The Top 10 Books of 2010
Time for my eighth annual list of what I consider to be the top ten best books of the year. These are books that I enjoyed, and that I think my readership will enjoy. They are one man's opinions. Your mileage may vary. I've been told by authors and booksellers that my list helps their sales. If so, then cool.
The rules are fairly simple. Rule #1: The edition of the book listed here must have been published during the year for which it is being considered. (For example, I'm currently reading an advance review copy of Ice-T's new memoir. It is a wonderful book, and would be on this list, except that it won't be published until 2011). Rule #2: If I contributed in any way to a particular book (be it an introduction, afterword, etc.) then it is disqualified from the list.
A note on nepotism. Every year, one or two pinheads cry, "The only reason so-and-so is on your list is because you know them." Well, if that was true, then the entire list would be suspect. After working within the genre for over a decade, I pretty much know everybody. Publishing is a deceptively small community. Suffice to say, nepotism plays no part in this list. I read many books by many close friends this year that won't make the list.
I read 141 books in 2010. That's down drastically from the 246 I read in 2009, but then again, 2010 was a rough year. For a complete list of everything I read in 2010, click here. (And to view 2009's Top Ten list, click here).
And now, the Top Ten Books of 2010…
INTERNECINE by David J. Schow: It's a standard formula for thrillers: "a common, everyday guy gets mixed up in the machinations of a sinister, shadowy conspiracy within the government and is now on the lam, running for his life and trying to prove his innocence." But in what it is undoubtedly his finest work in years, veteran horror and thriller scribe David J. Schow takes that standard formula and not only knocks it on its tired and staid ass — he kicks it into the fucking stratosphere. Internecine is the story of Conrad Maddox, a divorced advertising executive now married to his job, who finds a locker key in his rental car and makes the mistake of seeing what's inside the locker. What follows is a deliciously frenetic tale of conflict, slaughter, assassination, escapes, and counter attacks. This is a compulsory, can't – put – it – down – until – you've – finished – reading type of book, and Schow deserves huge props for so effortlessly weaving an espionage tale that truly keeps the reader on the edge and unbalanced until the shocking ending (warning: if you are one of those "peek ahead and read the last page" type of people, you will be doing both yourself and the author a disservice by attempting that with Internecine). This is a smart, witty, sexy thriller that's too good for Hollywood and too cool for school. Absolute must read! Available here in both trade hardcover and digital.
A DARK MATTER by Peter Straub: In last year's Top Ten of 2009 list, I offered my opinion that most of the stories in Stephen King's Just After Sunset were tales that could only be written by an older, more mature writer, and how that was a good thing. The same holds true for Peter Straub's latest novel. A Dark Matter is a maudlin, bittersweet story of four friends who, in the 1960's, had an encounter in college with a hippie occultist and supernatural guru named Spencer Mallon. The experience ended in disaster, and now, decades later, the psychic damage is taking its toll on them. The character of Mallon is portrayed sometimes as Aleister Crowley-like, and at other times as nothing more than a grubby vagrant and con artist. And therein lies the beauty of A Dark Matter. Four different protagonists offering four different perspectives on the events from so long ago, and what happened, and how it changed them personally. None of the narrators are totally reliable, and as we, the reader, slowly realize this, it makes the tension and overall atmosphere that much creepier. Critics have compared the novel to Akira Kurosawa's Rashomon, and I think that's fair. What isn't commented on is the Lovecraftian, Jamesian, and Machenian (is that a word? I don't know, but I'm Brian Keene, and I say it is) tones that inform the plot. Indeed, many parts of the book reminded me very much of the masters of old, especially the novel's centerpiece, an occult ceremony that will appeal to those who relished the fate of the Mad Arab, Abdul Alhazred, who was devoured by an invisible monster in broad daylight. A Dark Matter is one of Straub's best, a mature, emotional, and grounded work by a modern day master who's still at the top of his game. Available here in trade hardcover, paperback, and digital.
