Steve Stred's Blog, page 34
January 3, 2023
3Q’s – Scott J. Moses enjoys his coffee in the sun!
Today’s guest is one the nicest guys in the dark fiction community! Scott is always supportive and is a very talented author.
I’m excited to have him join me today!
Please welcome Scott!
Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?
Scott: Hey, thanks for having me, Steve. There’s no set answer here, life being what it is, but I’m currently shooting for 500 words a day to complete the first draft of a new novella. I haven’t been perfect, as I’ve just purchased a home and with moving and all, the mental bandwidth hasn’t been there, but I’m excited to get back to a daily routine. I write most weekdays at night, and though it varies on the weekends, I shoot for the morning/afternoon.
Steve: You decide to host a writer’s retreat. One weekend in a luxury house on an island. What three other authors do you invite to come along?
Scott: I’d have to say Tyler Jones and JAW McCarthy off the cuff. I see them as literary siblings, if a term like that exists. We just hit the same tones and themes in our writing and I’m always excited to see what they’re up. The third is tricky, and so I’ll cheat a bit: either Brian Evenson (my favorite living author) or Claire North (the most influential author on my work).
Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!
Scott: My latest release is alongside weird horror author Carson Winter via Dread Stone Press. It’s a dual split book with a novelette from each of us, blurbed/endorsed by the likes of Brian Evenson, Laird Barron, Joe Koch, Alex Woodroe, and many others. Carson brings the weird cosmic noir, while I bring what I think is a mix of weird/horror adventure(?) fantasy? The reviews and reception have been swell so far, and I’m looking forward to the additional volumes in the series from Dread Stone. If you like weird horror that reminded contemporary masters Baird and Evenson of past greats, you’d probably be into it.
Steve: Bonus Question! You receive an invitation in the mail from one of these two people. The invitation invites you to have dinner and spend the night in their home. Do you accept the invitation from Victor Frankenstein or Dracula and why?
Scott: Hmm… This one’s tough, but for the sake of empathy (and self-preservation) I think I’d say Victor Frankenstein. That man is intensely afraid of death, and seeing as we’ll both die one day, I think there’d be an empathy there. I think something we as humans have to come to grips with, sooner than later, is that we’re all gonna die one day. This isn’t morbid, mind you, but simply fact, and I think knowing it makes us live harder and take less for granted. If I received an invitation from Dracula, he might not eat me outright, but that dude might drone on about living forever, and that’s not really my bag. Besides, I’ve recently become a morning person, and enjoy my coffee in the sun.
Excellent decision!
Thank you so much for doing this Scott!
To find more of his work, check the links!
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ScottJ_Moses
Website: https://www.scottjmoses.com/
January 2, 2023
Book Review: Peregrine’s Tale by Kealan Patrick Burke
Title: Peregrine’s Tale: The Timmy Quinn Series Book 4
Author: Kealan Patrick Burke
Release date: August, 2010
Reminder – I’m reading this as part of Kealan Patrick Burke’s Stage Whispers Omnibus. This is book four. To see my reviews for books 1-3 you can find them here;
Book One The Turtle Boy;
Book Two The Hides;
Book Three Vessels;
Now, I arrive at book four, wondering what Kealan has in store, not only for Tim Quinn (as he now prefers to be known), but also for Kim and this mysterious Peregrine character. All roads led to Tim needing to find and confront Peregrine at the end of book three, so I was excited to dive into this one.
I will say – this is almost completely a stand-alone story – or off shoot story to the overall narrative. If Peregrine hadn’t been mentioned previously and if Timmy wasn’t connected at the very end, you could read this completely on its own and enjoy a truly memorable and emotional novella. It was released as a limited, signed hardcover through Cemetery Dance prior to its release/inclusion into this series, so there’s the chance at one point that this one might not’ve even been necessary for Timmy’s overall series and completion.
What I liked: No matter, what we get is a harrowing story of a young boy who is also introduced to the veil, to the parting between here and there, the curse Timmy has been carrying since he was eleven and discovers there is a connection between them.
This novella is incredibly hard to review while remaining spoiler free. What I will say, is that Peregrine’s father is gone, his mother struggles to make ends meet and her newest man has now also left, telling her its either him or the kid.
I find this to be a frequently utilized plot point and, even so, Kealan used it magnificently. It immediately creates a reaction from the reader, it makes you root for and choose the side of Peregrine and when things get really dark/hard and brutal, you empathize with this young man who has to do the most difficult thing he’s ever had to do.
