Lee Allen's Blog - Posts Tagged "slasher"

Halloween: The Official Movie Novelization by John Passarella

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


The gripping novelisation of the 2018 film sequel to the 1978 slasher classic.

Michael Myers is back to terrorise the sleepy town of Haddonfield. For forty years, he has remained incarcerated, having been apprehended shortly after the conclusion to his killing spree in the original film, when he apparently escaped after being shot six times by Dr Loomis during his attack on Laurie Strode. Two journalists are determined to get an interview with Myers, to see behind the mask before he is transferred back to Smith’s Grove Sanitorium and they lose the opportunity. But he remains silent and impassive.

The journalists turn their attention to Laurie Strode, the lone survivor. She is practically a recluse, semi-estranged from her daughter, Karen, and granddaughter, Allyson. Haunted by the events of that night forty years before, she has fortified her property, awaiting the day that Michael will return to finish what he started.

During his transfer, Michael escapes. Laurie knew the day would come and she is prepared. But she is the only one that is. Leaving a trail of bloodshed and carnage in his wake, Michael returns to Haddonfield on Hallowe’en night. After waiting forty years, Laurie soon comes face to face with the Shape, in what may be their final confrontation.

Passarella’s novelisation, based on the screenplay by Danny McBride, Jeff Fradley and David Gordon Green, deepens and enriches the plot and characters of the film. I absolutely loved every second, flying through the pages, becoming once again enthralled by Michael and Laurie’s cat-and-mouse game. I waited an entire year to read it on Hallowe’en (as I wanted to watch the film first when it was released the previous year) – it was certainly worth the wait and did not suffer from me already being familiar with the plot. This is the perfect companion to the film.

It’s worth noting that “Halloween” (2018) is a direct sequel to “Halloween” (1978) only, ignoring the events of “Halloween II” (1981), which took place on the same night as the original, and every sequel since. However, we’ve experienced abandonment of sequels and changes to the timeline before – “Halloween H20”; as well as an anthology film – “Halloween III: Season of the Witch” - and a remake series – “Halloween” (2007) and “Halloween II” (2009). There are subtle nods to these forgotten sequels – Laurie being Michael’s sister is somewhat of an urban legend, made up so people can make themselves feel like it wouldn’t happen to them, so Allyson suggests; while those deadly Silver Shamrock masks may be for sale once again to the world's children.

Of course, you can’t kill the Boogeyman. Michael will return next year in “Halloween Kills”, and once more in 2021 in “Halloween Ends”. I hope John Passarella will get to tackle both those films and write a further two novels as sequels to this one.

Perfect to read on autumnal nights, “Halloween” is a sublime horror novel, that will grip you in its clutches and drag you relentlessly through Michael’s night of terror. You can only pray you will survive ‘til morning.



View all my reviews
Visit me on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter

Psycho by Robert Bloch

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


The classic horror story of quiet, reserved motel owner Norman Bates and his reclusive, domineering mother.

Bates Motel, isolated since a new road directed traffic away from it, hosts few guests. After a spur-of-the-moment decision to steal from her employer, Mary Crane takes a wrong turning on the way to meet with her fiancé, Sam Loomis. It is late and she decides to take a room at the secluded motel and continue on her journey the following morning. She meets Norman and gratefully accepts his invitation to eat with him at the house he shares with Mother before retiring to her room for the night. But she hasn’t accounted for the extent of Mother’s possessiveness.

Lila Crane arrives at Sam Loomis’ hardware store in search of her sister. A detective hired by Mary’s employer is also on her trail, the three of them determined to track Mary’s whereabouts and clear up the business of the theft. The trail leads them to Bates Motel. But Norman is very protective of Mother and will do what is necessary to protect her, just as she will do what is necessary to protect her troubled son.

Bloch wields the suspense like a knife, the novel tightly plotted as if woven by a taxidermist’s needle. The iconic scenes are all here – Norman’s voyeurism through the hole behind the picture in his office; the car slowly sinking into the swamp; the sudden graphic violence of the shower scene. This is as much a psychological thriller as it is a horror story, building in intensity from its opening on a dark, stormy night to its revelatory climax.

