The Man Eating Bookworm

2011-12-26T19:14:00.000-05:00

This Is Goodbye...

2011-12-23T16:24:00.001-05:00

For now, anyways. I'm closing up shop.

I'm not going to dwell on the reasons, but to say sometimes life needs to be simplified. With three children, two dogs and two cats, working night shifts and gaining poundage by the day, the stress and pressures to keep things on the road seem to increase on a daily basis. And the road? It's pretty damn bumpy.

I need to find a new road. A quiet road. I need to find the simple road.

I need to reach a point (I think we all do) where I feel I have some space around me, some breathing room.

I have really loved doing this blog. The Man Eating Bookworm is the kind of blog I think I would have enjoyed had I come across it. I've met and become friends with some really talented and amazing people.

So before I go, I want to say thanks to a bunch of folks who where really cool to me and I greatly appreciate:

J.E. Medrick, author of The Icarus Helix Series. You are awesome and I can't wait to read the next instalments!

Dave Zeltserman, author of The Caretaker of Lorne Field and The Killers Essence, plus a ton of other seriously great books.

Robert Swartwood aka Z. Constance Frost, author of The Serial Killers Wife and No Shelter, as well as few others you don't want to miss.

Blake Crouch, kick ass writer of the Andrew Z. Thomas books as well as the immensely fun books written with J.A. Konrath.

I want to give a shout out to favourite bloggers Jim Mcleod of The Ginger Nuts of Horror, Jen from Book Den, Gef of Wag The Fox and finally the lovely lady at Darkeva's Dark Delights.

I want to thank one last person, a dude whose work I greatly admire and I am so happy I can call a friend. Jeroen ten Berge, the worlds best cover designer. You rock, good buddy. Thanks for everything.

Before I turn the sign from open to closed I have one last thing I must do. Here is my top ten reads from the past year. I can't back it up with evidence but I'm pretty sure I read more books this year than ever before and there were a ton, a ton, of great books to choose from.

Here we go!

NUMBER 10:

EMERGENCE by J.E. Medrick.

Emergence is the first omnibus in the Icarus Helix Series that collects the first five "episodes". Reading these novellas was a lot of fun. If you like comics or comic book based movies, like the X-Men or television shows like Heroes, you will totally dig these.

I look forward to the next instalment!

NUMBER 9:

DYING MEMORIES by Dave Zeltserman.

When you can't trust your memories.

A woman shoots a man to death on a crowded street in Boston, claiming that he raped and murdered her eleven-year old daughter. Except he didn't, because this woman never had a daughter. Another man stabs an MIT professor to death in front of a crowd in Harvard Square, saying that he witnessed the professor running down his wife in the street. Except the MIT professor was three thousand miles away when the man's wife was killed.

Reporter Bill Conway discovers that these victims are connected to ViGen Corporation, a shadowy pharmaceutical company. When he tries to investigate ViGen Corporation and their role in these deaths, he soon finds himself framed for murder. And that turns out to be the least of his problems...

NUMBER 8:

ORIGIN by J.A. Konrath.

Thriller writer J.A. Konrath, author of the Lt. Jack Daniels series, digs into the vaults and unearths a technohorror tale from the depths of hell...

1906 - Something is discovered by workers digging the Panama Canal. Something dormant. Sinister. Very much alive.

2009 - Project Samhain. A secret underground government installation begun 103 years ago in New Mexico. The best minds in the world have been recruited to study the most amazing discovery in the history of mankind. But the century of peaceful research is about to end.

BECAUSE IT JUST WOKE UP.

NUMBER 7:

Robert Swartwood's THE SERIAL KILLER'S WIFE

Five years ago Elizabeth Piccioni's husband was arrested for being a serial killer. Her life suddenly turned upside down, she did what she thought was best for her newborn baby: she took her son and ran away to start a new life.

Now, living in a quiet part of the Midwest with a new identity, Elizabeth is ready to start over. But one day she receives a phone call from a person calling himself Cain. Cain somehow knows about her past life. He has abducted her son, and if Elizabeth wants to save him she must retrieve her husband's trophies -- the fingers he cut off each of his victims.

With a deadline of one hundred hours, Elizabeth has no choice but to return to the life she once fled, where she will soon realize that everything she thought she knew is a lie, and what's more shocking than Cain's identity is the truth about her husband.

NUMBER 6:

Dave Zeltserman's A KILLERS ESSENCE.

Stan Green is a New York City Homicide Detective who has seen better days. As his family life threatens to disintegrate and his work partner disappears, he is assigned to the most shocking case of his career-a strange and remarkably violent murder. Stan must look into the crime alone. He finds just one witness, a neurologically disabled recluse who sees through the souls of others as demonic hallucinations. As more murders occur, and he drifts further from his family and friends, Stan's suspicion and rage escalate. Soon he realizes that the deaths fall into the pattern of a serial killer--and starts to believe that his witness is not at all insane, but terrifyingly perceptive . . .

NUMBER 5:

SOUTHERN GODS by John Hornor Jacobs.

Recent World War II veteran Bull Ingram is working as muscle when a Memphis DJ hires him to find Ramblin' John Hastur. The mysterious blues man's dark, driving music - broadcast at ever-shifting frequencies by a phantom radio station - is said to make living men insane and dead men rise. Disturbed and enraged by the bootleg recording the DJ plays for him, Ingram follows Hastur's trail into the strange, uncivilized backwoods of Arkansas, where he hears rumors the musician has sold his soul to the Devil. But as Ingram closes in on Hastur and those who have crossed his path, he'll learn there are forces much more malevolent than the Devil and reckonings more painful than Hell... In a masterful debut of Lovecraftian horror and Southern gothic menace, John Hornor Jacobs reveals the fragility of free will, the dangerous power of sacrifice, and the insidious strength of blood.

NUMBER 4 (I cheat here. I think these two books make a great duo):

THE PAINTED DARKNESS by Brian James Freeman

When Henry was a child, something terrible happened in the woods behind his home, something so shocking he could only express his grief by drawing pictures of what he had witnessed. Eventually Henry's mind blocked out the bad memories, but he continued to draw, often at night by the light of the moon.

Twenty years later, Henry makes his living by painting his disturbing works of art. He loves his wife and his son and life couldn't be better... except there's something not quite right about the old stone farmhouse his family now calls home. There's something strange living in the cramped cellar, in the maze of pipes that feed the ancient steam boiler.

A winter storm is brewing and soon Henry will learn the true nature of the monster waiting for him down in the darkness. He will battle this demon and, in the process, he may discover what really happened when he was a child and why, in times of trouble, he thinks: I paint against the darkness.

But will Henry learn the truth in time to avoid the terrible fate awaiting him... or will the thing in the cellar get him and his family first?

Written as both a meditation on the art of creation and as an examination of the secret fears we all share, The Painted Darkness is a terrifying look at the true cost we pay when we run from our grief--and what happens when we're finally forced to confront the monsters we know all too well.

A MONSTER CALLS by Patrick Ness.

An unflinching, darkly funny, and deeply moving story of a boy, his seriously ill mother, and an unexpected monstrous visitor.

At seven minutes past midnight, thirteen-year-old Conor wakes to find a monster outside his bedroom window. But it isn't the monster Conor's been expecting-- he's been expecting the one from his nightmare, the nightmare he's had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments. The monster in his backyard is different. It's ancient. And wild. And it wants something from Conor. Something terrible and dangerous. It wants the truth. From the final idea of award-winning author Siobhan Dowd-- whose premature death from cancer prevented her from writing it herself-- Patrick Ness has spun a haunting and darkly funny novel of mischief, loss, and monsters both real and imagined.

NUMBER 3:

The Andrew Z. Thomas/Luther Kite saga (DESERT PLACES, LOCKED DOORS, BRAKE YOU, SERIAL KILLERS UNCUT, STIRRED) by Blake Crouch.

Now in a single volume...all of Crouch's Andrew Z. Thomas/Luther Kite novels that lead up to his and J.A. Konrath's thriller STIRRED...

THICKER THAN BLOOD: The Complete Andrew Z. Thomas Trilogy (Desert Places, Locked Doors, and Break You), is now available in a single ebook featuring a goldmine of killer bonus features, including the never-before-released alternate endings to both Desert Places and Locked Doors, which together comprise the length of an additional novel.

DESERT PLACES: A Novel: "Greetings. There is a body buried on your property, covered in your blood. The unfortunate young lady's name is Rita Jones. In her jeans pocket you'll find a slip of paper with a phone number on it. Call that number. If I have not heard from you by 8:00 p.m., the police will receive an anonymous call. I'll tell them where Rita Jones is buried on your property, how you killed her, and where the murder weapon can be found in your house. (I do believe a paring knife is missing from your kitchen.) I strongly advise against going to the police, as I am always watching you." Andrew Z. Thomas is a successful writer of suspense thrillers, living the dream at his lake house in the piedmont of North Carolina. One afternoon in late spring, he receives a bizarre letter that eventually threatens his career, his sanity, and the lives of everyone he loves. A murderer is designing his future, and for the life of him, Andrew can't get away.

LOCKED DOORS: A Novel: Seven years ago, suspense novelist Andrew Thomas's life was shattered when he was framed for a series of murders. The killer's victims were unearthed on Andrew's lakefront property, and since he was wanted by the FBI, Andrew had no choice but to flee and to create a new identity. Andrew does just that in a cabin tucked away in the remote wilderness near Haines Junction, Yukon. His only link to society is by e-mail, through which he learns that all the people he ever loved are being stalked and murdered. Culminating in the spooky and secluded Outer Banks of North Carolina, the paths of Andrew Thomas, a psychotic named Luther Kite, and a young female detective collide. Locked Doors is a novel of blistering suspense that will scare you to death.

BREAK YOU: A Novella: Following the events of Desert Places and Locked Doors, Andy Thomas and Violet King are hiding out in the wilds of northern Canada, where Violet has a four-month-old son and a burgeoning romance with Andy. On a cold, rainy night at their cabin in the woods, the promise of an idyllic life that seems just around the corner is shattered when a man from their past, a monster of pure malevolence, returns. What he has in store for them will challenge their understanding of evil and stretch the fibers of their love to the breaking point.

This 220,000-word ebook is absolutely loaded with content, including 2 full-length novels, a 20,000-word novella, an introduction, forewords to every book, an afterword, the short story, "Ginsu Tony" upon which Desert Places was based, the never-before-released 100-page alternate ending of Desert Places, the never-before-released 140-page alternate ending of Locked Doors, and more. This is everything written by Blake that you need to read in advance of the release of Blake's and J.A. Konrath's upcoming collaboration novel, Stirred.

NUMBER 2:

Ernest Cline's READY PLAYER ONE.

At once wildly original and stuffed with irresistible nostalgia, READY PLAYER ONE is a spectacularly genre-busting, ambitious, and charming debut—part quest novel, part love story, and part virtual space opera set in a universe where spell-slinging mages battle giant Japanese robots, entire planets are inspired by Blade Runner, and flying DeLoreans achieve light speed.

It’s the year 2044, and the real world is an ugly place.

Like most of humanity, Wade Watts escapes his grim surroundings by spending his waking hours jacked into the OASIS, a sprawling virtual utopia that lets you be anything you want to be, a place where you can live and play and fall in love on any of ten thousand planets.

And like most of humanity, Wade dreams of being the one to discover the ultimate lottery ticket that lies concealed within this virtual world. For somewhere inside this giant networked playground, OASIS creator James Halliday has hidden a series of fiendish puzzles that will yield massive fortune—and remarkable power—to whoever can unlock them.

For years, millions have struggled fruitlessly to attain this prize, knowing only that Halliday’s riddles are based in the pop culture he loved—that of the late twentieth century. And for years, millions have found in this quest another means of escape, retreating into happy, obsessive study of Halliday’s icons. Like many of his contemporaries, Wade is as comfortable debating the finer points of John Hughes’s oeuvre, playing Pac-Man, or reciting Devo lyrics as he is scrounging power to run his OASIS rig.

And then Wade stumbles upon the first puzzle.

Suddenly the whole world is watching, and thousands of competitors join the hunt—among them certain powerful players who are willing to commit very real murder to beat Wade to this prize. Now the only way for Wade to survive and preserve everything he knows is to win. But to do so, he may have to leave behind his oh-so-perfect virtual existence and face up to life—and love—in the real world he’s always been so desperate to escape.

A world at stake.
A quest for the ultimate prize.

NUMBER 1:

THE EMPEROR OF GLITTER GULCH by Roy Finch.

Leonard Orton inhabits a part of Las Vegas that most tourists never see; the dirty underbelly of a city populated by hookers and strippers, juiced-up bouncers and semi-professional cage fighters. Leonard is in the process of running his flagging law firm into the toilet when a woman approaches him to handle a case that might prove to be his salvation. And even if he is a bad lawyer, and Leonard is certainly that -- quite possibly the worst lawyer in all of Las Vegas, which would place him high in the running for worst lawyer worldwide -- Leonard has a chance to resurrect his career and gain a measure of retribution against his lifelong nemesis.

Along the way, Leonard must overcome clashes with a homicidal ex-client with a penchant for inflicting bodily harm with a croquet mallet, a frequently naked Vietnamese butcher, a judge who insists that litigants perform calisthenics in lieu of oral arguments, and a couple of Eastern European hookers whom just might be the death of him. If he can stay out of jail and avoid the annoyingly persistent investigator from the bar association long enough to keep his license, Leonard just might be able to uncover some of his long lost dignity.

Sardonic, edgy, and sure to offend, The Emperor of Glitter Gulch is sure to appeal to fans of Carl Hiassen and the HBO hit comedy series Eastbound and Down.

Warrning: This Book is Offensive.

*

Well folks, that all.

Take care, Wormies! You guys rock.

CASKET FOR SALE (ONLY USED ONCE) by Jeff Strand

2011-12-20T14:35:00.001-05:00

In preparation for the release of Lost Homicidal Maniac (Answers to Shirley) Jeff Strand rereleased the first three Andrew Mayhem novels in up to date e-book editions. They have been "tweaked" and "touched up" but according to Strand, no major operations were performed. The main difference is the new covers, created by Lynne Hansen.

Anyway, with Lost Homicidal Maniac coming out sometime this December, I wanted to get caught up with the series, as I have only read the the first two books, Grave Robbers Wanted (No Experience Necessary) and Single White Psychopath Seeks Same.

Casket For Sale (Only Used Once) is terrific fun, as are all Strand books. I really can't think of a book of his that has not left me satisfied. Strand is a natural storyteller with a gift for entertaining his readers, for showing them a good time. He's one of the best at blending humour and horror. He is the literary equivalent of a giant roller coaster with twists, turns and loops, making you want to puke at the same time as you giggle at that funny feeling in your tummy.

In Caskets our hero, Andrew Mayhem, a private eye (of a sort) is going on a much needed vacation. The job front has dried up, and it turns out Helen (his wife) is pregnant. Going along on this vacation is Andrew's kids, his friend Roger, and Roger's new snuggle cakes Samantha, who Andrew is a little jealous of.

Unfortunately for the Mayhem and the rest, they choose a camp ground that just happens to be the hunting ground of a band of sadistic killers with awesome names like Ghoul, Witch, Troll and Medusa (to name a few).

What happens? Well, you'll have to read it to find out. But I can tell you, you'll have a bunch of fun finding out. Caskets is a very quick read, with plenty of thrills and twists. As I said above, I've never read a Strand book I didn't like and this one is the same. Great stuff!

If you feel like it you can read my reviews of Grave Robbers Wanted (No Experience Necessary) here and Single White Psychopath Seeks Same here.

You can also read my review of Suckers here. It's a short story collection that features Strand's Andrew Mayhem and J.A. Konrath's Harry McGlade.

LA HORDE directed by Yannick Dahan and Benjamin Rocher

2011-12-16T14:29:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I was checking out John Hornor Jacobs' "A Best of List For 2011" and saw at lucky number 13 the movie La Horde.

This is a movie I've been wanting to see since I saw a trailer for it some time ago. However, I could never track it down, until recently, when I saw someone had uploaded it to YouTube.

Well after seeing Johns list I decided to pop some corn and give her a viewing.

What a movie. If you like slick film making and lots of action you'll dig this one.

And it's got zombies. Lots and lots of zombies.

In the tradition of movies like From Dusk Till Dawn, this is a crime revenge movie that a third of the way through turns into a ultra-violent zombie flick.

Four cops take to a condemned highrise in order to dish out a heaping of revenge on a Nigerian drug lord for the murder of one of their own, only to have their plan and the world itself turn to shit.

This film has a really interesting dichotomy of characters and personalities you normally wouldn't expect in a movie like this. It also has the very first scene where I actually felt sorry for a zombie (you'll know what I'm talking about when you watch it).

All in all a kick ass zombie flick with lots of blood and guts and mayhem. The acting is very very good and the ending one of the most honest I've seen in a while. All I'll say about that is the character of Aurore is one bad ass bitch (and pretty sexy too).

Now that I've watched La Horde, it's time to check out number one on John's list, I Sell The Dead.

Note: this review is based off the dubbed version and though it's not bad I would have preferred to watch the subtitled version.

STIRRED by Blake Crouch and J.A. Konrath

2011-12-13T13:02:00.002-05:00

I'm an immense fan of Crouch and Konrath. Some of my favourite books over the last year and a half were written by this dynamic duo of murder and mayhem. From Crouch's Desert Places and Locked Doors to their tag-team efforts which culminated in the epic thriller-fest Serial Killers Uncut.

Now comes Stirred, their highly anticipated conclusion to Crouch's Andrew Z. Thomas/Luther Kite series and Konrath's Jack Daniels books.