Kealan doesn’t give us a lot of ‘the veil’ in this one, but what he does give us is just enough. It opens up the potentials in our imagination for what the final book in the Timmy Quinn series will entail and it also gives us just a sliver to the prospect of what Peregrine is capable of.
What I didn’t like: I do wish we would’ve been given just a bit more connectivity to the overall series here. It ends perfectly and sets things in motion for the fifth and final book, but I would’ve really loved for Peregrine’s ‘dad’ to share just a little bit more about how Peregrine was touched and became able to see the veil and why these two (Peregrine and Timmy) are on this collision course.
Why you should buy this: Blah, blah, blah – come on – this is book four of five. If you’ve read the first three you’re going to read the fourth. If you have the omnibus, you’re going to read this. But, if you’re still on the fence on diving into book one, just know that every single book has been phenomenal and leading us to what I can only assume is going to be a stunning conclusion.
5/5
Peregrine’s Tale;
Stage Whispers;
3Q’s – Russell Smeaton wants to be low key.
And here we are! The FIRST 3Q’S of 2023! How crazy is this. Even crazier? I’m scheduling this currently on October 14th. That’s how far out I am currently.
Today’s guest is a truly talented writer and stunning illustrator. I’m a massive fan of his artwork and have done two of Kickstarter’s already! I’m so very happy Russell Smeaton agreed to join me today and thank you, Russell, for ringing in 2023 with me and the readers of 3Q’s!
Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?
Russell: My schedule is pretty much non-existent, so I squeeze in a bit of writing whenever I get the chance. It’s not ideal, but I’ve learnt to work in short bursts. In some ways it works for me, but it would be nice if I could set aside proper time ever day to write. I try not to look at how many words I write. Sometimes, when things are flowing, I have been known to rack up 2,000 or more words in one sitting, but I try not to obsess over it. It can be a pleasant surprise when I’m finished, and I look at the word count. Not always, but sometimes.
Steve: You end up at an estate sale and discover an unpublished manuscript from an author you love. Do you keep it just for yourself or do you share it with the world?
Russell: Ooh, that’s a good question. My first thought would be, can I pass it off as my own?! I’m kidding (sort of). I’d definitely share it with the world. I’m the type of guy who’s forever trying to get his mates to read his favourite author or listen to his favourite band, so I would be sharing it as soon as I could.
Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!
Russell: I’m working on several things at the moment. You might have seen pictures of these little pumpkin dude pictures I created? I’ve managed to convince a couple of great poets to write some beautiful, folk-horror type stuff inspired by the pictures. My aim is to put them together into an anthology of some sort and that’s shaping up nicely. I’m also putting together an anthology based around my local area of Teesside. It’s in the early stages, but hopefully will shape up to be a great collection of tales. With regards to my own actual writing, I keep chipping away at two novels. One a cosmic horror tale set in my hometown, the other a reworking of a famous children’s story. Both have stalled a bit as I focus on my Patreon (up to 5 supporters now!) where I put out short stories. These will all end up in a collection that I hope to put out around Christmas. That’s the plan, anyway!
Steve: Bonus Question! You wake up in a comic book. What is your comic book character and what is your superpower?
Russell: If I woke up in a comic book, I’d probably be Bud Bradley, but would love to be in Love and Rockets. I can see myself as a male Maggie or Hopey! Superpower would probably be something low-key. Maybe something like Arno Strine’s power in The Fermata – I’ll leave it there if you’ve not read the book!
I haven’t read that so I’ll not Google it and spoil it for myself!
Thank you so much for doing this Russell!
To find more of his work, check the links!
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Russell-Smeaton/e/B06XSYJ8TP
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tikirussy
December 30, 2022
Book Review: Vessels by Kealan Patrick Burke
Title: Vessels – The Timmy Quinn Series: Book 3
Author: Kealan Patrick Burke
Release date: November 21st, 2006
For those following along with these reviews of Kealan Patrick Burke’s Timmy Quinn Series, I’m reading it as part of his Stage Whispers Omnibus.
