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Book Review: You Only Get One Shot by Kevin J. Kennedy and J.C. Michael

You Only Get One Shot by Kevin J. Kennedy and J. C. Michael

Kevin J. Kennedy, 2017

ISBN-13: 978-1548671518

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

 

One story to save your life: that’s what the email said.  One chance to save your life.  If the author of the email doesn’t like it, you’re dead.  One chance at redemption: one of four will live.  The players are four writers the email’s author blames for causing the suicide of an aspiring writer by being crass, rude.  deprecating, and insensitive.  This is serious, and not a scam: a fifth one has already gone to meet their maker.  The four contestants in this twisted game are Fiona, Diane, Drexl and, Simon, each of them as different as they can be.  None of them remember an aspiring writer they had snubbed so badly as to cause them to commit suicide.  They each send in a story: a story that may save their life.

 

You Only Get One Shot has an excellent premise that grabbed me from the start.  This was a twisted novella that flowed so well that I read it in nearly one sitting.  The suspense and action worked that well for me.  The opening chapter was brilliant.  It set the tone in a manner that pulled me straight in.  The characters each get their own chapter, which includes their submission: they are distinctive with their own individual tones, and it was easy to keep the various players separate.  The descriptions were well done, not going overboard.  I have not read anything like this before.  The main criticism I have is with the editing.  Mostly in the last quarter of the story, there were several instances of spelling errors and missing or duplicated words, and the occasional sentence that didn’t work.  I also did  not like the ending.  It was a twist that just didn’t work for me.  The epilogue was excellent though.  I have not read either of these authors’ work before, but would like to.  This was a fun story and well worth reading. Recommended for adult readers.

 

Contains:  Violence, Swearing, References to Suicide, Sexual references/situations/slavery, Abduction.

 

Reviewed By: Aaron Fletcher

 

 

 

Posted on May 4, 2018 by , Reply

Book Review: Strange Weather: Four Short Novels by Joe Hill

Strange Weather: Four Short Novels by Joe Hill

William Morrow, 2017

ISBN-13: 978-0062663115

Available: Hardcover, paperback Kindle edition, Audible audiobook, audio CD

 

There’s something decidedly different about Joe Hill. His novels and short stories often defy categorization, eschewing the conventions of horror and tropes of speculative fiction in favor of something much more… interesting.

 

Strange Weather is comprised of four short novels. The worlds concocted by the author are far from perfect, but are intriguing; they are familiar, but ill-suited to reality. The protagonists are not sympathetic characters readers will want to root for, but they are fascinating.

 

“Snapshot,” the first story, introduces readers to an awkward teen who discovers his elderly neighbor has had her memories stolen by a man with a strange camera. When the boy attempts to foil the man’s plans, he discovers something demented within the device. Hill manages to twist this story into something heartwrenching.

 

The second story, “Loaded,” could be the author’s anti-Second Amendment tale. A mall cop goes on a ill-advised shooting spree while trying to stop a killer, until he can no longer be described as a “good guy with a gun”. The unraveling of the character as his sad world crumbles is intriguing.

 

“Aloft” is the oddest tale in Strange Weather, more reminiscent of 20th Century Ghosts than his horror material. A man afraid of heights decides to try skydiving but manages to fall straight into a cloud, and remains there. An unusual setting, to say the least. “Aloft” will challenge Hill’s fans.

 

Finally, “Rain” can be summarized as a classic Joe Hill tale, with plenty of weirdness and amazement in the setting and a strong, unique cast of characters. When the sky opens up over Boulder, Colorado, nails pound the town, skewering the citizens in a multitude of ways. The downpour is only the beginning, as the aftermath of the apocalyptic event brings out the worst in society.

 

Hill’s style resonates as always: rich and full of imagery that will stick to the psyche, yet never obtuse or indulgent. His depictions of the the everyday person, and lives, are outstanding, and he has an affinity for the weird that seems to be building with each release. That’s a wonderful thing. Strange Weather is reading that will breeze by but leave a scar. Highly recommended.

 

Editor’s note: Strange Weather is the winner of the 2017 Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in a Fiction Collection.

 

 

Posted on March 14, 2018 by , Reply

Book Review: Goblin by Josh Malerman

Goblin

 

Goblin by Josh Malerman
Earthling Publications, October 2017
ISBN: Not available
Available: Limited edition numbered hardcover copies, direct from publisher only

 

It’s the time of year when horror is in the air, a celebrated author is called up, and Earthling Publications turns out another Halloween masterpiece. This year, the newest superstar in the genre, Josh Malerman, takes the helm and delivers one of the best offerings in the history of the series. Malerman, fresh off the success of his second novel, Black Mad Wheel,  and the news that his novel Bird Box will soon be a major motion picture, displays consummate skill in Goblin, a book comprised of six novellas all taking place in the small town of Goblin, Michigan.

 

Goblin, Michigan is Derry. It’s Oxrun Station. It’s Cedar Hills. It’s Green Town. It’s all of us in our hometowns, and yet, it’s something brand new.. Think of Goblin as Derry’s disturbed little brother, filling the reader with uneasy pleasure from cover to cover.

 

“A Man In Slices” shows that friendship can be a tricky concept, as a boy does whatever he can to help his lonely friend, at any cost. “Kamp” is a lighter tale, about a man petrified of a seeing a ghost. Everyone in Walter’s family has, and he knows his time is coming. How he copes with the expectation will make many readers feel a bit better about their own issues with  things that go bump in the night.”Happy Birthday, Hunter” displays the heart and obsession of a man who cannot give up the hunt. Nash’s addiction comes to a boiling point during his 60th birthday party, when he decides to kill Goblin’s most prized game in the north woods, a place from which no one ever returns.”Presto” is a love affair with magic, the oldest and darkest kind, where a young boy seeks to learn the secrets behind his favorite performer in a story that channels classic Bradbury.”A Mix-Up At The Zoo” details the inner struggle of Dirk, a man who switches jobs to become a tour guide in a zoo, a far cry from his other employment in the slaughterhouse. He finds a talent for understanding the mighty beasts within the cages but feels a certain darkness brewing when he drifts off in thought. In “The Hedges,” mazes, both ones built out of corn and the famed topiary in the film version of “The Shining,” emerge. Young Margot claims to have solved the unsolvable creation by Wayne Sherman.  What she finds at the end causes her to alert the Goblin police.

 

The mythology about Goblin’s history is richly drawn within these stories and connects them effectively, with a style that keeps the pages turning. Malerman has created a town that may even be darker than something that King, Grant, and Bradbury have created. Goblin should be listed on every horror reader’s itinerary, with the lights turned low and the night breeze creeping into the room. An incredible Halloween find for all. Highly recommended.

 

Reviewed by Dave Simms

Posted on November 1, 2017 by , Reply
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