Creature Feature Tomb of Horror

(Clicking on the covers gives you more information and prices from Amazon.com and other outlets.)

This week, TombRats, I offer you two novels of popular fantasy fiction. Often considered chick-lit--what the heck--let’s take a run at it, shall we?

THE ELDRITCH CONSPIRACY by Cat Adams

Bestselling author Cat Adams (a pseudonym for the writing team of C.T Adams and Cathy Clamp) has a huge, loyal following for the sassy Blood Singer vampire fantasy series. In this fifth book in the series, vamp-Siren hybrid Celia Graves proves once again that she just cannot manage to stay out of trouble, even though she tries her best to live a normal life. She is still recovering from a broken heart when a gaggle of Siren princesses come looking for her because one of them is getting married and needs a trustworthy bridesmaid who can double as a bodyguard. Siren Princess Adriana has agreed to a political marriage to Rusland King Dahlmar arranged by their parents, but the Guardians of the Faith believe that such a marriage would mean the end of the Sirens (including half-Siren Celia) via genocide, and have threatened to intervene with violence, if necessary, to halt what they see as a disastrous merger. Celia is perfect for the job, hotter than a firecracker in a sexy bridesmaid’s dress and deadly with weapons. Look out! It’s going to be a hell of a wedding if the bride and groom survive to walk down the aisle. Celia is a kick-ass heroine whose escapades have delighted legions of fans throughout the Blood Singer series. You can find out more about the Blood Singer series and the writers here: http://www.ciecatrunpubs.com

THE SCRIVENER’S TALE by Fiona McIntosh

This is a lush and heady tale of magic and romance that begins in the real-world setting of Paris, where Gabe Figaret, once a practicing psychologist who has become a writer now works in a small book shop. When he is approached by another doctor who is also one of his regular customers to counsel a delusional young patient, Gabe is intrigued, although his own past traumas have led him away from his original profession. When he meets Angelina, he quickly becomes convinced that she is something other than what she seems, and perhaps not delusional at all. Gabe begins to wonder if he is going mad himself, imagining a dark presence watching and waiting, and a raven that appears wherever he goes. Gabe does not want to believe Angelina’s declaration that there is only one way to save them both: flee to a realm called Morgravia, where Gabe must kill Angelina to free them both from the terrors ravaging their minds. But Gabe isn’t a murderer, and there is no such place as Morgravia, he is sure. But he’s wrong, and all the disturbing dreams he’s been experiencing since childhood are directly connected to the events Angelina is describing. If you like epic high fantasy tales, you’ll certain to enjoy THE SCRIVENER’S TALE. For more about the author, check out www.fionamcintosh.com, where the author holds online classes for those interested in writing fantasy and adventure romances.

Here are two hot horror novels that have generated major buzz for the past few years by keeping it all in the family!

DOCTOR SLEEP by Stephen King

Due out in September, Stephen King has finally created a sequel to one of his most celebrated novels, THE SHINING. Remember Jack Torrance going batshit insane one horrible winter at the snowbound Overlook Hotel, chasing his young son Danny through a frozen maze with an axe? As we know, Danny survived the ordeal, but you can imagine what the events that awful winter did to his young mind. Some memories are impossible to erase or elude. Danny has grown to adulthood desperate to escape the horrors of the old hotel, its ghosts, and his father’s legacy of alcoholism, violence and utter madness. At 40, Dan has been emotionally unmoored, drunk and adrift for years when he finally fetches up in a small New Hampshire town and tethers himself to hope and happiness with the help of an AA chapter and a stunning woman who shares his gift of the shine. Dan secures employment at a nursing care center where his gift proves to be a sublime comfort to terminal patients crossing over into death, earning him the nickname Doctor Sleep. But wickedness is rising beyond the small town, an immense evil that is awakening Dan’s worst demons and threatening his sobriety, his life, his new love and the whole world. It’s time to do battle and it’s going to be epic as only Stephen King can do epic; i.e., THE STAND. Oh, boy! Get ready.

NOS4AT2 by Joe Hill

Anyone horror fan who is still unaware at this point that Joe Hill is Stephen King’s son has either been living in a cave or in a coma. But Joe Hill has staked his own claim to the horror genre with his excellent short story collection 21ST CENTURY GHOSTS and his first novel, HORNS (a major motion picture starring that Harry Potter kid, Daniel Radcliffe). As I have said before, Stephen King’s writing strikes me as rock ‘n’ roll, while Joe Hill’s style feels more like the blues. NOS4AT2 (pretty catchy title, huh?) is nearly 700-page blues riff that focuses upon the ambiguity of good and evil, fronted by a truly frightening villain named Charles Manx, whose means of conveyance is a silver 1938 Rolls Royce Wraith with a license plate that reads--that's right--NOS4AT2, get it? Manx enjoys picking up children and taking them to his own very special place called Christmasland. Sounds cheery and fun, right? Wrong! The protagonist of the novel is a smart, independent young girl named Vic, lovingly nicknamed The Brat. She comes from a hardscrabble background, is not well parented, and this lack of guidance and security has left her pretty much on her own. As the story opens, Vic has discovered she has a singular knack for finding lost objects and does so by way of a bridge that, for her, spans far more than a river, actually spanning time and space. As Vic grows to adulthood, she finds out about Christmasland and the horrific things going on there, and she aims to stop it. Charles Manx has no idea what he’s in for. This is old school horror for a new generation that includes a number of insider’s nods to Stephen King’s early novels. Fast, fun, sure-footed and scary, Joe Hill scores again.

To get even more information about these titles, including some of the best prices on the Internet, just click on each of the book covers and you'll be connected to

To visit the individual writer's website, just click on any underlined name.

About the Tomb Keeper (Or, who is this person of mystery)

J. L. (Judy) Comeau is an award winning short story writer whose work has appeared internationally in major horror and dark fantasy anthologies such as the Borderlands series, Best New Horror, The Years' Best Horror, the Hot Blood series, and the Dark Voices series in the UK. She is an active member of the Horror Writer's Association, and she lives in the Washington, DC area where she also teaches short story writing. Click on FIREBIRD to read one of her most anthologized stories.

To learn more about the Horror Writer's Association, just click on their logo!