Winterwood by JG Faherty is a Christmas fairy tale horror story from Samhain’s childhood fears series and is set on the 23 December way back in 1979. Winterwood by JG Faherty is a Christmas fairy tale horror story from Samhain’s childhood fears series and is set on the 23 December way back in 1979. Set to be published on the 5 May, I would have to question why a Christmas horror story is being released at this time of the year but maybe that’s just me. Ìý Do you believe in the old tales passed down through the generations about the Holly King and the world of Winterwood, a world beyond the veil. The paths between these worlds open for the celebration of Yule, the three longest nights of the year. It’s the time when the Holly King’s reign over the world comes to its annual end. On each of the three nights of the solstice, Krampus, the Holly King, takes his forces out on the Wild Hunt. He travels the world on an enormous stag, with his hounds and his soldiers by his side. Looking for children not tucked up in a nice warm bed and who may well end their days tucked up in a nice warm pie. Ìý No one in Anders Bach’s family believed his old tales of Winterwood, Yule cats and Elfin, the hunt for children foolish enough to be out on the nights before Christmas. That's all about to change when his two young grandsons disappear and Anders discovers the back door wide open. His daughter and her husband have to believe, to stand any chance of getting them back and it’s through the veil to Winterwood they must go. Ìý So they end up in a world that exists too few, a world that exists purely from belief and full of creatures that will eat you before even looking at you. My favourite part of the story was when they arrive in Winterwood and hide in a house they assume to be empty. Ìý Empty it is not, though, lives an elf there and Yoda he is, on a break from his Star Wars shenanigans. He talks like our old green Jedi friend anyway, most of the time with lines like "Lucky you are for choosing my home to hide in" and "Had it been any other, prisoners by now you would be". Certainly bought a bit of humour, intentional or not.
That and the fact we have an old grandfather running round trying to escape hounds, witches and the Holly King himself with the aid of a few angina tablets to get him over the worst of it left a hefty dose of disbelief. Far fitter than most and that's a fact. Can they rescue the children before the veil closes and they are left as part of the menu for Winterwood's festival? Got to say I didn't really care either way.
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Winterwood by JG Faherty is a Christmas fairy tale horror story from Samhain’s childhood fears series and is set on the 23 December way back in 1979. Set to be published on the 5 May, I would have to question why a Christmas horror story is being released at this time of the year but maybe that’s just me. Ìý Do you believe in the old tales passed down through the generations about the Holly King and the world of Winterwood, a world beyond the veil. The paths between these worlds open for the celebration of Yule, the three longest nights of the year. It’s the time when the Holly King’s reign over the world comes to its annual end. On each of the three nights of the solstice, Krampus, the Holly King, takes his forces out on the Wild Hunt. He travels the world on an enormous stag, with his hounds and his soldiers by his side. Looking for children not tucked up in a nice warm bed and who may well end their days tucked up in a nice warm pie. Ìý No one in Anders Bach’s family believed his old tales of Winterwood, Yule cats and Elfin, the hunt for children foolish enough to be out on the nights before Christmas. That's all about to change when his two young grandsons disappear and Anders discovers the back door wide open. His daughter and her husband have to believe, to stand any chance of getting them back and it’s through the veil to Winterwood they must go. Ìý So they end up in a world that exists too few, a world that exists purely from belief and full of creatures that will eat you before even looking at you. My favourite part of the story was when they arrive in Winterwood and hide in a house they assume to be empty. Ìý Empty it is not, though, lives an elf there and Yoda he is, on a break from his Star Wars shenanigans. He talks like our old green Jedi friend anyway, most of the time with lines like "Lucky you are for choosing my home to hide in" and "Had it been any other, prisoners by now you would be". Certainly bought a bit of humour, intentional or not.
That and the fact we have an old grandfather running round trying to escape hounds, witches and the Holly King himself with the aid of a few angina tablets to get him over the worst of it left a hefty dose of disbelief. Far fitter than most and that's a fact. Can they rescue the children before the veil closes and they are left as part of the menu for Winterwood's festival? Got to say I didn't really care either way.
