What Kind of Mother by Clay McLeod Chapman ~ 2023


Sometimes, all the time,
all you need is a mother's love.




Author: Clay McLeod Chapman
Publisher: Quirk Books (September 12, 2023)
Publication: September 12, 2023
Pages: 304
Language: English
ISBN-13: 978-1-68369-380-2
Designed by: Elissa Flanigan
Production management by: John J. McGurk
Cover photography credits: Shutterstock/studiovin; Shutterstock/Simon Annabelle;
Shutterstock/neitbrucewillis; Shutterstock/Karelian; Shutterstock/Christin Lola
Interior photography credit: Shutterstock/Bokeh Blur Background

 


5 Stars



Clay McLeod Chapman
Sat down yesterday and read this little gem of a read and thought, you know Jeff, I think I'll stop writing book reviews. Instead, start a blog for book recommendations.

Folks, Clay McLeod Chapman's latest novel is a horror story disturbing enough to cringe any seasoned horror reader. A missing child is at the heart of this tale, and you can feel the power of love radiating off these pages in the quest to find an end to what happened.

A short synopsis for you:

After Madi Price is thrown out of the house by her father because of an unplanned pregnancy and a slammed door in her face from Donny, the baby's future father, she embarks as a single mother. Later, she is forced to return to her hometown of Brandywine, VA with her seventeen-year-old daughter Kendra, to start a life she really wasn't expecting.

Madi becomes a palm reader at the local farmer's market, where you meet my favorite book characters. Auntie Millie, Charlene, and Mama May are the town's most resourceful wellhead of gossip. I pictured them so well, talking the talk so well cemented as truth according to them, their dialog made me smile every time their names popped up. She is also reintroduced to an old high-school flame, by the name of Henry McCabe.

Henry, a reclusive fisherman nowadays has a son, Skyler, who went missing 5 years ago, and is bound and determined to find him. He has been handing out and pinning up posters of his child believing Skyler is not dead, but everyone in town thinks differently. His belief solidifies when Madi reads his palm.

That particular reading changes Madi's life and everyone she loves—permanently. The visions are powerful, and she starts to wonder, does she really have psychic abilities? Is Skyler really out there needing to be found? This whole tale is filled with dynamics of broken families and the need to reassure themselves that, in the end, all will be okay. Keeping hope alive, trying to put substance in that word - okay.

Folks, this is a supernatural horror tale done with vivid depictions you can taste right off the pages. The tale starts off in a light air and turns dark. Very dark. This is a five-part read, with the point-of-views done alternating between the main characters of Madi and Henry. As the story moved to the end, the body horror writing was exceptionally well done by the way. The epilogue caged up the one missing loose thread I had in the back of my mind with a dedication and a beautiful poem. Let's just say it was touching, okay? Okay.

The tone of this tale was one of suspense and horror that would burrow itself into one of your orifices and feed. In fact, the prose and the nursery rhymes that peppered the tale were exceptionally well done. From beginning to end, the writing will keep you turning pages. That is not meant as a cliche.

During the whole read, I kept asking myself, what kind of mother? What really happened to Skyler's biological mother, Grace? Where is Madi's mother? Is Madi a proud mother to Kendra? Is Kendra happy and content with her mother? Then, there is the father's role. Both mother and father could take their turns bathing the child, changing the child, putting the child to bed, holding the child when he's teething/crying, and let's not forget the child's feeding times. You know, parenting can be very exhausting.

And do things happen in threes? Is three a magical number? Why is the number three throughout this tale? All these questions were answered and, I was satisfied. In threes.

There is so much more between the lines of this tale, that you the Reader will be having your own inter-monologue with yourself. You might feel some distance from some of the choices these characters make, compared to what you might have done. There are instances that I would have done differently. You might have your opinion on psychics or even believe what my favorite characters say is true and indeed fact. All in all, there is so much more in this tale than what is written. You'll see. Or, feel it.

Folks, read this tale. Get scared. Get spooked. It is one of the best of 2023 IMHO




I recommend it folks. Highly recommended.


