Tales from the Lake Vol. 1

June 26, 2014 By Leave a Comment

LAKE
Tales from the Lake Vol. 1 by Graham Masterton, G.N. Braun, Taylor Grant, John Palisano, Charles Day, John Paul Allen, Bev Vincent, Elizabeth Massie, Joan De La Haye, Tim Curran, Tim Waggoner, Jennifer Loring, J. Daniel Stone, William Ritchey, and Blaze McRob
Publisher: Crystal Lake Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Horror, Contemporary, Paranormal
Length: Short Story (128 pages)
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Dive into fourteen tales of non-themed horror, with short stories and dark poems by some of the best horror writers in the world, including the master himself, Graham Masterton.

Allow the very first instalment of Tales From the Lake to transport you to lakeside terror in Lover, Come Back to Me, Lady of Lost Lake, and Game On; journey to the basement of your local pet store in Dead Pull and your neighbourhood pub in O’Halloran’s; visit the apocalypse in Devil’s Night; travel to Africa in Witch-Compass and The Reunion; spend time with the talking dolls in Don’t Look at Me; experience drug addiction from close up in Junksick; and climb a ladder to the heavens in Perrollo’s Ladder.

Tales From the Lake Vol.1 includes the winning stories from the 2013 Tales From the Lake Horror Writing Competition: a nautical tale in Jenn Loring’s The Art of Wrecking; a bizarre story of strange addictions in J. Daniel Stone’s Alternative Muses; and a cult horror story in the jungles of South America in William Ritchey’s Las Maquinas.

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Perfectly ordinary days only remain so for as long as nothing unexpected happens. Unfortunately for the characters in the first volume of Tales From the Lake, extraordinary days far outnumber the run-of-the-mill ones.

Placing “Lover, Come Back to Me” first in line was an excellent decision. Alan’s reluctant fishing trip with his girlfriend, Jan, quickly wanders into some strange territory when she notices something weird happening as they wait for fish to nibble on their lines. Strong pacing and a few twists that I never saw coming kept me glued to the page until the end.

All of the stories in this collection have sharp, interesting premises, but some of them would have benefitted from more time to be fully developed before being released. For example, “O’Halloran’s” follows the bizarre journey of a man who has just dropped his girlfriend off at the hospital for an abortion. I had trouble following what happens next, though, and was a little puzzled by how certain events were meant to tie together.

Anyone who picks up this anthology should read “Don’t Look at Me” first. Imagine spending years sitting alone in a neglected corner of a garden shop as a conscious, intelligent garden gnome who can’t do anything to change his circumstances. It’s a boring, lonely, and depressing existence until everything changes in an instant. I loved the wry perspective of this narrator and would be quite interested in reading a sequel to his adventures.

“The Fine Art of Wrecking” is another example of a fascinating premise that never quite ties all of its clues together. Christopher grew up in a small, poor, isolated town that keeps itself going through a peculiar arrangement they’ve made with an incredibly powerful being. I quickly found myself immersed in the tough decisions Christopher and his neighbors have made in order to survive, but it would have been easier to understand the climax of this piece had more information about their arrangement been provided. A few other short stories were similarly a little sparse on important details.

This is an intriguing collection of horror and science fiction tales. From what I understand, there is a distinct possibility that a sequel is in the works. I, for one, am looking forward to reading more from any author lucky enough to be included in this anthology.

Tales from the Lake Vol. 1 has piqued my curiosity. This book is something I’d recommend to anyone who likes their science fiction dark and full of chilling twists.

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Thief of Souls by JG Faherty

June 25, 2014 By Leave a Comment

SOULS
Thief of Souls by JG Faherty
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (62 pages)
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Demons don’t forgive.

Perry didn’t want to be a thief. He simply needed to make back the money he lost on a bad business investment. Just three houses, then he can stop. But someone must be running a scam on him, trying to frighten him into turning himself in. He hears noises at night, small fires start in his house, and his dreams are filled with terrible nightmares.
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Soon Perry begins to fear it’s no mere scam—something unholy and inhuman is playing a game of cat and mouse with him. Perry has stolen an ancient idol…and the demon who inhabits it. However, when he tries to return the idol, he finds out it’s much too late. The demon intends to teach Perry a lesson, a lesson that will destroy everything and everyone that Perry loves.

Justice is a noble concept, but some criminals are so good that never have to worry about getting caught. Or do they?

