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Madhouse
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In the middle ages, it was thought that insanity was contagious. Centuries on, we label such ideas as superstitious ignorance. But when John Doe begins to speak after decades of silence, the staff and patients at the Golden Canyon Behavioral Health center begin to realize that behind every superstition lies a horrid truth.
On the night that a vicious sandstorm closes the ...more
On the night that a vicious sandstorm closes the ...more
Kindle Edition, 366 pages
Published
May 22nd 2016
by Dark Regions Press
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I've been a fan of shared world anthologies since reading the Thieves World books for the first time back in the mid-80's. My love of the format colored my views of this project before even starting it and thus established some lofty expectations, which is always a tad dangerous.
Pleased to say that, having just concluded this 360-page fever dream of a raging, madness-drenched shitstorm, my expectations were generally met and often exceeded.
There isn't a lot of cogency here, even within the ...more
Pleased to say that, having just concluded this 360-page fever dream of a raging, madness-drenched shitstorm, my expectations were generally met and often exceeded.
There isn't a lot of cogency here, even within the ...more

This was unnecessarily and annoyingly cryptic. It took me about 40% through to get warmed up to the format and, even then, it seemed more cryptic (and seemingly artificially/intentionally so) than it needed to be. Since the whole thing is sort of gimmicky from the get-go, they should have erred on the side of clarity in the story telling and would still have ended up with something that was very unique and creative, and maybe even gained widespread acceptance (like Horrorstör). Instead, I think
...more

A decent and interesting cadavre exquis of a story.
While most of the stories are self contained about different characters there are a few threads running through...some of which are abruptly dropped and not picked up again. This makes the book something of a mess, which is a shame, although the presentation does help mitigating the problem to an extent.
Speaking of presentation, the stories are accompanied by illustrations made by the excellent Aeron Alfrey, although it pains me to say that ...more
While most of the stories are self contained about different characters there are a few threads running through...some of which are abruptly dropped and not picked up again. This makes the book something of a mess, which is a shame, although the presentation does help mitigating the problem to an extent.
Speaking of presentation, the stories are accompanied by illustrations made by the excellent Aeron Alfrey, although it pains me to say that ...more

Your mileage may vary.
If you like splatterpunk, this book is for you. If explicit over-the-top gore is not your thing, you’ll feel like you’re reading the aristocrats joke—horror edition.
Because of the way this book was written (i.e., multiple authors), the book was uneven. It had a premise, but was thin on plot. There was also very little in the way of exposition. You don’t want a lot of that, but a “why” and “how this eldritch thing works” explanation would have been nice.
If you like splatterpunk, this book is for you. If explicit over-the-top gore is not your thing, you’ll feel like you’re reading the aristocrats joke—horror edition.
Because of the way this book was written (i.e., multiple authors), the book was uneven. It had a premise, but was thin on plot. There was also very little in the way of exposition. You don’t want a lot of that, but a “why” and “how this eldritch thing works” explanation would have been nice.

I kept thinking of a cinematic comparison while reading Madhouse. There was a movie in the 70s called Asylum. It had a screenplay by Robert Bloch and featured a number of stories set in the confines of a mental institution. There was also a framing story that very loosely tied all the others together. It is one of the better horror anthology movies that you will find.
Madhouse is a little like that. It also has a connecting framing story about the patients and staff who are isolated in an Arizona ...more
Madhouse is a little like that. It also has a connecting framing story about the patients and staff who are isolated in an Arizona ...more

Truth in lending: I have a G Daniel Gunn story in this amazing anthology called "My Dearest Gwendolyn". But I hadn't read the other stories until now. This anthology is one story, of sorts, taking place in a mental hospital in the desert under siege by a monstrous, and otherworldly, sandstorm, and something else, a sickness, or demon(s), you choose, spread to everyone through words. This is the basic premise, and every contributor was given the layout of the building, then were set free to right
...more
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Originally from Knoxville, TN, writer Brad C. Hodson currently hangs his hat in sunny Southern California. A former stand-up comedian, he also founded an award winning sketch comedy group and has been published in several national magazines.
He's the recipient of the Roselle Lewis Award for Excellence in Short Fiction and the Kornbluh Award for non-fiction, as well as several screenwriting awards. ...more
He's the recipient of the Roselle Lewis Award for Excellence in Short Fiction and the Kornbluh Award for non-fiction, as well as several screenwriting awards. ...more
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