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Book Review: Freaky Franky by William Blackwell

Freaky Franky by William Blackwell

Telemachus Press, 2017

ISBN: 978-1-945330-94-0

Available: Paperback, eBook

 

Freaky Franky by is a gory, yet moralistic, tale about the increasingly popular, cult religion of Santa Muerte. Santa Muerte’s origins include elements of pre-Columbian  gods, European symbols of death and plague, and Catholicism.  It is said to have tens of millions of devotees in Latin America, especially Mexico and the American Southwest, among the disadvantaged, poor and downtrodden.  In Mexico, Santa Muerte is said to be popular among members of rival drug cartels.  The Roman Catholic Church and several Protestant denominations condemn its practice.

 

The Lady’s symbol is a female skeleton dressed in a robe, which usually carries a globe and scythe.  Devotees light candles and give offerings of tobacco smoke, alcohol, money and food.  The Lady grants wishes for love, wealth, health and protection.  However, she also grants wishes for vengeance and power over others.

 

Freaky Franky begins with seemingly unrelated horrific murders in Mexico and Prince Edward Island (PEI).  Equally gory murders and a violent sexual assault follow in the Dominican Republic.  Soon it is clear that the common thread is that worshipers of Santa Muerte are to blame.  In particular, Franklin, an expat who fled from a tragic childhood in Prince Edward Island, is responsible for much of the mayhem in a Dominican resort town.

 

However, in this story the Lady grants wholesome wishes as well.  A Mexican doctor in PEI uses Santa Muerte to cure Franklin’s nephew.  Anita, Franklin’s estranged sister, travels to the Dominican Republic to reconnect with him.  She prays to the Lady to help a young vacationing couple and turn Franklin away from doing evil.  Devotees can use Santa Muerte for good or for evil.  However, the novel makes it clear that those who use it for evil will be severely punished in their mortal life and in their afterlife.  Franklin struggles between these choices.  Can he be saved?

 

The plot is initially confusing until the common thread of Santa Muerte becomes clear after the first few chapters.  Thereafter, it moves along well.  The characters are mostly one-dimensional.  However, Franklin and Helen, Anita’s bullied friend, are interesting when they waver between using the Lady for evil and good.

 

Contains: graphic sex, sexual assault, violence and gore.

 

Reviewed by Robert D. Yee

Posted on April 18, 2018 by , Reply

Book Review: Little Heaven by Nick Cutter

Little Heaven by Nick Cutter
Gallery Books, 2017
ISBN-13: 978-1501104213
Available: Hardcover, paperback, Kindle edition, Audible

Nick Cutter is one of the hottest names in horror fiction, and for good reason. I have read all four of his books now, and I the praise for each was certainly warranted. I enjoyed The Deep and The Acolyte but his debut novel, The Troop, is outstanding. At a time when major publishers were shy about hardcover horror, this wicked intense, character-rich, body horror novel was a major hit. It worked in part because, despite a modern setting, it felt retro in all the right ways, like a a golden age of horror paperback classic. People rightly compared to it to classic Stephen King. I thought it was an effective and disturbing horror novel that made the best of a lean prose style.

Little Heaven, Cutter’s fourth book, is a masterpiece of horror fiction, and a tribute to the 1980s, even more so than The Troop did. As good as his last two books were, they missed the retro feel that made The Troop special.  Although some readers have compared Little Heaven to classic King, it’s more influenced by the work of Clive Barker and Robert McCammon. The setting and characters suggest that Cutter was also influenced by Cormac McCarthy, and the structure and dialogue are reminiscent of Quentin Tarantino. Take all this narrative chemistry, and it adds up to a novel that feels like others, but is actually like nothing I have read before (it’s also nice to see that he has escaped the Bentley Little title disease– finally, a novel that is not The ___ Whatever “.)

Little Heaven is the story of four trained killers given the mission to rescue a young boy whose father has taken him to a compound called Little Heaven, in the New Mexico desert. Cutter clearly has fashioned the cult after real-life cults. We soon learn that the killers are not normal humans. The supernatural elements have a surreal quality that brings to mind early Clive Barker. Monsters, such as the Long Walker, were disturbing in how unnatural they were, yet described so well you can see them in your mind. It’s nothing short of creepy.  Cutter creates vivid landscapes, and the horrors pop off the page, causing several cringeworthy moments of supernatural horror.

The narrative switches back and forth from the mid-60s to the 80s, and the structure unrolls the story in an unconventional but very effective manner. We know the four mercenaries survived something which changed them, and they are haunted by what they have seen. As in Robert McCammon’s Gone South, the characters are both scary and hilarious at times. The prose itself is excellent. This novel delivers exactly the feeling of the classics, and causes me to turn the pages, and that’s all I’m asking for. I think this is the best Cutter book to date, and the best horror novel in years. Highly recommended.

Reviewed by David Agranoff

Here’s an audio review David did of Little Heaven with fellow author Anthony Trevino.

 


Posted on May 5, 2017 by , Reply

Book Review: The Shadow Cartel by Layton Green

The Shadow Cartel by Layton Green

Thomas & Mercer, 2015

ISBN-13:  9781477827819

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition, audiobook.

 

Dominic Grey makes things happen. He works for a professor who conducts investigations of religious events for both private individuals and police agencies around the world. Dominic is the man on the ground. and it has been too long since he’s had an investigation. He has been spending his downtime teaching jiu jitsu to teenagers, just to keep himself from going stir-crazy. He finally gets a call. It is Nya; it has been over a year since he has spoken to her—collateral damage caused by a Zimbabwean religious investigation Grey had headed up. Things had gotten messy; he had not expected to hear from her again. Now, Nya needs his help. Her father’s goddaughter, Sekai, recently died from a hit of ecstasy at a party in a South Beach nightclub. When Grey looks into it, he finds that drug dealers in Miami are being ritualistically murdered.  He soon stumbles into a nest of witchcraft involving a knife-wielding blue Indian woman. The mystery deepens from there.

 

The Shadow Cartel is a great read that delves into the world of ritualistic murder and the religions that use it. I really enjoyed this book. It was fast-paced and grabbed me from the first chapter. I especially liked how the author wove in the horrific history of The Peoples Temple in Guyana, which was headed by Reverend Jim Jones. This gave the book an air of realism and authenticity that invested me in the story. The tone of mystery was very good as each religion’s involvement was uncovered. As a result, the suspense builds well and kept me going. The characters have distinct voices and it was fun to discover bits of their past as they were revealed. The plot is full of twists and turns that keep the reader guessing. The descriptions were full without going overboard. There is nothing in the story that was particularly disturbing or offensive; and the writing flows well. I have not read any of this author’s other work, but, The Shadow Cartel is a fun read. Recommended for adult readers.

 

 

Reviewed by Aaron Fletcher

Posted on September 4, 2015 by , Reply
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