One of the main reasons I like these guys so much is because I know they're going to give me what I want and what I want is a satisfying dose of the thrills and chills.

Luther Kite is planning something so diabolical and heinous for former super-cop Jack Daniels (who is eight and a half months pregnant) that it will be studied and dissected in law enforcement circles and by psychiatrists for years to come. Jack Daniels is going to take a tour of Hell itself, as imagined by one of the maddest minds the world has ever known.

If you have read any of the tag-team novels by Crouch and Konrath, then you have a pretty good idea about what to expect on this jaunt. This isn't for the faint of heart crowd. Stirred goes where things are darkest and the human mind is at its most fiendish.

I enjoyed this novel very much. It was exactly what I hoped it would be and more. It was crafty and full of twists and turns I never expected. It really is the ultimate thriller, the pace of the novel hurtling the reader along a path towards a conclusion that will probably shock most of their long time readers.

And it has one of the best twist endings I've read in a long time.

If you like no-holds-barred, adrenaline pumping action and scares, get Stirred today!

NOTE: you can read Stirred as a stand alone book, but I won't recommend it. This story is truly epic and one that should be enjoyed to it's fullest. In order to do that you should, at the very least, read Serial Killers Uncut.

COWBOYS AND ALIENS directed by Jon Favreau

2011-12-10T15:31:00.000-05:00

I'm a fan of Jon Favreau. I've liked a lot of the shows he's acted in (Swingers, and the myriad of television show appearances and voice work) and I've liked a lot of movies he's directed (Zathura, Iron Man and it's sequel etc.).

So, that being said, I expected to get a real kick out of Cowboys And Aliens, staring Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford.

However, I found the film to be borderline tedious and overly predictable. The acting is exactly what you expect it to be and the alien FX mediocre to hardly imaginable (a lot of the scenes that feature the alien creatures move so fast that it's hard to get a real good look at what your watching).

There are a few tense scenes but nothing to write home about. It's actually surprising how boring the film is considering its hook. And let it be noted right here that Clancy Brown is wasted as the town preacher.

I wish I could tell you to run out and rent Cowboys And Aliens, but I can't. Usually these are the types of films I love but this one just didn't work for me.

EMERGENCE by J.E. Medrick

2011-12-09T19:45:00.001-05:00

J.E. Medrick, a favourite here at The Man Eating Bookworm, released the first omnibus for her Icarus Helix Series called Emergence. With Emergence you get the first 5 episodes, totalling somewhere in the vicinity of 100,000 words of superhero action, romance and excitement, for a very reasonable $5.99.

The Icarus Helix Series has been a pleasure to read and I think anyone who enjoys shows like Heroes, and reading comics, will get a kick out of this YA series of novellas.

REC 2 directed by Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza

2011-12-05T14:45:00.000-05:00

REC 2 is the hectic and vicious sequel to the 2007 Spanish horrorfest of the same name and directed by the same duo.

A couple weeks ago I reviewed Quarantine 2 which was the American sequel to the American remake of the first REC film. Are you following me? However, the sequel to Quarantine is almost a complete 180 degrees different than the Spanish sequel, REC 2. And I'm here to tell you that is probably a good thing.

And not because REC 2 sucks. It does not suck.

In Quarantine 2 the explanation for the dreadful virus that transforms regular folks into black eyed monsters starving for human flesh is somewhat more...honest, straight forward than REC 2's? Lets just say it's probably more realistic in this day and age of super flues and outbreaks.

REC 2 gives a decidedly more religious explanation on things and to great effect. I find (but for a few exceptions i.e. The Exorcist, Omen, Rosemary's Baby) demons are better handled in the hands of foreign film makers. There is just something about foreign filmmaking and subtitles that add a certain realism to an otherwise supernatural or fantastic genre.

You know what? Now that I think about it, the above paragraph is totally bullshit. There are lots of great demon/devil movies made in North America. What I wanted to get across is that, to this viewer, the topic seems more realistic when it's set in a foreign country, and in foreign language. It sets up an uncomfortable feeling of the unknown right from the beginning. If there were going to be demons, you'd expect the first place for them to show up would be Italy, Hungary, Romania, Spain or Greece, right? An old world topic seems best set in an old world country.

Alright, enough blathering on. You want to know if REC 2 kicks butt or not.

It does. The frenetic pace and gallons of spilled blood make REC 2 a hardcore exercise in horror movie mayhem. If you liked the first REC, you'll like this one. If you like Quarantine and it's sequel, you'll definitely like the REC films (as long as you don't mind subtitles).

I hope Jaume Balagueró and Paco Plaza make REC 3 or another hyper tense horror flick because I'll certainly watch it.

DYLAN DOG: DEAD OF NIGHT directed by Kevin Munroe

2011-12-02T10:21:00.001-05:00

Dylan Dog: Dead of Night only came on my radar a few weeks ago when I was surfing through the iTunes store on my Mac. Thanks to Blockbuster closing up shop I had been searching for a viable replacement for my movie watching needs.

iTunes seems to be the solution, with a great selection and the ease of watching films when I choose with out having to leave the comfort of my own home.

Anyway, back to my opinion. But first, a little background.

Dylan Dog is a comic book series created by Tiziano Sclavi in 1986. It is the most widely sold comic book in Italy. Dylan is a "Nightmare Investigator" that investigates cases that are supernatural in origin. Got a problem with zombies, werewolves and monsters out of your bad dreams? Dylan Dog is the man to hire.

My first encounter with Dylan Dog came back in 1994 with a movie called Cemetery Man (Dellamorte Dellamore) staring Rupert Everett, based on the comic. It was a film about a cemetery caretaker whose job it is to re-kill the dead when they rise from the grave. There is more to it than that, but it's been a long time since I saw it.

Flash forward to last night when I sat down to watch Dylan Dog: Dead of Night, which stars Brandon Routh as the paranormal investigator, Dylan.

What a great movie. I loved it. It's got lots of frightening scenes, plenty of comedic relief (mostly provided by Sam Huntington, who stars as Dylan's undead assistant Marcus), and a solid story line that will keep you on the edge of your seat for the whole film.

It's all in here, zombies, werewolves, vampires and plenty of other supernatural beasties and ghouls. This is the kind of movie you want to watch with a big bowl of buttery popcorn and ice cold Coke with lots of ice cubes. It's a delicious meal of monstery goodness.

The acting is great, too, with standout performances from Routh and Huntington but also co-star Peter Stormare, who plays a very convincing and unnerving werewolf. You can also catch Kurt Angle as another werewolf. He's pretty good for a former WWE performer.

Definitely two thumbs up from this viewer and I can't wait to get The Dylan Dog Case Files (the comics) for Christmas (only 10 bucks for over 600 pages of supernatural goodness)!

THE ASH ANGELS by Ian Rogers

2011-11-30T08:14:00.000-05:00

Ian Rogers' first Felix Renn story, Temporary Monsters, blew me away. It really was so good that I wondered how (at the time it would have been published) a debuting author could pen something so good. The writing is mature and as professional as anything being stacked on the "Bestsellers!" table at Chapters.

With The Ash Angels Ian Rogers did me a solid. He affirmed my observations from his first chapbook, that a new talent had entered the literary world. The story is told with the same confidence and maturity, assuring the reader that they are in competent hands.

It's Christmas Eve, and paranormal detective Felix Renn is called upon to give his insight into the discovery of a strange mark found in the snow. A snow angel, only this angel is made of ash. This strange occurrence sets in motion a terrifying set of circumstances that could cost the lives of all those around him. It could cost him his own life.

Thoroughly enjoyable, The Ash Angels kicks butt. Felix Renn kicks butt.

Pick it up today from Burning Effigy press where you can get all three Felix Renn/Black Lands chap books for a measly twenty dollars. With Christmas coming up, these chaps would make a great present for the reader in your family, or for yourself (I can't be the only one out there that buys Christmas presents for myself!).

THE HELLBOY GRAPHIC NOVELS by Mike Mignola (and others)

2011-11-29T09:02:00.000-05:00

Hellboy is one of my favourite comics. Possibly the favourite of mine. He's big. He's red. And he fights monsters. What's not to love?

If you're into horror and have even a passing interest in reading comics, Hellboy is an amazing place to begin your journey. The talent level splashed across each and every page of this series is nothing short of incredible. From Seeds of Destruction to Conqueror Worm, from The Wild Hunt to House of the Living Dead, Mignola treats his fans to tales steeped in folklore and myth, brimming with gods and monsters. And always in the center of all all the action is my favourite occult detective...Hellboy.

There are many many stories in the Hellboy universe that deserve to be read over and over again, but if I had to choose my single favourite tale, it would have to be the Seeds of Destruction story arc. It not only introduces us to Hellboy but is also the grand gate at the beginning of this epic saga.

Inside you'll meet Liz Sherman and Abe Sapien. You'll find frog monsters, Nazi occultists, ghosts and a superhero named Torch of Liberty. You visit Cavendish Hall (I love Cavendish hall. It's the ultimate haunted house...even if it's not really haunted, it's certainly cursed), and realize Rasputin's evil plans for the Earth. You learn about an old god named Sadu-Hem (the Big Bad in Buffy speak), and briefly touch base with a bunch of aliens we never really learn a whole lot about but are cool anyway.

Everything about Seeds of Destruction kicks ass. Read it and you'll be hooked on Hellboy for good.

After Seeds of Destruction the series moves onto Wake The Devil, where Hellboy battles vampires, Nazis and a goddess. You meet Baba Yaga and a bunch of other evil bastards.

A little secret: I have not read Wake The Devil. It is the only trade I do not have. I will be asking for it for Christmas. I thought I owned it already but that turns out not to be the case. From what I've read about it on Wiki, it does sound quite awesome (there are a lot of references to it in other books in the series, so you'll definitely want it if you plan on reading more).

The next graphic, The Chained Coffin and Others, collects various short stories, from The Corpse, Iron Shoes and The Wolves of Saint August, to The Chained Coffin and Almost Colossus. My personal favourite (but I love them all) is The Baba Yaga. I just love the stories with Baba Yaga. She is one of my favourite Helloby villians and originates out of actual Russian folklore. She flies around in a pestle and carries the mortar as a club. She kidnaps and eats small children and lives in a hut that stands on chicken legs. How rad is that for a character? In The Baba Yaga we learn the reason behind her boiling need for revenge against Hellboy.

After The Chained Coffin and Others we get another collection of shorts called The Right Hand of Doom. The collection starts off with a couple of stories from Hellboy's early years, my favourite of which is Pancakes. It's very short but very entertaining. I chuckle every time I read it.

Other standouts in this collection are The Varcolac, The Right Hand of Doom and Box Full of Evil (in which we meet the deliciously evil Mr. Bromhead).

The next main chapter in Hellboy is Conqueror Worm and tells the story of what happens when a Nazi space capsule returns to earth with a terrible creature that, unless destroyed, will devour mankind. Conqueror Worm stars Roger the Homunculus and Hellboy, as well as fan favourite, Lobster Johnson. This is also the volume that sees Hellboy question his involvement with the BPRD (Bureau For Paranormal Research and Defence).

If you like giant man eating worms, talking Nazi Frankenstein-gorillas, complete with bolts in their necks, you'll love this story arc.

Volume Six is titled Strange Places and despite being good (it's Hellboy, right?), to this reader the story takes a definite turn to the weird. The Third Wish sees Hellboy briefly visiting Africa (the animal spirits there are not very welcoming to Big Red) before he goes on a strange undersea adventure. The Island is another strange one but, hey, the art is great!

The next volume, The Troll Witch and Others, didn't do much for me and is probably my least favourite. I found the writing not as good and the art (by various artists) not to my taste. The one story that I did enjoy was The Vampire of Prague. P. Craig Russell's art is great.

Everything, for this reader, gets back on track with Darkness Calls and The Wild Hunt. This is really the first point in the series where it helps if you have read the previous stories. Characters and incidents from the past are tied together with other events in ways that will make a new comer feel lost and confused.

Forces are rising on two fronts to try and destroy Hellboy. One side is Baba Yaga. On another is Gruagach, a fairy creature who hates Hellboy as much as Baba Yaga, but who also wants to see England returned to the hands of the fairy folk by raising an army to go against mankind.

The above paragraph is a very very abbreviated synopsis and not altogether accurate but gives you the basic idea of what to expect. A lot is going on in Darkness Calls and The Wild Hunt, enough that they should probably be read twice (just to make sure you catch everything) before going back and re-reading the entire series for all the little clues and tidbits of information one might have previously thought irrelevant in the grand scheme of things.

The next couple of volumes leave us waiting to see what happens after The Wild Hunt. With The Crooked Man and Others and The Bride of Hell and Others we get more shorts stories from earlier in Hellboy's career. Some really great, and some not so great. Some of my favourites are In The Chapel of Moloch, The Mole and Hellboy in Mexico.

Finally we come to House of the Living Dead, which is a companion piece with Hellboy in Mexico, and is a monster romp that sees Hellboy battling vampires, a werewolf and a Frankenstien-like creature. The art is by Richard Corben and isn't exactly my thing but the story is fun and seeing Hellboy as a luchador is worth the cover price alone.

Well, that's it for the main stuff. If I haven't convinced you to get on the Hellboy bandwagon, I don't know what else to do. Maybe you could watch the movies? Ron Perlman is great as Hellboy.

DEAD OF NIGHT by Jonathan Maberry

2011-11-24T10:06:00.000-05:00

Pop some popcorn, pour yourself a great big glass of Coke (with lots of ice cubes) and sit down in your favourite La-Z-Boy chair. Now crack open Jonathan Maberry's Dead of Night and you, my friend, are in for a treat!

Dead of Night is a roller coaster of a novel filled with fun characters and lots of action. While reading it I was reminded of those old EC horror comics of the 40's and 50's, Tales From the Crypt and The Vault of Horror.

It also made me think it would make a great first person shooter.

When Dez and JT, a couple of Stebbins county PA cops, answer a call for a possible B and E at the local mortuary, they stumble into a world gone crazy.

The town mortician and a cleaning lady have been brutally murdered and the body of the infamous serial killer, Homer Gibbon, stolen.

To make matters worse, a massive storm front is moving in over the Stebbins county area.

Before Dez and JT have time to comprehend what is happening they are neck deep in it with little hope of being able to contain a situation with apocalyptic repercussions. But as is usually the case, things go from very bad to much worse as communication between law enforcement officials break down and government suits start making life and death decisions.

I had a lot of fun reading Dead of Night and I think any zombie fiction aficionado will, too. Maberry brings his fast tempo story telling to the table, with a fresh take on the zombie story. The characters are well written, realistic and alive against the backdrop of the living dead.

Especially enjoyable to read is heroine, Dez Fox. She's sexy and fiery and speaks her mind and takes shit from no one. Maybe a little over-the-top at times, but I want a little of that in my fiction. Definitely the kind of woman you want around when all hell breaks loose.

If you're looking for you next zombie fix, Dead of Night is sure to hit the spot.

QUARANTINE 2: TERMINAL

2011-11-22T10:29:00.002-05:00

Quarantine 2: Terminal is the sequel to 2008's Quarantine, which itself was a pointless, however entertaining, remake of a Spanish horror movie called REC.

REC, shot in the shaky camera style everyone loves (though not nearly as shaky as, say, The Blair Witch Project), is about a television reporter that gets more than she asks for when she decides to follow the local fire men during the nightshift.

During a relatively routine call to help an old woman out of her apartment they are met instead with a woman infected with some kind of rabid virus that makes her hungry for human flesh and blood.

REC is a great little fright film, and so was the shot-for-shot remake Quarantine (for those that hate reading subtitles, I guess) which stars the very hot Jennifer Carpenter.

Quarantine 2: Terminal which was released earlier this year has absolutely nothing in common, strangely enough, with REC 2 that came out in 2009. It mostly takes place in a quarantined airport terminal after the virus is accidentally spread (via a rat bite) to passengers onboard a plane heading from Los Angeles to Nashville (no shaky camera here).

As far as cheap horror movie sequels go, Q2: Terminal is pretty enjoyable and gave this viewer a few startlingly good scares. The first person infected on the plane is gargantuan golfer Ralph (think John Daly and then some). I've always thought the scariest zombies are the fatsos and Ralph is a prime example why. You do NOT want zombie Ralph going fucking crazy on your plane. When he charges down the aisle like a mad rhino, roaring like a lion, you just about want to shit your shorts.

Other than a few dopey moments at the very beginning when we are introduced to all the passengers, the film is played pretty straight when the shit hits the fan. I didn't recognize any of the actors but they all do a pretty decent job.

Like I said, I enjoyed it for what it was, an hour and a half of some crazy zombie action. The last scene in the movie provides a clue as to what you can expect from Quarantine 3 if it gets made. I'll definitely check it out if it does.

A KILLER'S ESSENCE by Dave Zeltserman

2011-11-14T15:55:00.001-05:00

Dave Zeltserman knocks another one out of the park with his latest.

A KILLER'S ESSENCE is set in New York City, (a good chunk of the book takes place during the epic seven game collapse of the New York Yankees 2004 playoff drive versus the Boston Red Sox) and spotlights a difficult time in one detective's life while he tries to track down a brutal murderer.

I've read more books this year by Dave Zeltserman's than any other author, so it was no surprise to this bookworm that I was going to enjoy A KILLER'S ESSENCE. What still gets me though, what always blows me away, is that with each book of his I read, I think there is no way he can top it.

Then he does.