Book 1 The Turtle Boy can be found here: https://stevestredauthor.wordpress.com/2022/12/23/book-review-the-turtle-boy-by-kealan-patrick-burke/
Book 2 The Hides can be found here: https://stevestredauthor.wordpress.com/2022/12/29/book-review-the-hides-by-kealan-patrick-burke/
And here we are – book three. This one starts out with a phenomenal opening where we get some ‘closure’ and story clean up from book two. As I get further along, two things are apparent – Kealan is not telling a story has book two end on a Tuesday and book three begin on a Wednesday, which is great and works so well when you consider he’s telling the life story of this man who has been cursed. The second thing, is that no one is safe and that anyone can die at any moment in time. Consider this like the horror world equivalent of George R.R. Martin.
What I liked: Following the events of book two (and we find out numerous other incidences between then and now), Tim – as he’s now known – has decided he needs to get away, find a place where very few people live and where the likely hood of people knowing who he is, what he can do and the dead badgering him every moment of the day, is his only option. But it becomes all too apparent – that Tim’s curse has no off switch, no place where he can go in the world and that the things that haunt these places will use Tim as a conduit to get free from their afterlife shackles.
Kealan also does a fantastic job of showing how Tim’s curse has trickled out and had huge ramifications on those around him, including the love of his life, Kim. It was great to see this reconnection and it worked really well to set up things for book four.
I will also say, that Kealan has done such a phenomenal job of ‘aging’ this character. It reminds me of Denis Leary’s character in Rescue Me, how he has to deal with real life, the afterlife and how his own decisions directly influence both avenues.
What I didn’t like: In the general world of Timmy Quinn, this one worked really well, but of the three so far, I think this one was the most ‘set up’ of any of them and the least ‘story building,’ if that makes sense. It was solid, but didn’t have me as enraptured as the previous two.
Why you should buy this: If you’ve read the first two, obviously you’ll be diving into book three here at some point. But, if you’re looking for a really well done, fantastically crafted biography of a man navigating life while hugely cursed, this one is definitely a series for you!
5/5
Vessels;
Stage Whispers;
Book Review: Hasty for the Dark: Selected Horrors by Adam L.G. Nevill
Title: Hasty for the Dark: Selected Horrors
Author: Adam L.G. Nevill
Release date: October 31st, 2017
Recently, I devoured Nevill’s phenomenal novel ‘No One Gets Out Alive.’ Once I was finished that, I decided to dive directly into a few of his other books I have but haven’t read yet, and it was while searching my Kindle that I saw I still needed to read this collection. I’ve previously read his two three-story-free colllections on Amazon as well as his stunning Wyrd and Other Derelictions, so I knew I was in for some classic and solid Nevill-ness.
I was going to take my time reading this one, but as events occurred – namely me having a horrible case of food poisoning, I blasted through this while dealing with my stomach abandoning me in my moment of need!
What I liked: Nevill opens this one with a short introduction, telling us that he wanted to collect his short stories in a publication order and put it all in one place, allowing the reader to have an easy go-to book to read all of his short work. It works brilliantly and other than the opener, which is less paranormal and more claustrophobic over public transit, this one showcases why Nevill is one of the best, dark fiction authors working today.
I’d read a few of these stories already, but it was neat to dive back into them, as it had been three years in the case of a few of them, and this time apart seemed to kick me between the legs. How so? Back in my review that was posted on December 18th, 2019, I said this about ‘Always in Our Hearts’ – “I personally didn’t really enjoy this one. We follow a hired driver who head a location to pick up his next ride. On the surface it had some potential, but I just didn’t connect.’ ARE YOU KIDDING ME! WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PAST STEVE?!!? Because, now, after having reread it, it was one of my favorite stories in this collection. It plays upon the strengths of odd characters and a seemingly unrelated even in the driver’s past, but when Nevill brings it full circle, HOLY COW!
‘The Angels of London’ was another great one, which I really loved the first time around. ‘Call the Name’ was an excellent slab of Lovecraftian horror and ‘Hippocampus’ is one of the finest pieces of short fiction ever put to page and one of the inspiration pieces to Nevill’s ‘Wyrd and Other Derelictions,’ having stories without any ‘real’ characters.
‘Little Black Lamb’ finished this one off and wow – what can I say. It was so spellbinding and essentially a fully developed folklore story without any outward or obvious folklore moments.
What I didn’t like: I’d say that the opener almost feels out of place now, after reading the stories that follow it. It’s a fun story for sure, but just didn’t deliver the same Nevill-ness that I’ve grown to absolutely love. For completionism sake I’m happy it was there, but the atmosphere was far off from the others.