Between taking advantage of people who had every reason to trust him and blaming everyone but himself for the bad decisions that lead him to robbery in the first place, Perry is the kind of protagonist that I love to hate. His intelligence and resourcefulness aren’t quite enough to make up for his many character defects, but they do make his journey even more interesting by providing glimmers of the person he could have been if he’d made different choices.

The foreshadowing in this story was a little too strong. I don’t mind having a good idea of what might happen ahead of time, but in this particular case the horror elements would have been even scarier had there been fewer clues about what was awaiting Perry around the next plot twist.

I’ve often wondered what antiques would say if they could speak. There’s something slightly eerie about a household object being passed down from one person to the next for many generations, and the mask in this book is no exception to that rule. This became even more true as Perry’s reactions to the things he hears, sees, and smells intensify. Thinking about the worst case scenario is scarier to me than having it spelled out plainly, and there was plenty of anticipation to be found as this plot built up.

Thief of Souls reads like a classic horror tale. There is a lot of creepy stuff between these pages for those of us who are fans of this genre!

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Life After Dane by Edward Lorn

June 16, 2014 By 2 Comments

DANE
Life After Dane by Edward Lorn
Publisher: Red Adept Publishing
Genre: Suspense/Mystery, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary, Paranormal, Horror
Length: Full Length (225 pages)
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

A mother’s love is undying… and so is Dane.

After the state of Arkansas executes serial killer Dane Peters, the Rest Stop Dentist, his mother discovers that life is darker and more dangerous than she ever expected.

The driving force behind his ghostly return lies buried in his family’s dark past. As Ella desperately seeks a way to lay her son’s troubled soul to rest, she comes face to face with her own failings.
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If Ella cannot learn why her son has returned and what he seeks, then the reach of his power will destroy the innocent, and not even his mother will be able to stop him.

Death doesn’t always bring peace, and it isn’t necessarily the end of everything.

The character development in this book is outstanding. Ella is a deeply flawed narrator whose rigid worldview was as realistic for someone with her background as it was frustrating as times. She comes so close to understanding her past only to veer away from the truth once again. Her personality is so well-rounded, though, that I remained completely fascinated by her journey even though I don’t necessarily like her as an individual.

This is a very minor criticism of an otherwise excellent tale, but it would have been helpful to have a few more clues about what is happening as her encounters with her deceased son grow increasingly violent. Some of Ella’s experiences are pretty frightening, yet the other people around her don’t necessarily react to what’s happening the same way she does.

Speaking of violence, there is quite a bit of it in this story. The horror elements in it can be visceral at times. While they work well with the premise and strengths an already incredible plot, this is something I prefer to know ahead of time when poking around in this genre.

The mystery of what Dane wants and how exactly he was able to return from the dead haunted me from the first paragraph to the last one. I can normally figure these things out in advance, but Mr. Lorn’s clues were so skillfully placed that I was pleasantly surprised by how he fit everything together. This was my first introduction to his work, and I’m eager to read more from this talented author.

Life After Dane is as much a chilling mystery as it is dark science fiction. This is a fantastic choice for anyone who prefers the unpredictable side of either genre.

Filed Under: Horror, Mystery/Suspense, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Witch Island by David Bernstein

May 29, 2014 By Leave a Comment

WITCH
Witch Island by David Bernstein
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal, Contemporary, Historical
Length: Full Length (218 pages)
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

A witch’s curse from beyond the grave!

Witch Island used to be feared. Even the bravest would not dare go there. Legend said a witch had been burned alive at the stake, and upon her death she cursed the town. Terrified residents performed rituals to keep her spirit trapped on the island where she was buried.

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Every community has its share of local legends. Some of them are true while others have been so blown out of proportion over the years that it’s nearly impossible to know if anything they claim actually happened. Of course Witch Island must be one of those tall tales. Or is it?

At first I was surprised by how much time Mr. Bernstein spent introducing all of the characters and explaining how the legend of Witch Island began. Many horror novels leap into the action almost immediately. Once the plot thickened, though, I appreciated all of the information that had been provided about the identity of the witch and the types of people who were about to visit her island. It was easier to keep track of such a large cast of characters given how much I knew about what their lives had been like before they decided to camp out in such a haunted place.

While all of the main characters had well-developed backstories, I would have liked to get to know their personalities better. Their childhood experiences were interesting, but for most of them I never quite found the connection between those memories and their current behavior. This is a strongly plot-based tale, so I wouldn’t expect it to spend as much time on character development as it did on pushing forward to the next scene. It still would have been helpful to have a better sense of who works well under pressure or has a tendency to be too trusting though.

