"Welcome to Count Gore De Vol's Tomb of Dark Delights. I'm J. L. Comeau, horror writer and resident Tomb Keeper. I have been charged with the daunting task of sorting and cataloging the Count's vast library of horror, science fiction and fantasy. Take a torch from the wall and follow me down the stone stairway into the darkness deep beneath the Dungeon. It's cold and damp down here--perfect for the kind of reading we're going to do. Never mind the shambling figures in the shadows, they're probably just some friends of ours looking for a good book. If you click on the cover, you'll be taken to a wonderful place where you can buy the book.
Now, let's reach into the musty stacks and see what we can find..."
(Clicking on the covers gives you more information and prices from Amazon.com and other outlets.)
Looking for something totally different to read? I’ve got you covered! How about a play and a collection by three of my favorite DarkScribes? Come get some.
VISIONS
OF THE MUTANT RAIN FOREST by Robert Frazier and Bruce Boston
Of all of the genre collaborations I can think of, none is quite so powerful
as the Mutant Rain Forest imagined by celebrated poets and authors Robert
Frazier and Bruce Boston. Partly science fiction, partly horror, The Mutant
Rain Forest is one hundred percent stunning reportage from one of the
strangest locales in all of genre literature. The Mutant Rain Forest is the
antithesis of the sterile technical world, a visceral, pulsating hellscape
of seething, unrestrained organic growth. Frazier and Boston are intrepid
explorers of this festering jungle in poetry and prose, encountering the
wonders and terrors that lay in wait. Monstrous creatures and strange
civilizations exist in the Rain Forest, where pain and terror are as common
as the strange beauty of giant butterflies and breathtaking flora. This is a
place where nature has taken hold in a rampage, a place where she reigns
supreme, and woe be to those who enter her realm unprepared. VISIONS OF THE
MUTANT RAIN FOREST contains some of the most evocative previously published
poems and stories as well as a number of brand new, never before published
poems and tales. Gorgeously illustrated by Luke Spooner with moody full-page
artwork, this is in my opinion the definitive Mutant Rain Forest collection
to date. Don’t miss it!
ROSSUM’S
UNIVERSAL REPLICAS by Christopher Conlon
In 1921, celebrated fantasist Karel Ćapek’s futuristic stage play, R.U.R,
premiered in Prague, stunning audiences and becoming an instant classic. Now
largely forgotten, it has been resurrected and reimagined by award winning
author Christopher Conlon. In Ćapek’s stage production, mass-produced robots
have been invented and employed to do mundane jobs that humans eschew,
laboring in factories and sweatshops. The robots eventually develop
consciousness and revolt against their makers and masters in an apocalypse
of horror. Award winning author Christopher Conlon has retooled Ćapek’s
vision into a futuristic 1921 setting reminiscent of the film Metropolis.
Robots have been updated to Replicas, and a descent into terror awaits the
cloistered Rossum family as they receive increasingly horrific news about
the Replica revolt that is brewing and worsening beneath their high-rise
castle keep. People are dying at the hands of the Replicas, who are rumored
to be duplicating themselves. In the Rossum’s plush sitting room, the family
begins to look at their Replica servants in a whole new light. I do hope
this unnerving play sees the stage—I would love to attend. Until then, this
play is a grand reading experience.
Finding a good book can be difficult in these days of
self-publishing and micro-publishing. Often is a good idea to hark back to
authors one knows and can rely upon for quality fiction, so here you go!
A
QUIET NIGHT OF FEAR by Charles L. Grant
Who can recall the great hey-days days of horror that saw such great authors
as Stephen King and Charles L. Grant emerge from a field of mucky garbage
that included really dumb giant crab and rat monster novels? Me! Richard
Matheson ushered in a new wave of grand horror storytelling and, as genres
tend to do, horror split into distinct sub-genres. Two distinct types of
horror emerged in the 1980s, a graphic, gore-drenched style called
Splatterpunk, helmed by bad boys Skipp and Spector, and Quiet Horror, a
literate, atmospheric style championed by Charles L. Grant and his
contemporaries. The late, great Mr. Grant’s chilly brand of terror,
exemplified by his award-winning Shadows series of anthologies, ran into the
1990s and included some of the finest horror fiction of its day. His
collection of novellas entitled Nightmare Seasons won the world Fantasy
Award, and his unforgettable short story, “A Crowd of Shadows” won one of
his two Nebula Awards. One of the most talented and versatile genre authors
of his generation, Mr. Grant also produced the occasional science
fiction/horror hybrid tale such as this, A QUIET NIGHT OF FEAR. In this
novel published in 1981, Carole Drake, editor for a large publishing
company, finds herself embroiled in a nightmare when she takes a vacation in
a seaside resort called Starburst. When vacationers begin dying, it becomes
evident that time-travelers are involved and the killer may not be human.
Suspenseful and atmospheric, this is a literary treat for fans of “quiet
horror.”
BLOOD
SACRIFICE by Barry Hoffman
Veteran genre author Barry Hoffman kicks off a brand new thriller series
with BLOOD SACRIFICE, a police procedural with supernatural kick. Mr.
Hoffman’s trademark minimalist style elevates the terror of this tale of
homicide detective, Thea Hughes, who not only faces down society’s killers,
but must also face an openly hostile working environment of her
interdepartmental colleagues. Thea was the first uncloseted lesbian graduate
of her police academy, and the great majority of her working partners want
nothing to do with her. Her latest police partner, Ariel, can’t come to
terms about anything until they are confronted with a serial killer case.
The body of a young runaway whose body was left painted in her own blood
becomes the focal investigation lead by Thea and Ariel. Thea becomes
involved with another teen runaway named Ali, a young woman with a
preternatural ability to heal emotionally damaged people. Ali and Thea come
to share an intense bond, but Ali believes she can form an emotional
connection with the killer terrorizing the Philadelphia area, hoping to heal
the killer, thereby placing her own life in danger. It’s a cat and mouse
game that could lead to the death of both Ali and Thea. Former inner-city
school teacher Barry Hoffman knows the mean streets where he’s placed his
narrative, and the results are riveting.
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
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!
