When We Were Animals


Joshua Gaylord - 2015
    In fact, she never thought she would escape her small and peculiar hometown. When We Were Animals is Lumen's confessional: as a well-behaved and over-achieving teenager, she fell beneath the sway of her community's darkest, strangest secret. For one year, beginning at puberty, every resident "breaches" during the full moon. On these nights, adolescents run wild, destroying everything in their path.Lumen resists. Promising her father she will never breach, she investigates the mystery of her community's traditions and the stories erased from the town record. But the more we learn about the town's past, the more we realize that Lumen's memories are harboring secrets of their own.A gothic coming-of-age tale for modern times, When We Were Animals is a dark, provocative journey into the American heartland.

My Swordhand is Singing


Marcus Sedgwick - 2006
    Peter doesn't understand why his father has done this, nor why his father carries a long, battered box, whose mysterious contents he is forbidden to know.But Tomas is a man with a past: a past that is tracking him with deadly intent, and when the dead of Chust begin to rise from their graves, both father and son must face a soulless enemy and a terrifying destiny.From the Hardcover edition.

Until the Sun Goes Down (Until... Book 1)


Ike Hamill - 2019
    He doesn't laugh when I mention vampires."They're in the cellar," he says.It must be the heat. The old man is delusional. At least that's what I tell myself. Things are different in the middle of the night. When monsters come tapping, it's impossible to dismiss the idea that the Maine woods hold secrets--deadly secrets. Until the Sun Goes Down - a terrifying and inventive novel by Ike Hamill A new look at the vampire genre, this book draws you into the slow madness that overtakes our protagonist. There's not much time Until the Sun Goes Down.

Sunglasses After Dark


Nancy A. Collins - 1989
      One spring night in London, heiress Denise Thorne disappears while partying at a nightclub, never to be seen again. That very same night, Sonja Blue, a tough-as-nails punk vampire/vampire-slayer, conceived in terror and blood, is borne from the city’s gutters. Saved by modern medicine before she could die, she is a living vampire who still possesses a soul and is determined to fight for what remains of her humanity. In the years since her bizarre resurrection, Sonja Blue travels the globe, hunting down and disposing of those creatures that prey on the innocent while searching for the vampire Noble who created her. But when she investigates a sleazy televangelist named Catherine Wheele, who is exploiting Denise Thorne’s parents, Sonja finds herself up against a powerful inhuman adversary. But as dangerous as Catherine Wheele proves to be, Sonja’s greatest foe remains the Other, the demonic personality with whom she is locked in a constant battle for control of their shared body. Can Sonja Blue overcome her inner demon in time to rescue an innocent man from Catherine Wheele’s unholy clutches?    Acknowledged as one of the first Urban Fantasy novels, Sunglasses After Dark burst onto the fantasy/horror scene in 1989, garnering widespread critical praise and winning the Horror Writers Association’s coveted Bram Stoker Award, as well as the British Fantasy Society’s Icarus Award.

Devil's Day


Andrew Michael Hurley - 2017
    Generally, very little changes in the Briardale Valley, but this year things are different. His grandfather - known to everyone as the Gaffer - has died and John's new wife, Katherine, is accompanying him for the first time.Every year, the Gaffer would redraw the boundary lines of the village, with pen and paper but also through the remembrance of folk tales, family stories and timeless communal rituals which keep the sheep safe from the Devil. This year, though, the determination of some members of the community to defend those boundary lines has strengthened, and John and Katherine must decide where their loyalties lie, and whether they are prepared to make the sacrifices necessary to join the tribe...Gripping, unsettling and beautifully written, Andrew Michael Hurley's new novel asks how much we owe to tradition, and how far we will go to belong.