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Here's where you can get your fingers on What Kind of Mother:
  • Amazon ~ Hardback $18.60 ~ Paperback $16.99 ~ Kindle $12.99 ~ USD
  • Barnes & Noble ~ Hardback $21.99 ~ Paperback $16.99 ~ eBook $12.99 ~ Audiobook $19.95 ~ Audio CD $36.95 ~ USD
  • IndieBound ~ Support your local bookstores



About the author:





Connect with Clay








“Like a demonic angel on a skateboard, like a resurrected Artaud on methadrine, like a tattletale psychiatrist turned rodeo clown, Clay McLeod Chapman races back and forth along the serrated edges of everyday American madness, objectively recording each whimper of anguish, each whisper of skewed desire. This is strong stuff, intense stuff, sometimes disturbing stuff, but I think the many who admire Chuck Palahniuk will admire Chapman as well.”—Tom Robbins, author, of Still Life with Woodpecker

Clay McLeod Chapman is the author of the novels Ghost Eaters, Whisper Down the Lane, The Remaking, and Miss Corpus, story collections Nothing Untoward, commencement, and Rest Area, as well as The Tribe middle-grade series: Homeroom Headhunters, Camp Cannibal, and Academic Assassins.

Upcoming projects include Quiet Part Loud, a 12-part horror podcast series from Jordan Peele and Monkeypaw Productions, written by Chapman and Mac Rogers, exclusively on Spotify beginning on November 15, 2022.

Chapman’s story Late Bloomer was adapted into a short film, directed by Craig William Macneill. An official selection at the 2005 Sundance Film Festival, the short won Best Short at the Lake Placid Film Festival and the Brown Jenkins Award at the 12th Annual H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival.

Their second short, Henley, based on the chapter “The Henley Road Motel” from Chapman’s novel Miss Corpus, was an official selection at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. It won Best Short at the 2011 Gen Art Film Festival and the 2011 Carmel Arts and Film Festival. The Boy (SXSW 2015), a feature-length adaptation of Henley, co-written with director Macneill, was produced by SpectreVision (Elijah Wood, Daniel Noah, and Josh C. Waller) in 2015.

In comics, Chapman is the writer of the Marvel series Scream: Curse of Carnage. He has written Absolute Carnage: Separation Anxiety, Iron Fist: Phantom Limb, and Typhoid Fever, as well as for Edge of Spider-Verse and Venomverse, The Avengers, Amazing Spider-Man, Ultimate Spider-Man, American Vampire, Scream: King In Black, and ORIGINS among others.

He is the creator of Self Storage (451 Media) and Lazaretto (BOOM! Studios).

Chapman is the creator of the rigorous storytelling session The Pumpkin Pie Show. In the twenty years of its existence, it has performed internationally at the Romanian Theatre Festival of Sibiu, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, New York International Fringe Festival, Winnipeg Fringe Festival, Edmonton Fringe Festival, Minnesota Fringe Festival, Dublin-based thisisnotashop art space, IGNITE Festival, Women Center Stage Festival, and Impact Theatre Festival.

Chapman wrote the book for Hostage Song (music & lyrics by Kyle Jarrow). He is the author of such plays as Commencement, The Cardiac Shadow, and Volume of Smoke. His story monologues Birdfeeder, Undertow, and The Wet Echo have been featured in The Best American Short Plays anthologies.

Chapman was educated at the North Carolina School of the Arts for Drama, the Burren College of Art, and Sarah Lawrence College. He currently teaches writing at The Actors Studio MFA Program at Pace University.

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Reviewed by No comments:

101 HORROR Books To Read Before You're Murdered by Sadie "Mother Horror" Hartmann ~ 2023


For horror fans of all ages
new to, and, old to
modern horror writers of our time



Author: Sadie "Mother Horror" Hartmann
Publisher: Page Street Publishing (August 8, 2023)
Publication:  (August 8, 2023)
Pages: 168
Language: English
ISBN-13: 978-1-64567-780-2
ISBN-10: 1-64567-780-X
Forward by Josh Malerman
Illustrations by Marco Fontanili
Cover and book design by Rosie Stewart for Page Street Publishing Co.




101 Stars



Sadie Hartmann
a.k.a.
Mother Horror
An absolutely phenomenal must-have for all horror fans of the supernatural and paranormal reading genre. Including monsters of the unbound imaginations of these authors, you are in for a treat, once your fingers start to turn these pages.

You might have read many of these authors. Might be, you have read all of them. Might be, you have read a handful. Hell, might be, that you have only heard of a few and never gotten around to tasting their work. No matter the case, these are the books Mother has for you if you are willing to do the reading before you're murdered. Just sayin'.

Thank her when you see her.

Opening the cover, Josh Malerman welcomes all horror readers to Sadie "Mother Horror" Hartmann and her spectacular bibliography condensing thousands of reads of modern horror writers, down to 101 (before you're murdered) with such an air of subtle finesse, just as Sadie welcomes you on how she came about on how she wrote this book—This book was written with you in mind, dear Reader.