Carlton Mellick III is one of the leading authors of bizarro fiction and in his own words ‘pumps out some of the weirdest, trashiest, most imaginativeCarlton Mellick III is one of the leading authors of bizarro fiction and in his own words ‘pumps out some of the weirdest, trashiest, most imaginative booksâ€� you'll ever admit to being a guilty pleasure. A prolific author with over 40 books in print, freaky titles such as The Haunted Vagina, Clusterfuck, Adolf in Wonderland, Baby Jesus Butt Plug and Razor Wire Pubic Hair comprise some of his back catalogue. Well worth checking his website out to see how tapped this guy actually is and you simply can't help being drawn in by some of the books on offer, he's also got a set of the most wicked sideburns I've ever seen. Ìý Clownfellas is one of his latest offerings and it’s for the most part set in Little Bigtop, New York’s infamous clown neighbourhood. Clowns are real, they're not entirely human and they've got some of the best weaponry you could imagine. Ìý Little Bigtop is run by the Bozo crime family, clown mafia if you like and we follow various members of the Bozo clan in offshoot stories that all kind of collide in a big family wedding. Stories include capo Vinnie Blue Nose and his brush with the ever warring French clowns, Le Mystère, as he tries to protect the temperamental boss’s son Jimmy Bozo. Ìý Pinky Smiles, the smiling clown, no creepy maniac clown smile neither he actually possessed a pleasant smile and he's about to propose to his girl, daughter of Don Bozo's brother. Not everything goes to plan for Pinky though, he's been set-up and there's a deadly assassin heading his way. Ìý And finally before the calamitous wedding we have the brilliantly unfuckingkillable, Bingo Ballbreaker who wakes up in a pool of blood with a bullet hole in the back of his head. Girlfriends gone and so is his must precious possession, his Ilario Sperrazza violin. Ìý To the fantastic weaponry available to a clown, there's toy store—slinky bombs, bladed frisbees, chainsaw yo-yos, an assortment of weaponized pies and cartoony handguns, Weapons-grade itching powder, suicidal bullets, flower seed bullets, happy bullets, balloon knives, you name it and they've got it. Ìý "I once saw a guy OD on this stuff,â€� Winky said, giggling at the thought. “He laughed so hard his head exploded".
How do you become a clown, well you're either born that way, a pure clown or an injection of happy juice. If you risk the injection, there's a 10% chance you'll go loopy beyond repair, minds and bodies would become malformed and distorted. A Sideshow Freak. Ìý The author writes in a simplistic, easy to read style that drags you along by the short ‘nâ€� curlies, it's all tongue in cheek and a touch surreal but it just works, good fun, excellent premise and I think I'll be returning quite soon to Carlton Mellick III's back catalogue, probably with Apeshit. Clownfellas is due for release on the 17 July.
A 3.5* rating
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Carlton Mellick III is one of the leading authors of bizarro fiction and in his own words ‘pumps out some of the weirdest, trashiest, most imaginative booksâ€� you'll ever admit to being a guilty pleasure. A prolific author with over 40 books in print, freaky titles such as The Haunted Vagina, Clusterfuck, Adolf in Wonderland, Baby Jesus Butt Plug and Razor Wire Pubic Hair comprise some of his back catalogue. Well worth checking his website out to see how tapped this guy actually is and you simply can't help being drawn in by some of the books on offer, he's also got a set of the most wicked sideburns I've ever seen. Ìý Clownfellas is one of his latest offerings and it’s for the most part set in Little Bigtop, New York’s infamous clown neighbourhood. Clowns are real, they're not entirely human and they've got some of the best weaponry you could imagine. Ìý Little Bigtop is run by the Bozo crime family, clown mafia if you like and we follow various members of the Bozo clan in offshoot stories that all kind of collide in a big family wedding. Stories include capo Vinnie Blue Nose and his brush with the ever warring French clowns, Le Mystère, as he tries to protect the temperamental boss’s son Jimmy Bozo. Ìý Pinky Smiles, the smiling clown, no creepy maniac clown smile neither he actually possessed a pleasant smile and he's about to propose to his girl, daughter of Don Bozo's brother. Not everything goes to plan for Pinky though, he's been set-up and there's a deadly assassin heading his way. Ìý And finally before the calamitous wedding we have the brilliantly unfuckingkillable, Bingo Ballbreaker who wakes up in a pool of blood with a bullet hole in the back of his head. Girlfriends gone and so is his must precious possession, his Ilario Sperrazza violin. Ìý To the fantastic weaponry available to a clown, there's toy store—slinky bombs, bladed frisbees, chainsaw yo-yos, an assortment of weaponized pies and cartoony handguns, Weapons-grade itching powder, suicidal bullets, flower seed bullets, happy bullets, balloon knives, you name it and they've got it. Ìý "I once saw a guy OD on this stuff,â€� Winky said, giggling at the thought. “He laughed so hard his head exploded".