Why you should buy this: If you’re a fan of Nevill then this one will most likely already be on your shelves or on your Kindle. If you’ve not read any of his long reads yet, this is a fantastic place to start and see just what you’re in for. Another amazing release from a living legend.
5/5
3Q’s – Sam Richard just wants to sleep!
Much like the 3Q’s I did with Michael Kelly of Undertow Publications, today, I welcome Sam Richard who many of you will know as the driving force behind Weird Punk Books. Weird Punk continues to put out fantastic releases, and Sam himself is no slouch, being an acclaimed author. I’m a huge fan of Sam’s work and so very happy to welcome him here, on what is the final 3Q’s of 2022!
Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?
Sam: I’m one of those people who has no consistent writing schedule. It’s honestly kind of frustrating, but I can’t sit at my computer and be productive if I have nothing in the tank, so I wait for ideas to gestate a little and then spend time working through and writing them. I tend to write best at night, roughly from 10PM – 2AM, but that’s also its own kind of exhausting, so I just sit down when I have the idea and the time. No real word count goal, though I do love to hit at least 1k at a time. Sometimes that doesn’t happen and other times I can crank out a whole 5k story in that one sitting. It wildly varies from project to project. I’ve just made peace with my process being all over the place.
Steve: You end up at an estate sale and discover an unpublished manuscript from an author you love. Do you keep it just for yourself or do you share it with the world?
Sam: This is a really weird/hard question as a publisher, not just as a writer, as I have the publishing background to make that happen, but obviously there are legalities and a whole web to untangle. If this hypothetical includes that I could do this, the person who controls the author’s estate would be ok with it, and we’d worked out the finer details, I absolutely would. Provided I like the project.
Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!
Sam: Latest release of mine is the reprint of my Wonderland Award-Winning Collection To Wallow in Ash & Other Sorrows. It’s available on the Weirdpunk website, plus everywhere else you can get books. I also have my follow up collection coming out very soon. Still figuring out the title and cover, but it should be out late October if everything goes according to plan.
Steve: Bonus Question! You wake up in a comic book. What is your comic book character and what is your superpower?
Sam: If I woke up in a comic book, my only hope is that it would be something that Vertigo would have published in the 90s. I’d be perfectly at home there. And if that was the case, my character name wouldn’t be a traditional super-hero name. Maybe something re-imagined from a long forgotten classic era comic. A name like Joe Ghoulie or some shit. Yeah, Joe Ghoulie. My power would be freezing time. Specifically freezing time so I could sleep as much as I want and still get things done. But I’d probably use that power to rob billionaires, too.
Ha! That’s awesome! You should use Joe Ghoulie as a pseudonym! Thank you again, Sam!
To find more of his work, check the links!
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Sam-Richard/e/B0169BVE5I/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SammyTotep
Website: https://www.weirdpunkbooks.com/
December 29, 2022
Book Review: The Hides by Kealan Patrick Burke
Title: The Hides (The Timmy Quinn Series: Book 2)
Author: Kealan Patrick Burke
Release date: May 1st, 2005
As a reminder – I’m reading each of these as part of the collected Timmy Quinn omnibus – Stage Whispers. This is the second novella. To find my review of the first, click here;
Book two. The sequel. Always a worrying time, right? Can the author do the first justice? Will we still feel the same about the main character and his plight?
There’s very few authors out there who you know you don’t need to worry about handling the lofty weight and heavy goals of a sequel and one of them is Kealan Patrick Burke.
Book two is a different beast than book one. Where the first introduces the ‘curse’ Timmy Quinn now endures and carries with him, book two furthers how it has effected his existence, his family and Timmy himself. ‘The Hides’ is also a literal and figurative return home for Kealan, as described in the afterword. It has parts that felt almost lifted (in a good way) from his debut ‘The Master of the Moors,’ but as he mentions, this is set in the small town in Ireland where he grew up and the reader can absolutely feel that with the whimsical and realistic way spots are described.
What I liked: ‘The Hides’ opens with Timmy and family dealing with life after the events from book one. Things are different now. Everyone expects Timmy to bring back the dead and heal their hurting hearts. As his parents marriage crumbles, Timmy follows his father as he heads to Ireland for a new job and return to where he grew up.