A KILLER'S ESSENCE is one of Zeltserman's most personal novels. He puts you right into the tight shoes of Detective Stan Green as he deals with the pressures of being a divorcee, the slow alienation by his children and the constant demands of his latest love interest. Matched against all of that is the burden of discovering the identity of a sadistic serial killer before he can strike again.

You can't help rooting for Green the way he roots for the home team, even when things turn ugly. You can't stop from feeling emotionally involved, hoping things turn out for the best by the end, even when you know things can't end well.

Absolutely a page turner. A thrilling and gripping read. A KILLER'S ESSENCE is one of those "it'll will keep you up long into the night" books.

Definitely pick it up today!

TEMPORARY MONSTERS by Ian Rogers

2011-11-11T12:52:00.000-05:00

A few years ago I attended Simon Strantzas' wedding and besides being a special and beautiful night in a good friends life, little did I know the gentleman sitting across from me during dinner would one day knock my socks off with his imagination and damn fine writing skills.

TEMPORARY MONSTERS is, to my knowledge, the first major foray into Ian Rogers' Black Land mythos, staring paranormal detective Felix Renn.

I'll give it to you plain and simple, because that's just the way I like to do things around here. TEMPORARY MONSTERS kicks ass.

Not only that but I'm jealous of Rogers. Why, you ask?

Because in the infancy of what is sure to be a tremendous writing career, he scribes with the mature finesse of a veteran of the genre. I could only dream to pen such a well crafted story as I fumble through Nanowrimo.

If you are a fan of urban fantasy fare as delivered by Jim Butcher or Simon R. Green, you'll be sure to love what Rogers' has in store. This short novella introduces readers to a world where things that go bump in the night and our own are separated by only the most delicate of veils.

If TEMPORARY MONSTERS is any indication, Ian Rogers is giving notice. A new player has entered the urban fantasy game and he's got some serious writing chops.

TEMPORARY MONSTERS is published by Burning Effigy Press and can be purchased via their website. If you act now you can grab all three of The Black Land chapbooks for only twenty bucks.

Check out Ian's website here as well as The Black Lands website here.

And I heartily recommend you check out the interview he did with Jim Mcleod over at the wonderful Ginger Nuts of Horror blog. It's truly one of the best interviews I've read all year.

Contest winner and Nanowrimo update!

2011-11-06T17:53:00.000-05:00

The winner of a premier e-copy via Amazon.com of PHANTASMAGORIUM is Jim Mcleod from the Ginger Nuts of Horror blog.

Congratulations!

(PHANTASMAGORIUM is not out yet on Amazon but just as soon as it is I'll be sending it along!)

Nanowrimo update: As of right now I'm a just barely keeping pace to reach 50,000 words. That, however, is all about to change as I return to work on Tuesday. There is just no way I'll be able to keep up the pace I have been with work and kids.

But this week had been productive. I'm right into the story and it seems to be going well. I'm at 9,000 words (going hard for 10,000 before bed tonight).

It's the most I've written on a book in some time and I feel I've broken through a wall of sorts just getting this far.

I had one crap day that I only wrote 250 words and one super day where I keyed in close to 3,000.

As I said below, my true goal for Nanowrimo is 25,000 words but my dream goal is 30,000. I'm definitely on pace for those numbers.

I'll tell you something, I miss blogging and feel a little guilty for letting it slide. But it must be done!

Forward ho!

And the King Kong pic? Just a little teaser about the story (and no, my novel is not about a giant ape. Nor does take place on Skull Island).

NANOWRIMO - NOVEMBER BLOG SLOWDOWN

2011-11-01T07:32:00.000-04:00

Yes, it's true. I'm going to attempt 500 words in 30 days. Should be a bre...what's that?

What? Oh, 5000 words? Heh. Well, no worry. I think...what's that?

50, 000? 50, 000???

Yowza!

Alright. Deep breath. I can do this.

Well, I'm going to try. I think 50 grand is a little much to expect of myself but I will try.

However, I'm setting myself an honest goal of 25, 000 words. But I'm gonna shoot for 30, 000. That's a thousand words a day. A reasonable count, I believe, for a guy that works nights and watches kids durning the day. Anything more is just icing on the cake.

Anyway, I'm here to tell you that things are going to be slow around here for the next thirty days. I will have lots of book, graphic novel, and movie reviews for you come December.

I'll still be around, making the odd post here and there, but my main objective is to get this book idea I have up and running in a big way.

I know I can do this. I believe I can do this.

Wish me luck, Wormies!

SIMON STRANTZAS HALLOWEEN INTERVIEW + PHANTASIC GIVE-AWAY!

2011-10-31T09:41:00.000-04:00

This is my favourite day of the year, and not just because it happens to be my birthday. I love everything about it.

I love the fall weather, the colour of the leaves, the crisp chill air. I love that today everyone gets to dress up and be anything they want to be.

I love answering the door to trick or treaters and seeing all the great costumes kids are wearing this year. I love taking my own kids out trick or treating!

I love the memories it brings back from Halloween's past and the creation of new memories this year will bring.

I dig the Halloween specials on television. The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown? It's great! And of course most of us will have caught John Carpenter's Halloween once or a dozen times on AMC.

To thank you all for coming to knock on my door today I wish to give you a treat.

Simon Strantzas returns for a special Halloween interview, where he is grilled on all things Halloween and not just by me, either. My wife Brenda (of Blog It Up!) gets in on the act, as well as Aidan (9), Dani (6) and even little Owen (2).

We hope you enjoy.

As a bonus, anyone who leaves a comment in the comments section will be entered into a draw to win an e-copy of Laird Barron's premiere issue of PHANTASMAGORIUM via Amazon.com, which features Simon's story Strong As A Rock.

The Man Eating Bookworm (MEB): Simon, thanks for coming back for the big day!

Simon Strantzas (SS): Certainly. I was doing nothing anyway but lying in my coffin, awaiting the evening's commencement.

MEB: So, people always wonder how horror writers celebrate Halloween (okay, maybe it's just me). I mean, this is their holiday, right? What's it like around the Strantzas house this time of year? What kind of decorations do you put up? Do you carve your pumpkins with happy or scary faces?

SS: My wife and I do as little as possible. A pumpkin, and little more. I know it's disappointing, but there are few children left in the neighbourhood, and those that still roam the streets most likely have heard the stories. You know the ones. About the man-sized monster across the street? The one who swallows treat-or-treaters whole? Surely you've heard about his teeth. His long sharp teeth. Or maybe those blood-red eyes? No? Then perhaps I ought to invite you over

tonight. For a quick bite.

MEB: *gulp* Um, I'll pass, thanks!

What is the latest you'll answer the door on Halloween night?

SS: I think 9 PM is the end of the night for trick-or-treating. Later than that, and it becomes intrusive.

MEB: Do you give out treats to teenagers that don't dress up?

SS: Yes, but only because I have an innate fear of young people. Besides, I remember what it felt like to be "too cool for school" to dress up. (Does saying that make me sound even older?)

MEB: Yes, but I won’t say anything.

What kind of candies are you giving out and what candies can you not resist digging out of the bowl for yourself?

SS: Chocolate. For both questions.

BRENDA: Um, there is a lot of “chocolate” out there. I want specifics. I want to know if I should bother with your house or not.

SS: Mini chocolate bars, to be frank. The odds are good, however, that very few will make it into children’s pillow sacks instead of my yawning maw.

MEB: What is your favourite Halloween memory?

SS: I'm sure it was going out with my cadre of friends along the streets of Toronto. Back then, the uncontested most popular costume was PSOK.

MEB: I remember a few years back I went out with my wife and pretended she was my daughter (she wore a ghoul mask) so we could get candy. That was a lot of fun. I enjoyed the funny looks I got from all the people.

Did you ever egg a house when you were a kid?

SS: No. What do you take me for? A monster?

MEB: No comment.

AIDAN: If you were 9yrs old again, what costume would you wear for Halloween?

SS: No question. PSOK.

BRENDA: What is your favourite Halloween creature: ghost, vampire, werewolf or zombie?

SS: Werewolf. There's something to be said about being allowed to run the streets, howling at the moon.

MEB: So, what's the perfect book to read this time of year, your Halloween go to?

SS: Poe is the one thing that gets me in the Halloween mood. Everything else is secondary.

DANI: Have you read Who Will Haunt My House On Halloween by Jerry Pallotta? It's my favourite Halloween book.

SS: I have! It's one of my favourites.

OWEN: Blug gawgle do flabby, yup?

SS: Often, but I still side with Einstein. What's this have to do with Halloween anyway?

MEB: What is your favourite Halloween movie?

SS: Obviously Carpenter's Halloween. You can't contest a classic.

MEB: Charlie Brown and the Great Pumpkin, The Halloween Tree or SpongeBob SquarePants: Scaredy Pants?

SS: Nostalgia tells me to answer Charlie Brown, but pure comedy suggests SpongeBob.

MEB: Casper or Slimer?

SS: Casper. There's just something about a family friendly story about a slain child that really gets me smiling.

BRENDA: Does Halloween make you miss Buffy The Vampire Slayer even more?

SS: Are you trying to make me cry?

MEB: What do you think of people that dress up their pets for Halloween?

SS: I think you should be asking the pets this. It's their dignity you're stealing.

BRENDA: The nurse costume, hot or desperate?

MEB: Definitely hot!

SS: My answer is contextual. And the context is; "Is my wife reading these answers?"

MEB: Finally, PSOK?

SS: Paul Stanley of KISS.

Thanks again, Simon!

Hope all of you have a fun day and don't forget to leave a comment for a chance to win an e-copy of the premiere issue of Laird Barron's PHANTASMAGORIUM via Amazon.com, featuring Simon's story Strong As A Rock.

SIMON STRANTZAS - interview

2011-10-28T07:53:00.001-04:00

It's my pleasure to bring you a very insightful and interesting interview with author Simon Strantzas. Simon, like myself, is from the Toronto area where he lives with his wife.

He is the author of two collections of short stories and another, Nightingale Songs, coming soon from Dark Regions Press (DRP).

In 2009 Tartarus Press published Cold To The Touch, while DRP reprinted Simon's first collection Beneath The Surface in 2010. His stories have appeared in Cemetery Dance Magazine, The Mammoth Book Of Best New Horror and Postscripts.

If you get the chance to pick up one of his collections, you're in for a uniquely dark reading experience!

The Man Eating Bookworm (MEB): Welcome to The Man Eating Bookworm, Simon. How are things?

Simon Strantzas (SS): Very good. Thank you for having me.

MEB: A little background for the Wormies. You and I go way back. All the way back to high school, in fact. You were one of my best buds. You introduced me to kick-ass rock bands before they were popular (Faith No More and Soundgarden, to name a couple), books and authors (Peter Straub's Ghost Story and If You Could See Me Now) and comics (Hellboy and Preacher). Some of my fondest memories are of us at The Dip N' Sip shootin' the breeze about everything from the early Preacher comics, South Park, to John Carpenter's The Thing. And of course we talked about story ideas and dreaming of one day getting published.

Share with us the moment when you first realized you wanted to be a writer.

SS: I don't think I can pinpoint the exact moment I wanted to be a writer. It was one of those things that snuck up on me. Like many of my contemporaries, I've written all my life, but I didn’t envision being a writer for a very long time. In hindsight, I can only assume I wrote for the sake of writing, to somehow drain the buildup of creativity that often flooded my being, because I have no distinct memory of wanting to be anything more than a comic book artist.

When that dream died, I did nothing but wrap myself in reading and working a low-paying day job. These were dark days for me for a variety of reasons, and I continued to spiral into the darkness with nothing to hold onto. I like to imagine I hit rock bottom, I'm not sure, but I remember vividly standing in my empty apartment, looking back on a life of missed opportunities, and asking myself, "What do you want that would fulfill you?" The answer was: I want to be a writer. Once I understood this, I was determined to make it a reality, because I knew I had no other choice.

MEB: A lot of genre writers are writing for comics these days, or seeing their work adapted into graphic novels (examples which immediately spring to mind are Stephen King, Joe Hill, Dean Koontz, Brian Keene, Jonathan Mayberry and Joe R. Lansdale). Has your success as a writer returned any life to that dream of working in comics? And if so, which of your stories would you most like to see adapted and why?

SS: The medium of comics is different from both film and prose, in that it does some things well that the other cannot, and vice versa. Frankly, I don't believe my fiction lends itself very well to comics. The bulk of what my fiction is about what happens off the page, and I don't believe a visual medium is best equipped to handle that. The only way to really convey this aspect is through straight prose.

But I must admit the idea of writing something new for comics intrigues me. I know a few authors who have pitched to the big two, or been approached by them for work, and though none of those have panned out yet, it's clear that there are more and more openings for prose writers in the field. For now, though, I'm content to focus on what I do best and continue to build a reputation. There is plenty of time to explore writing in other mediums later.

MEB: In the afterword to your critically acclaimed collection Beneath The Surface (one of my personal favourite pieces) you express the importance of dreams in relation to your fiction. This is not an uncommon theme with genre writers. I wonder, what is it that causes us to dream darkly? Is there something wrong with us? Or are we simply susceptible to some otherworldly force, being used to bring down the borders between worlds (as you eloquently suggest in your afterword)?

SS: Well, let's take that afterword with a grain of salt, shall we? But it's true: dreams have power, especially in fiction. I believe all acts of writing, as well as acts of reading, are engagements with our dream-selves. But why should we write and read something as dark as horror? What is it that drives the darkness? I don't know if I can answer that. I've often felt my connection to the field of horror differs from many of my contemporaries. I have no real affinity for ghouls or goblins or monsters. What I connect with are themes and images of a bizarre world, a broken reality that only has a home in horror fiction. It's the willingness to see awe and beauty in the dark and twisted, and though I believe this willingness sets me apart from most people walking this earth, I don't necessarily believe it puts me in the same camp as those who might want to write about zombies or serial killers or other creatures of the night. Though I am proud to call myself a Horror writer (please don't misunderstand) I feel less like I work in a specific genre, and more like I'm a writer who just happens to focus on the strange and bizarre. I expect this sentiment isn't exactly uncommon, but it can be seen as blasphemous by those who consider themselves true horror fans.

MEB: The city (in the case of your writing, Toronto) plays a vital role in many of your stories. What is it about the landscape and texture of our urban living space that speaks to you?

SS: I should preface this with saying that the city in many of my stories shares street names and some geography with Toronto, but it's not really Toronto. Or, perhaps more accurately, it's an alternate Toronto, one where the uncanny happens. Nevertheless, urban living does indeed play a large role in my earlier fiction. In honesty, I quite enjoy urban life, yet there's no denying that it can take its toll. The grime, the dirt, the daily confrontation of homelessness and the clinically ill, the lack of green space, the claustrophobic conditions of travel, and of people living and working one on top of the other ... I could go on. Despite my love for the city, and for Toronto in particular, there is so much about urban living that seems designed to break the will of all who participate. The fiction I have written that explores this landscape tries to shine a light on the despair this life can cause, especially for the sorts of characters I tend to traffic in -- people who are uncomfortable in their own skin, and unable to form meaningful relationships with others.

MEB: Besides being an accomplished writer, you've been known to create the odd book cover or two for other writers. With the sudden flood of e-books hitting the market, have you given any thought to hanging out a shingle?

SS: For a time, I did, but I quickly grew too busy with writing to find time for this sort of work. But I also grew concerned. It's very easy to become pigeonholed as doing a certain thing, and when one attempts to do something else, there is a tendency to be looked down upon. I did not want said of me, "Oh, so that writer thinks he can be a designer?" Or even worse, "That designer thinks he can be a writer?" By doing too much, I believe one runs the risk of damping one's reputation. In order to succeed (whatever that might mean) I think a single, pure message must be delivered. I am a writer. I would like to be viewed as a writer. So, to do anything else would only compromise that.

Were I able to step back in time, I should think I would have preferred to use a pseudonym for any artwork I generated. This would be the ideal way of handling the situation. But I came across the idea too late, and to do so now feels as though I've locked the barn door after the horse has already left. Besides, as I said, I haven't much time for artwork any longer anyway.

MEB: Since, as you nicely put, the horse is already out of the barn, let me say that your work on Gary McMahon's How To Make Monsters is a favorite of mine. Creepy as hell!

SS: Many people like that one best, but I must admit I'm partial to the original cover for my first book, Beneath the Surface. I feel it better achieves a three-dimensional image. It's not quite as disturbing, though, which is why I imagine How to Make Monsters gets all the accolades.

MEB: Some writers need peace and quite to work. Others prefer the raucous noise of a busy coffee shop or James Hetfield roaring in their ears to get anything done. Some authors can write anywhere under any circumstances. What do you require?

SS: I require near absolute quiet to work, or if not quiet then perhaps some instrumental ambient. Nothing with singing. I believe the act of writing fiction is akin to the act of dreaming, so when I prepare to write I must be in a near dream-like state. Loud music, crashing guitars -- these things only keep me awake and tied to this plane of consciousness. Because so much of my fiction involves the unconscious, it in effect locks me away from what I need most. Added to this is my propensity for procrastination: I'll take any opportunity to avoid writing. Music and other loud noises only serve to distract me from working.

MEB: For me the call of the Internet, Youtube, Twitter and Facebook are my biggest nemeses. And of course blogging. It seems these things and the points you made, are the daily traps writers need to navigate.

SS: Some of these activities are necessary for the writer with a burgeoning career -- I’ve sold more than a few books to people I met through these venues, but the trick is moderation (as it is with everything). One must be disciplined, and learn to put away the distractions to get down to the real work. That’s one of the biggest challenges we face today, or it can be.

MEB: Let’s talk about influences for a minute. Which dead writers have had the biggest impact on your writing and why?