How do you become a clown, well you're either born that way, a pure clown or an injection of happy juice. If you risk the injection, there's a 10% chance you'll go loopy beyond repair, minds and bodies would become malformed and distorted. A Sideshow Freak. Ìý The author writes in a simplistic, easy to read style that drags you along by the short ‘nâ€� curlies, it's all tongue in cheek and a touch surreal but it just works, good fun, excellent premise and I think I'll be returning quite soon to Carlton Mellick III's back catalogue, probably with Apeshit. Clownfellas is due for release on the 17 July.
'Darker shadows slipped through the shadows at the edges of things.'
I listened to the audio of Coraline narrated by the fantastic Dawn French and 'Darker shadows slipped through the shadows at the edges of things.'
I listened to the audio of Coraline narrated by the fantastic Dawn French and once again I was blown away by a deeply absorbing children's horrorish tale.
Coraline, not Caroline as all the neighbours fail to comprehend is an intrepid explorer, a hobby that's generally down to being ignored by her parents. And top of the list of things to explore: the mysterious door in her home, the one that leads absolutely nowhere. Until, one day, it leads somewhere, somewhere magical, straight out of a kid’s nightmare.
'She had the feeling that the door was looking back at her, which she knew was silly, and knew on a deeper level was somehow true.'
A world of someone's making, exactly like her own, almost. A world of darkest danger, where she lost everything, lost her parents and with a little help managed to find them again. But until then she had to make do with the Other Mother, the one who wanted to love and keep her forever, as a possession.
'Coraline shivered. She preferred the other mother to have a location: if she were nowhere, then she could be anywhere. And, after all, it is always easier to be afraid of something you cannot see.'
The audio is a great way for a first introduction to this story, I also flicked through the 10th anniversary edition with some wonderfully dark illustrations by Chris Riddell. As I've stated previously I love Gaimans prose, the quote at the top is another good example of how his simple yet imaginative style just stands out in delightfully spellbinding fashion.
'She had a show of unconcernedness, but her fingers twitched and drummed and she licked her lips with her scarlet tongue.'
Enchanting, bewitching and simply charming, just about says it.
Well I'm forty and some loose change years of age and I never, ever thought I'd be reading children's books again. I can't even remember reading them Well I'm forty and some loose change years of age and I never, ever thought I'd be reading children's books again. I can't even remember reading them when I was a kid but Neil Gaimans 'are but aren't reeeeaaaally' children's books are an absolute delight, so much so, that I've bought all of them. There's gentle murmurs and mutters of darkness within and Gaiman is a master wordsmith that wraps you up in his stories, and its impossible to get out until the very end.
Fortunately, the Milk sees Father return slightly late from the shop with the vital lifesaving breakfast cereal milk and armed with legendary excuses of alien worlds and time travel. A thoroughly entertaining guilty pleasure that's kinda hidden from everyone who matters.
Christmas horror joy with rainbow sprinkles, tequila frosting, marzipan glaze and a biscuit base. All topped off with a fountain of blood and a smatteChristmas horror joy with rainbow sprinkles, tequila frosting, marzipan glaze and a biscuit base. All topped off with a fountain of blood and a smattering of body parts, Enjoy....more
The audio of Neverwhere narrated by Neil himself was one of my last books of the year but definitely ranks up ther"Things to do. People to damage"
The audio of Neverwhere narrated by Neil himself was one of my last books of the year but definitely ranks up there as one of my favourites of the year if not all-time.
As a narrator Neil Gaiman is something quite special, the different characters are easily distinguishable and I was left hanging on every word by a truly accomplished story-teller and perfect teller of stories.