Patrick Burke does such a phenomenal job of showcasing characters emotions and often it’s done with simple, minimal phrasing. I feel like if an editor suggested he add in some purple prose he’d react with anger and would spit in their direction. His writing is concise, purposeful and always at a level that makes other writers question what in the hell they think they are doing with their own work.
Unfortunately, this is a Timmy Quinn story, so as soon as boots are on the ground, he begins to sense something and when we find out the horrible truth of his families history there, as well as the real reason for his grandma being so insistent on him joining his father, the reader is left feeling anger and sorrow for Timmy. Sadly, it’s an all-too real occurrence in day to day life, where family members feel they can use their family members to better them, even at the detriment to those they say they love.
The beast that Kealan introduces here is fantastic and one that makes you wonder if anybody will even survive the ending. It works really well to showcase the internal battle Timmy is facing – save himself or save his family – and Kealan doesn’t flinch when deciding for us.
What I didn’t like: So, when I finished this last night, I had to let it stew for a minute. At first I was slightly disappointed in that this went so far away from what I hoped to learn from book one. But, then I shifted my focus and understood that this is a continuation of Timmy’s life, not a straight follow up on the events that happened in book one, which we all too often get with series. If you’re looking for simply more about The Turtle Boy, you’ll be bummed to not find any of that.
Additionally, while the monster was amazing, I do wish we got a bit more of it. A longer battle maybe. Saying that, it does work really well and it didn’t feel like a book where we have 500 pages of hardship to only have the hero kill the big bad guy in a paragraph.
Why you should buy this: Frequently, I see people say they refuse to start a series as they’re afraid it’ll never be finished. Well, no worries here, all five books are done and dusted. Book two is a phenomenal follow up to book one and, Kealan has done a great job of moving Timmy’s life along, dealing with family issues, girlfriend issues and his new reality of seeing between and beyond the veil. This one rolled along really nicely and now I can’t wait to dive into book three.
5/5
The Hides;
Stage Whispers Omnibus
3Q’s – Jon Bassoff is The ESCAPEE!
There are very few Twitter accounts that make me laugh harder than today’s 3Q’s Guest. Jon Bassoff tweets some truly hilarious takes. Not only that – he’s a fantastic author.
Please, do welcome Jon!
Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?
Jon: Man, there is nothing I would like better to have some cool writing routine. You know, wake up at 8:30, do the New York Times crossword over a cup of steaming coffee. Then take a stroll in the autumnal woods, feeling refreshed for three hours of quiet writing in my study. But damn if life isn’t a bit more complicated. I work full time and have a family which is real burden on my writing life (and my social life). So, honestly, my writing routine is just to write whenever I can. Sometimes that means late at night. Sometimes that means at work when I should be grading my students’ papers. Sometimes that means over the weekend. I will say that we have more time than we think we do. I’ve managed to have nine novels published without a routine. But I am disciplined to write instead of napping or sitting in front of the television (most of the time).
Steve: You end up at an estate sale and discover an unpublished manuscript from an author you love. Do you keep it just for yourself or do you share it with the world?
Jon: First, I go on the black market and try to sell it because I have no scruples. But, no, I would probably share it with the world. I still get to read it, right? Might as well have other people read it as well so we can discuss. After all, one of my favorite hobbies is reading bad reviews of great books. I love riling myself up!
Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!
Jon: My latest novel is called Beneath Cruel Waters. It was called “poignant and haunting” by New York Magazine, and I only had to pay them a cool $250,000 to say that. If you like twisty, suspenseful novels this might be for you. The basic premise: this man, Holt Davidson, returns to his hometown after the death of his mother. As he’s searching through his childhood house, he finds a gun, a love letter, and a photo of a dead man. He becomes convinced that his mother killed this man and wants to figure out why.
Steve: Bonus Question! You wake up in a comic book. What is your comic book character and what is your superpower?
Jon: My special power would be to duplicate myself. You know, have a copy of myself go to work, socialize at boring parties, while the real me gets to write and watch bad horror movies all day. I need a name for this superhero. Maybe Mr. Escapee?
Excellent superpower!
Thank you so much Jon!
To find more of his work, check the links!
Website: https://www.jonbassoff.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/jonbassoff
December 28, 2022
3Q’s – Caitlin Marceau Talks Things Out!
Today’s guest is a blast! Caitlin Marceau is a fellow Canuck writer and all around awesome person! She’s super supportive, writes fantastic fiction and is here to have a laugh today!