And the Ass Saw the Angel


Nick Cave - 1989
    Born mute to a drunken mother and a demented father, tortured Euchrid Eucrow finds more compassion in the family mule than in his fellow men. But he alone will grasp the cruel fate of Cosey Mo, the beautiful young prostitute in the pink caravan on Hooper’s Hill. And it is Euchrid, spiraling ever deeper into his mad angelic vision, who will ultimately redeem both the town and its people. “Surprising, remarkable.” — The Atlanta Journal

Kiss of the Butterfly


James Lyon - 2012
    People thirst for it; the entire country is mad with desire for it...” A dying man’s cryptic letter to an enigmatic professor launches student Steven Roberts on an unwitting quest, shrouded in mystery, into the war-torn labyrinth of a disintegrating Eastern European country. Steven plunges into the maelstrom to unearth long-forgotten documents holding clues to an ancient Emperor’s deeply buried secret, an inconceivable and long-forgotten evil that has slumbered for centuries. Steven’s perilous journey stretches from Southern California’s sunny beaches, to the exotically dystopian city-scapes of Budapest, Belgrade, and Bosnia, as it plays out against a backdrop of events that occurred centuries before in the Balkans.Kirkus Reviews wrote: “In the glut of vampire-themed novels now on the market, Lyon’s debut stands out… skillful… authentic… fascinating… inspired… Lyon executes it perfectly... vivid... engaging... highly promising... sophisticated...”Meticulously researched and set against the background of collapsing Yugoslavia, “Kiss of the Butterfly” weaves Balkan folklore together with intricate historical threads from the 15th, 18th and 20th centuries to create a rich phantasmagorical tapestry of allegory and reality. It is about passion and betrayal, obsession and desire, the thirst for life and the hunger for death. And vampires – which have formed an integral part of Balkan folklore for over a thousand years – are portrayed in their original folkloric form, which differs dramatically from today’s pop culture creations.“Kiss of the Butterfly” is based on true historical events. In the year of his death, 1476, the Prince of Wallachia -- Vlad III (Dracula) -- committed atrocities under the cloak of medieval Bosnia’s forested mountains, culminating in a bloody massacre in the mining town of Srebrenica. A little over 500 years later, in July 1995, history repeated itself in Srebrenica, when nearly 8,000 people were slaughtered, making it the worst massacre Europe had seen since the Second World War. For most people, the two events seemed unconnected…From Kirkus ReviewsAs Yugoslavia disintegrates, an American bent on investigating Balkan vampire folklore becomes caught up in evils both supernatural and political.In Yugoslavia on a scholarship to study Balkan ethnography, graduate student Steven Roberts finds his research being directed toward vampires, which have a rich folkloric history in the region. Vampires, he learns, aren’t what Bram Stoker, Anne Rice and Hollywood said they were. For example, the folklore suggests that only newly made vampires are nocturnal, meaning that older ones should be harder to spot—though one of Steven’s professors notes that in 1992 Yugoslavia, it might be hard to tell the vampires from the thugs: “Haven’t you seen all the black jeeps and limousines with darkened windows? If I were a vampire, that would be the ideal way to travel around during daytime.” As Steven delves further into crumbling archives and into an underground labyrinth hiding vampiric secrets, he and his friends get caught up in a perilous confluence of events. Steven must confront his past, his loss of faith and how he might regain it, and his attraction to a mysterious, dangerous woman. He learns the truth about his professor Slatina, who in turn faces a crucial decision that will affect not just vampires but all of the Balkans. In the glut of vampire-themed novels now on the market, Lyon’s debut stands out for its skillful integration of authentic, fascinating myth with the political events of the early 1990s. Linking the horror of the supernatural with the horror of human violence is an inspired idea, and Lyon executes it perfectly. He evidently knows the area, its history and its languages, giving the reader vivid details not just of long-ago history but of the 1990s Balkans: socialist-chic shabbiness, ever-present cigarette smoke, the way every Serb that Steven meets has a cousin in Chicago, and the corrupt Milosevic government. “Slobo keeps prices low so people won’t complain,” a character nicknamed Bear says. “It’s okay if we don’t have gas, just so the gas we don’t have is cheap.” Steven can be irritatingly slow on the uptake, and the ending is less satisfying than it could be, since Lyon is apparently leaving room for sequels. Still, it’s a highly promising start with an engaging cast of characters.No capes, no glitter: a vampire novel for readers who value sturdy mythology and a sophisticated understanding of history, along with warmblooded, human connections.ReviewPublishers Weekly"A fast-pacedadventure into a modern heart of Balkan darkness... A truly original take on theblood-sucking undead." -Publishers Weekly "In the glut ofvampire-themed novels now on the market, Lyon's debut stands out... skillful... authentic...fascinating... inspired... Lyon executes it perfectly... vivid... engaging... sophisticated.... No capes, no glitter: a vampire novel for readers who value sturdymythology and a sophisticated understanding of history, along withwarmblooded, human connections." -Kirkus Reviews "A wonderfulsurprise...the modern day vampire mythos is completely shattered and restructuredas a truth, backed by historical fact...My heart and spirit stirred." -Horror-Web "A denouement ofaction and heart-pounding resolution... It was a wild ride to the ending,... If youliked "The Historian", you'll love Kiss of the Butterfly." -Vampire Romance Books"Immediately gratifying...a worthy addition to any vampire enthusiast's collection." -Vampires.com

