionate and reasonable character.

The prose is both visceral and staccato, with a deeply tragic air right from the first word. And yet it still manages to evoke a feeling of hope, and establishes that acceptance and friendship can succeed in saving a young man's life.

Despite the aforementioned staccato rhythm, the story unwinds with a slow deliberate menace. It starts with a searing picture of a victim of extreme bullying: "Let them think someone had been killed here, because someone had been killed here. And for the hundredth time..." Gradually the story presents us with some grisly pictures of a man with his face burned away by acid, blood pouring from every pore of a vampire, cats attacking a woman. And yet it is still those shocking moments of human cruelty that strike the hardest and make you vulnerable to the power of this book's prose.

It is a grey, dark and unremittingly grim novel that has a great deal to say on the true nature of the beast. One line really leapt out for me as an illustration of what this novel is truly about: "All these pathetic lonely people in a world without beauty."

With all of the above said, I should comment on the fact that Let The Right One In also had me quaking as I read it at night in an empty house. It is deeply scary and some scenes will stay with me for long after this last page has been closed.

The characters, as a whole, were not people you would generally root for, but the warm heart of the film is Eli - yes, a vampire, but a character that is confused, overwhelmed, loving, desperate, and with a strong sense of being unnatural. Eli holds the novel together, especially the elusive friendship with Oskar - the gentle growth of trust, the giving of self-confidence, the childish games and puzzles, the laughter. Within this novel, that makes a very warm heart indeed.

In my opinion, this is a hard book to love, but I have a great deal of respect for it. I will remember it for a long, long time. It is well-crafted and beautifully-written. It is dark and grim. But above all it is a memorable treatise on the monsters amongst us. Both riveting and compelling - this is one book you just can't look away from.

I Have A Secret To Tell....

....from my electrical well (kudos if you know *that* reference!)

It's time to confess something.

*whispers*

I don't like zombies (and I'm not about to end that sentence with "...I love them!" Again, kudos if you know the reference - I have Ashes fever and I'm not apologetic...)

I. Don't. Like. Zombies.

I don't understand the attraction. The only zombie film that has kept my attention is Shaun of the Dead and that is all about the Simon Pegg factor. I don't read zombie books.

I like my creatures of the night sleek and deadly, or animalistic and wild. Vampires and werewolves are my choice of monster.

The shambling gait, the longing for brains, the inability to communicate with zombies - all of this makes for a poor antagonist to a tale, in my opinion. I sort of get why people would find them terrifying, in terms of the fact that they can't be reasoned with and will simply keep coming until you can't prevent them from tearing flesh from your limbs - but it just doesn't capture my interest.

So, if you can suggest just one zombie-related book to change my mind and allow me to see why zombies are so terrific, please drop me a comment! I will pick three of them to read and let you know whether I have been convinced. I look forward to your responses.

Pic courtesy of Pulp's Comics.

Dark Fiction Magazine

I had the following press release bounce into my inbox today and I'm thoroughly excited by the idea. Check it out!

Dark Fiction Magazine (www.darkfictionmagazine.co.uk) is pleased to announce the launch of a new service for fans of genre fiction. Beginning Oct 31st (Halloween), Dark Fiction Magazine will be launching a monthly magazine of audio short stories. This is a free service designed to promote genre short fiction to an audience of podcast and radio listeners. A cross between an audio book, an anthology and a podcast, Dark Fiction Magazine is designed to take the enjoyment of short genre fiction in a new and exciting direction.


Dark Fiction Magazine publishes at least four short stories a month: a mix of award-winning shorts and brand new stories from both established genre authors and emerging writers. Each episode will have a monthly theme and feature complementary tales from the three main genres – science fiction, fantasy and horror.

Co-founder Del Lakin-Smith said: "I love reading short stories, and with the increased uptake of mobile and portable devices this really is a growth area. But like many I find I don't have as much time as I would like to read, so I tend to listen to many podcasts on the go. The idea of replacing my podcasts with high quality, well performed audio short stories is something I find highly appealing, so Sharon and I set about making that a reality."

Sharon Ring, co-founder of Dark Fiction Magazine, said: “From technophobe to technophile in less than two years; I spend a great deal of time working online. To while away those hours, I like to listen to podcasts and drink copious amounts of strong coffee. Now, while I don’t recommend you drink as much coffee as I, I do recommend you check out what Del and I have created. We love podcasts; we love genre fiction; we built a site to bring the two together.”

