Read This!: Psycho

Posted on April 9, 2007

Psycho
By Robert Bloch

You know the story of Norman Bates and his darling mother, of the woman who came to the Bates Motel one cold, rainy night to take her last shower.

Have you read the book, though?  Because you should.

Before Hitchcock immortalized it or Van Sant crapped all over it, Psycho was a book by Robert Bloch.  Bloch writes a very different Norman Bates than the one we know from the silver screen.  This Bates is a pudgy glasses-wearer who will actually stand up to his mother now and then and often gives glimpses of the violent madness hidden beneath. Anthony Perkins played a terrific, sinister Norman, but it’s different than the pathetic, psychopathic loser we find here.

Another welcome change from the film is that more than half the book takes place from Norman’s point of view.  Clues are dropped about Mother, but only enough to get you guessing.  Boch handles these chapters with a deft, chilling touch that will stay with you for a long time.

Recommendation: Very Strong.

Read This!: Conscience

Posted on April 5, 2007

Conscience
By John Skipp

What if you were confronted by your conscience?  Not in that whole stab of guilt way, but if your conscience was an actual person that looked just like you and wanted you to be a better person.  Well, that just happened to hitman Charley Weber, and he’s a little freaked out by it.

Only Charley isn’t the only guy suddenly faced with his own conscience.  It’s happening all over.  Charley’s just an extreme example.  What does it all mean, and what’s Weber gonna do about it?

Conscience is a lot of novel in a small package.  The entire story can be read in about two hours.  Skipp’s prose moves like Leonard after three lines of coke.  He brings both his characters and their setting to grim, gray life.

I found myself craving more once I’d finished Conscience, and that’s cool.  The book contains several short stories and an unproduced screenplay as bumper material, and every one of those stories is just as good as the lead.  All in all, a great package from a great writer.

Recommendation: Very High.

 

Read This: Vampire Outlaw of the Milky Way

Posted on March 26, 2007

Vampire Outlaw of the Milky Way
By Weston Ochse

(Vampire Outlaw) is the story of an autistic child who speaks in his own brand of Fred Flintstone language, his soulmate, Monray da Kine, intersteller bounty hunter and vampire outlaw, and the unique bond they form across the galaxy.

Weston Ochse is one of the three creative minds behind Muy Mal, and a great writer on every level.  His Scary Rednecks collection with David Whitman is practically required reading.  He is truly one of the new great writers.

And it saddens me that I can’t give Vampire Outlaw a high recommendation.

The ingredients are there.  Heartfelt angst simmers next to amazing pulp action.  The mythology Weston has created is marvelous, full of one-eyed aliens andd undead laborers.  On the whole, though, it just doesn’t seem to come together into as strong a package as it should have.

If you want to check out Weston’s work, head over to Muy Mal and read his Chronicles of the Black Bishop. 

Recommendation: Moderate.

Read This!: The Familiar Stranger

Posted on March 23, 2007

The Familiar Stranger
By Brett McBean

Seth is a worker angel - one of many whose job it is to clean old souls, those soiled and broken and in need of cleaning in order to be recycled. But when Seth starts to doubt the veracity of his work, starts to wonder if old souls can truly be cleansed of their past evils, he decides to travel down to Earth and see what has become of one of the old souls..

Cassius ‘Corey’ Willis is living a colourless existence; stuck in a rut, he dreams of living a different life, of being somebody else. But when a mysterious stranger offers him the answer to his dreams, Cassius will learn the truth of his past. A past so stained with violence and bloodlust it refuses to be wiped clean . . . and a secret so horrific that it may shatter his very soul.

I wish I could remember how long people have been telling me to read Brett McBean.  Seems like forever.  Well, now that Necessary Evil Press has released this story in a beautiful, yet affordable chapbook edition, I finally get to check Brett’s stuff out.

Right off the bat, I can see why folks love McBean.  His prose is sharp, clever, and more than a little brutal in a few spots.  I wish I had writing chops like this guy.  The prose just crackles!

The plot, on the other hand, feels a little clumsy.  It appears Brett was trying to be mysterious, just falling short of explaining things.  It’s entirely possible that I’m an idiot, but I just didn’t get it.  The storyline jumps around through several different timeframes, and it all just gets jumbled in my brain.