Thank her when you see her.

Sadie explains with clarity this 5 part book is filled with honest recommendations, along with a handy-at-a-glance reference guide. She mentions a few reads that are well-known in the horror genre, but, there not in here. She doesn't like them. Period. This book is filled with honest recommendations of books she likes. She also throws caution to you readers that not all horror is suitable for all readers as she mentions you can research content warnings before you begin a new book. Mother Horror keeps you in mind, dear Reader.

Thank her when you see her.

Her Table of Contents covers 5 parts:
  • Paranormal - Haunted Houses, Ghosts, Creatures and Cryptids.
  • Supernatural - Demons & Possession, The Occult & Witchcraft, Cosmic Horror.
  • Human Monsters - Coming-of-Age, Grief, Loss & Death, Cults, Slashers & Serial Killers, Body Horror, Creepy Kids, Crime & Investigation.
  • Natural Order Horror - Apocalyptic, Dystopian & Sci-Fi, Eco-Horror
  • Short Story Collections
Including ten Author Spotlights, you can't go wrong. This is a hell of a book. I've been there and got that ripped T-shirt, and with my head slowly nodding back and forth, had a shit-eatin' grin on my face page after page. This is a hell of a book, and so glad I have a copy. Authors I have heard of and yet have not tasted their work have made it on this list. Hunger has set in.

My palette needs to be sated.

I'm going to thank her when I see her.


I highly recommend it folks. Highly.


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Here's where you can get your fingers on 101 HORROR Books To Read Before You're Murdered:



About the author:





Check out Mother Horror

@


&








Sadie Hartmann is the co-owner of the horror fiction subscription company Night Worms, and the editor-in-chief of her own horror fiction imprint, Dark Hart.

Born and raised in the small town of Grass Valley, CA, she now makes her home with her husband of 20+ years in the Pacific Northwest where they celebrate cloudy days, stare at Mount Rainier, eat street tacos, and hang out with their three kids.

They have a Frenchie named Owen.



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Reviewed by No comments:

Becoming the Boogeyman by Richard Chizmar ~ 2023

 


Spectacularly phenomenal 




Publisher: Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Publication: Gallery Books (October 10, 2023)
Pages: 448
Language: English
ISBN: 978-1668009161
Jacket design by Anna Dorfman
Jacket illustrations by Adobe Stock
Author photographer: Carly Albright



5 Stars




Richard Chizmar
After reading this sequel to Chasing the Boogeyman I sat this book down and smiled. I've been telling folks, that the New York Times and USA Today best-selling author Richard Chizmar has a dynamite gig going on with his Boogeyman. Or, the fear of his Boogeyman he had in his youth;

or still has.

I enjoyed how he took his family, his pups, and close friends on a dangerous ride with his Boogeyman and his followers. And the price he paid for it. All unintentional, of course.

Folks, this highly anticipated horrifying novel from Gallery Books could be a stand-alone read if you have not read Chasing the Boogeyman, but, I do highly suggest that you read them in order to maximize the effect you'll receive when reading the last pages of each.

The 'gig' Chizmar has going on is the epitome of how you can create fictional characters and real-life characters and envelope those characters into real-life events surrounding the narrator's nostalgic childhood memories, his love for true crime stories, his current life as a best-selling author, and fiction.

In Chasing the Boogeyman, Joshua Gallagher was convicted, through DNA, of committing four horrific murders and imprisoned for life. After writing his sensational best-selling novel, Richard Chizmar is getting a taste of what life is like as a celebrity.  And all the while, thinking he is helping law enforcement and the public as a whole by conducting interviews with a serial killer that only wants to talk with him. Trying to get Gallagher to open up and quite possibly admit to other victims will be a road Chizmar might not have wanted to travel.

The tale opens up 30-some years after, Joshua Gallagher, a.k.a. The Boogeyman, has been imprisoned for the grisly murders he committed back in the eighties with a copycat killer picking up right where Joshua had left off. Out walking his dog one morning, Richard finds a black garbage bag closed with duct tape.

You guessed it, the bag has a body in it, or parts thereof, now, the front of his house is a crime scene.

And as it begins . . . The crime and the subsequent murders throughout the story are all connected to the first murders, but, then they start pointing to Chizmar. Why is the copycat killer targeting Richard? Or, is he?
Did Chizmar go off the deep end and into the abyss of being a madman? Is he doing the deeds of murder?