I won't go into the plot detail, the books nearly 20 years old and its all been done a million times before but I am kicking myself for not having read this a hell of a lot sooner.
All the characters of London underneath and London overneath in this Neverwhere adventure are distinctly charismatic, magical and captivating. The two characters that for me stole every scene right from their entrance were the terrifyingly funny Mr Croup (the brains and the words) and Mr Vandemar (the blunt brutal one), could it really be anybody else.
“There are four simple ways for the observant to tell Mr. Croup and Mr. Vandemar apart: first, Mr. Vandemar is two and a half heads taller than Mr. Croup; second, Mr. Croup has eyes of a faded china blue, while Mr. Vandemar's eyes are brown; third, while Mr. Vandemar fashioned the rings he wears on his right hand out of the skulls of four ravens, Mr. Croup has no obvious jewelery; fourth, Mr. Croup likes words, while Mr. Vandemar is always hungry. Also, they look nothing at all alike.�
Gaiman makes the city below completely believable to the point where you can picture it in your head, he makes you care for the characters and I was fully invested in the story, the world, everything. The city underneath is that little bit darker, that little bit dirtier matched by the people who live there, there's magical elements, wondrous creatures and a real life Angel, a fantastically grim urban fantasy setting. It's pretty much prefect.
“Now me,� said Mr. Vandemar. “What number am I thinking of?� “I beg your pardon?� “What number am I thinking of?� repeated Mr. Vandemar. “It’s between one and a lot,� he added, helpfully.�
It was cleverly done with Richard, and everyone above forgetting who he was after coming into contact with those from beneath, forcing him to seek Door out and the start of a wonderful adventure. Mr Croup and Mr Vandemar are worthy of more stories, I'd love to read more of them, wickedly entertaining characters, as was the Marquis..
'A rustle in the tunnel darkness; Mr. Vandemar's knife was in his hand, and then it was no longer in his hand, and it was quivering gently almost thirty feet away. He walked over to his knife and picked it up by the hilt. There was a gray rat impaled on the blade, its mouth opening and closing impotently as the life fled. He crushed its skull between finger and thumb.'
Apologies I could go quoting crazy here, enough with Croup & Vandermar. And Neverwhere is now a firm favourite.
Well I'm lost for words, The Sandman Overture is quite simply an extraordinary piece of work, one of Neil Gaimans finest, I've absolutely no doubt. Ìý SoWell I'm lost for words, The Sandman Overture is quite simply an extraordinary piece of work, one of Neil Gaimans finest, I've absolutely no doubt. Ìý So my version is the HC Deluxe edition, containing a good few pages of extras, exquisite, gorgeous and some serious drooling done over every page. The thing I have to mention first is the artwork, sublime, mesmerising, magnificently bewitching (artwork covered *tick* although I may mention it again) and I could've spent twenty minutes on dictionary reference copying all the plaudits. Ìý The artwork is done by JH Williams III, and he quite simply puts a world (or three) right in your lap and draws it like he's been there, astonishing, the perfect man to collaborate the creative genius that is The Sandman. Ìý With Overture, Gaiman sets his thoughts to a prelude and explores the events that lead into the original Sandman series. We see Dream or Morpheus take on a quest of such import that the stakes are simply everything in existence. Ìý On his journey Dream encounters multiple aspects of himself forcing a bout of severe reflection and mediation, here forms the core group of an innocent girl rescued and Dreams feline countenance for an intensely personnel adventure. We meet the majority of the Endless, The Corinthian with his toothed eyes, Merv Pumpkinhead, Lucien and even the temperamental forces of the old dears, bless them. Ìý The artwork really is a thing of beauty, so many different styles for the various places we visit and different entities we meet, there's double pull-outs, one showing his many aspects and each a uniquely diverse vision of the man himself. There's panels of darkness, panels of haunting delirium mixed succinctly with an almost cartoonish backdrop. Fire, intense vivid colours, black and white ghostly panels, wording that spins so you have to turn the book upside down. There's a hell of a lot of work gone into this and its much appreciated, top job, easily one of the best I've seen. Ìý Can't forget the story, starts slow but grabs you early doors and you can't get out, you don't want it to end. Seriously Overture is that good. Ìý The extras are substantial, interviews with the artist, the guy who does the words, covers, colours and some more quite fantastic art. Ìý The journey itself, well that's something you'll have to find out about all on your own but safe to say, with chocolate sprinkles on, that if you've read the Sandman series then Overture adds a treasure chest of delights and awesomeness. And did I mention the artwork, genius stuff.