The theme of Dark Fiction Magazine’s first episode is The Darkness Descends and will feature four fantastical stories:

* ‘Maybe Then I’ll Fade Away’ by Joseph D’Lacey (exclusive to Dark Fiction Magazine)
* ‘Pumpkin Night’ by Gary McMahon
* ‘Do You See?’ by Sarah Pinborough (awarded the 2009 British Fantasy Society Short Story Award)
* ‘Perhaps The Last’ by Conrad Williams

Lined up for future episodes are Pat Cadigan, Cory Doctorow, Jon Courtenay, Grimwood, Ramsey Campbell, Rob Shearman, Kim Lakin-Smith, Ian Whates, Lauren Beukes, Mark Morris, Adam Nevill, Gareth L Powell, Jeremy C Shipp, Adam Christopher, and Jennifer Williams, among others.

With a team of dedicated and passionate narrators, a central recording facility and a love of genre, Dark Fiction Magazine delivers a truly outstanding aural experience.

Dark Fiction Magazine will also be producing special editions with seasonal stories and topical issues, competitions, flash fiction episodes and novel excerpts. Each episode aims to shock and delight, to horrify and confound as Dark Fiction Magazine takes its listeners on an aural tour through the world of genre fiction.

Dark Fiction Magazine is a collaborative project, created and developed by Del Lakin-Smith and Sharon Ring. For further information, contact Del or Sharon at
editorial@darkfictionmagazine.co.uk

***END***

Good, huh? I wish Sharon and Del all the best in their new endeavour!

The Chainsaw Gang

What is The Chainsaw Gang?

A chainsaw-wielding, gore-loving gang of brand new YA horror writers who've had enough of vegan vampires, cute'n cuddly werewolves and romantic zombies. New wave writers, old school horror. Ladies and gentlemen, start your chainsaws...

Who is involved in The Chainsaw Gang?

(as snitched from Alex Bell's website)

First up, Sarwat Chadda (unofficial leader of the gang – and the one with the Templar warrior heroine):



Stephen Deas (the dragon man of Gollancz):



Sam Enthoven (writer of fantastical action thrillers):



David Gatward (lots and lots of DEMONS!):



Steve Feasey (writer of ferocious werewolves):



William Hussey (who writes about ancient horrors):



Jon Mayhew (demons plus fog-drenched Victorian London = a double win in my book):



Alex Milway (he writes about yetis! And I agree with Sarwat on this – there just aren’t enough yeti books out there):



Sarah Pinborough (aka Sarah Silverwood – writer of murder, madness and the Knights of Nowhere):



Alexander Gordon Smith (yes, there are three Alex’s in the gang. At a future date I may stage a mutiny and attempt to rename the group The Alex Gang . . .) He writes about an underground prison run by demons! What more do you need to know? :



And Alex herself, as introduced by Sarwat: an escaped law student, and a collector of big dogs, neurotic cats, and crazy hats. She dislikes the heroic, selfless, goody-two-shoes heroes of recent YA fiction, and far prefers anti-heroes who lie, cheat, swindle and steal all the way to the top. Her young adult Lex Trent books are about a teenage thief, conman and adventurer; battling monsters, chasing treasure, breaking all the rules – and getting away with it.



Where can you get more information on The Chainsaw Gang?

Each of the members is web-savvy and has a website, where they are currently posting reviews on each other's novels and detailing where you can go and see them in real life. Check it out. The Chainsaw Gang is also on Facebook.

These are some incredibly talented authors, writing excellent old-school horror and adventure - go and make friends!

City of Ghosts by Stacia Kane

City of Ghosts is the third book about Chess Putnam, as she goes through the business of debunking hauntings. In this novel Chess is drawn into a Black Squad (government department) investigation, bound to silence about her doings. She struggles to work through the meagre clues of the case as danger tightens around her, throwing everyone she cares about into the gravest peril.

I’ll say straight out that I adore this series, but I find that most series tend to have a weaker book. In my opinion, City of Ghosts is that book for Downside Ghosts.

