The Man Who Killed His Wife (and What Happened Afterward) by Wol-vriey

Blood Bound Publishing, 2023

ISBN: 9781948278690

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

Buy: Bookshop.org | Amazon..com

Wol-vriey’s latest is so nutty that readers might just laugh at the absurdity of it all, and that’s not a bad thing.  It’s a merry-go-round of horror craziness, like his last one.

Maryanne Wilson wants to get pregnant, but her poor, overworked husband Bob simply doesn’t have the energy for bedroom fun.  So, she turns to her neighbor (who of course happens to be a witch) for a demon sex charm.  That works until an argument with Bob ends in her accidental death.  Unfortunately, the charm causes Bob to have sex with her corpse, which makes him leery of calling the cops.  So, he enlists the help of another neighbor (who of course is a top-level computer hacker) to dispose of the body and come up with a viable explanation.  Naturally, nothing goes right for Bob.  Ashley, the hacker, is a psychotic sadist who wants payment in pain, the corpse won’t stay dead, and there’s the matter of the little blue demon who eats everyone he finds.  It’s a tragic comedy of errors for everyone involved.

Enjoying this means not taking it too seriously, as Bob constantly makes boneheaded decisions that no rational person would.  While skipping details to avoid spoilers, let’s say Bob probably could have got out of his mess in less painful ways.  Plus, this must be some apartment building, as it has a witch with real powers and an ace computer whiz with government connections under the same roof.  Who knew they were this common?  That’s why it’s important to remember, none of that matters in this type of fiction.  It’s meant to be fun and not taken too seriously, much like some of the pulp writing of yesteryear.  And, fun this is.

As always with this author, the book speeds along, with no deep soliloquies or wasted time.  Despite the pain and gore that show up (and, if you’ve read Wol-vriey before, this isn’t as brutal as some of his other works) the book still has a somewhat lighthearted touch compared to some of his darker, more ‘serious’ efforts.  The little blue demon goes a long way towards keeping this from getting too ugly: it’s such an obnoxious eating machine that you have to chuckle at it, and its final fate is hilarious.  Some of Ashley’s ridiculously painful ideas of a good time (and her amusing notes afterwards) also keep the story trending that way.  Quite over the top, but still entertaining.

Bottom line?  This isn’t a book to terrify readers, or bowl them over with its profound nature.  It’s just big, goofy horror fun, and should keep the author’s fans happy until the next one.

Reviewed by Murray Samuelson