(Editor’s note: SHORT SHOTS is a column where I review short stories from horror anthologies, collections, and zines.) “Knock on Wood” by Leigh Kenny invokes the elemental fear of A Nightmare on Elm Street and The Amityville Horror by blending a terrifying boogeyman with a haunted house. It transported me back to the best old-school... Continue Reading →
Horror Book Review: WHAT HIDES IN THE CUPBOARDS
What Hides in the Cupboards by Cassondra Windwalker is a masterwork of modern gothic horror that deftly unpacks the emotional baggage of a woman living on the edge of sanity and fearlessly exposes the raw nerves of her regret, grief, and self-loathing. The novel is set for release by horror and crime publisher Unnerving on Jan.... Continue Reading →
Jeff Strand unveils new novel with big twist
Bram Stoker Award-winning author Jeff Strand likes a good twist, and his new novel Veiled features one of his biggest. Released June 6, Veiled is about an average guy named Nate who meets and starts dating Alice, a woman who harbors a shocking secret. Strand explained his theory on what makes a good twist in... Continue Reading →
Horror Book Review: DEMONIC
The first word I thought after reading Demonic, the newest novel by Jeff Strand, is bonkers. However, bonkers seems a bit inappropriate since Demonic is about a Satanic cult whose members kill without mercy. Actually, the book is about a guy named Corey who decides to rescue his co-worker Quinn by killing her abusive husband,... Continue Reading →
Horror Book Review: TWENTIETH ANNIVERSARY SCREENING
Cover art by Lynne Hansen at LynneHansenArt.com In Twentieth Anniversary Screening, author Jeff Strand chronicles the tragic history of a terrible 1991 slasher movie titled The Roofer. Written like a retrospective article on a horror news website, the story recounts the bloody history of events surrounding the film. A 2021 Bram Stoker Award nominee for... Continue Reading →
Horror Book Review: THE HOSTAGE
(Editor's note: This review contains major spoilers.) What happens when you successfully rob a bank, but unbeknownst to you, the hostage you take is a notorious cannibalistic serial killer? Hint: It doesn't end well. The Hostage by Elizabeth Bell is a fast-paced Extreme Horror novella detailing the events of a bank robbery and its aftermath.... Continue Reading →
December’s DOUBLE FEATURE | Monstrous Domesticity & The Night Creatures
(Editor’s note: DOUBLE FEATURE is a column where I read at least two horror books per month in 2020 and review them for my website.) December’s DOUBLE FEATURE: Monstrous Domesticity by R.J. Joseph and The Night Creatures by Lee Allen Howard. Monstrous Domesticity The common threads in the four short stories of Monstrous Domesticity are pregnancy... Continue Reading →
November’s DOUBLE FEATURE | Dear Laura & Night of the Rider
(Editor’s note: DOUBLE FEATURE is a column where I read at least two horror books per month in 2020 and review them for my website.) November’s DOUBLE FEATURE: Dear Laura by Gemma Amor and Night of the Rider by Alyson Faye. Dear Laura Dear Laura is a masterpiece of horror suspense. A 2019 Bram Stoker Award nominee for Superior... Continue Reading →
September’s DOUBLE FEATURE | Dead End & Hades’ Gate
(Editor’s note: DOUBLE FEATURE is a column where I read at least two horror books per month in 2020 and review them for my website.) September’s DOUBLE FEATURE: Dead End by Mallory Kelly and Hades' Gate by D.J. Doyle. Dead End Released in May 2019, Dead End is the first novella in the four-book series Clown... Continue Reading →
August’s DOUBLE FEATURE | To Be Devoured & Wither and Other Tales
(Editor’s note: DOUBLE FEATURE is a column where I read at least two horror books per month in 2020 and review them for my website.) August’s DOUBLE FEATURE: To Be Devoured by Sara Tantlinger and Wither and Other Stories by Sonora Taylor. To Be Devoured Released in July 2019, To Be Devoured by Sara Tantlinger... Continue Reading →