I still greatly love all of the encounters between Chess and Terrible, which are heartbreaking and blisteringly sexy by turn. However, the whole plot dealing with Lauren from the Black Squad and their investigation seems unnecessarily complicated. We have not only the Lamanu kicking up trouble again (after encountering them in the first novel of the series), but also bodies in the street, psychopomps going mad, and a strange character called Mcguinness creeping into the frame.

To handle all of those plot elements in a tale that also seeks to provide a conclusion to very difficult personal relationships is a step too far, in my opinion, and the novel feels too rushed.

Chess’ drug use also takes a massive back seat in City of Ghosts. We’ve seen her dependency increase, especially in the second novel where she found herself blackmailed thanks to the amount she was taking. But here we only see one real instance where it is key to the storyline. I feel like Kane wavered a little in how far to take this element.

With all that said, City of Ghosts is still a superior example of urban fantasy. Kane’s worldbuilding is without peer in this genre, presenting us with the Church and psychopomps, and then the scary Downside where Chess makes her life. The food, the markets, the characters all come to startling life.

I’m thrilled that Stacia Kane is writing further books in the Downside series. The adventures of Chess are deeply satisfying, leaving you feeling real emotion about the heroine. Hopefully we won’t have to wait too long to read more — I will be at the front of the queue.

Unholy Magic by Stacia Kane

In Stacia Kane’s second DOWNSIDE GHOSTS novel, Unholy Magic, Chess Putnam is pulled between two cases: the official Church investigation of the possible haunting of a celebrity, and the serial murders of prostitutes in Downside. She soon discovers that there is a dangerous sort of magic at work, and is forced to walk a fine line trying to balance all the elements of her life and work.

“Self-destruction was one thing, but she was turning into a one-woman wrecking ball.” In this book Chess is falling into an appalling addiction, but tries to convince herself that she is still merely a user. Her drug use compels her to keep visiting Lex, even though she knows she has to finish things with him to become a true part of Terrible’s life.

I found Unholy Magic desperately hard to read — at the same time as I wanted to shake Chess and try to force her to find help, I also wanted to sob with her as her life came crashing down around her. There was one particular graveyard scene between Chess, Lex and Terrible that I almost had to skip past, it was so powerfully written and haunting.

Kane succeeds admirably in writing a completely believable relationship between Chess and Terrible. It whispers into life as they begin trusting each other against all the odds, and grows as Chess realises that Terrible is much, much more than just the enforcer of drug lord Bump. This is not a relationship based on looks or immediate attraction; it grows and develops in an entirely realistic manner. Everything else in this novel takes second place to what is occurring between Chess and Terrible.

Which is a shame, because the plot is unpredictable and gripping, pitting Chess against an extremely chilling magic user. After reading certain scenes in Unholy Magic, I almost wanted to leave the light on at night!

I did have a slight problem with the middle part of Unholy Magic, where the storyline seems to skip along a little in places and doesn’t flow. This does coincide with the part of the novel where Chess’ drug addiction grows and threatens to consume her, so I put it down to the increasing disorientation of the main character, rather than a downturn in the quality of Kane’s work. It can, however, be confusing to read and follow.

Stacia Kane is writing a series that transcends the urban fantasy genre and should be read more widely. Her prose is excellent, characterisation and dialogue superb. This novel is bleaker and darker than the first, with a climax that leaves me longing to read City of Ghosts. I can’t recommend the DOWNSIDE GHOSTS highly enough.

Unholy Ghosts by Stacia Kane

Unholy Ghosts is the first book in the Downside Ghosts sequence and introduces us to Chess Putnam. She lives in a world where Church and religion has been pushed aside in favour of the Church of Real Truth, because of an uprising by the undead in the form of ghosts. Chess is in the employ of the new Church, helping to judge whether complaints about haunting are true or not, since it has become lucrative business to try and con the Church. When Chess picks up a new case, she finds much more than she bargained for — especially when she also finds herself dealing with rival drug gangs and her dangerous attraction to her dealer’s ruthless enforcer.

Stacia Kane has written a tautly-paced, gripping and, above all, unique urban fantasy novel. The idea of a new world where ghosts can kill and where having the wrong tattoos brings a death sentence is brought to life with delicate touches in a prose that drives the story along.