The 1959 novel has a remarkable legacy. Adapted as Alfred Hitchcock’s masterpiece ‘Psycho’ in 1960, it was not only controversial but a major success. Bloch himself would write two sequels – ‘Psycho II’ (1982) and ‘Psycho House’ (1990); and Chet Williamson would later take up the mantle with ‘Psycho: Sanitarium’ (2016). The film adaptation is widely regarded to be the grandfather of the slasher sub-genre and was one of the major influences for John Carpenter’s 1978 ‘Halloween’. The slasher popularity ignited by ‘Halloween’ led to ‘Psycho’ developing its own franchise, with the theatrical sequels ‘Psycho II’ (1983) and ‘Psycho III’ (1986), both unrelated to Bloch’s novels; the TV spin-off pilot ‘Bates Motel’ (1987) and TV movie sequel ‘Psycho IV: The Beginning’(1990); followed by theatrical remake ‘Psycho’ in 1998. The superlative ‘Bates Motel’ (2013-17) explored the history and relationship between Norman and his mother, Norma.

Norman Bates’ legacy has been influenced by real-life horrors. Two years before the novel’s release, Ed Gein was arrested for two brutal murders. Bloch was already working on his novel and it would be completed before the full story of the body-snatching and murders emerged, which included the discovery of clothing made of human skin and theories of Gein’s unhealthy obsession with his controlling mother. Bloch commented at the time how remarkable it was that his fiction corresponded to reality, and Gein subsequently earnt a reference in the novel. His crimes would go on to influence Tobe Hooper’s 1974 ‘The Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ (yet another precursor to the slasher sub-genre) and Thomas Harris’ classic 1988 novel ‘The Silence of the Lambs’, itself adapted into a successful film in 1991. Rob Zombie (who would later direct the remake of ‘Halloween’ and its sequel), was also influenced by Gein’s crimes in making his ‘Firefly’ series – ‘House of 1000 Corpses’, ‘The Devil’s Rejects’ and ‘3 From Hell’.

Dripping in suspense, ‘Psycho’ is a twisted horror thriller that deserves its classic status, leaving you to question those around you and wonder what may really lurk beneath the surface and in the darkest recesses of their minds.



View all my reviews
Visit me on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter
Follow me on Instagram

"A little gift, Det. Fiennes, for old time's sake. Yours, Dorian."

This month the spotlight is on "I Killed Dorian", a slasher police procedural thriller.

Behind the Story

When I decided to make 'Whispers from the Dead of Night' an independent short story collection rather than an omnibus, it of course needed more stories than the original three I conceived.

'I Killed Dorian' is perhaps the story with the oldest roots. I first began writing it around a decade ago, a gritty crime thriller with elements of horror and erotic fiction. After only a few scenes, I put it aside in favour of another project.

Yet that nugget of an idea remained and I decided to see where it may lead, resurrected as a slasher with a mystery at its heart, wrapped in a police procedural shell. Now, the plot fell neatly into place and I felt excited about it.

'I Killed Dorian' was the first of the seven short stories that I wrote as I began the long process of the first draft, during the Christmas break in 2018. In finishing the story I was able to prove something to myself - that I could still do this. It was a breakthrough and an achievement, driving me to complete the following six stories over the course of the next thirteen months.

In the best of the slasher sub-genre, the killer's origins are very human, transcending to something almost supernatural, some in more subtle ways than others. I wanted to create something with that spirit, where the solution may or may not present as unexplainable.

Online dating has increased in popularity to the point it almost feels unusual to connect with anyone in the flesh without first doing so online - from casual hook-ups to marriages. Yet it's not without its horror stories. Though communicating via a screen seems to present an illusion of safety, doesn't it? So swipe away, but be warned - you may be just one match closer to a killer who preys on the lonely...
___

"The second killings had proved as seamless as the first. But tonight would take more finesse."

A killer who preys on the lonely…

Detective Fiennes is called to the scene of a brutal murder, a message addressed to him scrawled in the victim’s blood.

As the killer continues their campaign of terror, it becomes ever more apparent the detective is being taunted.

But can Fiennes identify his connection to the killer and avert more bloodshed before their endgame reaches its bloodthirsty conclusion?
___

Opening Scene

Ed lay on the bedcovers, quietly dozing, a contented smile on his face. It had been good sex – no, great sex, probably the best he’d had with a stranger yet. It was the thrill of the unknown, the excitement of a new body to explore, that gave him his pleasures with a stranger. But a stranger did not know what he liked, the best spots to touch, how his body worked. If he was lucky, they’d make a good guess, while the more conscientious lover would put effort into working it out.

Unfortunately, in his experience, the majority of strangers were in it for themselves. But he had hit the jackpot on his lucky dip tonight.
He had been surprised by how much he enjoyed the conversation, too. #613 had insisted on dinner, which they’d decided to consist of a takeout and a bottle of wine. They’d got on really well, much laughter preceding the moment when they found themselves kissing, shortly followed by the sex for which they had arranged to meet. He supposed it may have been due to the weeks they’d spent messaging, known only to each other as #972 and #613, but it felt as if they knew each other. He had never ‘made love’ to a stranger before. At that thought, he scolded himself with a frown.