With a Voice that is Often Still Confused But is Becoming Ever Louder and Clearer by J.R. Hamantaschen is a bit of a mouthful of a title and I wasWith a Voice that is Often Still Confused But is Becoming Ever Louder and Clearer by J.R. Hamantaschen is a bit of a mouthful of a title and I was expecting big things from this book which is probably an unfair way of approaching it. I've seen lots of positive things about With A Voice from friends and also from his first short story anthology You Shall Never Know Security.
My favourite story with a quite apt title was Soon Enough This Will Essentially Be a True Story about a goodreads reviewer who receives a free book from a local author, the author starts hounding for a review and things are turning nasty but I wasn't prepared for this nasty. A bestseller beckons but in bloody unlikely and brutal circumstances, after reading this you'll think twice before leaving a negative review, I guarantee it.
Another favourite was I’m A Good Person, I Mean Well and I Deserve Better, starting off with a pretty normal date between Robin and Bryce at the good old Deer and Fox, rudely interrupted by Bryce overcome with desperation for a trip to the white house to drop some visitors in. Embarrassment doesn't cover it and the clocks ticking, how long will she wait, gotta get off, help. No need to worry though, well, tell a lie, there's every need to worry at what's going down in the dining area. It's all gone mental, there's a strange bloke who's controlling all kinds of monsters and ripping people to shreds, monsters are referred to as minions but these ain't little yellow funny fuckers. These are demons but before and after the carnage is some consuming emotional shenanigans and a little toilet humour. I did enjoy this with the violently weirdish interlude that certainly changes tact.
'He wanted an adjustment to his face, something to scare the shit out of people right before he killed them � wanted his mouth to spread out like the wings of a manta ray, little suckers and teeth embedded into his checks. But he couldn’t will that, for some reason.'
I found With A Voice to be a bit of a mixed bag, for the most part the stories started off walking down Normal Avenue with intriguing characterisation, well written and sometimes delightful prose that deserves to be fully appreciated and absorbed. You're just getting used to what's occurring and thinking where it's going because there's considerable time spent on the setup when quite suddenly we turn off Normal Avenue and abruptly head down Weirdfuckingville Alley. Which is not a negative slant it's just something different to wrap your head around.
Now it's a good job there's an easy to use dictionary on kindle because I'd swear J.R. Hamantaschen is making sweet, sweet love to and then battering his thesaurus with his third leg because at times it was like showing off with I know some big words that you'll never understand kinda writing. Call me thick if you like but if you immediately know without looking what this lot means then congratulations you need a fucking life platitudinous, meretricious, Cognitive dissonance, solipsistic, stentorian, didactic tone and finally, enunciation inchoate. Joking aside do you ignore or interrupt the flow, I interrupted and just thought, why man?
So on the whole we've got some seriously weird, dark fiction that even now I'm still in two minds about, I can appreciate it but I don't think I'll ever truly love it. There's certainly brilliance here, a touch different maybe, the more I think back the more I like it, it just takes some assimilating and some smaller titles would be good.
Beholder by Graham Masterton is my second short story from the openbooks.com website that is available to copy, share, do whatever you want with it anBeholder by Graham Masterton is my second short story from the openbooks.com website that is available to copy, share, do whatever you want with it and if you feel it's worth some money, then pay something with the links provided.
Beholder has a bit of a modern day fairy tale vibe going on with young Fiona who never leaves the house, her mother says she's too beautiful and would come to harm. This is a house with no mirrors and beauty is of course in the eye of the beholder, who is the beholder? Why, anyone who looks at you.
This is a simple yet truly horrific short story, I read the second half with a wince permanently etched on my face. To say anything else would give things away but you need to read this and completely unprepared is the best way. Masterfully told by a legend of horror, brilliant stuff.