Her heroine, Chess, is far from the usual kick-ass know-it-all. She has many foibles, the main one being her drug dependency, which weakens her at key moments and puts her in dangerous situations. It could be all too easy to decry Chess for her stupidity, but instead Kane writes her in such a way that you are able to empathise, if not to understand. In a literary genre that is crowded with supernatural beings and heroines who are joining the monsters, Chess stands out as being all too human.

As noted, the pacing is perfect — the mystery of what is happening with the Chester Airport (where Chess is investigating a possible haunting) slides into place piece by piece. Moments of pulse-pounding terror and excitement are followed up by quieter periods where the characters are built up into living, breathing, three-dimensional entities.

The world-building is also very strong, from the descriptions of the drugs that Chess relies on to the back alleys of Downside to the wonderfully quirky dialect of the Downside residents. By the time you close the last page, Downside feels like a real place — albeit one you definitely wouldn’t choose to visit after dark!

In fact, the only parts of the world building that are a little underdone are the magical rituals and power words that Kane employs, although the use of psychopomps — dogs and birds that escort the souls of ghosts to the City where they are all kept — is especially intriguing.

I’d also like to give praise to the secondary characters in the novel, especially, of course, Terrible and Lex, the two men who Chess is attracted to. Lex suffers from having less screentime and seems a little less interesting than Terrible, but both definitely play their part in making this novel entertaining. Oh, and the moments of intimacy are sexy as opposed to cringeworthy, which is always a bonus with this sort of book!

Stacia Kane has upped the stakes for all those writing in the urban fantasy genre — Unholy Ghosts is gripping and brilliant. I can’t wait to read the next.

Cursed by David Wellington

Cursed is the tale of Cheyenne Clark, a twenty-something we meet while she is struggling through the Northwest Territories of the Canadian Arctic. “Most people’s lives change very slowly, more slowly than the seasons. Some people are born into the life they’re going to lead and nothing much ever comes along to force them to change. For Cheyenne Clark, change came about in the space of thirty very bad seconds.” She is hunting for something, but it seems like something is hunting her too...

It is desperately hard to synopsise this novel without giving too much away about the plot (which is why I have kept it as sparse as possible) – and I feel as though part of the strength of Cursed comes from watching the mystery about Chey unfold. To start with, she is merely a girl in danger of her life, and I enjoyed being given little hints and tips about her back story and what she is really doing in the Canadian Arctic.

In recent times many books involving werewolves have made these creatures into soft, cuddly affairs – taking away the animal quality from them. David Wellington more than makes up for this in Cursed. In fact, his werewolves are another strong element of the novel. We are able to see the world from the perspective of the wolf – almost a separate entity from the person – and it is a fearsomely hard world to live in. In fact, the sequences with the wolf reminded me of nothing so much as books like White Fang by Jack London – it is extremely clear that Wellington has worked hard on representing a realistic picture of what it would be to turn into a wolf night after night.

Wellington presents the bleak world of the far north with great depth and passion – the details about the landscape and the moonrise/moonset are inserted perfectly, so that it never feels as though we are being handed a lesson in the natural world.

The characterisation is Spartan, but effective. Chey is a character you want to sympathise with – you know she has her secrets, but her reactions to learning about the wolf are honest and genuine. Powell is a darkly enigmatic man, who takes a very pragmatic approach to life in the frozen north. By far my favourite character though was Dzo – he is mysterious, and I’m hoping he returns in all his odd glory in the second book by Wellington.
In fact, I only had a couple of minor problems with the novel. The main one was the fact that Wellington left the details of his world fairly blank: it was clear that I was dealing with a version of Earth, but in this version lycanthropes, shapeshifters and werewolves (interchangeable terms?) were known as being real. Apart from that, Wellington gave us nothing. In other novels I’m used to be handed far too many details about a world (which creates a whole other problem of boredom), and I think a balance needs to be struck between that approach and that of Wellington. I could have done with a little more background.

That aside, Cursed was a compulsive read – chilling, dark and fatalistic for much of its pages, but containing an element of hope to take onward to the second book in the series. Chey and Powell were characters that I want to journey with, and I found this ultra-realistic take on the werewolf myth a very effective addition to the canon of lycanthropy. Highly recommended.

Cursed is being published 2nd September by Piatkus Books.

Come back tomorrow for an interview with David Wellington, the author of Cursed!