He listened to the humming drifting through the wall, masked by the thundering of the shower. The flow of water abruptly switched off; he heard the shower door being pulled back, his lover exiting the shower cubicle. In the silence, he imagined him wiping the condensation from the mirror with the flat of his palm, combing his dark hair back from his face, pummelling himself dry with a towel.

The silence continued. Ed wondered if he had now become bashful, so different to the man he was when desire coursed through his body. Rising from the bed, Ed shrugged on one of the white fluffy robes provided by the hotel and passed the easy chair beside the wall, rounding the corner and walking the short distance to the bathroom door. He knocked.

“You okay in there?”

No answer. He knocked again.

“Everything okay?” He pushed open the door, greeted by a cloud of steam.

Stepping in, he slipped on the treacherous tiles...
___

Available as part of the original "Whispers from the Dead of Night" short story collection in ebook and paperback and the deluxe collection in ebook, paperback and hardcover.

Order "Whispers from the Dead of Night"
Order "Whispers from the Dead of Night - The Deluxe Collection"

Visit me on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter
Follow me on Instagram

With the spookiest night of the year almost upon us, I'm very excited to reveal my second release for Hallowe'en.

My brand new short story is entitled "Harbinger - A Jack O'Lantern Tale".

Whereas last year's "Will o' the Wisp" was a prologue I didn't intend to explore, "Harbinger" serves as an epilogue to "The Jack O'Lantern Men" that delves into some unanswered questions in the novella that were always to be addressed at some point in the series.

Curious to hear more? Read on for the short story's synopsis:

Hear my words. I am waiting for you. For I am the harbinger of justice.

Letters sent to a local newspaper reveal the tortured mind behind a series of brutal murders.

What led this killer to claim their victims? Are there deeper motives and explanations or were they blinded by fury and bloodlust?

Examine an unexplored chapter in the tales that surround the Jack O'Lantern Men and venture into the mind of a murderer...

A psychological slasher short story, etched in gothic undercurrents.

Pre-order now on Amazon for Kindle.

Don't miss the previous two stories in the series, available now:
✒ Will o' the Wisp
✒ The Jack O'Lantern Men

Read a preview of "Harbinger - A Jack O'Lantern Tale":

Friday, 27th October 1961
It is with absolute certainty I inform you I am going to kill.
You may wonder who I am, but that should not be your first question. You should ask yourself whom I am going to kill. You should ask yourself: “Is it going to be me?”
Please. Make it stop! So many thoughts thunder against the inside of my skull. I hear them all. As if there are hundreds of them in there.
You go about your daily lives, oblivious to the torment of others. The torment I have endured, just to show you truth. Yet you spit it back in my faces with ingracious ingratitude. I am beyond you. You ought to worship at my feet. My only crime was to show you all there is to see, all there is to experience.
I hear the screams. My head pounds with them, like my skull will burst and my brains will spill out into this void of a world, the screams in their wake.
Oh, how sweet your blood will taste, licked from the blade that has violated you, entered your body and stolen from you like a thief in the night.
Hear my words. I am waiting for you.
For I am the harbinger of justice.
 
Monday, 30th October 1961
The time is almost upon us. I can feel it, trilling in the air – as if it be a sound, or something that can be touched, or tasted on your tongue; almost, but not quite, instead sensory at one remove. It renders all of those sensations so superficial. This speaks to a deeper sense. The druids knew it well, the power of the season. They knew to respect it. They knew to fear it.
I am amongst you all, and you shall repay me in blood. For that is the only way you can renew yourselves.
You did not heed my warning. So be it. Your mistake will be apparent when the streets run with blood.
I fear I cannot control what is coming…
Harbinger of Justice
 
Tuesday, 31st October 1961
Yet, I am not the raving lunatic you will imagine me to be.
I once thought in very much the same way as you. That to commit heinous crimes and cause harm to others, one must suffer a great calamity of mind, to be quite mad or lacking in something so as to make them less than human. Somehow monstrous. We are safe then, as normal people. Yet what if such acts are committed by neither animal nor monster? What if evil is simply banal, altogether human?
What if we are all murderers?
The greatest achievement of the Devil is to have convinced us he does not exist. Thus he operates in the shadows, pulling the levers on humanity’s compulsions. He is inside us all. The war is never over. But it is already lost.
The wind blows a gale, trees shaking loose the dead shells of their leaves with violence, shedding them as a snake does its skin, allowing death to reign triumphant. The scent of damp is on the air, cold fingers caressing your flesh, stinging your eyes, slipping beneath your clothes, beneath your skin. Tonight, we go hunting. For tonight is Hallowe’en.
Harbinger of Justice
___

Pre-order now on Amazon for Kindle.

