Horror Aficionados discussion

Erin wrote: "Circe


Started off strong but fell apart for me half way through."

That's a bummer! I had a feeling about that one, which is why I didn't jump on that particular bandwagon. :)

Finished Who Goes There?, the book that became The Thing, on the big screen. Very good. The author was definitely ahead of his time.

Char wrote: "Erin wrote: "Circe


Started off strong but fell apart for me half way through."

That's a bummer! I had a feeling about that one, which is why I didn't jump on that particular band..."

It seems like most hyped books go that way. Children of Blood and Bone being another one.

The Woman in the Window


I really liked it.

Dark Cities an anthology of all new short stories from Ramsey Campbell, Jonathan Maberry, Kealan Patrick Burke, Sherrilyn Kenyon Tannanarive Due, Christopher Golden, Paul Tremblay and other greats of modern horror, all with an urban theme. An eclectic collection of some truly terrifying, uncanny and scary tales

Recently finished The House That Jack Built by Graham Masterton



My review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Loved it :-)

with our group. It was excellent!

These are the horror-related books I've read so far! Planning for a handful more before the end of the year.

Feed

I liked it, the characters are what really sold the story. My one negative is I felt it was a little long winded.

Finished Master of Pain by Wrath James White & Kristopher Rufty last night. Didn't think I would enjoy it as much as I did. Read it in just over 24 hours. Extreme horror/ BDSM/Erotica with some Occult happenings at the end, definitely not for the squeamish.

Today I finished Sharp Ends by Joe Abercrombie. Fantastic short story collection, my favourite being the absolutely brilliant "Two's Company".

Recently finished listening to the audiobook of Pet Sematary by Stephen King



my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

3/5 Stars for me.

If anyone is in the market for an excellent crime novel, I cannot recommend this one highly enough:

The Neighbour by Fiona Cummins



Review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Finished The Mongrel by Seán O’Connor

This was merely okay. Very quick read. I'm left scratching my head over why it is a 2019 Splatterpunk Award Nominee for Best Novella though.

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli



Review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Entertaining haunted house story.

Finished The Tea Party by Charles L. Grant

This was a good read. 3/5 stars. A Haunted House tale crossed with an American take on Folk Horror, maybe.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane

Wes wrote: "



These are the horror-related b..."

Ugh!! I loved HoL! One of the first books Horror Afs recommended to me.

I hope you enjoyed it :)

Wes wrote: "



These are the horror-related b..."

Hi, Wes!

I've read two of the three you have listed and enjoyed them!

The Pandora Room . While I enjoyed it, I did not think it held up to a comparison with ARARAT, which was the first book featuring protagonist Ben Walker.

I've just finished The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold

My book of the year (so far)

I really liked this one. A mix of mystery, post-apocalyptic, and maybe even a tad bit of supernatural thrown in....

The Secrets She Keeps

Not really a fan of it.

The Writhing Skies by Betty Rocksteady

2/5 Didn't really like this one.

The Fifth Child by Doris Lessing

I really liked this

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

finishing "Dracula Book of Great Horror Stories".....

Dangerous Ground by Larry Bond..Taking a short break from horror

The Bighead by Edward Lee

I cannot believe I had this book sitting on my shelf for close on a decade unread! This is every bit the gonzo backwoods extreme horror classic I'd heard about! Fantastic! 5/5

I ordered the Paperbacks From Hell edition of When Darkness Loves Us by Elizabeth Engstrom yesterday. I'm pretty stoked to read it....but it won't ship for another month!! Whut-WHUT???

Christian wrote: "The Bighead by Edward Lee

I cannot believe I had this book sitting on my shelf for close on a decade unread! This is every bit the gonzo backwoods extreme horror class..."

I really need to re-read that one. When I first read it in the early 2000's, I was pretty shocked that such a book had even been published. Now this kind of book is a small subgenre in of itself!

Sphere

It was ok. The story itself was good but I didn't really like the characters.

Rob wrote: "I ordered the Paperbacks From Hell edition of When Darkness Loves Us by Elizabeth Engstrom yesterday. I'm pretty stoked to read it....but it won't ship for another month!! Whut-WHUT???"

It's a series, so I think they are releasing them over a certain period of months. I'm reading it now though, and I think I can safely say that it's worth the wait.

I just finished In Darkness, Delight: Masters of Midnight and thought it was excellent.

Char wrote: "Rob wrote: "I ordered the Paperbacks From Hell edition of When Darkness Loves Us by Elizabeth Engstrom yesterday. I'm pretty stoked to read it....but it won't ship for another month!! Whut-WHUT???"..."

Well, It's a series of books, but this one was supposed to have been released last Tuesday. I don't get why it's going to take over a month to ship it. I mean...I can wait, but I've just never experienced a shipping delay like this before. Oh well. I guess I'll read something else while I wait. Plenty in my TBR pile! How did you get YOURS so soon? Ebook?