Ghostgirl: Homecoming by Tonya Hurley

Charlotte may have graduated Dead Ed but that's not the end of her story. Life, for Charlotte, was one bitter disappointment after another. And it seems death isn't going to be much different. Convinced that graduating Dead Ed was her route to the afterlife Charlotte is a little surprised to find she has to complete an internship! Answering the phones at a help centre for troubled teens isn't proving brilliantly exciting. Until Scarlet calls: a pedicure-gone-hideously-wrong has landed Petula in a coma and Scarlet thinks Charlotte is the only person who can help...

I really enjoyed Ghostgirl by Tonya Hurley and was eager to read Ghostgirl: Homecoming. In this book we follow Charlotte as she learns to cope with life after Dead Ed. Interestingly, we have a few more character perspectives in this book than the first, following Scarlett, Petula and Damen more extensively. This helps to flesh Ghostgirl: Homecoming out a little more than the first novel, lending extra depth to the characters mentioned.

However, the story perplexed me somewhat. The wonderfully dark humour was ever-present - here we have the shallow Petula being put into a coma by a failed pedicure, and her detestable cronies (the Wendys) coming up with funeral chic clothing to wear as one part of the novel. I love the subversive nature of the humour, which never fails to entertain. But the plot itself in this book seemed all over the place. For a long time I had no idea who Maddy was and why she was trying so hard to do damage to Charlotte. The reveal of that particular subplot came straight out of left-field and made me go 'huh' rather than 'a ha!' If it was a mystery for the reader to try and solve, I believe Tonya Hurley made it just a little too obscure.

Barring that, all of the elements that made Ghostgirl so quirky and such a joy to read were still present, and supplemented by Scarlett and Damen's wonderful subplot. I thought the resolution to this was extremely sweet and worked extremely well with the rest of the story.

Again, the greatest pleasure I got from reading Ghostgirl: Homecoming was the wise little snippets that accompanied the start of each chapter. Here is one as an example:

"Most hope is false if you think about it. It's a belief that an outcome will be positive despite evidence to the contrary. But where would we be without it? It's the mind's compass and the heart's buoy, which we cling to as we wait for help to arrive. Without hope, life is sink or swim, and Charlotte hoped she would find a way to swim."

I would recommend Ghostgirl: Homecoming to those who think Buffy crossed with The Corpse Bride would make for an entertaining idea. It is charming, kooky and deliciously noir. Plus, my beautiful hardback edition has purple-edged pages - win!

Ghostgirl by Tonya Hurley

Instead of doing my own summary of the book, as is my wont, I am going to use the blurb from the back of Ghostgirl, since it tickled me enough for me to pick up and buy the book: Charlotte Usher wants to be popular. It's all she's ever wanted. And this year she has a plan to make sure it happens. But she's got her work cut out; the popular girls (and more importantly, Damen, object of Charlotte's desire) are completely oblivious to the fact that she even breathes the same air as them. She may as well be dead. So, she choked to death on a gummy bear. Admittedly it's not the most stylish way to die - but why should being dead get in the way of her plans? She'll just have to be a little more creative about achieving her goals..."

It was the gummy bear that got me - that fabulously dark and mordant sense of humour had me chuckling from the off, and I'm pleased to report that the book itself lives up to this. There were continual flashes of that same humour, such as: "A wave of post-mortem depression swept over her once again."

Not only this, but I appreciated some of the sly nods to modern pop culture. One that I am fairly sure the author intended (if she didn't, it was a fantastic coincidence) is where our narrator Charlotte refers to 'Nightmare on Hawthorne Street' - similar in a woodsy way to 'Nightmare on Elm Street'.

This book is like a lovely mash-up of The Nightmare Before Christmas, Edward Scissorhands, and Beetlejuice with lashings of Buffy and Gossip Girl for good measure. The gothic tone permeates the entire novel, emphasised by chapter quotes from such diverse sources as Evanescence, Sylvia Plath and Johnny Rotten. The dialogue, however, is as witty and snarky as anything that Joss Whedon has penned, helping to make Charlotte and Scarlett both believable and entertaining.

Mention should also be made of the simply gorgeous book itself. Usually when I resort to discussing the cover of a book, it is because I have run out of decent things to say about the novel. With Ghostgirl it is quite the reverse - the cover, internal illustrations, colour palette and beautiful, kooky cartoon character adds a great deal to the reading experience. I would urge you to visit the Ghostgirl website where additional background and even merchandising is available - it is a complete brand, and a very cute one!