Please, do welcome Caitlin!
Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try and write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?
CM: I always love answering this question because my writing process is constantly evolving and changing the further into my career I get. Which is funny, because you’d think that by now, I’d have an idea of what works and what doesn’t, but I’m always trying to refine the process and work smarter.
Right now, my writing takes place twice a day. I get up early in the morning, go for a walk and do some yoga to get the blood flowing, and then get right into it. I’ll usually do some free writing for half an hour to get all the garbage out of my system (which is a bit of a misnomer since it’s not bad, it’s just notes and ideas that I need to get out of the way), before working on whatever project I’m focused on for the next hour. After I’m done with my day job, I’ll usually write for another hour or two, depending on my schedule for that evening.
As for my word count, I stopped focusing on that a little while ago. I found that I’d get so focused on hitting a number that I’d honestly be distracted by it. I’d check my count every few minutes, I’d feel discouraged if I hadn’t written as much as I thought I had… I don’t know, it was a mess. So I now try and focus on how much time I’m putting in. It helps me focus on quality, not quantity, and it makes scheduling work a lot easier for me.
Steve: You decide to host a writer’s retreat. One weekend in a luxury house on an island. What three other authors do you invite to come along?
CM: Easy. I clone myself and bring three additional Caitlins to the island so that I can get sh*t done faster. NEXT!
No, but in all seriousness, I have no idea. I actually hate writing around other people because it stresses me out, which is hilarious since I love collaborating. I guess if I had to choose, I’d go with Kyra R. Torres, Damien Casey, and C. J. Sampera. Not only are they all incredibly talented writers and exceptionally kind people, but I’m pretty sure I’d be able to distract them long enough to turn the writing retreat into a massive party. I’m a horrible influence, I know.
Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!
CM: My newest book is called Femina: A Collection Of Dark Fiction, and it’s all about the horror of being a woman. By that, I mean it’s a look at experiences that most women have had in their lives or issues that impact women daily, through the lens of speculative fiction. It examines things like motherhood, body autonomy, consent, everyday sexism, etc., and uses horror to amplify the terror of some already upsetting issues. I think this book is a great way to highlight the experiences of women, while also (hopefully) giving people who have experienced some of these situations a sense of catharsis. (At the very least, it was a wonderfully therapeutic experience for me to write this book.) Additionally, a portion of the profits from this book are also going to charity, so if getting my newest collection wasn’t motivation enough to buy this book, then hopefully knowing it does some good is!
Steve: Bonus Question! You receive an invitation in the mail from one of these two people. The invitation invites you to have dinner and spend the night in their home. Do you accept the invitation from Victor Frankenstein or Dracula and why?
CM: Oh, Dracula. No contest. I think with Victor Frankenstein, you run a really high risk of getting cut up and sewn to a stack of corpses in the hope that he’ll be able to make you into an undead bride for his creation. And if not that, then at the very least he’ll try to kill you and reanimate your body, and I am aggressively not down for that.
On the other hand, let’s be honest, Dracula’s pretty hot and we all know he f*cks. So maybe, if I’m super lucky, he’ll make me a bride or a lover or a vampire. If I’m unlucky, then he drains me and it’s still better than getting sewn to five other people. So, Dracula all the way.
Excellent choice and yes, I think we all know that Dracula has an insatiable lust for carnal pleasures!
Thank you so much, Caitlin!
To find more of her work, check the links!
Website: http://caitlinmarceau.ca/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CaitlinMarceau
Book Review: No One Gets Out Alive by Adam Nevill
Title: No One Gets Out Alive
Author: Adam Nevill
Release date: October 23rd, 2014
Over the last five years or so, Adam Nevill has been a constant in my reading world. Now, I know that’s odd – me being a massive horror reader and such – but after joining Kendall Reviews, Gavin was telling me almost daily that I needed to reach Nevill. At first I was hesitant. What if I didn’t like his work? I wouldn’t want to sadden Gavin. And oddly, I had watched and loved ‘The Ritual’ movie. And yes, blah blah, I know the movie and the book were different blah blah. I loved the movie, LOVED the book (yes, even the ending good grief), but I just hadn’t dove into his work. So, slowly, I began to fix that and I have to say, Nevill is absolutely the closest thing to my favorite author not named Andrew Pyper.