SS: Fritz Leiber for his modernizing and urbanizing of the ghost story. His stories "Smoke Ghost" and "The Black Gondolier" are touchstones for my work. Also, of course, Robert Aickman's use of nightmare logic and subtextual plots have greatly affected my own work. Without these gentlemen, I'd have nothing.

MEB: What about living writers? Who has had an influence on your writing and why?

SS: The list is long and varied, but I imagine names like Ramsey Campbell, Peter Straub, Thomas Ligotti, Steve Rasnic Tem, and others would come as no surprise. I prefer literate quiet horror, which leaves behind the bulk of the American writers working in the Bradbury mold. If anything, my tastes lean toward the British and the European.

All the above said, I want to make a special point to mention female writers, past and present, who may not have a direct influence on my work, are still part of the tapestry that contributes to my fictional outlook. Authors like Elizabeth Jane Howard, Shirley Jackson, Edith Wharton, Lisa Tuttle, Melanie Tem, as so on.

MEB: You mention a lot of writers I need to explore. I’ve been sitting on my laurels for far too long when it comes to many of those names.

So whom are you reading these days? Any particular books you feel the Wormies out there should be picking up (besides anything by those you have already mentioned)?

SS: Canada is experiencing such a wave of new fiction that I feel the need to call attention to my native brethren. Writers like Richard Gavin and Michael Kelly are both doing fantastic work that leaves me in jealous awe. Barbara Roden's prose is elegant and beautiful, and she understands the power of understatement. And then there's ChiZine Books, with a stable that includes the wonderful Ian Rogers and Michael Rowe, as well as other Canadian masters of the dark. Anyone not paying attention to what they're doing at CZP is really doing themselves a disservice. This is world-class fiction.

Other than above, I've been reading and enjoying writers like Livia Llewellyn, Joseph Pulver, John Langan, Laird Barron, Reggie Oliver, Daniel Mills, Gary McMahon, Matt Cardin. Sales for horror fiction may not be where they were twenty or thirty years ago, but never has the selection of well-written fiction been greater. I'm honoured to count these people among my peers.

MEB: Now we come to my favourite part of the interviews. Let’s talk about the future. You have a lot of upcoming projects soon to reach readers eager little fingers. For starters we've got your third short story collection, called Nightingale Songs, to look forward to. What can you tell us about it?

SS: Nightingale Songs is a bit of a hybrid of my two previous collections. I've long felt, especially at the beginning of my career, that my work could be broken down into two distinct paths: the Ligottian, and the Aickmanesque (to put it in horribly reductionist terms). The former made up the tales collected in Beneath the Surface, the latter the tales in Cold to the Touch. But for some time I've believed that any lasting contribution from me to this field of fiction will come from an amalgamation of the two. It's a road I don't believe has been travelled much, and I hope to blaze the trail rather than follow in other worn footsteps. Nightingale Songs is the first representation of that vision to bear fruit. The tales in it will remind readers of my previous work, but I don't believe the ideas behind them are quite as simple to dissect. It's no surprise I think the book contains some of my best work, and I'm eager to see it out in the world and hear the opinions of others regarding it.

MEB: What is it like to have your story Pinholes In Black Muslin translated and appearing in the premier issue of the Japanese magazine Night Land? And how did that come about?

SS: I was approached by the editor of the magazine and asked specifically for the tale. The journal is very new, and thus I'd heard nothing of it until then, but time has indicated the forces behind the project have lofty goals for its pages, and the contributors they are drawing from at this stage are of a very high calibre. I'm thrilled and honoured that my story has been selected to run within its pages. It will also be the first translation of my fiction at any length for another language, and based on Japan's historical love of the weird and supernatural, I'm hopeful it sells like gangbusters. I only wish I could read Japanese so I too might enjoy reading it!

MEB: Choujou, kaonajimi!

One project I'm particularly excited about, as a reader, is Slices Of Flesh. The line-up is a veritable who's who of the horror genre, with Mike Mignola doing the cover art. How does it feel to be included in the same collection as legends Ramsey Campbell, Jack Ketchum, Graham Masterton and Michael Slade, to name just a few?

SS: Very exciting, to say the least. Many of the names you've mentioned and others in the book are writers of which I'm an immense fan, and to share space with them, even in so limited a fashion as flash fiction is a dream come true. Some of the pieces in the book will be reprints, but my own is a new tale written especially for the volume. I'm quite pleased with the way it turned out, and hope it stands well alongside the top-tier line-up the editor has assembled for the volume. And to have Mignola provide the cover? I'm speechless! Is there any better monster maker working in comics today? I'm thrilled he was able to find time to contribute a new piece to this not-for-profit venture.

MEB: Mignola is great. And the cover looks fantastic. For readers interested they can pre-order the book after the first of the year, via Dark Moon Books and will be launched at the World Horror Convention 2012 in Salt Lake City.

Simon, thanks for hanging out!

SS: It was my pleasure, old chum.

*

I'd like to take this moment to thank Simon again for taking time out of his busy schedule to answer my questions.

You can find his website here.

DEAD SEA by Brian Keene

2011-10-26T18:32:00.001-04:00

No one does zombies better than Brain Keene. On the back of the recently released Deadite Press edition of his DEAD SEA, it says Keene's "THE RISING revived horror literature's dormant obsession with zombies".

Indeed.

In 2007 he released upon the world another zombie novel called DEAD SEA. Even in a market that by then had been saturated with zombie books DEAD SEA managed to float above the rest. Now, I'm not about to profess to having read nearly a quarter of all the zombie stuff out there, but I will say this: Keene writes a damn good zombie novel.

Now thanks to Deadite Press DEAD SEA is readily available once more as a trade paperback as the Author's Preferred Edition.

DEAD SEA is about a group of survivors who, after a harrowing race from the hordes of zombies that have overrun the city of Baltimore, board The Spratling (an old Coast Guard ship) and set out to sea. Thinking they will be safe with some water between them and the zombies, the group will quickly discover there is no such thing as a safe place in this new world.

The lead character is gay black man Lamar Reed, and he is one of Keene's best character creations. One of Keene's talents as an author is the realistic way he is able to portray hard working blue collar men and women and seeing how they handle the extraordinary circumstances thrust upon them.

DEAD SEA was just as fun, just as fast, to read the second time through. Be prepared, this one will keep you turning the pages long into the night. If you dug THE RISING, or even if you have never read a Keene book, or if you want to take another trip aboard The Spratling, DEAD SEA is sure to please.

Where the HELL is Harris Burdick???

2011-10-25T10:32:00.000-04:00

Today marks the American release date (Nov. 8th in Canada according to Chapters.ca) of a book I'm very excited to read. It's called THE CHRONICLES OF HARRIS BURDICK.

Who is Harris Burdick, you ask? Harris Burdick is one of the most mysterious figures in children's literature.

One day Burdick delivered a portfolio to children's book editor Peter Wenders containing a single picture and one line of text from 14 children's stories he had finished. He asked Wenders if he was interested in publishing them.

Wenders was, and told Burdick to bring the rest of the stories the next day.

Burdick, however, didn't show the next day, or the next. In fact, Harris Burdick was never heard from ever again.

In 1984 Chris Val Allsburg published the art and captions in THE MYSTERIES OF HARRIS BURDICK.

If you have never read Allsburg's book, you really really have been missing out on one the coolest children's books ever. I love this book. And I'm not alone. Millions of people all over the world have been mesmerized by Allsburg's wonderfully gripping illustrations, many of them creating their own stories only begun by the enigmatic Harris Burdick.

Back in 1993 Stephen King penned THE HOUSE ON MAPLE STREET for his collection NIGHTMARES AND DREAMSCAPES, based on the illustration of the same name from MYSTERIES. That story now sees the light of day once more in CHRONICLES.

If you have yet to be touched by the magic of Chris Van Allsburg THE MYSTERIES OF HARRIS BURDICK is a fantastic place to start. You and your kids will have hours of bedtime fun making up the stories behind these great illustrations.

URBAN GOTHIC by Brian Keene

2011-10-24T10:10:00.002-04:00

Brain Keene is one of my favourite horror writers. That's just a fact. Pretty much anything he writes, I read. Some of his books are the most memorable scarefests I've ever come across, from the zombie extravaganza THE RISING, to the wormy squirmy horrors of EARTHWORM GODS (aka THE CONQUEROR WORMS). Another favourite of mine is the coming-of-age terror trip GHOUL. And of of course DARK HOLLOW (aka THE RUTTING SEASON).

Recently Keene's backlist has been getting the reissue treatment from small trade paperback publisher Deadite Press. Among those to see the light of day once more are A GATHERING OF CROWS, TAQUILA SUNRISE, TAKE THE LONG WAY HOME, DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN and URBAN GOTHIC.

I read URBAN GOTHIC when it was first released as a limited Edition via Bloodletting Press in 2009. While I enjoyed it back then, it didn't knock me on my butt. Admittedly, that was about the time I was starting to lose my interest in reading straight up horror. While I didn't completely abandon reading horror novels (I certainly kept up to date on anything Brian Keene or Bryan Smith put in print) I felt myself being pulled in new directions, particularly towards high octane thrillers and crime fiction.

Recently, I've been bit by the horror bug again and while browsing through the Deadite Press catalogue (and cringing a little at the gory and disgusting cover art by Alan M. Clark) I spied that ol' URBAN GOTHIC. So, I did something which makes my wife pull out her hair. I bought myself a copy of a book that I already own. It's a sickness, I know.

I've come to realize that time and circumstance can have a vast effect on one's reading experience. Obvious, right? As I said before, the last time I read URBAN GOTHIC I really wasn't feeling it. While I enjoyed the story and writing, it just felt old to me. But you know what they say, everything old new again (or something).

This time through the circumstance were perfect for reading something dark and scary.

For starters, it's Halloween season. It's cold and wet outside and the wind is blowing, moaning through the trees all along the street. This is the perfect setting for reading a book about a bunch of teenagers stuck in an old Victorian mansion with a clan of hungry mutant monstrosities. There are a lot of truly gruesome scenes between the covers and a big handful of frightening moments.

Keene has called URBAN GOTHIC a homage, or tribute, to the delightfully gruesome writings of Edward Lee and that it certainly is. However it put this reader more in mind of Richard Laymon's MIDNIGHT'S LAIR and his Beast House trilogy. And anyone that knows me, knows I love Richard Laymon.

If you're still looking for your Halloween read, you got time to order this one from Amazon before the big night. Just don't let your kids see Alan M. Clark's cover! My wife wasn't overly thrilled when I accidentally left it face up on the stairs where the kids could spy Noigel in all his pubic gory, er, glory.

MONSTER MOVIE MARATHON: A look back at Clive Barker's NIGHTBREED

2011-10-18T09:35:00.000-04:00

Hopefully all of you have been following Gef Fox's second annual MONSTER MOVIE MARATHON over at WAG THE FOX.

So far there have been a whole bunch of great monstery posts highlighting monsters in books and films. The topics have ranged from Brian Keene's THE RISING, to the terrific kids film MONSTERS vs. ALIENS.

Writer Tim McGregor dropped by and posted a fantastic essay on the steep hills and dark valleys of the screen writing business. Midnyte Reader looked back on some of the creepiest monsters on the little screen, while Louise Bohmer reminisced on one of her favourite childhood spookfests, THE MONSTER SQUAD (a post I enjoyed quite a bit).

And today is my addition.

I take a look back at Clive Barker's NIGHTBREED. It's one of my favourite films from one of my favourite writers. Please check it out. When you're done bookmark Gef's blog. It's a great resource for all things horror, from books and comics to movies.

THE DARK TOWER - THE GUNSLINGER BORN

2011-10-17T19:42:00.000-04:00

I'm a big Dark Tower fan and an even bigger fan of the Stephen King universe and how it all leads to the tower.

I've read the entire series (the first four books twice) and quite enjoyed it. Though, if truth be told, did not completely enjoy the way certain things turned out at the end.

My favourite book in the series is THE GUNSLINGER, closely followed by THE DRAWING OF THE THREE (remember the lobstrosities? Dod-a-chock?).

It's a damn shame the trilogy of movies/tv tie-in plans via Ron Howard were shot dead. I think it would have been cool. I think Javier Bardem would have made a cool fucking gunslinger.

Well, Towerheads, at least we still got THE WIND THROUGH THE KEYHOLE coming in 2012. The plot sounds pretty cool. Can't wait.

And, oh yeah, we got the Marvel comics!

I recently picked up the hardback editions of the entire series to date and let me tell you, if you're a fan of the epic series of novels, you'll love this stuff!

Unlike the novels, THE DARK TOWER comics kick off the series in chronological order (these stories take place within WIZARD AND GLASS in the novels). In THE GUNSLINGER BORN Roland is a young buck in the days of Gilead, attempting to earn his guns from Cort (his teacher in the art of killing), in order to kill the evil magician, Martin (who is screwing his mother behind his father's back).

Eventually Roland is sent to the quiet town of Hambry on Affiliation business, a task that should keep him and his friends Cuthbert and Alain, out of trouble. Only things are happening in Hambry that will be critical in the battle with John Farson aka The Good Man. Not only will they run afoul of The Big Coffin Hunters but Rhea of the Coos, as well.

Oh, did I mention The Crimson King is behind all of this?

Peter David and Robin Furth (the one person that knows as much about THE DARK TOWER series as King himself and the author of THE DARK TOWER: A COMPLETE CONCORDANCE) do a wonderful job of bringing Mid-World to life. Jae Lee's illustrations are fabulous, each panel a work of art.

The presentation here is fantastic, with bonus material at the back of the book, including alternate cover art, sketches, maps and a letter from Stephen King.

If you are looking for a doorway into Stephen King's epic story, this is great place to do it. Of course I would recommend you read the books, too. There is obviously, because of the order of the comics, a major spoilertude factor here. If you begin to read the comics first, you will know what happens when you get to reading the book WIZARD AND GLASS. So, be warned!

KAYLA AND THE DEVIL by Bryan Smith

2011-10-17T01:00:00.001-04:00

Bryan Smith is the author of such modern cult classics as HOUSE OF BLOOD and THE FREAKSHOW not mention other over-the-top horror thrillers as DEATHBRINGER, SOULTAKER, THE KILLING KIND, DEPRAVED, THE DARK ONES and ROCK AND ROLL REFORM SCHOOL ZOMBIES. Earlier this year Smith brought us the apocalyptic horrorfest, DARKENED. He also has a short story collection recently released from Deadite Press called HIGHWAYS TO HELL.

Last week Smith released his latest on the world called KAYLA AND THE DEVIL.

Kayla seemingly has it all. Good looks. Money. Friends. And boys clamouring for her attention. But ever since the start of the new school semester her friends have been avoiding her. More than that, they're being downright hostile towards her.

It turns out the Devil has put a shunning spell on Kayla and the only way she can get free is if she commits a heinous act of violence that will damn her soul to Hell.

Caught between a rock and a hellish place, Kayla must decide if she has what it takes to dance with the Devil.

I tore through KAYLA AND THE DEVIL and I enjoyed the hell out of it. It has lots of twists and turns and the intensity remains high the whole way through. The main character, Kayla, is one of the more fun characters I've run across this year. There really isn't a likeable bone in her body. In fact, she's a total bitch. But something about her sass, snark and piss-off attitude grows on you, especially in the totally nutbar situation she finds herself in.

KAYLA AND THE DEVIL marks a departure from Smith's usual hardcore horror fare as he tackles the urban fantasy genre. Fan's of Jim Butcher's DRESDEN FILES and Simon R Green's NIGHTSIDE SERIES will be sure to enjoy.

Welcome to Jeremy Robinson’s Great Kindle Giveaway and Blog Tour

2011-10-14T08:13:00.000-04:00

“Hurray for free Kindles!” you say, but who the hell is Jeremy Robinson? Allow me to introduce myself. I’m the author of eleven mixed genre novels, published in ten languages, including the popular fantasy YA series, THE LAST HUNTER, and the fast-paced Jack Sigler series (also known as Chess Team—not nearly as nerdy as it sounds), PULSE, INSTINCT and THRESHOLD from Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press. I’m the co-author of an expanding series of novellas deemed the Chesspocalypse, which take place in the Chess Team universe. If that doesn’t wet your whistle, I’m also known as Jeremy Bishop, the #1 Amazon.com horror author of THE SENTINEL and the controversial novel, TORMENT. For more about me, or my books, visit www.jeremyrobinsononline.com.

I have watched for years as my fellow authors held online events called blog tours. Some would visit ten blogs. Others, as many as ninety. And every day they would bring something different, waxing eloquent about a multitude of topics. When I finally decided to have a blog tour of my own, and settled on doing each and every weekday in October, my first thought was, “This will be cool,” which was immediately followed up by, “Holy crap, I can’t think of something interesting to say twenty times in one month!” I can barely think of something worthwhile for my own blog just once a month. The solution is what follows; each blog participating in the tour could ask me ANY three questions. That means, if the subject matter bores you, I’m not to blame! Huzzah!

But fear not. There are other rewards for sloughing through the questions and answers. I’ll be giving away two Kindles to two randomly selected readers who sign up for my newsletter. Details on the giveaway can be found below. On to the Q&A!

MEB: Some writers visualize their books as brightly coloured graphic novels, with big full page splashes. Others see them as huge summer blockbuster movies in 3D with surround sound. How do you visualize your stories?