Dracula's Demeter


Doug Lamoreux - 2012
    Privately chartered by a Transylvanian nobleman, her cargo consisted of fifty oblong wooden boxes partially filled with earth. A month later, in the midst of a raging storm, the derelict Demeter ran aground in Whitby, England, her crew missing save for her captain, who was tied to the ship's wheel with a crucifix in his lifeless hands. The only living thing aboard was a huge dog that escaped into the night.Bram Stoker, in his classic 'Dracula', with a few cryptic entries in an unnamed captain's journal, offered scant hints regarding the terrifying sea voyage that brought the vampire king from his dried up homeland to the blood-rich London. Never, until now, has the whole mind-rending story been told.The story of Trevor Harrington, a British scholar and fugitive. Of Swales, the old Scot cook, who deceives their commander, but knows a good deal "aboon grims and boh-ghosts". Of Ekaterina Gabor, a beautiful Romanian who follows her lover to sea by stowing away. Of Captain Nikilov, fighting for his ship and crew while something evil, more virulent than the black plague, decimates their number. Of Demeter herself, named for the Greek goddess of renewal, lost and tossed on an unforgiving sea. And of Count Dracula, at rest in Demeter's dark hold until the unintended actions of her crew resurrect the vampire and his unquenchable bloodlust.

Verona: A Ghost Story (Kindle Single)


Benedict Ashforth - 2015
    Finally, a ghost story that reminds you why the basement is so terrifying!’ Brett McNeill of Rue Morgue Magazine ‘Ashforth does Edgar Allen Poe and Bram Stoker proud delivering a solid contribution to the literary movement. It is time that the ghost story made a comeback. With writers like Benedict Ashforth writing Abbot’s Keep, a revival just might be at hand.’ Matthew J. Barbour of Horror Novel Reviews ‘A really entertaining read with a delightful frisson of fear.’ Simon Ball of Horror Hothouse ‘Ashforth builds on the tension and the feeling of unease with each page to revel in a wonderfully tense and unnerving finale.’ Jim Mcleod of Ginger Nuts of Horror ‘Reminiscent of Poe, Abbot's Keep by Benedict Ashforth is a haunting novella with unique form and beautiful prose.’ Michael Bailey (HWA Bram Stoker Award Nominee) ‘. . . an eerie, atmospheric ghost story . . . has a gentle eeriness that keeps the reader wanting to find out more.' Julie K Top 50 Reviewer ‘Perfect ghost story.’ Christine Waddington 'Ashforth successfully builds a dark and relentless dread that steadily creeps through the text. Extremely accomplished.’ L Sharif ‘A gripping read right from the beginning. Couldn't put it down.’ D Boydell ‘I just could not put this story down. I wanted to know what happened as soon as I picked up my kindle. Strongly recommend.’ Mr Tony Cordon ‘The actual writing is wonderful, beautifully descriptive.’ Fiona White ‘I could not stop reading! it was as though I was in a trance, the story is captivating and very original.’ Safa R ‘A fantastic read, lots of twists and turns. Would recommend this to all Mystery readers. A book that is hard to put down.' Ms P Frain ‘. . . great plot and a well developed storyline. It is elegantly told with well built atmosphere and tension . . . a well conceived idea and would make excellent viewing were it ever to be dramatized.’ Cate Hamilton Read over 190 more reviews on amazon.co.uk

Let The Right One In


Jack Thorne - 2013
    She doesn’t go to school and never leaves the flat by day. Sensing in each other a kindred spirit, the two become devoted friends. What Oskar doesn’t know is that Eli has been a teenager for a very long time…Jack Thorne's adaptation of Let The Right One In premiered in June 2013 at the Dundee Rep Theatre in a production by the National Theatre of Scotland, before transferring to London's Royal Court Theatre in November 2013.