The horror elements of this story take a while to show up, but once they do they’re much stronger than the science fiction elements. There are some genuinely frightening scenes in here that I’m very glad I didn’t try to read after dark or while on a camping trip. It certainly would have been scary to encounter those scenes while listening to all of the unfamiliar nighttime calls in the woods, but I don’t think I would have gotten any sleep had I tried to do that!

I’d recommend Witch Island to anyone who is a fan of the gorier side of these genres. It is full of the viscerally terrifying kinds of scenes that work so well in this kind of horror.

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Night Never Ends by Martin Clark

May 7, 2014 By Leave a Comment

NIGHT
Night Never Ends by Martin Clark
Publisher: Eggplant Literary Productions
Genre: Suspense/Mystery, Horror, Historical, Paranormal, Action/Adventure
Length: Short Story (83 pages)
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

On a humid Los Angeles evening in 1951 Lucas Helath witnesses a murder in his office. The cops would love nothing more than to pin it on Helath. But before they can start he watches a woman step in front of a truck after delivering an impossible message: “Harry Furie sends his regards.”

Impossible because Furie, Helath’s former partner, is dead, lost in the Korean War. As the night deepens, Helath is dogged by memories, the wisecracks of an Imp that may just be all in his head, and spirits that might be all too real. Bodies are piling up, and Helath needs to know what’s going on.
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He has till dawn to track down the killer and clear his name or the mob, the Church and the LA PD will come down on him, hard.

It’s hard to know who to trust when you’re the number one suspect.

While he isn’t someone I’d want to befriend in real life, Lucas is a complex character whose flaws are even more interesting than his virtues. What I found most compelling about his tendency to mouth off to other people was how oblivious he was to what it would feel like to be on the receiving end of his jabs. Just enough hints were provided about his past to give a reasonable explanation for his most harmful habits, though. This character is a very good example of how a protagonist can be extremely intriguing without necessarily being likeable.

It wasn’t always clear to me whether certain conversations were actually occurring or Lucas was simply thinking about them. It’s difficult to discuss this topic without inadvertently giving away spoilers, but there were times when I wasn’t sure if his perception of reality was the same one shared by the secondary charaters. Knowing more about the circumstances in which these conversations occurred would have helped me find answers to both questions.

The snappy dialogue in this story was as funny as it was informative. Each character expressed his or her personality in large part through what they said and how they said it. One needs a quick wit to survive in this universe, and it was amusing to see how all of the people who live in it have learned to stay on their toes.

Night Never Ends kept me guessing until the end. I’d recommend it to anyone who is a big fan of noir mysteries.

Filed Under: Horror, Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Castle by the Sea by JG Faherty

May 6, 2014 By Leave a Comment

CASTLE
Castle by the Sea by JG Faherty
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Horror, Contemporary, Historical, Paranormal
Length: Short Story (90 pages)
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

How did they get here? Will they ever get out?

Jason and Erika are having a wonderful time at the Halloween carnival…until their swan boat in the Tunnel of Love capsizes amid heavy waves and blaring, maniacal laughter. When they come to they are no longer in a carnival in Ohio, but standing at the edge of a sea in a raging storm. In the distance, atop a high, barren hill, looms an enormous castle.

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All Erika and Jason wanted was to eat sugary carnival food and steal kisses from each other in the Tunnel of Love. Unfortunately not every date necessarily goes as planned.

The fast-paced plot begins immediately in this story with a series of inexplicable events. It was interesting to meet the main characters and almost immediately see them plunged into such dangerous circumstances. My curiosity about what would happen to them next only grew deeper as their predicament became even more dire.

I would have liked to learn more about Jason and Erika’s personalities. So much time was spent describing what happened to them that I never really got to know them as individuals. It would have been helpful to see them express their strengths and weaknesses, especially when the plot takes sharp turns and plops them into situations they could have never anticipated. There were many opportunities to showcase their unique perspectives that weren’t taken advantage of during the course of this tale.

The descriptive passages in this novella painted crystal clear images in my mind of what the castle looks like. All of the senses are included in the descriptions, which makes certain scenes even more horrifying than they might have been otherwise. I was impressed with how quickly Mr. Faherty introduced creepy new settings to the audience without slowing down the plot at all. This was my first introduction to his work, and I’m looking forward to seeing what he comes up with next.

Castle by the Sea is a good choice for anyone in the mood for an old-fashioned fright fest. There are plenty of terrifying things hidden among these pages!