It depends on the story. For the large scale action-adventure titles, I clearly visualize things as a blockbuster movie. Not 3D! Don’t get me started. I get a lot of e-mails from fans saying that when they read the books, this is how they read, too—big, fun and energizing. So, mission accomplished. But for some of my books, like THE LAST HUNTER series, which is written in the first person, I visualize things from a first person perspective. I become Solomon, the main character. I see, smell, hear feel and taste everything along with him. I just finished writing a chapter of the third book and when I visualized the giant albino centipede latching on to his arm, I saw it as though it were attached to my arm. It’s a much more personal experience for me as a writer, and for the reader, and as a result the series contains some of my best writing.

MEB: With the ease of e-publishing, writers are able to publish an unlimited number of novels without restrictions or roadblocks set up by the traditional publishing industry, or at the least, compliment their print publishing with a horde of e-books. Has this meant more time for you hunched over the keyboard, or do you still work the same hours?

You know, I spend about the same amount of time in my office (a lot), but take less breaks, have learned how delegate certain tasks to paid help and how to trim things, like marketing that doesn’t work well. I think things could get even more refined, and certainly need them to be. I’m almost always rushing and at some point it’s going to burn me out. My first priority always needs to be the stories, so if my release schedule (which I keep busy more for my fans than for me) begins to affect my writing, I’ll have to slow down…or hire an assistant.

MEB: For someone who has never read Jeremy Robinson (or Jeremy Bishop), where is the best place to start?

If you’re looking for a modern action-adventure thriller then start with PULSE. It’s the first book in the Jack Sigler series and is followed by INSTINCT, THRESHOLD, a slew of new novellas (which could be read first, too). The series will have at least three more full length novels, the next of which is titled RAGNAROK.

If you’re looking for something different, perhaps with a little more heart than my Sigler books, check out THE LAST HUNTER – DESCENT. This is technically a YA series (only because the main character is a teenager) and is a modern day fantasy that is an extension of my novel, ANTARKTOS RISING. The second book, THE LAST HUNTER – PURSUIT is also available now, and the third book (out of five) THE LAST HUNTER – ASCENT will be available in November.

Last, but not least, if you’re looking for horror, check out TORMENT (horrifying and serious) and THE SENTINEL (horrifying and humorous) written under a pen name, Jeremy Bishop. TORMENT was a #1 Amazon.com horror bestseller. And THE SENTINEL is new. Like THE LAST HUNTER, THE SENTINEL is written in the first person and is an incredibly fun read.

Hope that was as good for you as it was for me. Now how about that kindle giveaway?

Here’s the deal: to be entered to win one of two free kindles all you have to do is visit my website—www.jeremyrobinsononline.com—and sign up for the newsletter. That’s it. The first kindle will go to a randomly chosen newsletter signup on October 31. For the second kindle, there’s a catch. The second giveaway will only be triggered if one of my kindle books hits the Amazon.com bestseller list (top 100). So pick up some books (most are just $2.99 a pop) and spread the word! If one of the books squeaks up to #100 for just a single hour, the second kindle will be given away to another randomly chosen newsletter sign up on October 31.

*When you sign up for the newsletter, be sure to include the name of the blog that referred you in the field provided. I’ll be giving away two $50 Amazon.com gift certificates to the blog that refers the most sign-ups and another to the blog who referred the first kindle winner.

** I will announce winners via Twitter, Facebook, my blog, and newsletter (which you will be signed up for!) but I’ll also e-mail the winners directly—I’ll need to know where to ship those kindles!

Thanks for spending some time with me today. Hope you enjoyed the Q&A, and good luck with the kindle giveaway!

-- Jeremy Robinson

SHORT Q&A with JEREMY ROBINSON tomorrow!

2011-10-13T15:03:00.001-04:00

Tomorrow morning Jeremy Robinson's Blog Tour stops at THE MAN EATING BOOKWORM for a quick three questions. You'll also learn how you can win a free Kindle!

If you have never heard of, or read, Mr. Robinson's work this will be a great opportunity for you to see what he's all about. In the meantime, check out my review of his awesome, kick-ass, novel INSTINCT.

If you want to check out previous stops on the tour, check out his website here.

On Monday I'll begin to review Stephen King's THE DARK TOWER graphic novel series, of which I've been enjoying the heck out of. See you all then!

BPRD: PLAGUE OF FROGS HARDCOVER COLLECTION VOLUME 2

2011-10-10T12:29:00.002-04:00

You want monsters this Halloween season?

The BPRD gives'um to you!

I really enjoyed the first hardcover collection of the BPRD (check my review here).

I did, however, see the stories and even some of the art, as a bit hit and miss. Still great stuff, but you could certainly tell they were searching for a look, an identity, and a kick-ass story.

BPRD: PLAGUE OF FROGS HARDCOVER COLLECTION, VOL. 2 contains three books, THE DEAD, WAR ON FROGS and THE BLACK FLAME.

It is with the latter two that the BPRD really takes off, finds it's groove, so to speak. It was with great pleasure that I whipped through these pages, devouring the story, the wonderful art, and just the overall amazingness of it.

That's not to say THE DEAD wasn't interesting and enjoyable. In it, the BPRD move to their new home in the Colorado Rockies and find that something has been waiting for them in it's subterranean depths. We also get acquainted with a major new member of the BPRD team, Capt. Benjamin Daimio, who has some excellent laugh-out-loud moments when he's introduced to Roger the homunculus.

THE DEAD also provides the volume's more sentimental and melancholy moments in a side story where Abe learns a little more about his past, especially in regards to his wife Edith Howard. Ghost story lovers will appreciate this excellent segment.

But again, it's WAR ON FROGS and BLACK FLAME that rock n' roll! Non-stop, take-no-prisoners, frog killing action. Hooah!

I could just read this stuff forever.

If you're a fan of the HELLBOY books you're probably up to date on all this BPRD stuff. But if for whatever reason you're not, these beautifully rendered volumes are excellent reading, and will also look sharp on your bookshelf.

HOUSE OF BLOOD by Bryan Smith ON SALE NOW!

2011-10-09T10:05:00.001-04:00

On sale for the rest of October is Bryan Smith's classic tale of mad horror, HOUSE OF BLOOD!

If you're in the mood for something spooky this Halloween season, this is the book for you!

Only .99 cents on your Kindle!

Gef Fox presents the return of the MONSTER MOVIE MARATHON

2011-10-06T09:21:00.001-04:00

It's that time of year again. My favourite time of year again. That's right! It's monster month. It's October. It's Halloween time.

Already folks in the neighbourhood are decorating their porches and windows with pumpkins and spooky decorations. Witches. Skeletons. Zombies. Oh my!

The leaves are turning orange, red and brown. The air is starting to get that crisp and cool fall smell, that mingling of earth and mischief...

Mischief I say? Indeed. Mischief and MONSTERS!

Fall smells like monsters!

Don't believe me? Then head on over to the awesome WAG THE FOX blog and take a deep breath, because Gef is going have monsters in the house all month long!

It's the return of the MONSTER MOVIE MARATHON!

All month long Gef will be opening his blog to writers and bloggers alike, (including yours truly - October 18th) to talk monsters. Not only that but he'll be hosting a give-away or two. Head on over now and learn how you can win some great stuff.

MATERIAL WITNESS (A Joe Ledger Bonus Story) by Jonathan Maberry

2011-10-05T09:58:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I reviewed EXPOSED and today I'm giving you the heads up on another kick-ass read, this time brought to you by author Jonathan Maberry.

MATERIAL WITNESS is a ferocious thriller that will get your adrenaline rushing through your system like a dark and ruthless tsunami. Prepare for total mayhem. And a good dose of the chilly willies.

This short story takes place after the novel PATIENT ZERO and bridges Maberry's Joe Ledger novels and with his Pine Deep trilogy of terror (which I haven't read but hear is quite good).

Not just a fantastic story, but it seems to me a great jumping off point for readers who may not be familiar with Maberry's work. It does a wonderful job of establishing what kind of character you get with Joe Ledger and his DMS pals, while showcasing Maberry's talent for writing a balls-to-the-wall, crazy-assed, action thriller.

Having only read PATIENT ZERO (and loving it), MATERIAL WITNESS affirms my belief that I have been putting off the rest of Maberry's published work for far too long.

EXPOSED by Ann Voss Peterson & J.A. Konrath

2011-10-04T10:03:00.000-04:00

It goes without saying that I loved FLEE. Just check out my glowing review right here.

If you haven't read FLEE, and you're in the mood for something fantastic, something over-the-top and action packed, it's the book you're looking for.

To say I was stoked when I saw the dynamic duo of Peterson and Konrath had struck again, would be an understatement.

Behold EXPOSED.

It's a kick-ass prequel to the awesome FLEE.

Chandler is back in another slamming story that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the final page. It will grab a hold of you and not let go. Don't start reading it before bed, or you'll never get to sleep!

EXPOSED is perfect for all those popular blurbs. Edge of your seat. Grabs you and won't let go. You'll be up all night!

And it holds up it's end of the bargain, as long as you can suspend your disbelief for a few hours. Buckle yourself in and prepare for a roller coaster ride full of twists and turns, loop de-loos and stomach plummeting thrills.

Pop some popcorn. Crack a beer open and sink into your favourite Lay-Z-Boy chair and enjoy.

EXPOSED is a 35,000 novella, and in this bloggers opinion, worth every cent of the $2.99 price tag. It also comes with a sneak peak of SPREE, the next CODENAME: CHANDLER thriller.

A MONSTER CALLS by Patrick Ness (from an original idea by Siobhan Dowd)

2011-10-03T09:24:00.001-04:00

"A MONSTER CALLS is by far the best book I have read all year and in a really long time. In fact, it's one of the best books I have ever read in my entire life." - Jen, Book Den

Now she's done it!

Saying that about a book is the equivalent in the book blogging world as an athlete guaranteeing a victory in a big game. If people buy the book and love it, it jacks up your credibility. You look like a genius.

If, however, the book stinks, folks wonder if they can rely on your opinions for their book buying needs.

Of course, I'm just fooling around. But let me tell you, Jen is exactly dead on with her review of A MONSTER CALLS. It turns out that it's one of the best books I've read all year and definitely one of the best books I've read in my entire life.

It's been a while since a book has brought me to tears, but this one did. Ness' writing and the story he crafted is one that will thrill your imagination and pull on your heartstrings.

A MONSTER CALLS is the powerful story about a love, grief, hate, fear and one big ass monster.

It is the perfect story for any time of year, but particularly now when the skies are grey, the ground is wet and the leaves are turning brown. Fall is said to be the season of death and A MONSTER CALLS will firmly plant you in a fall-ish state of mind. It is the perfect story as we get closer to Halloween.

The book is beautifully illustrated by Jim Kay.

This is a must buy. If you are in the book store today, pick it up. If you can't get to the store, order it on-line. Jen and I both guarantee you will love it!

ABARAT by Clive Barker

2011-09-29T10:31:00.000-04:00

With the release of ABSOLUTE MIDNIGHT this week, I decided I would give the first two books of the Abarat series a re-read. In the case of ABARAT, this is my third time through.

If not the most exciting story, nor Barker's best writing, it displays such a fantastic breadth of imagination, it's nearly impossible to, well, imagine!

With Abarat, the author has created a world unlike anything you have encountered before in the pantheon of fantasy fiction. And make no mistake, it is the world, so much more than the story itself, that shines here. Abarat is a place of bizzarities, of strange folk, and even stranger creatures.

Besides Candy Quackenbush, the story's heroine, you'll meet the master thief John Mischief and his brothers; the terrifying bounty hunter Mendelson Shape and the Criss Cross Man. Then there are the Big Bad's, Rojo Pixler and Christopher "The Lord of Midnight" Carrion, and his mother Mater Motley with her evil army of stichlings.

And that's just scratching the surface. I could tell you about Abraham Hollow, and the Fugit Brothers, but that might drive you insane!

It's probably not a good idea to even mention the monstrous Requiax. Oh, and dragons? Yes, here there be dragons!

Abarat is full of dangerous wonders and extraordinary delights. All of which are beautifully rendered in Clive Barker's colourful paintings which decorate this marvellous book.

Unfortunately, the edition that is readily available to the public in light of the release of ABSOLUTE MIDNIGHT does not contain a single piece of art. A shame, as they are truly fantastic. If you can wrangle up a copy of the original addition of the hardback, I promise you won't be sorry.

Clive Barker's Abarat - Absolute Midnight Trailer

2011-09-27T09:36:00.000-04:00

The official release for ABSOLUTE MIDNIGHT is today. If you have yet to delve into this series, you are certainly missing out. Even if you don't like the story, the art inside is absolutely worth the cover price.

Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick by Joe Schreiber

2011-09-26T22:42:00.000-04:00

One of my most anticipated books of the year! Comes out in October.

NOWHERE TO GO by Iain Rowan

2011-09-26T13:32:00.000-04:00

With Bouchercon 2011 and working a lot of days in a row, I darn near forgot to make sure all you Wormies out there were aware of some cool news.

Iain Rowan's short story collection NOWHERE TO GO is being offered at a discount price.

For the month of September you can buy NOWHERE TO GO for 99 cents @ Amazon.com.

That's a pretty awesome deal, so don't miss out. September is almost over!

Don't know too much about Iain Rowan? Well then, check out the terrific interview he did with moi back in July.

SICK by Brett Battles

2011-09-21T09:25:00.000-04:00

SICK by Brett Battles is a taut thriller that sucks you in from the first scene and doesn't let go until the final page is turned.

I've got a Kindle full of Battles' work but had yet to find the time to read anything and recently decided that had to change.

Because, boy was I missing out.

I don't want to tell you too much because to do so would give away all the surprises that make SICK such a fantastic thriller.

If you like stories with shadowy government organizations and end of the world plots that draw ordinary folks into extraordinary circumstances, then SICK is the book for you.

SICK is the first novel in what Battles is calling THE PROJECT EDEN THRILLERS, but works very well as a standalone novel, tying up most of it's loose ends.

SICK also works well as a great companion to the current blockbuster movie, CONTAGION, as both centre around a deadly virus that could kill millions and change the entire complexion of the human race and the world we live in. If you enjoyed CONTAGION, you will love SICK.

The sequel, EXIT NINE, will be out sometime in the near future, and I for one, can't wait!

GETTING READY

2011-09-13T09:48:00.000-04:00

Ad created by Jeroen ten Berge

So Bouchercon is two days away and I'm getting pretty darn excited. It's just about time to pack and make sure I have everything I need.

If you're attending and you care about what some fans have to say (and you're not too hungover), I'll be on a Sunday morning panel, called SPELLBOUND (10-11am), discussing favourite books and books we're excited about from the convention.

There are so many folks that I'm looking forward to meeting and that includes you. If you see a lonely and lost looking Canuck in need of a drink and some friendly conversation...that's me! Lets have a drink and shoot the shit for awhile.

IRREDEEMABLE by Mark Waid

2011-09-12T10:41:00.000-04:00

With Irredeemable: Volume 1 Mark Waid postulates what if the world's greatest hero decided to become the world's greatest villain?

The Plutonian (think Superman) has gone postal. He's had it up to here with the human race and their backstabbing, lying and ungrateful ways. He's had his heart broken, this patience shredded and his kindness slowly bled from his soul.

Now he's on a mission and it isn't to save the White House from a suitcase nuke, or stop a giant robot from destroying a packed ballpark. No, his mission is to burn the safety blanket beneath which the world slept under his watch.

And make no mistake, the Plutonian isn't fooling around. He's destroying cities, killing millions of innocent lives, at the same time he's hunting down and murdering every superhero he can find. In the opening sequence the Plutonian incinerates the family of superhero trying to escape from his fiery fury. Even when the man begs for the life of his children it makes no difference. Before killing the little girl the Plutonian whispers in her ear, "Do you know who I am, Sarah? I'm a superhero."

As the Plutonian continues his rampage, his former friends delve into his past trying to find out why he's become the way he has, while searching for a solution to stopping an unstoppable force.

IRREDEEMABLE is a very frightening, yet wickedly satisfying read. I found it very easy to slip into the Plutonian's mindset and feel his unquenching madness towards the world. I mean, I'm no superhero, but I can see exactly where this guy is coming from. Sure, I've never saved a kid from falling into Niagara Falls, or saved the world from Terrance Stamp but I do hold the door for folks behind me and I got to tell ya, when that person doesn't acknowledge my little superduty, it pisses me off! It makes me want to grab their nose and give it a little twist. "How you like that you ungrateful assbrain!"

So yeah, I get where the Plutonian is coming from. You do all this good for folks and some guy in the crowd thinks, Showoff jerk and Flipping underwear pervert.

You can only take so much shit from the world before you feel like you have to give some back.

Thanks to Gef over at Wag The Fox for pointing this one out to me. If you haven't checked out his blog, it's a must. I can't tell you how many books and comics he's put me on to over the last couple of years.

CONTAGION - review

2011-09-09T19:05:00.000-04:00

If you're planning on seeing CONTAGION be sure to pack along a bottle of hand sanitizer and maybe a face mask, for good measure. If you don't use them before the film, you most definitely will want them by the time the final scene finishes rolling.

CONTAGION, staring (among others) Matt Damon, Jude Law, Kate Winslet, Laurence Fishburne and Jennifer Ehle is about a terrible virus that infects a woman (Gwyneth Paltrow) while she is on a business trip to Hong Kong. Contagious but not yet showing signs of the illness, she has a fling with an old flame on a stop over in Chicago, before returning home to Minneapolis and her family.

From this point the movie shows how quickly a virus can sweep across the globe at the same time as doctors and specialists try to track and contain the sick, while also digging for the origin of the sickness and creating a cure.

I really enjoyed CONTAGION. I thought all the actors put in strong performances, in particular Jennifer Ehle, who I found mesmerizing every time she was on the screen. She has a particularly touching moment with her character's father near the end of the film which will tug at your heartstrings.