THE KILLING KIND by Bryan Smith: Critics have hailed various authors as "the heir to Richard Laymon". They've said it about myself, Steve Gerlach, Brett McBean, Geoff Cooper and others, but for my money, Bryan Smith is the heir apparent. He proved it with 2009's Depraved and solidifies it with 2010's The Killing Kind, a wonderfully macabre and twisted pulp-ride about spree killers, serial killers and surplus horny, obnoxious teenagers. Indeed, that almost sounds like the pitch for a reality show in Hell – "What happens when a bunch of killers, sadists, and teenagers all spend a weekend together in a beach house? Let's find out on MTV's Killer Shore!" The Killing Kind is full of pitch black humor and over-the-top brutality, and Smith gleefully borrows many of Laymon, Ketchum, Lee, and Garton's tried and true tropes and builds on them, creating something fresh for a new generation of readers. There is much debate in the genre right now about "literary" horror versus "commercial" horror (because apparently, I'm the only person who reads and enjoys both). Literary proponents might be tempted to turn their nose up at such a novel, and that's a shame, because they're missing out on a very good time. Critics were harsh with Smith's first novel, House of Blood, but he's honed his craft with each subsequent work, and now he's hitting his stride. I look forward to spending a weekend with a new Bryan Smith book in the same way I used to look forward to spending a weekend with a new Richard Laymon novel. In my view, there isn't higher praise than that. Some people will get it. Some won't. Those of us who get it should definitely get this book. Available in digital here, however, much like myself, Bryan Smith's titles have been impacted by the uncertainty at Leisure Books. There is a collectible hardcover edition coming later this year.
THE THIEF OF BROKEN TOYS by Tim Lebbon: If Bryan Smith is the heir to Richard Laymon, then Tim Lebbon is the heir to Ramsey Campbell. Like Smith (and other writers of our generation) Lebbon has honed his craft with each subsequent work, and hit his stride around 2006 – 2008 with books such as Dusk and The Reach of Children. With The Thief of Broken Toys, he has reached a new plateau of richly textured and multi-layered storytelling. A heartbreaking tale about a father coming to grips with the death of his son and the subsequent loss of his wife, The Thief of Broken Toys weighs heavy on the reader's soul. This is not an easy book, but it is a good book. It is one that, like Lebbon's predecessor Ramsey Campbell's best, will haunt you long after you've finished it, and it is also one that you'll return to for subsequent readings. Available here in both paperback and digital.
FULL DARK, NO STARS by Stephen King: Critics proclaimed that Stephen King's Cell was "the author at his meanest and most visceral, returning to the no holds barred storytelling style of Misery and Cujo." Those critics were idiots. Cell was a wistful, winking one-off more in line with The Tommyknockers or Needful Things. It is Full Dark, No Stars that is King's meanest and most visceral work to date. The title is not hyperbole. These stories are not just dark. They are the absolute absence of light. Composed of three superb novellas and one so-so novella, Full Dark, No Stars is the only book to actually make me uncomfortable this year, especially the outstanding bookends of "1922″ and "A Good Marriage", both of which examine how love turns to hate and how passion turns to murder. In the former, that examination is quite literal as a farmer recounts how one act, the murder of his wife by his hands, impacts not only the rest of his life, but the life of his son and everyone else around them, as well. In the latter, the examination is more subtle, as a women discovers that her loving husband is a serial killer, and the man with whom she's shared a bed,laughs, love and tears with all these years is, in fact, a masked stranger. Just After Sunset, Under the Dome, and now Full Dark, No Stars — is this is a new renaissance for the King of the Genre? I think so, and a reader, that delights me. Available here, in both trade hardcover and digital.
WARRIOR WOLF WOMEN OF THE WASTELAND by Carlton Mellick III: A note – this book carries a copyright of 2009, but it did not ship until 2010. Therefore, it meets the eligibility requirements for this year's list. And I'm glad it does because this is one of Mellick's best — and most accessible — works to date. In a post-apocalyptic future where people live in a socialist mega-city run by the McDonald's Corporation, those who disobey are cast out into the wastelands, where they fall prey to marauding gangs of female werewolves. And with that wacky Bizarro premise, Mellick begins a fascinating and humorous examination of sexual politics and awakenings, consumption mindset, capitalism, gender separation, and dehumanization. The best Bizarro fiction always does this — examines social, political, and religious issues through a very cracked and surreal lens, but Mellick remains the top practitioner, and very rightfully so. If you still don't understand what the Bizarro genre is about, or want to try reading it and aren't sure where to begin, Warrior Wolf Women of the Wasteland is a great starting point. Available here, in trade paperback.