As in the first installment of The Boogeyman, this too, is complete with excerpts of media posts from social platforms, message boards, interviews he had with Gallagher, and black-and-white photos of the crime scenes, buildings, and victims all to deepen the enigma of what is actually real from what is fictional. 

With sublime writing, Richard takes you on a journey where you cannot decipher real from unreal. Period. You'll be asking yourself throughout the book many questions, and you'll be Googling many addresses and places. Yep, I did.
Loved this format he created: metafiction with a twist. What an enjoyable read.

The conclusion in this second installment is wrapped up satisfyingly with a definite promise of a third book.


✒ ✒ ✒


Recommend?

Not only do I recommend, but I also highly suggest ~

I also highly suggest joining our Zoom meeting with Richard on

October 26th at 6:00pm EST


In part of the Henderson Memorial Public Library in Jefferson, Ohio
and myself

Click the link and join!

Join the Zoom Meeting

Meeting ID: 897 0733 7922


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Here's where you can get your fingers on Becoming the Boogeyman:
  • Amazon ~ Hardback $26.09 ~ Kindle $14.99 ~ Audio CD $39.99 ~ USD
  • Barnes & Noble ~ Hardback $28.99 ~ eBook $14.99 ~ Audio CD $39.99 ~ USD
  • IndieBound ~ Support your local bookstores

About the author:





RICHARD CHIZMAR is a New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Amazon, and Publishers Weekly bestselling author.

He is the co-author (with Stephen King) of the bestselling novella, Gwendy’s Button Box, and the founder/publisher of Cemetery Dance magazine and the Cemetery Dance Publications book imprint. He has edited more than 35 anthologies, and his short fiction has appeared in dozens of publications, including multiple editions of Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine and The Year’s 25 Finest Crime and Mystery Stories. He has won two World Fantasy awards, four International Horror Guild awards, and the HWA’s Board of Trustees award.

Chizmar (in collaboration with Johnathon Schaech) has also written screenplays and teleplays for United Artists, Sony Screen Gems, Lions Gate, Showtime, NBC, and many other companies. He has adapted the works of many bestselling authors including Stephen King, Peter Straub, and Bentley Little.

Chizmar is also the creator/writer of the online website, Stephen King Revisited. His fourth short story collection, The Long Way Home, was published in 2019. With Brian Freeman, Chizmar is co-editor of the acclaimed Dark Screams horror anthology series published by Random House imprint, Hydra.

His latest book, The Girl on the Porch, was released in hardcover by Subterranean Press, and Widow’s Point, a chilling novella about a haunted lighthouse written with his son, Billy Chizmar, was recently adapted into a feature film.

Chizmar’s work has been translated into more than fifteen languages throughout the world, and he has appeared at numerous conferences as a writing instructor, guest speaker, panelist, and guest of honor.



Before you run off:



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Reviewed by No comments:

The Dismembered by Jonathan Janz ~ 2022

 


With unbelievable penmanship,
Janz delivers gothic horror romance,
expertly done, to my doorstep.



Publisher: Cemetery Dance Publications (November 18, 2022)
Publication: November 18, 2022
Pages: 174
ISBN-13: 978-1-58767-843-1
Front Cover Artwork © 2019 by Matthew Revert
Digital Design by Dan Hocker 



A digital copy was sent to me from Kevin Lucia, ebook and trade paperback editor for Cemetery Dance Publications ~



5 Stars



Jonathan Janz
Man, I enjoyed the hell out of this one. Right from the get, I was hooked and I love that in a new read!

Folks, you're looking for a great intense Gothic Horror read. Yes, yes you are. Period.

Quick synopsis ~

This twenty-four-hour tale in 1912 starts off with mild and meek Arthur Pierce, an American writer,  on a train saving the day from a brute who is trying to bully his way onto a young woman.

After a quick side step, the brute is on the ground and he is introduced to this young woman by the name of Sarah Coyle.

After Sarah and Arthur had been acquainted during the train ride he agrees to accompany Sarah to her family's estate, Altrabrook. After all, he could head that way, estranged Arthur is running from a highly public affair his wife displayed/pronounced on him. And, besides, Sarah was eye candy I believe he said to himself. Not in those exact words, I'm just sayin'.

Here's what's going on, folks:

Older than dirt but kept his looks through the years, Count Richard Dunning who is rumored to dabble in bizarre religious rites and experimental medicine is to wed Sarah's younger sister, Violet, who had just turned of age. Sarah's plight is to stop this before the month's end. Yet, her father, Hubert, is eager to marry off his daughter to the wealthiest landowner because of his own financial strain.