But the most sensational star of this show was not an actor at all. In fact it was the movie's soundtrack. It has been a long time since I remember being as blown away by a movie's music as I was here. The synthesized score by Cliff Martinez is out of this world, and does as much to propel the movie forward as the script itself. The soundtrack alone is worth the price of admission.

Interesting, fascinating, but most of all worrisome, CONTAGION paints what I can only imagine is a very real life picture of what it would be like if we are hit with something more vicious than SARS. Not only does it show the struggles the health care infrastructure would face, but also the unbelievable, almost unimaginable red tape politicians and government organizations would throw up in such if such a tragedy occurred.

Not exactly a date movie (you probably won't be interested in swapping spit with anyone by the end) but definitely an attention grabber, a thinking persons film.

Actually, it was so quiet exiting the theatre you could have heard a pin drop, and I could not help but think if everyone was thinking what I was thinking: I wish I had some hand sanitizer right now.

Z. CONSTANCE FROST - interview

2011-09-08T07:58:00.000-04:00

This past summer I read a terrific thriller called The Serial Killer's Wife by Robert Swartwood. At the end of that novel was an excerpt for a book called No Shelter (Holly Lin, No. 1) by Z. Constance Frost.

I really dug the premise and having just finished one rocket ride thriller, I was in the mood for more, and NO SHELTER sounded like just the thing.

It surpassed my expectations and more!

I couldn't wait to pick the author's brains and find out more about this fantastic new writer on the scene.

MEB: Welcome to THE MAN EATING BOOKWORM!

So, you're a mother of two, and author, living just outside of Washington D.C. Like your main character's nanny job being a cover for her work as an assassin, is this a deceptive front for a...darker life? Who is Z. Constance Frost really?

Z: Thanks for having me, Peter!

And who is Z. Constance Frost? Well, there really isn't much to tell. I have two kids, two jobs, and try to write when I find time. I'm living the American dream! :-)

MEB: Tell us about writing NO SHELTER. How long did it take to write and what were some of the biggest obstacles you had to overcome?

Z: I’m a big fan of Lee Child, and one day when I was reading one of his books I thought it would be cool if there was a female character as smart and tough as Jack Reacher. And from there Holly Lin was born.

I'm also a big fan of Charlie Huston's early novels and love the voice and knew if I wanted to tell this story I should do it in the first person present tense. It took about six months to write from beginning to end, but I wasn't writing every day I'm sorry to say, just when I found the extra time.

MEB: So you finish NO SHELTER and are ready for the next step. Publication. What made you choose to release it as an e-book?

Z: Again it took me about six months to write the book (first draft to final draft), then another six months before I managed to sign with an agent. I was thrilled but then the rejections started coming in. Basically a few editors liked it but didn't like it enough, or they liked it but didn't know how they could properly market the book.

Long story short, my agent decided it was time to put the book away. And that was really disheartening, because I wrote it as the first book in a series. It wasn't like I could write the second book and try to sell that. So I decided it wouldn't hurt to self-publish it as an e-book.

MEB: Holly Lin is one of my favourite characters to read this year. She kicks an awesome amount of ass. What was your inspiration for Holly and did you intend at the outset to make her a series character?

Z: Thanks!

Like I mentioned, I wanted to do a female version of Jack Reacher, though a character that was a little more vulnerable. As much as I like Reacher, him being smart and always right all the time sometimes gets old. So I knew with Holly Lin, I wanted to make her ... well, a little bit more realistic.

MEB: I dig the cover for NO SHELTER. Who is your cover artist and what sort of input did you have in its creation?

Z: The cover was designed by Wyatt Perko. I found him through Robert Swartwood's blog. I really loved the cover for The Silver Ring and so I contacted Robert and he put me in touch with Wyatt. I told him what my book was about and he came back with this cover. It's great!

MEB: One Amazon.com reviewer enjoyed NO SHELTER so much he doubted your claim as a debut novelist. He actually claimed you might be a "Best Seller" testing the e-book waters. If this were true, which "Best Selling" author would you be?

Z: Toni Morrison, because I think it would be neat if a Nobel Prize winning author wrote about female assassins.

MEB: The title of your book comes from a Rage Against the Machine song. The sequel, DOWN IN A HOLE, is from Alice In Chains. I'm guessing you're a grunge/hard rock fan. One of my favourite concerts as a teen was seeing Soundgarden in a small bar in downtown T.O.. What was one of your favourite shows you attended?

Z: Definitely Tool. I'm a huge Maynard fan, so I also love A Perfect Circle, though I haven't had a chance to see them in concert.

MEB: What's a writing day like for Z. Constance Frost? Do you crank the music to ear splitting levels? Do you write in a coffee shop or on a subway train on the way to work? Any weird rituals, or human sacrifices made before touching fingers to keyboard?

Z: My writing day is very sporadic. It's basically whenever I can get an extra hour to write a few words. It could be in the morning, could be in the afternoon, could be in the evening. I just never know!

MEB: I thought your book was one of the most kick-ass reads so far this year. What books have your read this year that you would label "kick-ass"?

Z: Because I have two children a lot of the books I've been reading this year are for kids (we just finished the Lemony Snicket series, which was great!) but I did get a chance to read Robert Swartwood's new thriller The Serial Killer's Wife (which No Shelter is excerpted in) and it was really awesome.

MEB: Thanks for taking the time out of your busy schedule to answer some questions, Z!

Z: Thank you!

There you have it Wormies. I hope you enjoyed the interview and if you're looking for something fantastic to read be sure to check out Z. Constance Frost's No Shelter (Holly Lin, No. 1).

You can find Z. on the web right here.

RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE - No Shelter

2011-09-07T09:57:00.000-04:00

A teaser for tomorrows post...

IT'S ABOUT A CAR!

2011-09-05T21:48:00.001-04:00

In my review of Stephen King's Mile 81 (Kindle Single) (and in the comments) I was pretty hard on Scribner for their lame ass cover work. I'm just not a fan of plain or vague book covers.

Some folks prefer them. I get that. They don't want anything to spoil what they might discover between the covers.

But me, I want a peek at what strange lands I'm going to be exploring, what sinister creatures I might encounter and the heroes that will do battle with them!

My friend Mark (check out his terrific blog THE DOCTOR IS IN) brought to my attention the UK cover art for MILE 81. It is, in my opinion, not outstanding but certainly a better effort.

*

I had one of those "What's That Author Up To?" moments the other day regarding Susanna Clarke. She took the publishing world by storm with her epic Victorian novel of magic and mystery Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell.

Anyone who has read Clarke's novel will undoubtedly tell you it is a masterful work of fiction that at times thrills the imagination in it's power and scope, while other times becomes so boring it will bring you to tears. Nevertheless, a novel not to be missed.

It has been seven years since JONATHAN STRANGE AND MR. NORRELL was published in 2004 (you could buy either the black or white edition) and I can't help but believe she must be nearing completion on her expected sequel.

*

I've been doing this blog a little over a year and a half and have made a lot of wonderful new friends (some who I'm looking forward to rubbing elbows with in St. Louis in ten days time @ Bouchercon).

When I first set out my main intention was simple. I wanted to get free books. I was jealous of bloggers who seemed to get boxes of books from all the big publishers. And all they had to do was write a little review.

Now, I haven't reached the kind of readership as a Graeme's Fantasy Book Review or Fantasy Book Critic or Bookgasm but I manage to to get about a 100 page views a day. To me that blows my mind. That folks, any folks, enjoy coming here and reading my opinions on books, graphic novels and movies is unbelievable.

While I haven't received a single physical book via a publisher, I have been lucky to receive a lot of e-books from authors (particularly indie writers) wanting their work reviewed on THE MAN EATING BOOKWORM. I've discovered a lot of fantastic new writers this way and look forward to discovering even more as I wade through the waters of Amazon.com.

Unfortunately, moving forward, I will not be accepting anymore books for review on the blog.

The reasons are simple.

One, I'm fooling myself thinking I can get to all the books folks are sending me.

Two, I'm a very, very, moody reader. Sometimes I want horror and other times I want crime, while other times I don't know what the fuck I want to read and I pout around the house making everyone miserable. This does not help me get to that book a patient writer is waiting for me to read. And I feel bad about that!

Three, I just think that if I'm reviewing things I want to read and not necessarily books I feel obligated to read, my reviews will be more interesting, more honest.

So, from this day forth THE MAN EATING BOOKWORM will not be accepting books for review.

If you have a book you think I might like, by all means, bring it to my attention. It might be just the book I'm looking for.

But I will buy it myself and get to it my own time.

Also, though I try to get in three posts a week, to keep things fresh around here, I'm going to be cutting back to just two, and sometimes maybe just one. I'm not sure how it will all work out but I won't be posting as often.

I have a big project I want to begin tomorrow and to give it the necessary attention I have to spend less time here.

I hope all you Wormies will stick with me despite these few changes.

MILE 81 by Stephen King

2011-09-01T21:49:00.001-04:00

Mile 81 (Kindle Single) is another automotive horror story from Stephen King, to go along with Christine (Signet), From a Buick 8 and, to some extent, Trucks, collected in Night Shift.

MILE 81 isn't the best short story I've ever read by King, however, it's far from the worst.

It's a quick tale of horror that will help fill the void for fans waiting anxiously for 11/22/63: A Novel to come out this fall.

I do have a few complaints, mainly concerning the less than convincing voice of the main character of the story, a boy named Pete Simmons, who sounds more like a 12 year old from the '50s, rather than a 8 or 9 year old from 2011.

There were two or three editing errors, a couple words left out here and there, which is a bit irksome considering the price and that it was produced by Scribner. I am somewhat forgiving of such errors by "indie" writers, as long as they are not pervasive but find them hard to swallow when I'm reading a story professionally proof read.

What bothered me the most was the dedication at the end of the story, which for some stupid reason, is tacked onto the very end of the story. For just a moment I was left thinking, "WTF?". A very shoddy piece of editing, that, and a crappy last impression.

I think it's too expensive for a short story. It was my impression when I ordered MILE 81 I would be getting was a novella-ish length story but that isn't the case. Of course, I don't think Scribner ever claimed MILE 81 would be anything more.

Overall not a bad story. King always entertains, and in the end that's what I'm looking for.

I do have to say the cover blows. Did someone actually get paid for that crap? People can say it's just an e-book or covers don't matter, but I hold the opinion they do. A cover, to this reader, should encapsulate what you can expect from reading the story within. If you didn't read the product description, you might think the story was set on the highways of some fiery post apocalyptic world, not a deserted truck stop set in the present day.

READY PLAYER ONE by Ernest Cline

2011-08-31T22:38:00.000-04:00

I don't know if Ready Player One by Ernest Cline is the best book I've read all year, but it certainly is the most fun I've had reading a book this year.

Maybe in a long time.

Most of you have probably heard of READY PLAYER ONE, and the things everyone have been saying are true. This is the perfect book for nerds, geeks, dweebs, losers, ... well, you get the idea. Everyone who grew up during the 1980's.

Don't deny it. There is a little geek and nerd in all of us and this book takes you back to your days of D&D, Billy Idol, Rush, and Pac Man. It reminds you how much fun it was to play Gauntlet and the excitement you had when you first watched Marty escape from the Libyan terrorists at the Twin Pines Mall in Back To The Future.

Intellevision, Commodore 64, Atari 2600, ColecoVision, Nintendo. We had them all.

I remember playing Donkey Kong with my father and watching my brothers at the arcade obsess over Tron. Some of my favourite games were Frogger, Space Invaders and Centipede. I once got mugged in an arcade across the street from Maple Leaf Gardens. Okay, maybe that's a memory I would rather forget.

But I digress.

READY PLAYER ONE is about a contest, a game within a video game, one that will rock the world and change the lives of five people forever. In order to win the game, players will have to have a superlative passion and knowledge of the 1980's.

READY PLAYER ONE is super cool, and super fun. It's a homage to a time when Hollywood was still making fun, original movies; to a time when you had to go to an arcade to play all the latest games and vinyl records competed with eight-track tapes.

There are few books that I read twice (something I wish to fix). However, READY PLAYER ONE is one I will be reading again soon.

By the way, I think the cover sucks. With such amazing content to draw on, this is the crap they come up with? Seriously?

Below is the U.K. cover. Not a whole lot better, but at least they made an effort.

MEG: ORIGINS by Steve Alten

2011-08-29T09:29:00.006-04:00

If you were to ask anyone what their top five all time favourite movies are, somewhere on their list would be Jaws. It is widely regarded by many as one of the best and scariest movies ever filmed.

Spielberg's classic film of man vs. shark is a movie that awakens in humans a primal fear of the dark waters beneath the surface.

Jaws impacted an entire generation of movie goers, doing what most movies can only dream of accomplishing.

It affected our behaviour.

After watching the movie millions of people were suddenly afraid to dip their toes in the water for fear of having it bitten off by a Great White or one of it's brethren.

As a youngster I can remember being terrified to go swimming at my grandparents cottage on Georgian Bay. Even though it's not even possible for sharks to survive in fresh water, I couldn't stop myself from imagining some sleek, dark, killing machine rising from the deep to bite me in half (to the score by John Williams, of course!).

Even in my backyard swimming pool, my imagination would sometimes get away from me and I would find myself racing to climb out before a Great White got me, sure that I had spotted the fin of death out of the corner of my eye.

But it wasn't just the movie that kicked ass. Peter Benchley's novel was a huge success in it's own right, and a terrific "summer read" or "beach book".

Benchley was one of my favourite writers growing up and Jaws was hardly the only watery thrillers he penned. And while none of his future books would have the same impact as JAWS did, they still brought along the same fright factors. Check out Beast by Peter Benchley (Hardback), or White Shark.

Sadly Peter Benchley passed away in 2006.

So, where is all this leading?

Well, if Jaws impacted you the same way it did me, then you are always on the lookout for other books and movies in the same vein. Of course I watched all the Jaws sequels, not to mention films like Deep Blue Sea and more recently Open Water.

But for reading pleasure I got hooked on Steve Alten's MEG series, about a Megalodon, (the Great White's prehistoric cousin) a giant shark the size of a Grayhound bus, that miraculously rises from its watery prison in the Mariana Trench where it has survived for thousands of years.

So far there are four books in the series, Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror, The Trench, MEG: Primal Waters and Meg: Hell's Aquarium.

Recently Alten released a prequel for the series called Meg: Origins. If you have read any of the MEG novels then you are familiar with the story told in ORIGINS, which revolves around Jonas Taylor's first encounter with a Megalodon. However, this short novella goes into greater depth (so to speak) and brings you closer to the action than previously recounted in the novels.

It's a tasty delight for anyone that enjoys these sorts of books and a great starting point for the entire series of novels.

Alten also recently released the e-book edition of Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror (the first book in the series).

So, Wormies, this is perfect time to dive into these watery terrors. Read MEG: ORIGINS and MEG: A NOVEL OF DEEP TERROR and then go see SHARK NIGHT 3D on Friday!

NIGHT MARKET debuts!

2011-08-27T15:49:00.001-04:00

Ever since seeing the remake of FRIGHT NIGHT I've been wanting to read a kick-ass vampire novel.

Thanks, again, to Jeroen ten Berge for coming to the rescue. Jeroen designed the cover for Hunter F. Goss's debut novel called Night Market. I think it looks gnarly.

Here is the product description from Amazon.com:

A beautiful vampire whose entire country was excommunicated.

A stock trader who hunts profits in the markets the way his Undead lover hunts human blood.

A love beyond life itself that sparks pleasures so overwhelming even the Undead can only whisper about them.

A powerful Undead enemy out to change the map of Europe.

Andrew Kirkland is sent to London to manage sales of a controversial bond issue that will pull the United States Treasury back from the brink of insolvency. While there, he’ll serve as investment advisor to beautiful, wealthy and mysterious Veronica Fontera who’s providing badly needed gold for the venture.

But Veronica is Undead and has her own plans for Andrew. That is, until she falls in love with him.

Andrew must juggle a love affair unlike any other and the investments of Undead clients while being drawn into a battle with Josef Graf von Borbek, an Austro-Hungarian vampire who wants to plunge half the world into war. As the pair do battle, the stakes get higher and higher until Borbek finally turns his attention toward Andrew’s old mentor J.P. Morgan and an American economy spiraling into a credit crisis. But Andrew has a weapon at his disposal his enemy hasn’t counted on: money.

Money from the Night Market. Millions that flow across borders and through the world’s bourses while humans sleep. A market that never closes, and where all the trading is ‘after hours’.

KICK ASS by Mark Millar

2011-08-26T19:54:00.001-04:00

KICK-ASS was one of my favourite movies from last year. I loved everything about it. The action. The story line. The humour.

But mostly I loved Chloe Moretz as Hit Girl and her filthy mouth. This cute, young, star is going to have a kick-ass career (already in big screen hits, like DIARY OF A WIMPY KID and LET ME IN, as well as appearances on shows like Desperate Housewives and 30 Rock). If you haven't seen her performance in KICK-ASS, it's a must.

At the time I wanted to buy the graphic novel but for one reason or not, I didn't.

Then a week ago, I did!

So here is my short, long overdue, review of Mark Millar's Kick-Ass.

KICK-ASS is kick-ass.

The is pretty much all you need to know.

John Romita Jr.'s flashy artwork perfectly complements Millar's hyper violent story line of kids playing super heroes and taking on a mob boss.