Rob wrote: "Christian wrote: "The Bighead by Edward Lee

I cannot believe I had this book sitting on my shelf for close on a decade unread! This is every bit the gonzo backwoods ex..."

Yeah, I can imagine the reception it got when it first dropped on an unsuspecting readership. LOL

Finished I Wonder What Human Flesh Tastes Like by Justin Isis a couple days ago. 3/5

Rob wrote: "Char wrote: "Rob wrote: "I ordered the Paperbacks From Hell edition of When Darkness Loves Us by Elizabeth Engstrom yesterday. I'm pretty stoked to read it....but it won't ship for another month!! ..."

Hmmm, I'm not sure what the delay is. Yes, I have a long-standing relationship with Valancourt Books and I was provided an e-ARC for review.

I finished up Ghost Mine by Hunter Shea the other day and enjoyed it immensely. It's due out at the end of this month.

Char wrote: "Rob wrote: "Char wrote: "Rob wrote: "I ordered the Paperbacks From Hell edition of When Darkness Loves Us by Elizabeth Engstrom yesterday. I'm pretty stoked to read it....but it won't ship for anot..."

Hunter Shea is someone I'd like to read. Do you have a recommendation to start with, Char?

David wrote: "Char wrote: "Rob wrote: "Char wrote: "Rob wrote: "I ordered the Paperbacks From Hell edition of When Darkness Loves Us by Elizabeth Engstrom yesterday. I'm pretty stoked to read it....but it won't ..."

The New Jersey Devil is a good one. Of course I am kinda biased

I finished To Die For by Linda Howard today. 5*

Kill For Satan! by Bryan Smith

My pick to win the 2019 Splatterpunk Award for Best Novella. Ave Satanas! 4/5

Pieces of Her

I am a fan of Karin Slaughter but I didn't care for this one at all. Supposedly it's being created into a Netflix show which I would still try even though I didn't like the book.

Erin wrote: "Pieces of Her

I am a fan of Karin Slaughter but I didn't care for this one at all. Supposedly it's being created into a Netflix show which I would still try even though I didn't li..."

I've read a lot of Karin Slaughter and the more I read the less I'm liking her books. They have too many whiny damaged people who can't get control of their lives.

Catch-22. Definitely the funniest book I've read in my life. Reminded me of Mel Brooks' movies.

David wrote: "Char wrote: "Rob wrote: "Char wrote: "Rob wrote: "I ordered the Paperbacks From Hell edition of When Darkness Loves Us by Elizabeth Engstrom yesterday. I'm pretty stoked to read it....but it won't ..."

My favorite of his is: Creature. Despite its title, this one is not a creature feature.
But, believe me, Shea writes GREAT creature features, such as:
Rattus New Yorkus
Jurassic Florida
The Devil's Fingers
Just Add Water

These are in the vein of The Rats by James Herbert. Lots of romping and chomping FUN! :)

I finished this kick ass book last night:
.

It was AMAZING.

Char wrote: "David wrote: "Char wrote: "Rob wrote: "Char wrote: "Rob wrote: "I ordered the Paperbacks From Hell edition of When Darkness Loves Us by Elizabeth Engstrom yesterday. I'm pretty stoked to read it......"

These all sound amazing!! Who doesn't love romping chomping fun? I'm adding lol

I finished Shadow of Power todayShadow of Power

WendyB wrote: "Erin wrote: "Pieces of Her

I am a fan of Karin Slaughter but I didn't care for this one at all. Supposedly it's being created into a Netflix show which I would still try even thoug..."

I do like her Will Trent series the best but I do agree that you eventually get the feeling of you have read one you have read them all.

The Lost City of the Monkey God


Not really in my wheelhouse. I don't really read non fiction that often, when I do it's usually true crime.

I have been busy reading this past couple of weeks and have had a great time with a variety of scary stories:

The Bone Clocks by David Mitchell which I swiftly followed with the even more excellent (and much shorter) Slade House by the same author.
Then a Michelle Paver trio - Dark Matter (my second time around for this one - it's the local Horror Book Club book of the month). Once again, I loved the atmosphere and creeping dread here. Thin Air and Wakenhyrst. Of these two, I found Thin Air in a similar vein to Dark Matter and, as a result, it gripped me in a similar way (strange reading a book set in an icy landscape when you're sitting in the garden in the middle of a heatwave!). Wakenhyrst was completely different - and gothic, which is one of my preferred sub genres - but I confess I did have a bit of an issue with the last 10% and would be interested to read what others think about it.

An earlier Stephen King I had missed (goodness knows how) From a Buick 8 proved well up to what I always hope for from one of his novels.