This one started out quite strong. Being a maritimer, I appreciate that the book started out with a story taking place in Newfoundland. Jeff Strand's This one started out quite strong. Being a maritimer, I appreciate that the book started out with a story taking place in Newfoundland. Jeff Strand's Good Deeds is the best of the bunch as it had me laughing out loud, although I'm not sure that's what you're shooting for with a horror anthology. I also enjoyed Christopher Golden's It's A Wonderful Knife (no relation to the recently released slasher flick).
The collection seemed to lose most of its steam as it neared the end. I can't tell if that's a quality issue or I began losing interest. For those out there that dislike the sappy nature of Christmas media, this might be a good alternative for you....more
Martin Ott's SHADOW DANCE is a high-octane rip through Los Angeles' underground. West (Buddy) is AWOL from the Armed Forces and arrives in Southern CaMartin Ott's SHADOW DANCE is a high-octane rip through Los Angeles' underground. West (Buddy) is AWOL from the Armed Forces and arrives in Southern California looking for his childhood best friend. West takes a job working security for a former professional wrestlers' strip club and gets tangled up in family drama and the seedy sex culture of tinsel town.
This was a lot of fun. I had read Martin's THE INTERROGATOR'S NOTEBOOK a few years back and when he reached out with a copy of his book for review, I jumped at the chance. There is enough sex, drugs and insanity here to shake a stick at. West is a compelling character and his adversaries are friends one minute and foes the next. Lots of twists and turns leading up to the climax that had me rushing through the pages to the end....more
Have you ever been curious about the origins of Santa Claus? How about the different gift-bringers all over the globe? Gerry Bowler's has you covered.Have you ever been curious about the origins of Santa Claus? How about the different gift-bringers all over the globe? Gerry Bowler's has you covered. From the truly bizarre to the heartwarming, Santa Claus has made a lasting impact on the young and old for centuries.
Santa's role as an ad-man, a supporter of the armed forces, and an outlaw from Stalin's USSR, Santa Claus has had a storied past. Who knows what lays ahead?
This was a lot of fun. I read several of the more insane moments out loud to my wife, like Saint Nicholas resurrecting a pair of teens who were killed and thrown into a pickle barrel....more
One of the darkest books I've ever read. I'd rank it right up next to Lawrence Block's Grifter's Game as far as a release from Hardcase Crime that lefOne of the darkest books I've ever read. I'd rank it right up next to Lawrence Block's Grifter's Game as far as a release from Hardcase Crime that left me staring off into space questioning the worth of humanity.
Bonus points for taking place between Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve....more
CLOWN IN A CORNFIELD 2 picks up exactly one year after the events of the first novel with Quinn Mayfield leaving Kettle Springs behind to attend univCLOWN IN A CORNFIELD 2 picks up exactly one year after the events of the first novel with Quinn Mayfield leaving Kettle Springs behind to attend university in Philadelphia. She's anticipating the arrival of her friends Cole and Rust as the three reunite in the face of a regrettable anniversary.
It turns out the past isn't quite finished with them just yet as an online movement has gathered momentum surrounding the belief that Quinn, Cole and Rust were the actual perpetrators of the massacre in Kettle Springs and not the victims.
Can the three survive long enough to put the horror behind them? Or will their survival last year prove to be a fluke?
Adam Cesare's follow up to 2020's CLOWN IN A CORNFIELD is every bit as suspenseful, gory and over the top as the original. I found Cesare's injection of the ever-popular conspiracy theories that seemingly live amongst right-wing extremists completely plausible and added another layer to what was already a strong horror story. Unfortunately, this type of nonsense is all too topical in 2023. It was very believable to see how easily folks could get hoodwinked by a viral documentary with bogus "proof" and alternative motives.