The story lines of both movie and comic are almost exact but for one key plot point that actually gives the graphic novel a little bit more emotional punch. It revolves around Big Daddy's reason for going after mob boss John Genovese (Frank D'Amico in the movie). I can understand why they changed it for the film but at the same time feel the movie, perhaps, missed out adding another level of emotion depth.

If, like me, you haven't picked up the KICK-ASS graphic novel, and like me, you enjoy your entertainment with lots of violence, witty and vulgar, yet hilarious, dialogue, then grabbing this book is a must.

Aidan waiting in line for Brett Lawrie's autograph

Speaking of kick-ass, Aidan (my 9 yr old son) and I went down to the Eaton Centre today and waited in line over four hours to get Brett Lawrie's autograph.

Brett Lawrie is the fiercely competitive young Canadian playing third base for the Toronto Blue Jays (who actually just hit a home run as I write this blog post against the Tampa Bay Rays).

Aidan and I had a great time. And despite the long wait, it was worth it to see the look on my son's face after to getting to meet his (and mine, too!) favourite ball player.

Me and Aidan still waiting!

Aidan getting Brett Lawrie's autograph

A happy kid!

THUG by J.E. Medrick

2011-08-23T09:14:00.002-04:00

Thug (Icarus Helix #5) marks the halfway point of the first "season" for this terrific series for young adults. Of course you don't have to be a young adult to enjoy these stories.

THUG is about Anthony and Anna, brother and sister, who struggle to make ends meet. Their circumstances, living in poverty with neglectful parents, make Anthony terribly protective of his younger sister. He has no qualms about busting noses and blackening some eyes (even if it means facing suspension or expulsion from school) if anyone says anything derogatory about her good character.

With the start of his final year at Waredo High, Anthony's life is about to get turned upside down.

While on a late run delivering a pizza he witnesses something he can hardly believe. Meanwhile, his sister isn't well. She begins missing school and hiding away beneath the covers of her bed, not eating or drinking anything. And where are their parents? They seem to be missing around the house more than usual.

Anthony tries to keep everything together but that's just not in the cards.

Once again J.E. delivers some great new characters in her growing cast. Though not my favourite of the five releases thus far (that title is reserved for Thief (Icarus Helix #4)), it still packs quite a wollop, especially at the end.

With each new episode some questions are answered but a hundred more pop into my head, wondering how it's all going to turn out. I know we're probably in for a heck of cliff hanger at the end of "Season One" but isn't that what makes these things so much fun?

Be sure to check it out if you haven't already. Lend your tweens your Kindle so they can read it, too.

Start by reading Cheat (Icarus Helix #1) today!

FRIGID (Icarus Helix #6) is forthcoming.

A Tale of Two Movies

2011-08-19T21:51:00.000-04:00

I spent the afternoon at the movies watching, as it turns out, two remakes.

First on the docket was FRIGHT NIGHT, a remake of the 1985 horror/comedy/thriller that starred Chris Sarandon, Roddy McDowell and Amanda Bearse. I've seen the original a few times but it's been a long time. Long enough I could watch this new film with a fresh pair of eyes.

And let me say, this new FRIGHT NIGHT is quite kick-ass!

I can't explain it but I've really been looking forward to seeing it. For some reason I've been wanting to watch a good vampire movie. And FRIGHT NIGHT fit the bill.

It's scary, funny (but not slapstick) and the 3D is actually pretty good for a change. Even the cheesy blue screen scenes worked, actually accentuating the creepy factor rather than taking from it.

The acting is great, too. I actually liked Colin Farrell in this movie. At first I thought he was a strange choice for a movie like this but it turns out he's actually perfect for the role of Jerry, the vampire next door.

Farrell isn't the only actor that delivers a good showing. Toni Collette, the beautiful and splendid actress from such great films as MURIEL'S WEDDING, ABOUT A BOY and LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE (yes, I enjoyed all three) is great, even if her role here is not exactly challenging.

David Tennent is perfect in the role of Peter Vincent and Christopher Mintz-Plasse, as always, provides a sympathetic and comedic performance.

Anton Yelchin (who is currently filming Koontz's ODD THOMAS) does a good job replacing William Ragsdale as Charley Brewster, the object of Jerry the vampire's attention.

FRIGHT NIGHT is worth the full price, plus the obnoxious price for some popcorn and Coke.

Next up was CONAN THE BARBARIAN, a remake of the 1982 Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, a movie I had quite high hopes for.

Unfortunately what I got was a complete and utter piece of shit. The story line was weak, the acting god awful, and the 3D compete garbage.

Do not waste your money. Don't even rent it on DVD. Don't even bother stealing it off the internet or viewing it on cable a couple years from now.

It's shit, shit, shit.

Remember that sinking disappointment you felt last summer watching the remake of CLASH OF THE TITANS?

Yeah, well, this makes CLASH OF THE TITANS seem like cinematic gold. Jason Momao makes Sam Worthington look Oscar worthy.

Yeah, I know Ron Pearlman's in it. I like him too and he's probably the only good thing in the movie. Everything else about it stinks, from Morgan Freeman's crappy narration to Rose McGowan's bloody terrible acting. Jesus, please, someone kick her annoying ass out of Hollywood. If you ever want me to claw my eyes out simply make me watch her performance in this film over again. Good Lord!

There are too many things wrong with this film to mention here.

Just trust me on this one.

The original CONAN was amazing. If you want CONAN, just watch that. You may not like Arnie. I know, he's a cheating bastard and a scum sucking politician but, by Crom, there is no denying he brought the character of Conan to life.

So, FRIGHT NIGHT good. CONAN THE BARBARIAN bad.

Oh, and the posters for the originals are much better in both cases. That scary vampire on the original FRIGHT NIGHT poster. BRRRrrrrr! Still gives me the creeps!

THE ACCIDENT by Linwood Barclay

2011-08-19T10:43:00.003-04:00

Stephen King testimonials on book covers don't usually do anything for me. I've been burned too many times. Sorry Stevie, it's true.

But for some reason, in Linwood Barclay's case, it worked.

"THE BEST THRILLER I'VE READ IN FIVE YEARS." That's what he said about Barclay's Never Look Away: A Thriller.

That's some serious back patting.

When I was in the book store last week and saw Barclay's latest I decided to see what King was talking about. Sure, it wasn't the same book, but what the hell?

Barclay is also attending Bouchercon in September. If I liked it, then great, another author I can get all geeky around. If I didn't, well, I could slap myself for falling prey to another Stephen King quote.

Turns out The Accident: A Thriller is pretty damn good.

At first I didn't think I was going to like it. THE ACCIDENT takes a bit of time to really take off, but if you give this book about 150 pages, it finally soars and you can't help but want to go along for the ride.

The underlying theme of THE ACCIDENT is how the crappy economy in the United States, the collapse of the housing market and high unemployment rates, push some folks towards what some might call the underground economy, or shadow economy. In some cases, average folks become tangled up in schemes and crimes involving organized crime.

When Glen Garber's wife is found at fault for a suspicious car accident on a highway off-ramp that claims her life as well as two others, his world quickly turns upside down. He stumbles upon secrets his wife was keeping from him, as well as a web of criminal behaviour his neighbours, family and friends are caught in.

This is a different type of thriller than I usually enjoy reading. I like my books bad-ASS. Lots of guns, extreme violence, with a break-neck speed. THE ACCIDENT is a quiet, methodical thriller, at least until the last quarter of the book when the pace and violence pick up.

Barclay's writing is crisp and clean, easy to read. There were a couple of things that niggled at me, such as Garber's eight year old daughter, who is supposed to be a sympathetic character but comes across a bit whiny and spoiled. The main fault is a lot of her lines come off more as something a 13 year old would say, not an eight year old.

The other thing that kind of bugged me was the way everyone in the book judges everyone else when they themselves are guilty of similar crimes or miss-behaviors. Even Garber, at times, comes off as a bit of a hypocrite. But maybe this was a part of Barclay's message?

Overall a thought provoking and enjoyable read.

I will definitely be seeking out more Barclay in the future. Maybe an autographed copy of something down in St. Louis!

FUN AND GAMES by Duane Swierczynski

2011-08-15T11:40:00.000-04:00

With Bouchercon 2011 just around the corner, my focus in going to shift primarily to reading attending authors.

One author I'm particularly excited to cross paths with is Duane Swierczynski. He's one of the hipper authors out there, dividing his talents between sizzling crime noir novels and writing for Marvel comics.

One of my favourite books by Swierczynski is The Blonde. It's an extremely fun and high intensity read that is sure to excite any thriller reader out there.

Severance Package is another edge-of-your-seat thriller you won't want to miss.

His novel Expiration Date is up for an Anthony Award at Bouchercon this year (Best Paperback Original).

Swierczynski's latest release is Fun and Games, the first part of what is sure to be a rip snorting trilogy of mayhem and madness.

This first instalment is about a man named Charlie Hardie, a guy that house sits for the rich and famous. They go on vacation and he watches their homes while they're gone. He makes sure no one breaks in or sets the place on fire. It's easy.

Then he runs into Lane Madden.

Lane Madden is a Hollywood sweetheart who's career is spiralling out control (think Lindsay Lohan). Her drinking and behaviour have gotten her in trouble with the law and her face plastered on all the wrong gossip magazines and blogs. But what they don't know is that Lane has a dark secret, one that makes her a liability to some high stakes players in the Hollywood games.

Enter the Accident People.

As I've said on here a million times, I'm not one for giving to much of the plot away. Suffice it to say, Lane and Charlie get mixed up together and go on a wild-assed ride to try and save their lives.

FUN AND GAMES is a fast read. It's intense, and has lots of twists and turns that will have you turning the pages long into the night (I read the last hundred pages in a single sitting, something I don't often do).

If you have never read a Swierczynski novel, this a really good place to start.

The second part of the trilogy hits stores this October and is called Hell and Gone. All I know is I hope he's got some ARC's for sale at Bouchercon because I can't wait to see what happens next!

WITCHFINDER by Mike Mignola

2011-08-12T08:07:00.000-04:00

After my recent enjoyment reading the deliciously dark and beautifully illustrated Baltimore Volume 1: The Plague Ships, I was understandably hungry for more. There is just something magical that happens when Mike Mignola and Ben Stenbeck get together to tell a story (certainly Christopher Golden shouldn't be forgotten either!)

It was the perfect time to hunt down a book that I've been meaning to read for some time now. That book is Witchfinder: In the Service of Angels.

WITCHFINDER is linked to the same world as Mignola's HELLBOY and BPRD, which made this even more attractive, since I recently finished off B.P.R.D.: Plague of Frogs Collection, Vol. 1.

Like those other books, WITCHFINDER is amazing simply as a book of art. Without reading the gothic monster story within, you can easily lose yourself in the fantastic panels by Stenbeck. You can almost smell the dank Victorian London air, feel the foggy cobblestone streets beneath your feet and hear the thrum of the river Thames. Stenbeck simply has the power to transport my imagination back in time, or to other worlds.

The book is about an ape-like monster that is stalking the streets of late 19th century London and the man tasked with hunting it down, Sir Edward Grey, a.k.a. The Witchfinder (so named after an incident when he saved Queen Victoria from some fiendish hags).

In all honesty, Grey is not one of my favourite characters. More than anything he comes across as a bit of a bore, despite being mixed up in a situation that is anything but. And it is the story of the creature that saves this story, certainly. The lore and history, the mythology are as dense as anything else Mignola has created in the past with HELLBOY and the BPRD.

Worth picking up, definitely, but overall maybe not quite as satisfying as BALTIMORE or other tales in the HELLBOY and BPRD universe.

SOUTHERN GODS by John Hornor Jacobs

2011-08-10T06:28:00.006-04:00

Southern Gods, in my estimation, is as important a novel as Stephen King's Carrie, Straub's Ghost Story and Blatty's The Exorcist. Like those books, SOUTHERN GODS is a bold proclamation for the arrival of a new, dark, literary voice.

I have waited a long time to read Jacobs' book, having heard about its existence a couple of years ago. And I can tell you that it was well worth the wait. SOUTHERN GODS is a deliciously rich serving of macabre story telling.

Somewhere in the vast nether regions beyond the black veil, Howard Phillips Lovecraft is smiling.

SOUTHERN GODS is a story about awakenings, of discoveries, of dark gods and a man and woman that will end up doing battle against them.

Bull Ingram is on the hunt for one man lost to the world and another that is at the centre of a mysterious radio broadcast coming from deep in the heart of Arkansas, a man who's voice can raise the dead.

Sarah Rheinhart is a woman rediscovering her past after abandoning her wreck of a marriage. What she finds in the library of her childhood home is evidence of the same sinister entity Ingram is searching for, one familiar with the Rheinhart lineage. And one that is hellbent on reuniting itself with the Old Gods and bringing about the enslavement of all mankind.

Historical, lyrical, and downright masterful. SOUTHERN GODS is a carefully executed excursion into the unmapped territory of madness and horror. Each sentence, each paragraph, displays Jacobs' care and precision, his dedication to craftsmanship.

You've read my interview and now you have read my glowing review. What more do you need? Please, click on the link and start reading SOUTHERN GODS today. I would love to hear what you think!

JOHN HORNOR JACOBS - interview

2011-08-08T11:27:00.000-04:00

I'm very excited about today's guest at THE MAN EATING BOOKWORM. For those of you in the dark about John Horner Jacobs, this a great opportunity to turn on the light. Night Shade Books has just released his debut novel, Southern Gods, and it's garnering plenty of great reviews across the blogosphere and Amazon.com!

Below, we discuss the origin of SOUTHERN GODS, his involvement in Needle: A Magazine of Noir and future works. Hope you enjoy!

MEB: John, welcome to THE MAN EATING BOOKWORM. What is SOUTHERN GODS about and tell us a little about its journey from words on your computer screen to hitting shelves in all the major bookstores?

JHJ: Thanks for inviting me to be here.

Okay, back in the summer of 2007 I took a job that didn’t have a lot of creative potential for me. I’ve been in advertising for more than a decade by then as a creative, and I had grown accustomed to working on stimulating projects on a daily basis. Anyway, the company I took a job with had promised more variety than it actually had.

So, after a few months I was bored out of my skull and pissed off that what creative energy I had was being wasted at this humdrum, bullshit company. In my college days, back in the early 90s, my fondest dream was to become a novelist and like any fast-approaching middle-age suburbanite, I felt like I needed to rekindle that dream before it became totally unachievable. If I wasn’t going to write a novel now, at thirty seven, when the hell was I going to? The time wasn’t just ripe, it was near rotten.

One of the silly things fledgling writers do is go to Barnes and Noble and buy books on writing instead of sitting down and just writing. That’s what I did. And I found a book called, No Plot? No Problem!: A Low-Stress, High-Velocity Guide to Writing a Novel in 30 Days. It was written by the guy who founded the National Novel Writing Month and was, in essence, one big advertisement for NaNoWriMo. But it worked. I entered the National Novel Writing Month and “won” it, completing fifty thousand words in a month.

The novel wasn’t complete, though. So I kept writing for the next few months until it was done.

Here’s the weird deal. I started out being a lover of books and I simply wanted to see if I could write a novel myself. It was a “can I climb that mountain?” moment. But once I was done, I thought to myself, “Self, you’ve done this thing, why the hell wouldn’t you try to get it published?” I knew, though, there was a lot more to getting published and I felt I needed to polish the work. I joined an online writers workshop and attended Borderlands Press Boot Camp. I spent a good amount of time critiquing and getting critiqued and I realized, I didn’t like that sort of feedback mechanism. I hope this doesn’t come off sounding like a total dickwad, but in those critiquing sessions, I just didn’t ever encounter anyone whom I felt was on the same level as me, so taking their direction on developing character, voice, style just wasn’t working. I couldn’t do it.

So I began submitting Southern Gods to small presses and started working on the next novel, This Dark Earth. I never workshopped that book with anyone.

This is the cool part of the story: so, after nearly a year eight months I completed my next novel and I was still waiting to hear back from this one small press regarding Southern Gods. Nearly a year after submitting it, the publisher accepted it. And then I didn’t hear anything from him for months.

In the interim, I started another book, posted some of it on my blog, and my friend John Rector, the author of The Cold Kiss and The Grove, emailed me saying, “Imagine that. You can actually write.” We’d been friends but he’d never read my stuff and I’d never asked him to. So he requests a read and I gave him a copy of This Dark Earth.

Few days later, he emails and asks, “Have you signed anything with that micro-press?” I answered in the negative and he introduced me to my agent. After three nerve-wracking months, she signed me as a client.

During those three months, there was STILL no progress from the small press. Since they intended to publish collectible hardbacks, Stacia had no problem with me continuing on with my deal with them, because we’d still have the mass market, ebook and trade paperback rights. Eventually the publisher sends the contract and in addition to the hardback rights, they want ebook rights, so we decline the deal. Stacia then starts shopping This Dark Earth and Southern Gods goes on a back burner.

Shew. This is a long story.

Anyway, another year later and it looks like This Dark Earth isn’t going to sell, we’ve sent it out to 20+ publishers and there’ve been rejections across the board. So we start shopping Southern Gods and it gets snapped up pretty quickly from Night Shade Books. And then, five months later, out of the blue, Simon & Schuster snatches up This Dark Earth. So, that’s the long-winded story of Southern Gods coming to fruition.

Did I mention there was a LOT of waiting?

MEB: What sort of research did you need to do for writing SOUTHERN GODS?

JHJ: I researched a lot about the era. Southern Gods is set in 1951 – which is a problematic time to write about for a person of my age. For one thing, I’m twenty years too young to have experienced it even as an infant, but on the other hand, there are millions of Americans who came of age in that decade and know it far more intimately than I could – and hopefully a large percentage of those people will be giving it some scrutiny. So, it was important – very important – that I got the details of the era correct.