Beginning in 1953 The Incurables by Jon Bassoff is a character driven tale with its heart set in madness and it'It’s a mean old world, isn’t it?'
Beginning in 1953 The Incurables by Jon Bassoff is a character driven tale with its heart set in madness and its thoughts desperate for tranquillity amidst the Incurables of society.
Thirty-two hundred lives he’d saved, give or take, and he wasn’t done yet. The famous Dr. Walter Freeman, the pioneer of the transorbital lobotomy but when his time is deemed over, there's no going back so he kidnaps his latest patient and it’s time for pastures new.
'Without hesitation, he grasped the ice pick and jammed the point into the tear duct. He then gripped the hammer and struck the ice pick, once, twice, causing an audible crack. Back and forth, back and forth he cut. Then, with a twisting movement, he withdrew the ice pick, all the while pressing his gnarled fingers on Edgar’s eyelids, preventing hemorrhaging.'
And that is a transorbital lobotomy, Woah WTF, this apparently, effectively treats patients with a history of anxiety, depression, insomnia and bouts of homicidal mania. Dr Freeman and Edgar find themselves on the carnival circuit wanting only to help those in need. And with a sign.
'The Amazing Dr. Freeman and his Transorbital Lobotomy. Ending Mental Anguish Today.'
Durango Stanton, sixteen year old Messiah, is also on the carnival circuit with his father, usually found sat cross-legged on a homemade throne, wearing a crown of thorns while dear old Dad preaches all the truths the sinners don't want to hear. And then there's Scent, a young woman who sells her body to survive, her Mother has loads of money hidden away, waiting for her lover to return, forcing them to live in poverty. So we have one crazy Father, one crazy Mother and as if sent from heaven, the good doctor.
“It’s the town. Out here in the middle of nowhere with all them ghosts whispering from beneath the bloody dirt. A town full of incurables, a town full of sinners, a town run by the devil. And wherever the devil is, God is sure to follow.�
The Incurables sees Jon Bassoff back to his best following a slight stutter with Factory Town, Scent was easily my favourite character, seemingly a fragile young thing with a dark side desperate for reparation but will she get what's due? In a place where insanity blossoms amongst the hopeless and faith doesn't mean a thing, only death.
I received The Incurables from Darkfuse & Netgalley in exchange for an honest review and that’s what you’ve got.
I love this fucking series but there's two questions burning a hole in my tiny little mind, first off they did the old change the artist trick for theI love this fucking series but there's two questions burning a hole in my tiny little mind, first off they did the old change the artist trick for the second volume. Nick Spencer does the story and Riley Rossmo who did the art for volume 1 has been replaced with Ryan Browne. Normally this infuriates me, they have an absolutely top notch winning formula and they bloody change it, how many times does this happen, fuck fuck fuckity fuck fuck. Ìý I'd ban that shit, have a bit more thought for us muppets who turn into fans and keep these franchises going. Maybe I'm being unreasonable, it does annoy me just a little as you can probably tell. Thankfully the story continues in the violently imaginative vein of the first volume, in fact the stories better, the artworks slightly different and thankfully they manage to get the flashbacks of Madder Red (once chief homicidal maniac and former criminal overlord of the city of Bedlam and now helping the law catch serial killers) absolutely spot on. Ìý Fillmore Press was once Madder Red, now he's cured of his maniacness and psychotic tendencies. Now he wants to help catch killers with his unique abilities and there's a new one just opened up for business, perfect. Bedlam is a desperately scary and brutal world that you just wanna explore. Ìý And finally to my second question, what the fuck happened? Where's the continuation of the story? can't find any info in the geekaverse. It's just ended part way through a story it seems, Aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh I wanna fucking scream. One of the best series going and its ..... nobloodymore. Ìý Complete Travesty. I’m pretty sure you’re getting my drift by now. Ìý Rumour has it Bedlam will resume in 2016, after stalking Nick Spencer on twitter, we can hope.
Garth Ennis turns the superhero franchise on its head and slaps it where the sun don't shine with The Boys: Get Some the second volume of the series. Garth Ennis turns the superhero franchise on its head and slaps it where the sun don't shine with The Boys: Get Some the second volume of the series. Get Some contains two stories with the primary characters being Billy Butcher, the leader of this band of superhero bashers and wee Hughie the newest recruit.