‘No One Gets Out Alive’ was released back in 2014, but was recently adapted into a feature Netflix movie. I haven’t watched that yet, I will at some point, but the reality of my life is, I have far more time to read than I do to watch scary movies with a young kid. He can’t see what I’m reading on my Kindle, which makes it far more kid-friendly when he’s around.
I’d have to take a look, but this is for sure my third Nevill read in 2022, having previously read Lost Girl (phenomenal) and The Vessel (good, and I’ll get to why I found it good not great in a minute – sorry Adam!) and now this one. I might’ve read another novel, but I can’t recall off the top of my head, and immediately after finishing this one, I searched my Kindle to see what I had left of his to read that I haven’t read yet and decided to start ‘Hasty for the Dark.’
With ‘No One Gets Out Alive’ I knew I was in for a roller coaster. I knew this would be a haunted house book like no other and having had the bejesus scared out of me with his descriptions in Last Days in an abandoned apartment complex, I was slightly nervous going in.
What I liked: The story begins simple enough. Stephanie has recently fled her abusive and alcoholic step-mom. She’s broken up with her boyfriend, Ryan, and now has rented a room in a decrepit house so that she can start work with a temp agency in the hopes of getting her life on track. But from the get-go, we can see the house isn’t right, the ‘owner,’ Knacker isn’t right and with the opening chapter we get a supernatural presence introducing itself and letting its weight settle on the end of her bed in the dark.
I can’t accurately and efficiently describe how dark and grimy this book is. I tweeted about it – saying that at the half way point 90% of the book was creating a palpable dread that leaked from my Kindle and pulled the shadows in the corner of the room closer. No matter how hard Stephanie tries to get out and flee this house, she’s unable. Either due to finances, Knacker’s manipulation or the very real fact that whatever is holding this house hostage now has its hooks into her as well.
Nevill never lets up, which is a mind-boggling thing to process when you consider this book is almost 650 pages long. But much like how Stephen King commands the reader to follow through his door stoppers, Nevill does the same and at no point was I wondering when this book would be over or wishing that things would pick up. There’s not a single moment of ‘slowness’ in here and I think part of that is the fact that all but I think three chapters were quick and snappy. The book rampages along and with so many gasp-creating chapter ending cliff hangers, you are compelled to flip the page and continue on.
Now, I will say, Nevill is a crafty SOB (I can say that here because I’m still banned from reviewing on Amazon so this won’t get flagged lol!) in that he has a during and after portion. It’s frankly a genius move. Far too often the book ends where the main aspect ends and we don’t get to see the after. Not so here. Nevill continues the story, focusing now on how Stephanie is coping and dealing with the very real events of her being imprisoned and abused, as well as the potentially ‘not-real’ events that occurred. Did they actually happen? Did she have an emotion and mental breakdown over the atrocities she experienced?
It’s a fantastic aspect and it works really well, especially when we see the true horrors of this entity and learn about it in the classic Nevill-folklore manner.
What I didn’t like: I think some people may be put off by the length. I get it. The novella and short novel has really exploded in popularity over the last few years (and I’m no better, look at my own body of work to see I’m sat firmly in those two page count worlds), but after having recently read Nevill’s ‘The Vessel,’ the thing that kept me from considering that one great and only good (again, sorry Adam!) was that it felt a bit like there was so much more that could’ve been added in or filled in. It was like a black and white photo missing the color. So, when comparing The Vessel to No One Gets Out Alive, I see now what I love whole-heartedly about Nevill’s long novels. They say the devil’s in the details and Adam demonstrates that in spades here. So, don’t let the length stop you from diving in.
Why you should buy this: This book is a modern classic. From start to finish, you know you’re in the capable hands of a master and the fact that Nevill has no problem writing beautiful passages before creating some of the bleakest, most brutal moments should be enough to entice every horror reader. The fact that we get new releases from him on an almost annual schedule now means that he’s found his working stride and we should all be grinning from ear to ear because of that.
‘No One Gets Out Alive’ should be the standard that all haunted house novels have to hold themselves up to in comparison. Truly, it’s just that good. This novel is almost 650 pages of gut-churning, anxiety-creating, turn-the-lights-on-now horror and it showcases just why Nevill is considered one of the best horror authors of all time, living or deceased.
I can’t recommend this one enough and I wish I wouldn’t have waited so long to read it.
5/5
