Monsters of Horror Book Group (Hackensack) - 2009 Books Read Thread

[Phil]

This is the Thread for Books Read by the Monsters of Horror Book Group in 2009:


THE WOLFMAN.................................Nicholas Pekearo.....................11/05/09
UNDEAD & UNPOPULAR....................MaryJanice Davidson................10/01/09
SMALL FAVOR...................................Jim Butcher.............................09/03/09
BONE KEY / Supernatural...................Keith De Candido.....................08/06/09
PRIDE & PREJUDICE & ZOMBIES.........Austen / Grahame-Smith..........07/02/09
DEATH'S DAUGHTER........................Amber Benson..........................06/04/09
THE DEVIL YOU KNOW......................Mike Carey...............................05/07/09
BETTER OFF UNDEAD.........................Hoyt / Greenberg.....................04/02/09
SUNSHINE........................................Robin McKinley........................03/05/09
DARK DELICACIES 2: FEAR.................Howison / Gelb.........................02/05/09
THE MANY FACES OF VAN HELSING....Jeanne Cavelos.........................01/01/09

[Phil]

The following accounts are reprinted with permission from THE STARSHIP EXPRESS Copyright 2009 Philip J De Parto.


THE WOLFMAN
Each of the foursome had read the work, and the discussion turned into a lovefest between those who had liked the book (Liz and Phil), and those who had REALLY liked the book (Pam and Barry). Barry really liked the narrator's voice. Pam lauded the roughness and lack of polish of the work. We all agreed that the plot was mediocre, but that the characters and sense of place were quite well done.

UNDEAD & UNPOPULAR, Betsy 5
The book is the fifth in the author's Betsy, the Vampire Queen paranormal romance series and a fun, breezy look at the lighter side of being a vampire.

SMALL FAVOR, Dresden Files 10
Only Phil had read the book, but Greg and Barry were game about learning about the book, the Dresden Files series and Butcher's other works. Contrary to expectations, this was actually one of the more focused discussions we have had in a while.

BONE KEY / Supernatural
The book is set in the Florida Keys where a vengeful Native American God plans to wipe out virtually all of humanity, forcing an uneasy alliance between the monster hunting brothers, Sam and Dean Winchester, and a demon with her own plans for the human race. The discussion covered the book, the television series, and other works of horror.

PRIDE & PREJUDICE & ZOMBIES
I confess to mixed feelings about the book. The central conceit of mixing brain eating zombies with Austin's delicate, class conscious young ladies is an absurdist's dream come true. There were scenes in the early going where I could read only a few pages at a time before being overcome by silliness of it all. I found the middle dragged, but the final third won me back. It took some time, but I'm glad I finally finished the book and mentally still chuckle at some scenes.

DEATH'S DAUGHTER, Calliope 1
DAUGHTER is an okay, but nothing special, first solo book written by the former BUFFY actress. Taras gave up on the book during its first chick-lit chapter. Phil felt things picked up after that. He liked how heroine Calliope Reaper-Jones is hot and gushy over the hunky Daniel until she realizes that he is glamouring her, at which point she stops acting like a romance novel heroine and starts thinking. The description of how Hell is organized was another strong point.

THE DEVIL YOU KNOW, Felix Castor 1
This is the first in a fantasy noir series featuring freelance exorcist Felix Castor. The author has lots of fun inserting the standard noir tropes--down on his luck PI, dame who spells trouble, etc--into a London where the dead and undead are ubiquitous. I kept expecting to see Simon Pegg make a cameo.

This is Carey's first novel, but he has previously written comics and graphic novels.

BETTER OFF UNDEAD
The collection consists of 18 stories about ghosts, mummies, vampires, zombies and similar creatures. My favorite stories were "Night Shifted" by Kate Paulk, "Genius Loci" by Chelsa Quinn Yarbro and "Museum Hauntings" by Irene Radford. Other contributors include Alan Dean Foster, Esther Friesner, Jay Lake and S M Stirling.

SUNSHINE
Phil and Pam had read the book and were in agreement that the first third of the book was stronger than the rest of novel, although there were individual scenes throughout the book which were quite moving. Phil cited Sunshine's trouble in adapting to night vision as a praiseworthy detail of the work.

DARK DELICACIES 2: FEAR
This mass market reprint of an original anthology consists of 18 stories plus an introduction by Del Howison, a foreward by Ray Harryhausen, and an afterword by Jeff Gelb. Only Phil had red the book. He stated favorites as "Sunrise on Running Water" by Barbara Hambly about a vampire on the Titanic, "Stacy and her Idiot" by Peter Atkins for its tough girl voice, and "Where There's a Will ..." by Robert Masello for the cleverness of the situation. Other contributors include John Farris, L A Banks, Max Brooks and Joe Lansdale.

THE MANY FACES OF VAN HELSING
The book is a mass market reprint of an original 21 story anthology edited by past S F A B C Speaker Jeanne Cavelos. Among the notable tales were "Anna Lee" by Kathe Koja--told from the point of view of Lucy Westenra's maid--for its language and voice, "Venus and Mars" by Christopher Golden about vampire children who prey on child molesters for its premise, and "Origin of the Species" by A M Dellamonica for its ideas about supernatural selection.