Arriving at Altrabrook, we the readers are introduced to pretty much the slew of main characters and Arthur, being transfixed on Sarah's older sister Lizzie, let's say, charisma, this tale continues at a pace where you're fingers are turning pages. A must-be-there gathering at Count Dunning's estate, Castle Magnus, is established, and right off the rip folks, Janz keeps this pace alive and flowing onto the next set of events.  Getting some understanding of history and back-story while at the gathering, The story moves. 

And during this time, you get to read some of the best gothic horror telling you could read. Depicted on paper and ink, visually the events are graphically displayed in your mind's eye as colorful as you could smell the atmosphere the characters are going through. The characters' dialect with one another was from an era I am personally not familiar with, but I'm telling you, the enjoyment I had, as I listened to them and watch them go through their horror was worth my time. 

After the must-be-gathering, we eventually are on the top floors of Castle Magnus where all the wrinkles get ironed out and all the pretty ends get sewn together, so we as readers, get the jest behind everything. People falling in love, out of love, bug-eyed from gasp of reality setting in, smiles, frowns, hanging on to last words, tears, and even laughter were abundant on the upper floors. This story of a young couple enveloped in a nightmare and their perseverance so they could put an end to this horror they were living through, you are hooked. Rooting for them and wishing for God's speed would come naturally if you have an ounce of humanity in ya.

In the end, the whole reason for Count Dunning's panache in wanting Violet's hand in marriage, the reasoning behind dad's (& mom's[they're married]) financial strain, Sarah's beliefs, the town folk's thinking of the local lore and gossip of Count Richard Dunning's age and his shenanigans? and all about Lizzie and Arthur are answered satisfyingly. You will definitely love this read folks.

The ending almost comes to a fairy-tale ending for some, almost.



Really a quick read folks, so, I highly suggest reading this and bypassing your tbr.



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Here's where you can get your fingers on The Dismembered:
  • Amazon ~ Audiobook $14.95 ~ Paperback $16.99 ~ Audio CD $21.95 ~ USD
  • IndieBound ~ Support your local bookstores


About the author:







Connect with Jonathan












Jonathan Janz is the author of more than a dozen novels. He is represented for Film & TV by Ryan Lewis (executive producer of Bird Box). His work has been championed by authors like Josh Malerman, Caroline Kepnes, Stephen Graham Jones, Joe R. Lansdale, and Brian Keene. 

His ghost story The Siren and the Specter was selected as a Goodreads Choice nominee for Best Horror. Additionally, his novels Children of the Dark and The Dark Game were chosen by Booklist and Library Journal as Top Ten Horror Books of the Year.

He also teaches high school Film Literature, Creative Writing, and English. Jonathan’s main interests are his wonderful wife and his three amazing children.


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Reviewed by No comments:

Angel Falls by Julia Rust & David Surface ~ 2022

 

... In a way, Jared thinks, it's like he and Jessie

are the last two people on Earth ...




Author: Julia Rust  &  David Surface
Publisher: YAP Books, an imprint of Haverhill House Publishing LLC
Publication: October  16, 2022
Pages: 352
ISBN-13: 978-1949140330
ASIN-10: ‎ B0BDVNBQY3
Cover design & setup: © 2022 Errick Nunnally



A digital copy was provided by award-winning author John McIlveen (Hannahwhere 2015) for an honest review alongside my proffered thank you for asking ~



4 Stars



Julia Rust
John McIlveen had asked me to review this tale from Julia Rust and David Surface somehow knowing it had been a while since I have read a coming-of-age tale.

Glad he did. I have not read any works from these authors and I found out this story is full of mystery, family love, soul searching, and secrets.

Folks, this tale from alternating point-of-view chapters from the characters, these authors will have you engrossed on a journey for fifteen-year-old Jessie Reed, as she discovers the consequences of wanting and needing, and trusting their gut. And, she's not the only one discovering things as the characters get introduced through this reading.

Sure, every young teen would want to have her parents stay together till the end of time, sure. Jessie is questioning her parents' marriage and is on the road with her dad to take care of an inherited house from Cousin Dorothy in the seaport village of Beauport while her mother stays behind in New York City.

She gets her hell scared right out of her at the end of chapter one ... though Angel Falls just might be the place she's looking for after all. 

Angel Falls is a place governed by a strange and mysterious history of power that made it seem to me it held the town and its people hostage. Those who have actually experienced its powers and know first-hand are being taken care of by loved ones. Loved ones who dare not go into the wood that holds the falls. Jessie also finds out the falls are also governed by another enigma. Sixteen-year-old Jared Younger. 