I researched the history of radio with a focus on Arkansas, and Ray Poindexter’s Arkansas airwaves was a big help. I also spent a lot of time researching WWII history from the perspective of the marines who fought in Guadacanal. It wasn’t so much figuring out what battle occurred when, but more about the daily fabric of soldier’s lives, the feel and terror of battle, the camaraderie among the men. And I read what I could about PTSD, though I prefer the phrase “shell-shocked” – what it lacks in accuracy, it captures in spirit.

There was a lot of other minor things to research which I think contributed to the whole: the state of Austria prior WWI, the culture and language and religion of Montenegro, the practices of the Catholic Church, obscure gods and cargo cults. But the stuff that gave me the most problems was how much did a steak dinner cost in 1951? Or a soda? A hotel room? To compensate for my ignorance there, I made sure Bull Ingram was a good tipper.

MEB: I'm working on the first draft of a short novel right now about the kidnapping of triplets and the macabre adventure one boy goes on to find them. In my head I see the story as a grand graphic novel. Writing it is like describing these panels I see in my mind and copying down the dialogue bubbles. What visual medium do you see in your head when you write?

JHJ: I don’t write with any visual medium in mind. The hard part of writing is transferring experience – even false, imaginary experience – into prose. So, there’s more than just the visual that goes into effective writing, in my humble opinion. Conveying an experience takes in sight, of course, but there are so many more sensations that feed into memory – the smell of grass and the sound of wind and the far off howl of a jet passing in the sky, the invisible pressure of sunshine on skin and the taste of spring air on the tongue. All these non-visual cues going into experience that are far more intrinsic to sense-memory and hook the reader not in their brain - like most vision does - but somewhere behind their navel. Viseral, is the word, I believe.

Though, I will say that if I’m having trouble describing an action, either large or small, I will close my eyes and try to picture the motions so as to better describe what’s going on. So there’s that.

MEB: Some writers listen to rock and roll when they write, others need the sweet sound of silence. Some write their books in coffee shops or subway trains on their way to their day job. Others keep to a quiet room in the basement after sending their loved ones to the movies for a few hours. What does a writing day entail for John Hornor Jacobs?

JHJ: If I ever had a whole writing day, I’d be able to tell you.

My life is over-full. I’ve got two young kids that occasionally need attention and to be fed (ditto for the wife), a demanding dayjob. I’m also the creative director of Needle: A Magazine of Noir and I do freelance design and animation. I play in a band. My cup runneth over. So writing is catch-as-catch can.

I’m in a writing doldrum now, honestly, caught up in the demands of promoting Southern Gods.

When my kids are in school, usually I have them dropped off before 7:30 and I’m at the office by 7:45. I can usually get in a solid hour of writing in the morning before work ramps up. If I’m in the heat of a book, really cooking, I’ll take my lunch at the library and write there. Then, once the kids are abed, I’ll go to my office and get between thirty minutes to three hours of writing done, depending on how tired I am.

Somedays, I don’t write at all and don’t feel bad about it one bit. But now I’m on contract to produce some novels on a deadline, so that will probably change.

MEB: Not only are you a published author, but you're also an accomplished cover artist. How did you get started doing covers for other writer's books?

JHJ: I’ve worked as a designer and art director in advertising for the last fifteen years. I started designing covers for friends because they needed them and I could do it quickly and better than most other designers. So I did. I’m moving away from doing covers for people because I’m just too busy now with writing and the dayjob.

MEB: Along with Steve Weddle you have been producing Needle (as mentioned above), a lean mean pulp magazine. What's your involvement in it's production, and how does it feel to see the fruits of your labour with industry recognition and award nominations?

JHJ: I’m the creative director at Needle, so that means I design the cover, I layout and typeset the interior and design and place most of the advertisements going inside it. Steve Weddle, our incredible editor (and impressive novelist and author in his own right) helms the ship, telling me what goes where.

It’s great to be part of a project that receives some industry recognition, and I like to think I play a small part in its success. If something looks cheap, people think it IS cheap, usually. Needle looks good, but it also has the quality stories to match. Stories by some heavy hitters like Tom Piccirilli, Ray Banks, Sophie Littlefield, Chris Holm, Hilary Davidson, Stephen Blackmoore, Patti Abbott, and Anthony Neil Smith, just to name a few off the top of my head. We’ve been really lucky at the caliber of writers that have graced our pages.

So it’s kinda a feedback thing – the design promotes the prose and the prose promotes the design. A feedback loop.

MEB: On your own blog you've been doing a series of interviews called WHY I'M BADASS. Why are YOU badass?

JHJ: I am not badass, actually. But I am talented and I’d rather be talented than badass, any day. However, my motto for the WHY I’M BADASS interviews is “If everyone isn’t badass, then no one is.”

MEB: Besides SOUTHERN GODS what is the one book folks should read this year?

JHJ: The best book I’ve read in the past five or six years is Daryl Gregory’s Pandemonium. It’s so good, it makes me doubt my abilities as a writer.

Here’s the deal: the best writers, the writers who are truly artists, their work comments and expands the reader’s understanding of the human condition. I don’t know if my work does that, but Daryl Gregory’s Pandemonium does so while still being a great story.

In a nutshell, PanDEMONium is a story about the after effects of a boy’s “demonic” possession. But in this reality – which almost perfectly mirrors our own – people are possessed by demons that aren’t truly malevolent, but archetypal in nature. Instead of Pazuzu or Belial you have The Hellion, a trickster figure, or the Truth, the scourge of falsehood, or the Captain, the sacrificial soldier, which Bull Ingram could’ve been possessed by, now that I come to think of it.

The protagonist is a grown survivor of a possession by The Hellion and Pandemonium is the story his journey through the wreckage of his life.

I can’t praise this book highly enough.

MEB: You've got another release on the horizon, a short story called THE DREAM OF THE FISHERMAN'S WIFE in The Book of Cthulhu, which will hit shelves this fall. What can you tell us about that and other future releases?

JHJ: My story is original to that anthology and a very short piece, about a woman coming to grips with her religious responsibility. There’s some cunnilingus involved as well.

I have a post-apocalyptic novel involving zombies and nuclear war called This Dark Earth coming out next summer from Simon & Schuster. Beyond that, my YA trilogy comprised of The Twelve Fingered Boy, Incarcerado, and The End of All Things will be coming out from the ground-breaking Carolrhoda Labs, an imprint of Lerner Publishing. They’ll be hardback releases and I’m very excited about that. Look for The Twelve Fingered Boy in 2013 and the subsequent book in the years after.

I’ve finished the first volume of what I’m going to start calling my epic fantasy series, except it’s more like a western/demonpunk/alternate Roman history/fantasy. It’s called The Incorruptibles and we’re waiting to put it out in the marketplace because, er…I’ve gone to the publishing well too many times this year. Which is a good thing. But I’m excited to get The Incorruptibles out into the world. I think it’s different enough to garner some attention.

Other than that, I’ve got a docket of book ideas, most of them shying away from speculative fiction and moving more into the YA and literary space, possibly. Or maybe not. Who knows? There’s always that vampire novel I’ve been kicking around…

MEB: John, thanks very much for taking time out of your busy schedule to answer these questions!

JHJ: Thank you, Andrew, for having me. It’s been a pleasure.

-end-

Another hearty thanks to John. Look for a review of SOUTHERN GODS on Wednesday!

THE ZOMBIE WITH THE APE TATTOO

2011-08-05T18:24:00.000-04:00

Click this to full scree and turn up the volume. Makes me want to read the books all over again.

Just got back from watching RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES. It was superb. Unfortunately, it's very much a set-up film, paving the way for what should be a terrific sequel if one is made. So I was left a little bit wanting.

The basic premise for the film is that a scientist has found a cure for Alzheimer's disease with incredible results during testing on apes, making them incredibly smart. Unfortunately they learn (too late) that the cure is deadly to humans.

I don't want to say too much other than the story is a nice mix of the very real dangers of modern viral science and fantasy.

If I had any complaints it was it's lack of any gratuitous violence (there is very little blood shed) and what there is, is assumed offscreen. That's not to say there isn't a lot of ape-kicking-human-butt action, (mostly in the last quarter of the film) but I would have enjoyed a bit more shock value. Hey, movies are expensive. I want some gratuity! Show me some apes ripping heads and arms off!

Anyway, James Franco is, as always, terrific. I could watch him in just about anything. Andy Serkis is amazing as Caesar, the lead ape. The rest of the cast, including John Lithgow, do a good enough job. Harry Potter fans will enjoy watching Tom Felton (aka Draco Malfoy) continue his trend as an on screen a-hole in his role as an animal keeper.

Switching gears a little bit, I was surfing Amazon.com and came upon The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor.

I don't know about you guys but I'm pretty stoked. Yeah, the market is flooded with zombie books but I'm going to make an exception for this one. I will definitely read this!

Apparently it was announced back in the spring and I missed it.

I'm especially excited to read a book partially (probably mostly) penned by Jay Bonansinga. He used to be one of my favourite writers. If you have never heard of or given Bonansinga a read, check out The KILLERS GAME, Oblivion, or Head Case and (my personal favourite) The Black Mariah.

Also coming soon, Triumph of The Walking Dead: Robert Kirkman's Zombie Epic on Page and Screen.

WOLF HUNT by Jeff Strand

2011-08-05T09:55:00.002-04:00

So there I was, deep into my Reading Funk, seemingly lost to the world as we know it. Nothing was appealing to me. Not Swierczynski's Fun and Games. Not Jeremy Robinson's latest, Threshold (Jack Sigler). Not the two Blake Crouch books I'm sitting on, Abandon and Snowbound. Not any of the sixty or seventy (at least) books in my tbr pile.

I knew just what I needed. Something fast. Something I could read with a bowl of popcorn and a can of Coke. Something where I could just turn my brain off and enjoy.

Thank you, Jeff Strand, thank you.

While sifting through my Kindle pages, searching the plethora of unread books, my eyes lighted upon Strand's Wolf Hunt.

If there is one thing Strand is good at delivering, it's the goods. His books are always fun, exhilarating and action packed. And WOLF HUNT is no exception.

WOLF HUNT is about George and Lou, a couple of heavies that do jobs for a man named Ricky. Usually those jobs include hurting people. George and Lou are good at their job. Then one day Ricky calls and tells them he's lined up a sweet job for them. All they have to do is transport a werewolf from Miami to Tampa.

And everybody knows werewolves aren't real, right?

And besides, even if Ivan (the supposed werewolf) does turn into a wild beast, he's locked in a strong cage in the back of the van they're transporting him in. What could go wrong?

Well, this is a Jeff Strand novel and things always go wrong.

The bodies start to pile up quickly as the situation goes from normal to hairy for George and Lou. After their van is attacked by a pack of neighbourhood dogs while stopped at a gas station, they begin to wonder what it is they are transporting across Florida.

Could Ivan really be one of the mythic lycanthrope?

Could he be the fabled beast of more than a thousand Hollywood horror movies?

WOLF HUNT is an action-packed thrillomedy and is highly entertaining. Strand's writing, as always, is a pleasure to read.

So perhaps, like me you're stuck in the middle of a Reading Funk and the world just isn't right. Let me make a suggestion to you, dear Wormie. Click on over to Amazon.com and get your WOLF HUNT on!

THE INFORMATIONIST by Taylor Stevens

2011-08-03T16:09:00.000-04:00

Sometimes it happens that you're looking forward to a book and when you finally get to it, the thing just doesn't live up to expectations. Then, for some ungodly reason, it puts you in a Reading Funk*.

That's what happened to me when I picked up the debut novel from writer Taylor Stevens, The Informationist: A Thriller.

One of the single most important reasons I wanted to read it was because it touted a heroine that was as smart and interesting and wily as Stieg Larsson's famous Lisbeth Salander.

Long time readers of this blog will know how much I loved Larrson's books and Salander in particular.

Now, understand, I'm a bit of a sucker for all those "This author is the next Stieg Larsson!" or "The new Harry Potter!" ads. If I see a sticker on a book and it says "For fans of Twilight!" I giddily look around and make sure there are no men staring sideways at me and then rush to the cashier with my new found adventure.

What I'm saying is, that crap works on me. And it worked on me for THE INFORMATIONIST.

Why?

Because I miss me some Salander.

Yeah, I know. Half the time the books never live up to the enormous hype. It's just a sales pitch to get you to buy the book. I'm dumb, but I'm not stupid.

The basic plot is this, Monroe (read Salander) is hired to find a young woman (the daughter of an oil billionaire) who has disappeared in a small African country under very suspicious circumstances. Monroe is an information getter. She speaks 20 languages, kicks ass, and loves having strangers fall in love with her only so she can dump them.

If Monroe was intended to be a "new" Salander for readers to enjoy, then she's a very shallow facsimile, and almost insulting in her mimicry, taking only the very basic characteristics and emotions from her. I'm not going to go into detail why Salander is such a far deeper examination on women violently abused by men, suffice to say, Larrson you could tell, was far more passionate and all encompassing on the subject.

With THE INFORMATIONIST, what you get is an author who definitely can write. No question. There are scenes in the book that will have you gripping the front and back covers in tense anguish, speedily reading to see what happens next. But, those scenes come few and far between and unfortunately, what happens in between feels like you're being baked in the hot African sun until you can't take it anymore.

At a little over 200 pages into this relatively slim 300 page thriller, I gave up. It suddenly struck me that I had been reading THE INFORMATIONIST for a week and had only read 200 pages. This, along with a few really aggravating plot points and a sudden revelation about the mystery coming out of nowhere, with no set up or suspense what so ever.

Vanessa Michael Monroe is an intriguing heroine to a point but the story just didn't do it for me. Like I said, I didn't finish it, and maybe the last 100 pages the book verily soars. I don't know because by page 200 I didn't care anymore.

A lot of reviewers have enjoyed the novel, so don't completely take my word for it. Check out the reviews on Amazon.com or elsewhere. Some folks have really dug it and there were brief moments in the novel where I can see why, just not enough of them for my liking. It's up in the air whether I'll give The Innocent: A Vanessa Michael Munroe Novel a try. We'll see.

One last thing, THE INFORMATIONIST is a very clunky title. I'm surprised, quite frankly, that the publishers went with that as the title. I could think of a hundred different titles that sound better.

* A reading funk usually happens when I am stoked about a book and I can't finish it. For some reason it makes things not right in the world. It's like a virus has been injected into my system and it doesn't matter what I pick up to read, I'm just too bummed out to enjoy it. I'll pick up a book and read ten pages and put it down and look for something else until FINALLY I find the "Cure Book".

Check back Friday to find out what book got me out of my Reading Funk.

The J.E. MEDRICK FILES - SO WHAT'S THE POINT

2011-08-01T11:41:00.000-04:00

Each month, around the time of J.E. Medrick's latest episode of the Icarus Helix series is released, I invite JEM to come in and say a few words. As a big fan of the series I take great pleasure in getting a glimpse and insight into her writing world. And I hope you do to.

If you haven't started the series yet pick up Cheat (Icarus Helix #1) today! If you're waiting for the latest episode, wait no longer. Thug (Icarus Helix #5) is out now!

So What's the Point?

I am a big dreamer. When I go for something, I go for it huge, because otherwise, why waste the time? I want to succeed - and I want it to mean something.

So here I am, writing the Icarus Helix series. 5 episodes, 100k words deep into a story that is nowhere near completion. "Thug" released last week. I am already at work on episode #6 - "Frigid".

But... what's the point?

Do I want to entertain?

Do I want to make money?

Do I want more?

Yes, on all three counts.

On do I want to entertain: If I am writing something that is not worth reading then I better be prepared to either hide it from all prying eyes, or use it to improve. It has been my experience so far, that people are enjoying, immensely, the IH series. My dear host, here, has declared every new episode to be his favorite! This is intensely gratifying - I always wish to improve! But I also know I am reaching my goal of providing entertainment.

On do I want to make money: This is just a silly question. Who wouldn't want to have Amanda Hocking stardom with a cool million or two... or six... in the bank? I will tell you right now - I am not one to turn my nose up at people throwing money at me for my accomplishments. But I don't even need her, or John Locke's or J. A. Konrath's level of success! Money isn't my life. I just want to be comfortable. And have a pool. I'd really like a pool.

On do I want more: A resounding YES! I told you, I dream big. Here is part of a review I received from the very kind Tara Maya, on the first episode of the IH series:

"There are some books which are a lot of work, and then others which are so easy and fun to read, you are left feeling vaguely guilty, like you just finished watching a favorite TV show and also ate a whole bag of chips. Wait, reading is supposed to be harder than this isn't it?"

The title of her review? "So Tasty for the Brain it was Like Watching TV"

I'll say it here, now, loud and proud: I would love, love, love to see IH adapted for television. Hear me television producers? I am open to negotiations. My delightful cover artist once said to me, "Say your goals out loud. Tell them to others - spread the word... they're more likely to come true!"

I want to be picked up, have my brain scoured, and make a boatload of money. Haha, okay, maybe that's a little too broad. I want IH to get recognition. I want people to discuss the newest incident over the water cooler at work. I want them to argue over who should date whom, and express outrage over their shock at so-and-so becoming a villain! I want my ideas, widely available.

I want to provide an outlet, even for half an hour, for people to relax and think about something that isn't the mortgage due, the car needing an oil change or the cost of the repairs on the house.

So what's the point? I want to see IH on my television screen :)

...

Of course... that would mean I would need to buy cable, because as a pizza driver who makes approximately 6k a year, I certainly can't afford it...

One can dream! (And I dream big!)