Tales From the Lake, Vol. 1 edited by Joe Mynhardt

(eBook; 2014: horror anthology)


Overall review:

Good, Old School horror anthology that will appeal to those who especially enjoyed Eighties-era chills and thrills.  Out of the sixteen stories, there were only two that I didn't like (due to personal preferences), but that's to be expected in any fiction collection with this many works.

Worth owning, this.



Standout stories:

1.)  "Don't Look at Me" - Elizabeth Massie:  A living, shoplifted garden gnome (Pointy) helps a young girl (Connie) deal with her mentally abusive mother.  The ending isn't surprising, but the story is fun, with an especially effective end-line.


2.)  "Dead Pull" - Taylor Grant:  Good, interesting morality tale about a cruel pet store employee (Brennan) whose control over his work environment and his animal charges is broken by the arrival of an animal-friendly new employee (Billy Mackey).  This story has the feel of Stephen King's "Graveyard Shift,"* structurally and tone-wise, so fans of King's may especially appreciate this work.

[*Published in King's 1978 story anthology Night Shift]


3.)  "The Reunion" - Joan De La Hayes:  During a fierce storm, the owner of a failing bed-&-breakfast inn  (Frank) gets two sets of guests: a drunk, horny newlyweds, and four weapon-bearing, bloodthirsty men who have a troubling - and seemingly deadly - history with the inn.

This is an excellent, memorable story until the ending, which feels truncated and jarring, as if the author had a great set-up, but lacked a finish (albeit one that is logical in regards to its characters) that matched the seamless flow of what preceded it.  Despite this let-down of an ending, it's still a worthwhile tale.


4.)   "Devil's Night" - Tim Curran:  Intriguing story about two prison-sprung cons trying to survive a fiery, demonic apocalypse.  Curran keeps his horror cinematic, his themes and characters' histories tightly interwoven with the action and the pace gripping.


5.)   "The Fine Art of Wrecking" - Jennifer Loring:  Two oceanside human scavengers (Jack and Christopher) murder and steal to stay alive, aware that retribution is almost a certainty.  Especially well-written, not too long, not too short.


6.)   "Saint Paddy's Night at The Crown" - Blaze Rob:  Fun, limerick-style verses about Irish blood, killing, sex and drinking.


7.)  "The Lady of Lost Lake" - Bev Vincent:  Fun story about a relaxing lakeside weekend gone supernaturally awry.  There's little in this work that you haven't read before, but it's entertaining anyway.


8.)   "Junksick" - G.N. Braun:  A junkie scumbag details his habit even as his world begins to change.  Love the end-line in this one.


9.)   "Witch-Compass" - Graham Masterton:  Interesting morality story about a desperate and financially bankrupt businessman who tries to get back his lost wealth. Especially good finish to this one, as well.

Haunted Heart: The Life and Times of Stephen King by Lisa Rogak

(hb; 2008: biography)

From the inside flap:

"One of the most prolific and popular authors today, Stephen King has become part of pop-culture history. But who is the man behind those tales of horror, grief, and the supernatural? Where do those ideas come from? And what drives him to keep writing at a breakneck pace after a thirty-year career? In this unauthorized biography, Lisa Rogak reveals the troubled background and lifelong fears that inspire one of the twentieth century's most influential authors.

"King's origins were inauspicious at best. His impoverished childhood in rural Maine and early marriage hardly spelled out the likelihood of a blossoming literary career. but his unflagging work ethic and a ceaseless flow of ideas put him on the path to success. It came in a flash, and the side effects of sudden stardom and seemingly unlimited wealth soon threatened to destroy his work and, worse, his life. But he survived and has since continued to write at a level of originality few authors could hope to match.

"Despite his dark and disturbing work, Stephen King has become revered by critics and his countless fans as an all-American voice more akin to Mark Twain than H.P. Lovecraft. Haunted Heart chronicles his story, revealing the character of a man who has created some of the most memorable -- and frightening -- stories found in literature today."

Review

Balanced, entertaining bio about a man whose name is, for many, synonymous with icky terror.

Normally, I'm wary of any bio that's written about an author who's still and alive and publishing, but Rogak, via her facts and interviews, shows King as a flesh-and-zombie-shake man, with demons (father abandonment issues, drug addiction) who still managed -- and manages -- to keep his priorities straight: writing, and taking care of his family (longtime wife Tabitha, daughter Naomi, and sons Joe and Owen).