I generally do not read a lot of YA or teen fiction - I'm not against it, the genre just never seems to come up in my reading - but I found this to be a fairly easy, fast-paced read that should fit perfectly for anyone looking for a spooky story to read this Halloween. It also has a blurb from Clive Barker on the cover. How can you argue with that?...more
REVIVAL: The Chaotic, Colorful Journey of the 1977-78 Toronto Maple Leafs – Damien Cox and Gord Stellick
Damien Cox is no stranger to the Toronto MapleREVIVAL: The Chaotic, Colorful Journey of the 1977-78 Toronto Maple Leafs – Damien Cox and Gord Stellick
Damien Cox is no stranger to the Toronto Maple Leafs. He is entering his fifth decade as a journalist, with the bulk of those years spent covering the Leafs. With REVIVAL, this becomes his third book solely focused on the team with a few others covering hockey on the whole. REVIVAL reunites Cox with Gord Stellick with whom he wrote the 2004 release “67: The Maple Leafs, Their Sensational Victory, and The End of an Empire”. What better place to pick their partnership back up than to write about the 70s, a decade where the team danced on the bubble of relevancy before everything burst and the 80s made them the laughing stock of the league.
I’d like to consider myself a fairly rabid fan of the Leafs. I own over two dozen jerseys, countless items around my home have the team crest slapped on them and I rarely, if ever, miss a game. That being said, I have a blind spot when it comes to much of the team’s history in the years before I became a fan in the early 90s. It was fascinating to read about how before the last decade, the 1970s would be the last time the Leafs would build a team through the draft. Their core of Sittler, McDonald, Williams and Salming all came to the team through careful drafting and scouting. The authors uncover the controversy created when Börje Salming and Inge Hammarström entered the ranks of the NHL from Europe where they were relentlessly taunted and physically targeted by North American players, which only intensified following the ’72 Summit series.
And of course, how can you talk about the 70s without writing about bloated windbag team owner Harold Ballard? In an era where the NHL was struggling against upstart rival league the WHA, it did the team no favors to have someone the likes of noted cheapskate Ballard having to pony up the extra cash to keep star players from jumping ship. Cox and Stellick underline all the ways in which he was bad for the team and the way he would constantly undermine players and don’t even get me started on what he did after the deep playoff run of ’78.
In terms of analyzing the sport’s penchant for brutality in the post expansion era, this would fit right alongside Stephen Cole’s 2015 book HOCKEY NIGHT FEVER. Cox and Stellick look at just how close the game came to having on-ice antics make it into the courtroom with players being straight-up assaulted by hot-heads in an effort to win games. Stick swinging was still the norm in an era where helmets were optional and head injuries were commonplace. Look up the case of Tes Green v. Wayne Maki from a game between the Bruins and the Blues in Ottawa in September, 1969 for some nightmare fuel.
For anyone curious about not just the team’s history, but more about the tumultuous decade of the 1970s which saw a ruthless competitor arise, Soviet domination on the world stage, and the game’s turn to violence over skill, this is the book for you....more
Amazon has gathered a few talented horror writers together for their “creature feature” collection with six authors penning six stories for the spookyAmazon has gathered a few talented horror writers together for their “creature feature” collection with six authors penning six stories for the spooky season. I’ll be reading and reviewing all six this month – up first, Joe Hill’s THE PRAM.
Hill’s story follows Willy and Marianne as they relocate to rural Maine as the COVID-19 pandemic allowed them to leave the hustle and bustle of Brooklyn behind to work remotely in their dream home. While a tragedy has left a stain on their idyllic marriage, the pair resolve to work through it and hopefully, come out of it stronger than ever.
This all changes when Willy borrows an old Pram from the general store to help carry his groceries home. Willy swears he can hear a baby crying in the night, but is he losing his mind? Did he make too much of an effort to care for his guilt-ridden wife, that he never focused on his own unraveling mind?
Coming in under 60 pages, this is a really strong effort from Hill. That isn’t exactly shocking given that he clearly takes after his father with respect to his gripping short fiction. There is a great line near the story’s climax that left me with chills and had me saying out loud, “oh damn, that’s good.”
It seems like it’s been far too long since we’ve had a proper novel from Joe (2016’s THE FIREMAN). I think we’re well overdue and stories like The Pram prove that he’s still at the top of his game....more