I can’t wait to read more McBean, but this one just wasn’t my cup.

Recommendation: Light.

Read This!: Savage

Posted on March 15, 2007

Savage
By Richard Laymon

Richard Laymon can be a tough writer for readers to crack.  It’s not because he’s wordy or over-literate, though.  Many of his books read like ninety minute horror movies: quick, brutal, and full of characters who would cut you rather than shake your hand.  This has put more than a few people off, and I can see where it might.  I love Laymon, though, so let me recommend Savage to you.

Savage is the story of Trevor Bently, a young Englishman who happens to be hiding in a hotel room when Jack the Ripper commits his final London murder. Determined to end the madman’s murderous ways, he follows the Ripper, who we come to learn is a man named Whittle through the streets of London.  When the tables are turned, however, Trevor ends up on a yacht bound for America… as Whittle’s captive.

What follows is equal parts a horror tale, a western, and a coming of age story.  Trevor makes it his life’s mission to end Whittle’s life, but the people he meets keep turning his mind toward other pursuits.  After spending time as a sugar baby and an outlaw, Trevor finally grows into a man, and we feel stronger for taking the journey with him.

By far, this is Laymon’s strongest work.  It’s much longer than his typical tale, and the characters are much richer.  I can’t remember the last time I’ve grown so attached to a cast.  If nothing else, Savage should be read for its rich character work.

Recommendation: Must Read!  Look, people.  You’re not going to read a better book by Laymon, and you’ll be hard pressed to find a better novel, period.  Leisure books will be publishing an American edition in November, but if you can’t wait (and you shouldn’t) you can find the UK edition on amazon at a fair price.

Read This!: Monster Island

Posted on March 12, 2007

Monster Island
By David Wellington

The dead have taken over Manhattan, and one of them–a formermed student–has managed to hold onto his intellect.  A UN weapons inspector arrives with an army of teenage Somali girls, looking for the medicine that might save their warlord and by extention his daughter life.

This is the world of Wellington’s Monster Island, a novel that first appeared for free online (it’s still out there!) and has since taken the genre by storm.  While I hesitate to pronounce Wellington the new master of the zombie (there seems to be a new one every three weeks or so), I will proclaim this to be a damn fine book.

Wellington writes at a break-neck speed, using tight, short chapters to keep the story moving.  The action is steady without being over the top.  The characters are entertaining and three dimensional.  To top it all off, Wellington has some fun new ideas for this horror sub-senre, and they’re fun as all hell.

Recommendation: Very Strong.  If you don’t feel like shelling out some green, go find the book online.  It’s at Wellington’s homepage.

Read This!: The Keep

Posted on March 6, 2007

The Keep
By F Paul Wilson

There’s a lot going on in this one.  So much so that I’m gonna let Wilson’s website describe it to you.  See you below!

In the spring of 1941, a message is received from a German Army commander stationed in a remote castle high in the Transylvanian Alps: “Something is murdering my men.” Immediately an SS extermination squad is sent to destroy whatever enemy dares challenge the might of the Third Reich. And the battle is joined.

But not with a human enemy. The ultimate evil created by man faces a terror more dreadful than its own. The killer cannot be seen or heard, but it can suck all the light and warmth from a room, select its victim in the darkness, and leave a bloodless, mutilated corpse. One victim a night, over and over.

The two German officers despise each other. One is a Nazi, the other is a loyal German who hates everything the Nazis stand for. But they do agree on one thing-outside help must be sought. They summon an expert on the history and folklore of the region, and soon the enfeebled Dr. Cuza arrives at the keep with his daughter Magda. Ironically, they’re both Jews.

And unknown to anyone, another is on his way to the keep. A man who awoke from a nightmare and immediately began a long and dangerous journey across Europe toward the place that called him, toward the destiny he must meet.

Published in 1981, this one’s a classic.  It’s a wonderful intro to Wilson’s work, and everybody should give it a read.  The characters are bold and complex (when Wilson manages to give a Nazi officer a slice of humanity, you know he’s a good writer).

The plot moves like a freight train, which is almost shocking because there’s so much going on.  It could have easily become an unweildy beast in the hands of a lesser writer, but Wilson has a deft touch, and he manages to keep us turning the pages from start to finish.