The story itself was diverting enough, although full of gentle cliches, but nothing that detracted too much from my enjoyment. When you are writing about high school these days, it is inevitable that a book will feel familiar, thanks to the many books and TV shows that offer up a perspective on the US school system.

I was never completely sure why Damen was so important to Charlotte, but I guess teenage infatuation just is and can't be questioned.

Lastly, I adored the really rather wise little snippets of commentary offered up at the start of each chapter. For example:

I love you, but I'm not in love with you. This is a false distinction. Completely backward if you think about it. Love is love. What's really meant by being "in love", is obsession, addiction, infatuation, but not actual love. Being "in love" is a statement of your own needs and desires rather than an attempt to fulfill another's. True love, on the other hand, is a bridge between two people. It had taken Charlotte most of her life, and all of her afterlife, to come to this realization."

Ghostgirl is a spiky, attitude-driven novel with a warm heart that invites you to care about the characters that tackle both life and afterlife with humour, spite and wit. All I can say is that I am enormously glad I already have the sequel so that I can read more immediately about Charlotte Usher. A delightful surprise.

Apartment 16 by Adam Nevill

Some doors are better left closed...In Barrington House, an upmarket block in London, there is an empty apartment. No one goes in, no one comes out. And it's been that way for fifty years. Until the night watchman hears a disturbance after midnight and investigates. What he experiences is enough to change his life forever. A young American woman, Apryl, arrives at Barrington House. She's been left an apartment by her mysterious Great Aunt Lillian who died in strange circumstances. Rumours claim Lillian was mad. But her diary suggests she was implicated in a horrific and inexplicable event decades ago. Determined to learn something of this eccentric woman, Apryl begins to unravel the hidden story of Barrington House. She discovers that a transforming, evil force still inhabits the building. And the doorway to Apartment 16 is a gateway to something altogether more terrifying...

I must confess that I don't often read horror - not because I don't like it, but because I am a complete coward and end up sleeping with the lights on after a late night session with anything by King! Apartment 16 is the first outright horror book I've read in a long while, and I found myself disappointed.

The prose is very clean, and the structure of the story lends itself to quick reading - especially as we switch viewpoints between Seth, a man whose life is going downhill at a rapid rate of knots, and Apryl, an American girl trying to work out exactly what has happened to her great-aunt.

The first half of the book was dark and atmospheric, with the 'monster' (as it were) off-screen and represented by noises and fleeting visions of twisted characters out of the corner of the eye. This part was well-written and built up to a point where I was both excited and scared about what would come.

However, the final pay off left me feeling very letdown. It felt as though it trailed off rather than ending with an explosive finale. There didn't seem to be any true resolution, and certainly none of the characters achieved the redemption I thought they would finally achieve. As soon as the backstory concerning Hessen was introduced, the novel became much more dry and there were many occasions where the dialogue between two characters seemed there only to discuss issues that the author needed front and centre.

Although Seth and Apryl were interesting characters (but what the HELL is going on with that name? What on earth is wrong with April?!), the secondary characters didn't seem to add anything to the overall tale. In fact, the whole section dealing with the Friends of Hessen felt completely erroneous.

Also, I have to confess that I procrastinated my way through this book. It just didn't grip me at all - I found myself watching football matches, writing on Twitter, reading other blogs every time I sat down with the intention of completing it. I didn't feel the compulsive need to keep reading it that I thought I would.

Lastly, I must just mention the language. I am not averse to some swearing, especially when used well, but the constant repetition of a certain swear word had me cringing. It came across like a kid in a schoolyard trying to sound adult, rather than as an essential part of the story.

Altogether, I found it dull and unappealing - in fact, I shall damn it and say that, as a horror novel, it doesn't leave me needing to sleep with the lights on.

Interview with Sarah Pinborough

I am very pleased to welcome today Sarah Pinborough, author of A Matter of Blood (published 25th March by Gollancz), into the hot seat for a few questions regarding writing in general and the influences that define her work.

I have read the book and adored it - I did a guest review over at Book Chick City for Carolyn, which you might want to check out.