KING MAKER by Maurice Broaddus: King Maker is the first book in The Knights of Breton Court dark fantasy trilogy. You know all those people who constantly complain about how there's nothing original in fantasy anymore and everything is just a rehash of The Lord of the Rings and Robert E. Howard stories? Yeah, those people should shut up now. For his first mass-market novel, Broaddus put an ingenious twist on the King Arthur legend, transporting it from glorious Camelot to the gritty but equally glorious Indianapolis projects. A skillful mash-up of The Wire, Excalibur, New Jack City, and Merlin, King Maker shines with brutally realistic characterization, tension and wonderful, unexpected bursts of humor. Some call it fantasy, or urban fantasy, or dark fantasy. It doesn't matter what genre label you slap on the book. What matters is that it's a stellar debut, and well-worth checking out. Available here in mass-market paperback and digital.
SARAH COURT by Craig Davidson: Davidson is perhaps best known to horror readers by his Patrick Lestewka pseudonym, under which he wrote The Preserve, Imprint, and others. It was his non-genre work under his real name, such as 2005's collection Rust and Bone, that really got Davidson noticed. Now he's back with Sarah Court, a book that combines the elements of both his genre alter-ego and his more ethereal recent work. Not quite a novel but not quite a short story collection, Sarah's Court is an at times humorous and at times disturbing look at the lives of a group of residents in one particular city block. Their tales overlap and entwine, but work very well as stand-alones. Chuck Palahniuk says that the best of both worlds is on display here, and I'd agree with that. There is comedy and horror, and mercy and cruelty. There is also a brilliant little passage about squirrels. Davidson remains one of my favorite authors. Pick this up and see why. Available here in paperback and digital.
DO UNTO OTHERS by J. F. Gonzalez: It's a testimony to Gonzalez's craft that he can ease from one end of the genre to the other seemingly so effortlessly. Although best known for his extreme work like Survivor, or the pulpy excess of Clickers and Primitive, it is his more subtle and nuanced works, such as Do Unto Others, where the author really shines. In this novella, bad things happen. Ever have one of those days? Hell, ever have one of those years? Protagonist Jim Cornell certainly is. His daughter dies from cancer. His marriage is in shambles. He's out of work. Like many of us, Jim turns his head to the sky, raises his fists, and asks "Why hast thou forsaken me?" But just because you stop believing in God, that doesn't mean God no longer exists. And if God exists, then so does the Devil — as Jim finds out in this nightmarish page-turner. Definitely one of Gonzalez's best. Available here in paperback.
CTHULHU'S DARK CULTS edited by David Conyers: In this Lovecraft-inspired anthology, editor David Conyers has done a commendable job of compiling a collection of first-rate tales by some lesser-known but certainly capable writers. Indeed, I was so impressed with most of the stories that after finishing the book, I had a list of new authors to Google. All of the tales deal with cults engaged in the worship of Cthulhu and other Lovecraftian deities. The stories run the gamut from literary to pure pulp (and I'm glad for that). While all of the tales are enjoyable, the stand-outs include "The Eternal Chinaman" by John Sunseri, "Perfect Skin" by David Witteveen, "The Devil's Diamonds" by Cody Goodfellow, and "Captains of Industry" by John Goodrich (indeed, that last one is my favorite short story I've read this year). A worthwhile addition to any horror bookshelf. Available here in trade paperback.
And thus, we come to the end of another year of good reads. As always, people will ask me which books didn't quite make the list. To help head some of that off, here are the five runners-up (numbers 11 through 15):
Johnny Halloween by Norman Partridge
Empire of Salt by Weston Ochse
Everyone Dies Famous In A Small Town by Wrath James White
Northlanders: The Plaque Widow by Brian Wood
Mustaine: A Heavy Metal Memoir by Dave Mustaine