Recommendation: Very Strong.  This one’s considered a classic, folks.  Give it a read.

Read This!: Graphic Novel Round Up

Posted on February 19, 2007

Fables: Wolves
By Bill Willingham

Willingham continues his tale of Fables stranded in the real (or mundane) world in one of the best books on the stands.  The issues included in WOlves, however, are little more than a button on previous events meant to prepare the reader for the next great tale.  There’s some strong characters work, and it’s worth the read, but it feels a little hollow.  Bonus points for the script reprinted in the back.

Recommendation: Moderate-to-Strong

DMZ: Body of a Journalist
By Brian Wood

As much as I enjoyed the first DMZ trade, the series really hits its stride here.  Stranded photojournalist Matty Roth must save another journalist before a tenuous cease fire is broken.  Wood really ratchets up the tension over the course of the story.  Incredible stuff.

Recommendation: Very Strong

Captain America: Winter Soldier and Red Menace
By Ed Brubaker

Ed Brubaker has done the impossible by making me care about Captain America.  With an emphasis on intrigue and inner demons, Brubaker pulls Cap kicking and screaming into present day, making him matter once again.  An incredible action comic.

Recommendation: Very Strong

Read This!: The Road

Posted on February 13, 2007

The Road
By Cormac McCarthy

Bleak?  You wanna talk about bleak?  Well, look no further, my friends.  Cormac McCarthy is here to let you know you don’t have the slightest fucking idea what bleak means.

The Road tells the story of The Man and The Boy, a father and son trying to survive in a United States devestated by some unknown apocalypse.  Was it nuclear?  Supernatural?  We never learn, and it doesn’t matter.  The Man and The Boy are heading south and to the coast.  They know they can’t survive another winter unless the reach a warmer climate.  On the way they search for food, shelter, and avoid cannibals.  It may seem like a thin plot, but the narrative more than makes up for it.  McCarthy writes a gripping story, making this simple tale of two people walking along a road both terrifying and captivating.

There is one thing that bugs me, though.  Last year, somebody proudly stated on the Shocklines message boards that they lived to break literary taboos, like using quotes to mark off dialogue.  It sounded pretentious and stupid then, and it sounds even worse now.

Well, it appears Cormac McCarthy is one taboo-breaking motherfucker.  There’s not a single quotation mark in this entire story.  Contractions don’t even sport apostrophies.  As great as the story is, I just can’t get over this utterly stupid aspect.  That’s my hang up, and I’m aware of it.  Just thought I’d mention it in the interest of full disclosure.

Recommednation: Strong. A fast read, but one that will leave you feeling alone.

Read This!: Ghoul

Posted on February 7, 2007

Ghoul
By Brian Keene

Where do monsters come from?  Are they terrible creatures that haunt the night, feasting on the dead and the dying with their talons and fangs?  Or are they closer to home?  Are they the angry, drunken father?  The abusive mother?  Brian Keene explores these questions in his latest novel, Ghoul.

The hero of Ghoul is young Timmy Graco, a kid who just wants to spend his summer vacation with his best friends–Doug and Barry–and possibly hold hands with the preacher’s daughter.  At the age of twelve, Timmy’s world shouldn’t involve more than dirt bikes and the long boxes of comics he keeps under his bed, but the real world comes crashing down on him via the parents of his best friends and a series of disappearances that seem to center around the local cemetery.  Before the end of summer, Timmy’s world will never be the same, and he’ll have a whole new idea of what makes a monster.
Keene writes a gripping tale of lost innocence and the coming of age.  Unlike some of his previous novels, Ghoul takes its time, building to a sense of unrelenting horror rather than thrusting us into it.  We care about these characters, and so we travel through this hell with them as active participants rather than observers.  I was pushed to the brink of tears more than once.  Brian, it appears, knows how to twist the knife.

While many are calling Ghoul Keene’s best novel to date, I still feel that honor lies with Terminal.  These two books share the same sense of reality and the supernatural blending together to create a sense of doom, but Terminal resonated with me in ways Ghoul did not.  That’s a matter of opinion, of course, and your experience may be completely different.  Either way, for those new to Keene and his work, Ghoul is a great place to start.  It’s a fast read of high quality, and it might take a while for Keene to top it.

Recommendation: Very Strong-to-Must Have.  Keene rides again!

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