Notable, portrait-supportive interviews with friends and family include: Peter Straub (who, among his books, co-authored The Talisman and Black House with King), Bev Vincent, and Rick Hautala (a consistently exemplary author and college friend of King's).

Good read, this. I'm not a big fan of most of Stephen King's post-mid-Eighties books. As a reader and writer, I'm a "minimalist," not a "maximalist" (phrases King used in his non-fiction book, On Writing). However, I've long admired what he's done, as a man and a writer, and this confirmed my feelings on the man, and his persona.

Worth checking out.

From The Borderlands: Stories of Terror and Madness edited by Elizabeth E. & Thomas F. Monteleone

(pb; 2003: horror story anthology)


Overall review

Exemplary anthology, originally published as Borderlands 5, with only a few clunkers in the mix. Well worth your time.


Standout stories

1. ) “All Hands” – John R. Platt: Quirky, delightful entry about a man who wakes up with a different pair of hands each day.


2.) “The Growth of Alan Ashley” – Bill Gauthier: Black-humored take on the delusion of “self-improvement” – a strange “growth” on the titular character’s body becomes imbued with increasing, dangerous importance. If this were a film short, I could see this being directed by Eraserhead-era David Lynch, or Videodrome-era David Cronenberg.


3.) “The Goat” – Whitt Pond: Heartbreaking tale about a teenage boy who’s trying to save his supposedly demon-possessed brother from their fellow townspeople.


4.) “The Food Processor” – Michael Canfield: Surrealistic tale about two brothers whose collective desire to build things conflicts with their Father’s desire that they become chefs, like him. Superior, semi-bizarre work, one that would make an excellent Tim Burton film, illustrated by Peter Max.


5.) “Storytime with the Bluefield Strangler” – John Farris: Destined-to-be-a-true-classic story about a little girl who’s being terrorized by a real-life boogeyman.


6.) “The Planting” – Bentley Little: Perverse B-movie gem about a pair of panties, a cabin and a dessicated mummy.


7.) “Infliction” – John McIlveen: Stunning, emotional tale about an ex-alcoholic tracking his runaway daughter, four years gone.


8.) “The Thing Too Hideous To Describe” – David J. Schow: Funny, ultimately sad story about a small-town monster who makes a friend. One of the most imaginative entries in this bunch.


9.) “Magic Numbers” – Gene O’Neill: The operative phrase for this one-of-a-kind work is um, wow. Memorable work.


10.) “Head Music” – Lon Prater: Another destined-to-be-a-classic tale, this one about a young man who’s drawn to a oceanborn monster in the middle of the night. Reminiscent of H.P. Lovecraft’s finer nightmares, or any issue of Creepy.


11.) “Around It Still The Sumac Grows” – Tom Piccirilli: Envy-inducing entry about a middle-aged man who returns to his high school – site of countless teenage humiliations – twenty years later.


12.) “Annabell" – L. Lynn Young: Sublime, sad work about a physically-beautiful mother who seeks to protect her deformed daughter from the barbed horrors of the world.


Solid entries

“Ramis Temporalis” (Gary A. Braunbeck); “Faith Will Make You Free” (Holly Newstein); “N0072-JK1” (Adam Corbin Fusco); “Time For Me” (Barry Hoffman); “Prisoner 392” (John F. Merz); “Answering the Call” (Brian Freeman); “Smooth Operator” (Dominick Cancilla); “A Thing” (Barbara Malenky); “Slipknot” (Brett Alexander Savory); “Stationary Bike” (Stephen King).


So-so entries

“Father Bob & Bobby” (Whitley Strieber); “Dysfunction” (Darren O. Godfrey); “One Of Those Weeks” (Bev Vincent).

Shivers IV edited by Richard Chizmar

(pb; 2006: horror anthology - sequel anthology to Shivers III)

Overall review

Shivers IV is an uneven anthology, with a handful of decent tales and a few excellent ones. The other entries in this twenty-story anthology are generic. Save your money for more worthwhile books.


Review, story by story

1.) “Prohibited” – Kealan Patrick Burke: A smoker ignores a “No Smoking” sign at a bus stop and finds himself targeted for nightmarish, widespread persecution. Not only did it make me think of Stephen King's “Quitters, Inc.” (for its subject matter), but this also sports the feel of one of King's Night Shift-era tales. Fun and a bit over-the-top.