Don't miss the previous two stories in the series, available now:
✒ Will o' the Wisp
✒ The Jack O'Lantern Men

Halloween Kills: The Official Movie Novelization by Tim Waggoner

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Michael Myers wreaks havoc on Haddonfield once more.

Michael has finally been trapped and left to burn; the horror is finally over. But he rises from his fiery grave to relentlessly continue his massacre.

The town of Haddonfield remains scarred by Myers' brutal murders forty years before, those he came into contact with still haunted by his legacy. They are shocked to discover he has once again escaped and left a trail of corpses in his wake.

Meanwhile, Laurie Strode, believing her plan to have worked, soon realises that Michael still stalks amongst them and that the streets will run with more blood before Hallowe'en night ends.

'Halloween Kills' is Tim Waggoner's novelisation of the second film in the legacy sequel trilogy, that follows only the original film and none of the intervening sequels, based on the screenplay by Scott Teems, Danny McBride, and David Gordon Green.

Picking up directly after the events of 'Halloween' (2018), Michael is trapped in the basement as the inferno rages throughout Laurie’s house, while Laurie, Karen and Allyson are journeying to the hospital, having left Michael for dead. But the Shape isn't so easy to kill, his escape from the flames as thrilling on the page as it is on the screen. Including flashbacks to 1978, we also discover what happened in the aftermath to Michael’s attack on Laurie and her rescue by Dr. Loomis, with Michael’s recapture before he is returned to Smith’s Grove.

Not only does the story of Laurie’s family and her trauma continue and the novel detail the ensuing bloodshed of Michael's massacre - this is also a story about Haddonfield itself, and the effect Michael’s dark legacy has had on the town and other survivors. Other characters make a return, including Tommy and Lindsey. The trauma of the town and its reaction to Michael’s evil escalates into a volatile cocktail of fear and vengeance, a tale of mob violence and the darkness of humanity, as dangerous as the almost supernatural essence that Michael embodies beneath the mask.

Tim Waggoner has done a marvellous job of translating screen to page; 'Halloween Kills', as both a companion to the film and a novel in its own right, is a delight for Michael Myers fans, lovers of Hallowe'en itself, and readers of slasher horror and dark thrillers. A highly recommended novel.



View all my reviews
Visit me on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter
Follow me on Instagram

HorrorScope: A Zodiac Anthology by H. Everend

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


An anthology of zodiac horror.

'HorrorScope' is a collection of short stories and poetry, thematically linked to signs of the zodiac, featuring work by thirty-six indie horror and dark fantasy authors. Edited by H. Everend, it features a wide array of sub-genres, including forays into mythology, creature features and cryptozoology, slashers and serial killers, curses and witchcraft, and the looming spectre of death. It’s a thrilling concept, to present a horror-esque horoscope through storytelling, split into a section per zodiac sign, each section including three pieces.

My personal favourites were:
‘The Twin Keepers’ by Alex Tilley, a blend of psychological and dystopian suspense;
‘You Die...I Die’ by Jessica Huntley, a twisted game at the hands of a serial killer;
‘The Virgin’ by Brooklynn Dean, a delicious slice of erotica and brutal ritual;
‘The Lovers’ by Sabrina Voerman, a sensuous fantasy of tragedy and morality;
‘The Sting of the Scorpius’ by Kay Hanifen, a tale of mysticism and retribution;
‘The One Who Came to Save Her’ by Nico Bell, a visitation of revenge in a small town;
‘My Little Minnow’ by Nina Tolstoy, a psychological portrait of a serial killer.

Overall, this is a brilliant dossier of work, covering a wide range of sub-genres. As one would expect, it contains its fair share of explicit violence, sexual content, and torture, as well as some less explicit animal cruelty. Boasting diversity across genre, themes, tropes and characters, even the most casual horror fan will likely find something that speaks to them within this volume, much like might be found in a traditional horoscope.

Overseeing proceedings is H. Everend; as well as an author of several horror stories, she is also a committed supporter of the indie author community. Here she has curated a superb anthology that showcases the talent and hard work of its writers, with a mix of established names with work already published and new authors presenting their debuts. As an indie author myself, I understand the challenges and the sheer willpower, commitment and passion it takes to produce the work and send it out into the world, and everyone should feel incredibly proud of their contributions. Indie voices may typically be small, but nevertheless they have something to say.