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Bootleg Cove by Devin Govaere

May 5, 2014 By Leave a Comment

COVE
Bootleg Cove by Devin Govaere
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Horror, Historical
Length: Short Story (85 pages)
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Who knows the secret of Bootleg Cove?

Young widow Willie Douglas recently moved to remote, isolated Bootleg Cove on the Chesapeake Bay with her four-year-old son. Her plan—to renovate and re-open an abandoned restaurant. Almost as soon as she arrived, a handyman showed up out of the blue, offering to help. Then Amanda and Sam, two apparently orphaned teenagers, came to her door in need of help and a place to stay.

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Everyone needs a second chance sometimes. Little does Willie know just where hers might lead her, though.

Willie’s many strengths and weaknesses are slowly revealed as she adjusts to her new life in Bootleg Cove. She is a fascinating protagonist whose choices amused, perplexed, intrigued, and occasionally irritated me. Seeing how she changes as the plot progresses was one of my favorite parts of this story as it was written so believably. The amount of character development is typically what I’d hope to see in a full-length novel. Packing it into such a short amount of space isn’t easy, yet Ms. Govaere makes it look effortless.

One subplot is given a disproportionate amount of time to build up tension in the first few chapters. The premise of it is quite scary. Based on how much energy certain characters exert dancing around the issue, I expected it to dominate many more scenes than it actually did. It would have been helpful to know a little bit more about the rules governing this issue in this universe so that I could have more easily understood what the author was trying to communicate with her audience.

This novella is full of twists that I never saw coming. I was so intrigued by all of the unanswered questions in the beginning of it that I simultaneously wished it would never end and couldn’t wait to read more. If this is any indication of Ms. Govaere’s storytelling abilities, I look forward to seeing what she comes up with next.

Bootleg Cove is home to nearly as many secrets as it is to human occupants. For this reason it’s a great choice for anyone in the mood for something eerie that requires a little effort to untangle.

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Blood Red Roses by Russell James

May 1, 2014 By Leave a Comment

RED
Blood Red Roses by Russell James
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Horror, Historical
Length: Short Story (97 pages)
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

The spirits of the dead cry for justice.

In the waning days of the Civil War, orphaned teen Jebediah Abernathy has been indentured to one of the most notorious plantations in Mississippi, Beechwood. Ramses, the sadistic overseer, rules completely, unchecked by owners driven mad by the loss of their only son. Cruelty and torture are commonplace. And slave boys are mysteriously vanishing. But Jebediah is not completely alone. The ghost of his father and an escaped slave sorceress will lead him to the horrific truth about the disappearances—a knowledge that will probably cost him his life.

Even the worst streak of bad luck has to end eventually, right?
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Jebediah hasn’t had an easy childhood by any stretch of the imagination. His response to all of the traumatic things that have happened to him made me empathize with him early on, but what happens next made me take a long, hard look at the times in my life when I’ve acted just like him. One of the reasons why I’m such a huge fan of science fiction and horror is that both genres are quite good at bringing attention to topics that aren’t always easy to discuss. I wasn’t expecting to experience as much introspection as I did while I read this novella, but doing so made me wish for a sequel.

It would have been nice to see more character development occur during the course of the plot. A lot of time was spent describing the appearances and demeanours of all of the individuals Jebediah meets, but only a limited amount of space was set aside to show how they changed as a result of what happens at Beechwood. Had this not been the case, this story would have easily earned a much higher rating.

The horror genre is strongly represented in this tale. What made the scary scenes even more interesting, though, was how much time Mr. James spends foreshadowing them. This was a great choice for this particular story as it gave me the opportunity to acclimate to the culture these characters were living in before the plot thickened.

I’d recommend Blood Red Roses to anyone looking for something dark yet intelligent. It kept me on my toes from beginning to end!

 

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Linden Manor by Catherine Cavendish

April 30, 2014 By Leave a Comment

MANO
Linden Manor by Catherine Cavendish
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (92 pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Have you ever been so scared your soul left your body?

All her life, Lesley Carpenter has been haunted by a gruesome nursery rhyme—“The Scottish Bride”—sung to her by her great grandmother. To find out more about its origins, Lesley visits the mysterious Isobel Warrender, the current hereditary owner of Linden Manor, a grand house with centuries of murky history surrounding it.

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Some people claim that every nursery rhyme contains a kernel of truth. If this is true, Lesley is in grave danger, and she has no way of knowing it. Will she unravel the real story behind “The Scottish Bride” in time?