The first story sees them investigate the murder of a young gay man and two superheroes come under close scrutiny, Tek-Knight's got a bit of a problem, he's not a legit superhero his costume is powered and he's got problems in that he wants to fuck anything that moves and his former sidekick, Swingwing, a gay-champion but is he really?
Now there's a couple of moments, one in each story that had me rolling on the floor laughing, the first was when Billy & Hughie pay a visit to the Tek-Knights bat cave. Hughie is dying for a dump, he literally has seconds, he arrives at the toilet door and it’s a keycard entry, fucked, and too cap it off there's a turtles head coming.
The second story sees the gang head over to Russia in Glorious Five Year Plan, something is afoot with superheroes heads blowing off their shoulders. An unlikely baddie in little Nina, who is 3ft and a fag end and first seen in a private plane with a sex toy, maybe not the first but it’s the bit that I remember anyways, she's recruiting supes for some nefarious activities in Moscow. The Boys stay with a retired supe called Vasilii who makes a comeback at the end in his spandex, his name, Love Sausage and he certainly has the goods, fucking hilarious especially when he enters the strip joint.
Now I'm liking this series, it's dark and dirty, funny as fuck with plenty of outrageous violence, the Seven or the elite supes don't feature in volume 2 and it’s really intriguing to see where Ennis goes with that so I'll be on the next of the series soon.
Bedlam by Nick Spencer Chaos and anarchy rule in Bedlam, courtesy of Fillmore Press aka supervillain Madder Red who opens the show with a massacre at Bedlam by Nick Spencer Chaos and anarchy rule in Bedlam, courtesy of Fillmore Press aka supervillain Madder Red who opens the show with a massacre at the opera during a school field trip. He then plays cards with a little girl whilst waiting patiently for the local superhero vigilante to arrive and save the day. Captured by the Police, you might think it's game over but do mistakes really happen to the cleverest homicidal maniac on the street. Apparently not there's another play and its more violific madness. Ìý
Ìý Madder Red doesn't differentiate, he'll kill anything and everything, man, woman, child, all in a blaze of vivid blood red. That was 10 years ago, a final explosion sees a head separated from a body and then to all that matter, Madder Red is dead. He's abducted by a crazy doctor with equally nutty nurses and 10 years of treatment. This involves brain operations, psychiatric treatment, culminating in one of the scenes of the book. A behavioural experiment on companionship, he gets a kitten, ahhh! And then he kills it. He then proceeds to slaughter a kitten a day for 96 days, shouldn't laugh but... And then finally he befriendsÌýone and his rehabilitation is almost complete, he's nearly ready to be released back into society. Ìý
Ìý So the past is intermingled with the present and a serial killer stalks the streets of Bedlam, Fillmore Press can help, he has unique abilities. He just has to convince the Police that he can help catch the killer. Ìý What a story, this graphic novel rocked my little world, the artwork is raw and edgy. We go from present tense in colour to Madder Red in all his glory, black and white with a little red thrown in. Ok a lot of red to emphasise the horror, blood and lots of it, as maniacs go he's up there with the best, or worst of them, you know what I mean. Red is never seen without his mask, there's a murderous aura in every panel, a disturbing frenzy that is absolutely gripping and I loved it all. This is just the most riveting imagery I've seen coupled with an awesome story and characters. Top notch. Ìý Ìý...more
Well Sex Criminals is certainly a wonderfully unique concept, entertaining, a little bit funny and even a little bit sexy, without being smutty or conWell Sex Criminals is certainly a wonderfully unique concept, entertaining, a little bit funny and even a little bit sexy, without being smutty or controversial. Ìý Suzie is a librarian who during puberty stumbled, in a carpet burn free fashion on the fact that when she has an orgasm, time stands still and she can explore away while everyone around is a wax work dummy. Ìý This is quite a trick and I'm thinking immediately of what I'd get up to if everything's frozen, yep I'm thinking of all the shit I can rob. Ìý It's a minor miracle when she discovers Jon has exactly the same abilities and they embark on some not so usual shenanigans, chiefly Jon's bank is about to foreclose on Suzie's library. So it's time to steal some cash, enough to keep the library open anyway. Ìý One bit that cracked me up was Jon, who doesn't like his boss at all, so he nips into the toilet to service his account so to speak and when time has halted proceeds to crap in his bosses potted plant, oh I did laugh. I think the top drawer of his desk would have been another good target followed by a swift nob rub around his favourite mug. The list is endless I could happily spend a night thinking of ways to initiate a Captain's Call, it could develop into a highly enjoyable hobby. Ìý Anyway, so I quite enjoyed the story and premise, it was good to see both characters as they first discovered their strange talents interspersed with the present timeline, Jon's time was spent in a porn shop, where else? And they revisit for a giggle. The panels are tight, more cartoonish for the all-encompassing market than the raw edgy stuff that I prefer but yeah it’s different and it’s pretty cool. Ìý Also posted at ...more
The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman is an enchanting, almostly adult fairy tale that totally gripped me from start to finish. I listened tThe Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman is an enchanting, almostly adult fairy tale that totally gripped me from start to finish. I listened to the audio narrated by Neil himself and its absolutely fantastic, I was literally hanging on every word and it’s very easy to disappear from life and immerse yourself in his narration.
