The nitty-gritty: Secrets and lies come to light as a family grapples with the death of their matriarch and her demon infested house. “Our family scapegoat is gone. Whose fault will everything be now?” I always know what I’m getting with a new Rachel Harrison book, and Play Nice is right in her wheelhouse. Harrison […]
The nitty-gritty: A unique location and a quirky cast of characters set this high energy slasher apart from the crowd. This was a blast from start to finish! This is my first Brian McAuley book, and I have to say I’m impressed! Breathe In, Bleed Out is a fantastic, well rounded horror story with plenty […]
The nitty-gritty: An ambitious, entertaining and bloody tale about publishing, demons and the lengths one woman will go to for success. “Hopefully, you’re stronger than I was. Not so easily carried away. Still, you might want to grip the book a little tighter at this point. For this is your horror story now. The reader […]
The nitty-gritty: A woman is forced to relive her traumatic childhood in Darcy Coates’ latest, a bloody, scary slasher with surprises around every corner. Darcy Coates is such a solid writer, and it’s always a pleasure to read one of her books. In How Bad Things Can Get she tackles cults, social media and trauma […]
The nitty-gritty: Carnival horror meets gross-out humor in this wickedly funny, touching tale about memory, friendship and port-a-potties. “And you’re saying he’s coming in through the port-a-potties?” “Portal-potties. Sorta like Doctor Who, except the Tardis is a shitter.” “Tardis?” “Goddamn, Gaynes, like a time machine.” What if a port-a-potty was a portal-potty? That’s the idea […]
The nitty-gritty: Chuck Tingle mixes absurdity and heartfelt emotion in this story about saving the world, a weird (and sometimes confusing) mash-up of sci-fi and horror. Chuck Tingle always comes up with unexpected ideas, and Lucky Day might be his most original and unusual book yet. First a confession: I nearly set this book aside. […]
The nitty-gritty: A dangerous game of cat and mouse, a maze-like house, and a family curse—all these elements and more make up House of Monstrous Women, an excellent horror story rooted in Filipino folklore. “The Ranoco house wasn’t a normal house, by anyone’s definition. It sprawled on the outside. But inside? She felt like she […]
The nitty-gritty: Powerful, visceral and immersive, Angel Down explores war and angels, life and death, desires and miracles, in a surprising format that echoes the chaos of war. “and Goodspeed’s theory has a logic Bagger can’t quip aside, for if you were to forge new kinds of weapons, and those weapons flew farther and sailed […]
The nitty-gritty: A twisty haunted house story with lots of surprises, It Was Her House First is a suspenseful thriller with engaging characters—both living and dead. “Every stair, every step, Venita dragged 1932 behind her like the train on a wedding veil. Everything her wake touched lit up and returned to its original state. The […]
The nitty-gritty: The dark academia trope is turned on its head in Cassandra Khaw’s latest, a bloody feast with Gothic imagery, lush prose and ravenous characters. “Oleander and nightshade grew in pastel eruptions, Rosary peas sprawled everywhere, ladybug-patterned in their gray husks, vivid as a fresh heart. No small amount of the school’s namesake bloomed […]