Still Life with Bread Crumbs: by Anna Quindlen -- Review


Expert Book Reviews - 2014
    At 60, Rebecca Winter realizes that her career is more or less dead when she receives an award for her oeuvre. When she relocates to the country, she finds new inspiration for her work, a new way of looking at life, and even love. Check out this detailed review of Still Life with Bread Crumbs for a complete look at the book, including the author's writing style, the best and worst aspects of the novel, and more. The heartwarming story told in Still Life with Bread Crumbs explores powerful ideas about life, and it is rife with symbolism. This expert review includes a look at both reader opinions and critical reception. Quindlen's novel is generally well received and praised for its uplifting message, though some mark the book's predictability. The depiction of the protagonist, a 60-year-old woman, not as aging or in decline but as a vibrant, energetic woman, is both eye-opening and refreshing. The novel feels believable, and the author clearly pays attention to all her characters, giving them depth and dimension. Overall, Still Life with Bread Crumbs proves an enjoyable read for fans of Quindlen's past works, as well as anyone looking for an inspiring read.

Lost Souls


Poppy Z. Brite - 1992
    Among them are Ghost, who sees what others do not. Ann, longing for love, and Jason, whose real name is Nothing, newly awakened to an ancient, deathless truth about his father, and himself.Others are coming to Missing Mile tonight. Three beautiful, hip vagabonds - Molochai, Twig, and the seductive Zillah (whose eyes are as green as limes) are on their own lost journey; slaking their ancient thirst for blood, looking for supple young flesh.They find it in Nothing and Ann, leading them on a mad, illicit road trip south to New Orleans. Over miles of dark highway, Ghost pursues, his powers guiding him on a journey to reach his destiny, to save Ann from her new companions, to save Nothing from himself...

John Saul: Hellfire, The Unwanted, Sleepwalk


John Saul - 1992
    This first-ever hardcover edition of three of his most popular books features Hellfire, The Unwanted and Sleepwalk. All three stories explore supernatural mysteries of suspense and horror.Appearences are definitely deceiving in John Saul's world. Stories are set in typical, all-American towns, but well-woven plots reveal an eerie array of characters with deeply hidden secrets. Their unspeakable pasts hide unavenged evils--and warrant terrifying justice. The spine-tingling novels in this volume prove that John Saul's talent for writing suspense fiction stands unequalled.

The Devil All the Time


Donald Ray Pollock - 2011
    There’s Willard Russell, tormented veteran of the carnage in the South Pacific, who can’t save his beautiful wife, Charlotte, from an agonizing death by cancer no matter how much sacrifi­cial blood he pours on his “prayer log.” There’s Carl and Sandy Henderson, a husband-and-wife team of serial kill­ers, who troll America’s highways searching for suitable models to photograph and exterminate. There’s the spider-handling preacher Roy and his crippled virtuoso-guitar-playing sidekick, Theodore, running from the law. And caught in the middle of all this is Arvin Eugene Russell, Willard and Charlotte’s orphaned son, who grows up to be a good but also violent man in his own right.

Night Film


Marisha Pessl - 2013
    Though her death is ruled a suicide, veteran investigative journalist Scott McGrath suspects otherwise. As he probes the strange circumstances surrounding Ashley's life and death, McGrath comes face-to-face with the legacy of her father: the legendary, reclusive cult-horror film director Stanislaus Cordova--a man who hasn't been seen in public for more than thirty years. For McGrath, another death connected to this seemingly cursed family dynasty seems more than just a coincidence. Though much has been written about Cordova's dark and unsettling films, very little is known about the man himself. Driven by revenge, curiosity, and a need for the truth, McGrath, with the aid of two strangers, is drawn deeper and deeper into Cordova's eerie, hypnotic world. The last time he got close to exposing the director, McGrath lost his marriage and his career. This time he might lose even more.