Now my exposure to Neil Gaiman has been fleeting, I read his novel American Gods a good few years ago and The Sandman graphic novel series more recently but listening to The Ocean and Neverwhere in the past couple of weeks has invigorated a profound appreciation of his work and set me on a bit of a Gaiman quest. I'll be reading and listening to a lot more from Neil himself over the next few months and adding him to my top 5 authors, I think he definitely deserves it.
The Ocean at the End of the Lane is a man's recollection of a fantastical and breathtakingly engrossing story from his childhood memories. Our nameless narrator, avoiding a funeral finds himself at a house that plays on the fringes of his conscious and when he is invited to sit overlooking the water, wondrous and terrifying memories surface and at the heart of it a girl named Lettie Hempstock.
It's a story set in our world but with a little extra magical spice, add to that a young boy suffering at the hands of a beautiful but monstrous nanny and his only refuge being Lettie, the youngest of three generations of woman living on a farm close by. There's a world that exists outside the knowledge of the many and its left to the few to guard against wayward spirits and demons, there's always a cost though.
Gaiman teases a beautiful and exquisite tale, the audio adds significantly more of his vision, a precious whisper to be absorbed and coveted, something that you would love to hear again and again.
The Ocean at the End of the Lane is simply magical.
The Darkest Secret by Alex Marwood starts off with witness statements about a young girl missing, presumed kidnapped. We then go to the events surrounThe Darkest Secret by Alex Marwood starts off with witness statements about a young girl missing, presumed kidnapped. We then go to the events surrounding the girl’s disappearance and the Fathers 50th birthday weekend celebration. The past timeline is interspersed with the present where the Father of the missing girl dies in mysterious circumstances handcuffed to a hotel bed and the majority of the cast prepares for the funeral. The death is not expanded on and he turns out to be a soulless man who deserved much worse than the cards he was dealt in life. Ìý What really happened on the weekend of the disappearance is divulged as a finale and there's a bit of a twist that I saw coming from seventy two and a half miles away, or pretty much the beginning. The character development holds the story together by something like the last strand that's just about to break but to be honest the story bored the pants off me for the first two thirds and was altogether far too predictable with no real shocks or anything that gripped me.
Sam and Sophie are on date night, she's waiting for him to turn up, he's running late. When he finally arrives she's not there, he searches everywhereSam and Sophie are on date night, she's waiting for him to turn up, he's running late. When he finally arrives she's not there, he searches everywhere, restaurant, cinema, no sign. He figures she's gone home, a mite pissed off. Ìý We then go back two years to America, West Virginia and a woman tied up in a barn, kidnapped by a psychopath. A deadly game commences, she has on the surface two chances to escape and one chance to save her brother before this mad man leaves. This game also involves a wood chipping machine,Ìýnot pretty. Ìý These two stories eventually come together on a farm in the English countryside. The Farm by Matt Shaw is a well written horror novella, the story uses differing timelines to keep things mildly interesting but it was lacking the Shaw twist and nothing really stood out for me.
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