In addition, when I decided to ask Sarah if she'd be kind enough to stop by Floor to Ceiling books, Jason over at Kamvision let me know he was also conducting an interview. We have tried hard not to overlap on our questions, so I would urge you to head over to his blog and read the interview he did as well!

AMANDA: A Matter of Blood has hints of the supernatural, as well as being a crime novel, and it could also sit quite comfortably on the horror shelves in a bookstore - do you think the boundaries between genres are shifting right now?

SARAH: I don't ever really think in terms of genre - that's the bookseller's domain! If I had to pick a genre for A Matter of Blood, I'd pick Crime. I know some other people would pick Horror. I just write the stories that come to me and hope that people like them!

AMANDA: What was it within this story that encouraged you to write across genres as opposed to just sticking to straight up crime or pure horror?

SARAH: I would at some point like to write a straight crime series, but for this trilogy the crime element and the supernatural element are both fundamental to the story. Like I said, I don't tend to think in terms of genre at all. My YA trilogy, the first of which comes from Gollancz in September under the name Sarah Silverwood, is probably more traditional fantasy. Adult fantasy doesn't appeal to me to write - probably because I loved fantasy as a child and a teenager and then haven't read much as an adult. Writing it for young people works best for me.

AMANDA: Since we're speaking about them at the moment: you moved publishers to Gollancz for the publication of A Matter of Blood - how are you enjoying your time with them?

SARAH: My move to Gollancz was a massive step in my career and it's been brilliant. My editor and I really click and she's definitely helping me up my game. They have a great team there and really believe in what they're doing and in their authors. I'm very lucky to be there.

AMANDA: When you pitched to Gollancz, did you worry that A Matter of Blood would be a harder sell because it did straddle genres? Or was it snapped up? [as it should have been!]

SARAH: I actually sold the trilogy to Gollancz on a three paragraph pitch (one per book) and an eight page sample! I had lunch with Jo Fletcher and talked her through my ideas for it and luckily she, and the rest of the purchasing team, loved it. It was a dream sale for me!

AMANDA: Let me ask you a little about the writing of the book. I noticed in your acknowledgements you mention Michael Marshall Smith, and, as I was reading A Matter of Blood, I thought there were definite echoes of his style (in the guise of his thriller pen name Michael Marshall). Did he offer any guidance in the writing of your novel?

SARAH: He was definitely an influence in this book. I was getting bored of writing straight horror and wanted to try something different and more challenging. I'd read Mike's The Intruders and John Connolly's Every Dead Thing, and I suddenly realised you could combine the Crime/Thriller genre with elements of the supernatural and commercial publishers would go for it. He didn't offer guidance as such, but I did show him my pitch and the first few pages to get his take on it. He's always been really good on email advice. I'm very lucky to have a good network of much more experienced writers than me around to draw on, and thankfully they're all very patient and helpful.

AMANDA: While we're talking about factors that might have influenced your writing, I notice that you speak about boarding school on your website as a time of horror! How much did this experience and the fact that you travelled a lot as a youngster inform your writing?

SARAH: All things considered, boarding school was a pretty terrible time - the first eight years anyway! Although it did teach me to be independent and I made some very good friends there, I could have done without things like being locked in a room at the bottom of the house and forgotten about until 2am when I was 8 years old! For my sixth form I went to a school in Scotland, The Edinburgh Academy, which I loved. It's hard to tell how much these things influence your writing. The travelling has given me plenty of sensory memories to draw on, and at school the lack of TV etc certainly had me writing stories at a young age. I blame, if blame is the right word, my education for my rebellious and anti-authoritarian streak. Those things may have been there to start with but they were certainly strengthened by my experiences as a child. Perhaps they've influenced the kind of characters I choose to have in my books. I think we can safely say that Cass Jones has a clear anti-establishment streak even if he is a policeman!



AMANDA: So, if it isn't too cheeky to ask, do you currently have a day job, and how does that affect the writing if so?

SARAH: Thankfully I no longer have a day job and haven't for the past year and a half. I wrote my first five novels however as a teacher and that was hard work. I would try and write a thousand words in the evenings but it didn't always work. Sometimes I would wake up at five and write for an hour before getting up.

AMANDA: I shudder at the thought! Now that you're a full-time author, do you have a specific writing routine?