A delight for both enthusiasts of horror and indie supporters, ‘HorrorScope’ marks a fabulous achievement for all the creators involved. Future volumes have been announced, with 'HorrorScope, Volume II' arriving this summer.



View all my reviews
Follow me on Facebook
Follow me on Instagram
Follow me on Twitter

Halloween Ends: The Official Movie Novelization by Paul Brad Logan

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


The thrilling conclusion to the saga of Michael Myers and Laurie Strode.

Michael Myers has vanished. Since his escape and recent killing spree he has evaded capture and apparently disappeared. But Haddonfield is a scarred town that cannot forget.

After accidentally causing the death of a child, Corey Cunningham has become the town's new boogeyman. Laurie Strode sees through this prejudice, having suffered at the hands of town opinion herself, and introduces Corey to her granddaughter, Allyson.

But as Hallowe’en approaches, evil stirs in the shadows, and death comes to this little town once again.

'Halloween Ends' is the novelisation of the 2022 film, written by Paul Brad Logan, and based on the screenplay by Paul Brad Logan, David Gordon Green, Danny McBride, Chris Bernier. The last in Gordon Green's legacy trilogy, and thirteenth entry in the franchise overall, it concludes the story that began with ‘Halloween [2018]’ and continued with ‘Halloween Kills’. A fantastic companion to the movie and a riveting horror thriller on its own merit, the novel vividly translates the events portrayed on film to the page, delving deeper into the psyches of the characters.

Whereas 'Halloween [2018]' was the ultimate battle between Laurie and Michael forty years on and 'Halloween Kills' the continuation of that night, exploring the ongoing horror for Laurie and her family and the wider impact on the town and its citizens, 'Halloween Ends' is the denouement to that massacre, set four years later, a slow-burning and character-driven narrative of psychological depth, philosophical perspective, and the possibility of supernatural influence. It’s not necessarily the typical slasher, yet this gives the story its strength, exploring the concept of evil as a contagion, an infection spread through tragedy, abuse and trauma.

Severely weakened, still suffering from the wounds inflicted four years earlier and severely malnourished, an aging Michael Myers lurks in a disused sewer on the outskirts of Haddonfield. Meanwhile, Laurie Strode, the original survivor of Michael’s 1978 massacre, having waited forty years for the day he would escape so she could finally bring an end to it, but then tragically losing her daughter in the havoc that followed, has finally managed to begin the process of healing and living a life. The narrative is largely led through Corey and Allyson's story, blending romantic elements while further developing the central theme of the legacy of trauma; how evil and its scars afflict subsequent generations.

Throughout forty-five years, the series has walked the shadows between the flesh and blood and the supernatural, as is fitting for the festival it celebrates. This trilogy has honoured the original film and its creative spirit, very cleverly towing those shadows. Michael is a man, who, despite his inhuman abilities, can ultimately die. Yet this darkness within him, that has lived there since he was six years old, leaving him only a shell, may be the purest evil, almost its own entity in the way that Michael himself can appear almost supernatural in the form of the Shape; as he dons the mask that perfectly visualises that blank, pale, emotionless face that Dr. Loomis witnessed in the child who appeared to have no conscience or reason left, with "the blackest eyes, the Devil's eyes." You cannot really explain Michael Myers - he is unlike any flesh and blood serial or spree killer, and yet he is also not supernatural in the way Freddy or Jason (in his later films at least) may be.

Central to the entire legacy trilogy is Laurie Strode, the original final girl. Now a grandmother, a survivor; we've witnessed the effect of that Halloween night of 1978 and how it shaped her entire life and that of her family. She's developed into a feminist icon, both in character on the screen (and page), and through her portrayal by Jamie Lee Curtis. Horror is often attributed the reputation of not being kind to female characters - objectifying, sexualising and victimising them. Yet, in some ways, it has been ahead of the curve - in how many other genres would a "final girl" be one of the heroes of the narrative? The trilogy has essentially been Laurie’s story of survival – how she lived with her trauma and reclaimed the narrative, not simply being one of Michael’s victims, and how ultimately she emerges on the other side.

A fitting final chapter to this strand of the legacy, 'Halloween Ends' is a gripping installment in what is arguably the original and leading of the slasher franchises. Doubtless, Michael will ultimately return in some shape or form, and I will welcome it when that day arrives. As the story itself suggests, perhaps evil truly never dies.



View all my reviews
Follow me on Facebook
Follow me on Instagram
Follow me on Threads
Follow me on Twitter