A memorable ghost story needs two things: a chilling backstory and a terminally isolated setting. Luckily Linden Manor fulfills both requirements so well that I didn’t want to stop reading. The creepy house Lesley visits while searching for the truth behind her favorite childhood nursery rhyme made me shudder. Sometimes beautiful locations hide ugly secrets, and the tension between these two realities is expressed wonderfully in the descriptions of the estate.

I figured out certain plot twists well in advance of when they actually occurred. All of them worked well within the plot, but given how well-written this story is I would have liked to see a few more liberties taken with certain tropes. Had it been a little more difficult to predict them this book would have easily earned a much higher rating.

With that being said, uncovering the hints about what was really going on was exciting. Only an attentive reader will pick up on the more subtle ones, and I was impressed by how much work was put into striking a balance between keeping this reader on her toes and explaining what was happening when the plot thickens. This is a strongly paced tale that I didn’t want to put down, and I’m really looking forward to reading more from Ms. Cavendish.

Linden Manor is deliciously spooky. Paranormal activity isn’t always harmless, and this novella is a great choice for anyone in the mood to explore just how dangerous it can be to wander onto the wrong property.

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Horse of Wind and Shadows by L.B. Shire

April 24, 2014 By Leave a Comment

HORSE
Horse of Wind and Shadows by L.B. Shire
Publisher: Lycaon Press
Genre: Young Adult, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal, Horror, Contemporary, Action/Adventure
Length: Full Length (154 pages)
Age Recommendation: 14+
Heat Level: Sweet
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Review by: Astilbe

Evil lurks in the waters off the Oregon coast. A lone girl, a magnificent horse, zombies… Can hope prevail with each hoof beat in the sand?

All Taryn wanted was to have a horse again.

When she spotted the black steed running through the ocean waves, she knew there must be a way to capture the feral horse. Her best friend, Flyn, said it wasn’t possible. Not one to turn away from a challenge, will she risk friendships and love to make her dream come true?
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Flyn has been Taryn’s self-proclaimed protector since they were kids. Thrust into a world of unpredictability, he tries his best to keep the strong-willed girl out of trouble. Taryn stumbles upon a horse and decides she wants to make it her own against his growing concerns. Will he be able to keep Taryn safe, or will she be lost to him forever?

Is there any point in wishing for impractical things when there’s no guarantee you’ll live to see tomorrow? Of course Taryn knows how dangerous it is to grow up in a world full of zombies, but she can’t help but to dream of what it would feel like to ride a horse again.

Taryn is one of the most interesting protagonists I’ve met so far this year. Her strengths and flaws reveal themselves early on in her adventures, and she definitely possesses quite a few of each. Sometimes her unrelenting stubbornness made me wish I could climb into the scene and persuade her to listen to other points of view, but her empathy and curiosity kept me rooting for her until the conclusion.

I did notice some grammatical errors in the text as I was reading. There were also a few instances in which the characters’ syntax was unusual. It was never quite clear to me if the author was writing a new type of dialect that was created by the large number of orphans in the plot whose education has been sparse to non-existent or if these oddly written sentences would have disappeared with another round of editing.

Strong, even pacing drew me back into the story. There is little room for sentimentality or nostalgia in this world because the characters are forced to spend so much of their time gathering supplies and outrunning the dead. This realistic look at what it would take to keep a small community functioning under such dangerous conditions when a large percentage of their members are young children and teenagers piqued my interest almost as much as the dilemmas Taryn and her makeshift family face.

The paranormal elements of this tale captured my attention immediately. It’s fairly rare for a zombie novel to include the types of phenomenon that the author inserts into the text, so I was curious to see how everything would tie together. I would have liked to see more time spent developing this subplot. It’s a unique twist, yet the amount of space it was given wasn’t quite enough to explain all of the questions I had in the beginning.

It took me a while to determine the most appropriate age recommendation. Taryn is a few months shy of 16 when the story begins, but her emotional response to her circumstances and her obsession with the horse make her come across as someone who is a few years younger than her chronological age. There is a genuinely innocent and naive side to this character that is often at odds with her surroundings, and it is because of these traits that this story is suitable for high school students of any age.

I’d recommend Horse of Wind and Shadows to anyone who would like to shift effortlessly between genres. This novel is equal parts young adult and science fiction with just enough horror thrown in to remind the reader that there are always zombies lurking beyond the perimeter.

Filed Under: Horror, Reviews, Science Fiction/Fantasy, YA/Middle Grade/Children's Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,
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