SARAH: I'm much better writing in the mornings than I am in the afternoons. I tend to have a cup of tea at about half seven and check my emails and stuff and then if I'm in a book I try and get 1500 to 2000 words done by about half eleven. At the start of a book I'm slower but once I'm in the zone that's usually do-able. In the afternoons I either work on something else in a coffee shop or plan out what's going to come next. I'm a big planner - I have notebooks full of scribbled sequences and spider-diagrams, mainly with notes surrounded by question marks!

AMANDA: Finally, also while on your website, I noticed your page on the MUSE collective - can you tell us how this came about and what your involvement is?

SARAH: It came about because Sarah Langan, Alex Sokoloff and I were on a panel together in World Horror Toronto and we realised that we were all on the same wavelength and all doing similar things. It was a breath of fresh air to have other women in the field to talk to who were working at the same level and who weren't writing paranormal romance or 'obvious' horror. We all really clicked, and even when we're madly busy with our own projects, we always check in with each other once a month or so. MUSE has slowed a bit because Deborah LeBlanc has been replaced in the line up with Rhodi Hawk. We've written four interlinked novellas, with kick-ass heroines, and a nicely quirky premise. As soon as Rhodi has finished up her quarter (which will be any day now I think) and we've made sure we're all consistent, it'll be going out to publishers. Hopefully they'll like it as much as we do!

AMANDA: Sincere good luck with the project, Sarah, and thanks so much for stopping by at Floor to Ceiling books today!

Go check out Sarah's website, and if you're attending World Horror Con this coming weekend then look out for her! And why are you still here reading when you should be hurrying off to buy copies of A Matter of Blood?!

King Maker by Maurice Broaddus

From the drug gangs of downtown Indianapolis, the one true king will arise. The King Arthur myth gets dramatically retold through the eyes of street hustler King, as he tries to unite the crack dealers, gangbangers and the monsters lurking within them to do the right thing. Broaddus' debut is a stunning, edgy work, genuinely unlike anything you've ever read.

The premise of King Maker is simply awesome, and I wanted to love the book based on that alone. I’m a big fan of the King Arthur mythology, and the idea of such a unique slant on the story had me extremely excited. I found myself bewildered, however, as I worked my way through the book.

I want to deal with the strengths of the novel first. Maurice Broaddus’ writing creates a dangerous and authentic mood. The language is fierce and evokes the gritty realism of life on the streets. When the supernatural elements are introduced, they drift through the novel like smoke, leaving the reader gradually horrified as the end game is reached. Broaddus’ horror background is evident; some of the events in King Maker sent chills down my spine.

With all that said, I didn’t enjoy King Maker, for a number of reasons.

It is a relatively slight novel (the first in a trilogy being published by Angry Robot books), and yet I found it took me almost a week to plough through. Part of this was thanks to the stop-start nature of the plot, and the bouncing around of timelines. I found it extremely easy to put the book down, rarely wanting to read on at the end of a chapter. I became confused at times by the fact that one of the characters was alive when I had read a couple of chapters ago that they had died.

Although the dialogue is very effectively written, it is also hard to understand at times. As a white gal who lives in comfort a million miles away from the types of events being described, I felt like I needed a dictionary. Although I list this as a fault, I do greatly admire Broaddus for delving so well into the psyche of inner city America and not making compromises for the ease of his readers.

The characters are difficult to like, and, due to the nature of the gang warfare, all of them are written in shades of grey. I do like ambiguous characters, but sometimes you just want to root for a hero. Here even King (Broaddus’ version of King Arthur) acts reprehensibly at times.

Lastly, there are some extremely gruesome scenes that I found distasteful to read. They fit the nature of the book, but it should be mentioned that if books received ratings, King Maker would have been stamped an “18.”

Yet I have the sneaking suspicion that other readers will love this book. Sometimes you just don’t “fit” with a book, and find yourself confused by the overwhelming praise other reviewers shower upon it. I have a feeling that, when King Maker is released, many will adore it for the bravery and uniqueness of the writing. I am left comparing the book to a worthy film generating Oscar buzz: something you feel you should watch, but know you won’t enjoy as much as an explosion-ridden summer blockbuster.

In conclusion, although I did not like this book, I firmly believe that readers will have to make up their own minds. For some, King Maker is going to be the best read of 2010.