2.) “Last Exit for the Lost” – Tim Lebbon: Strange entry about a middle-aged alcoholic who receives three paintings in the mail. Interesting, quirky.


3.) “The Screamers at the Window” – T.M. Wright: A spiral-structured story about a writer (Daniel), his one-eyed terrier (Magnificence) and his perky spouse (Maureen). Colorful characters, but the story doesn't go anywhere.


4.) “The Man in the Palace Theater” – Ray Garton: A homeless man, staying in an abandoned movie theater, converses with cinematic iconic ghosts. Heartwarming, sad homage to classic (pre-1960s) films, with a weak ending.


5.) “Pumpkin Witch” – Tim Curran: An abused, pumpkin-happy wife dishes out grisly payback on her husband and his crone of a mother. This would make a wonderful giallo film (preferably directed by Dario Argento or Michele Soavi), given its long-on-Halloween-mood, short-on-logic structure. It is okay, if you read this with that mindset.


6.) “LZ-116: Das Fliegenschloss” – Stephen Mark Rainey: I have no idea what this story is about. While the writing (on a technical level) was decent, it bored me immediately.


7.) “Something to be Said for the Waiting” – Brian Freeman: Too-predictable, cliched story about a man who may have murdered his family. Mercifully, this story is brief.


8.) “Jack-Knife” – Gemma Files: Mostly gripping script-form take on Jack the Ripper. Runs too long, but it has some striking scenes (especially when Jack and Mary Kelly, one of his victims, interact).


9.) “The Spook” – Randy Chandler: Chilling, analogous offering about a soldier who finds himself in the middle of an unexpected war. One of the best stories in this collection, with a great ending.


10.) “Ever After” – John R. Little: Stunning, heartbreak of a tale. An unaging man finds himself at familiar crossroads. Excellent, this.


11.) “The Bittersweet Deafening Sound of Nothing At All” – Robert Morrish: Two investors check out an abandoned haunted SoCal business campus. Good story, predictable, but otherwise engaging.


12.) “Up in the Boneyard” – Keith Minnion: Brooklyn. A pilot (Anthony Spangler) confronts a hellish white-boned horror twenty-seven floors high, once in 1913 in an aeroplane, and later, in 1986, in a condo in the same spot. Off-beat, memorable work.


13.) “Mom and Dad At Home” – Ed Gorman: Economical, predictable entry about a boy, his stay-at-home mom, and his traveling salesman dad. Anybody who's seen the 1943 film Shadow of a Doubt will recognize the set-up right away. Despite that glaring predictability, this is an okay story, saved by Gorman's consistent sense of style.


14.) “Should Old Acquaintance Be Forgot” – Bill Walker: Clever, appropriately-titled piece. A man discovers that the neighborhood bully of his childhood now works with him, more than twenty years later. The end-twist, effective as it could've been, doesn't work, though, because the author didn't foreshadow properly. Could've been good; is merely disingenuous.


15.) “In the Best Stories...” – Norman Prentiss: A man reads a questionable bedtime story to his nine-year old daughter. Author Prentiss seems to be trying for a subtler brand of horror – not boogeymen, but real life – and that's admirable. However, the story ultimately fails because the ending is too subtle, not developed enough.


16.) “Poetic Justice” – William F. Nolan: A teenage girl (Amber) talks her friend (Michelle) into murdering an “a**hole” classmate of theirs, Mike Rickard – then crazy complications ensue. This tale doesn't work because it feels rushed, largely because the three principles (Michelle, Amber, Mike) read like cardboard cut-out characters. This would be fine if this were a Grade-B slasher flick, but since it's not... Technically solid, but otherwise generic.

17.) “Dust” – Brian Keene: Post-9/11 piece about a woman grieving for her dead spouse. Different, worthwhile.


18.) “The Deer of St. Bart's” – Bev Vincent: Good story about what happens after a dean at a private school dies unexpectedly.


19.) “The Man in the Other Car” – Al Sarrantonio: A bizarre, semi-predictable, sort-of-makes-sense-but-doesn't denouement mars this could have been Twilight-Zone-worthy piece. Strange, at best.


20.) “Liturgical Music for Nihilists” – Brian Hodge: Lengthy tale about what happens when a man's corpse remains unspoiled, causing his friends to react in curious ways. Memories, messianic oddness, and dark family secrets form this work, which wasn't bad, wasn't great.