Those are his stompin' grounds.

Jared and Jessie meet one day, after (summer) school for Jared and from a bike ride for Jessie, Jared gives her the low-down on the falls and tries to cement the notion - DO NOT COME BACK HERE, you don't know your way around. It's just a heads-up. Yet, Jessie takes her own stance and will do what she wills. She tells the, "Boy."

Between these two characters' dialogue and their inner monologues, you can't help but enjoy them throughout their experiences. Especially with each other.

They both have their own personal family problems they're dealing with, trying to figure out how to fix things and have everyone happy and content. Especially them, so they don't have to work so damn hard on trying to feel normal. If you had the power to fix your family, wouldn't you? Jessie fixing her parents' marriage; Jared fixing his dad's depression?

In comes Mr. Chris Delany. Jared's summer school teacher.

David Surface
The character of Mr.Delany folks, I mean, Mr.Delany meant good in all aspects of trying to see if one can actually come to the bottom line. Throughout the years, he taught Jared to read, and well, I'm figuring if he is going to give up his summer to these kids that have to go to summer school, I'm going to like this guy.

He loves putting Jared on the spot in class. 

After an unexplained event at school that made Jared's eyes bulge, then another event, then another as the story continued, Jared starts to realize he might possess a power to make things happen. He fought with thoughts of not trusting Mr. Delany, but, Delany was laying out the evidence. It was looking like two and two are four. Tale continues with Jared starting to realize he might be in possession of such power and trusting his notion that, Jessie, also, just might possess this power.

Jessie's visceral feelings of not trusting Chris Delany are on full alert. Does Chris really want to help Jared or is there some type of payoff for him in the end? Was he vetted for his position? Does he really understand the falls power? Ah yes, the bottom line. As Jared and Jessie uncover secrets that lead to satisfying answers, Delany was a character I enjoyed reading.

As they persue their answers, supernatural ghosts make their decision making harder. Just as those characters grew through the tale, they also grew together on their quest. Folks, it was a dark path they traveled.

Folks, this a great read with real teenage compassionate characters and the growing up they do. The inner turmoil they went through with their feelings was expressed point on. Great writing describing such emotions, I'd say. As you read some of these passages you'll catch your head nodding up and down in agreement. Just as their self-reflections did in this tale. And, their Moxi is second to none in dealing with this supernatural force alive in the falls and the decisions they decide to make. Very good enjoyable read.


Speaking of characters:

Chris Delany's character was drawn in my mind as a Snidely Whiplash image. Every time he spoke, or looked, or ... I could see that grin of his. Jared's dad seemed so far out there in time, I pictured him as a mad painter even as if nothing else was going on in his life. Sitting there beside the ocean painting some vision he sees.  A Christopher Lloyd in Back to the Future gaze image. The lot of secondary characters were drawn out for me as that, secondary. For me, not really getting any flavor from them. Couldn't really see them, smell them, etc., though,  they worked well for their role. The main characters were spot on as growth and color throughout, especially, at the end where they all bloomed. Even the characters that were called from the falls. 

The pacing/timing was at a great speed for me once it got going and with the alternating chapters being melded together effortlessly, it was a read you wanted to know what was coming next. And those last few sentences at the end of the chapters, I applaud you both, Julia and David. Thank you. The story moves ~

The dread you guys produce for Jared and Jessie throughout this story was spot on and the atmosphere you created: the bothersome unease you created when they visited Miss Gardner and Pete, around the school, and the woods, I loved it, folks!

There are a lot of issues in this read that were touched on; pending divorce, falling in love, trust, self-reflection, lost love, family bonding, and horror, to name a few. A delicious tale to enjoy yourself with one weekend and find out how Jared and Jessie fair.


Damn right it gets one of my 4 Stars.
Shoot, I have a pocket full of them if the writing keeps me ~


Again, thank you YAP Books for this enjoyment 

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Here's where you can get your fingers on Angel Falls:
  • Amazon ~ Hardback $12.95 ~ Paperback $15.95 ~Kindle $6.99 ~ USD
  • IndieBound ~ Support your local bookstores



About the authors:





Connect with Julia


Julia Rust is a writer and teaching artist from the Hudson River Valley in New York. With David Surface, she runs Veterans Writing Workshop, bringing free workshops to U.S. veterans and active duty military in the metro-NYC area.

She is the principal instructor for On the Homefront which offers memoir workshops for veterans’ family members in partnership with Poets & Writers and the White Plains Public Library and has served on the board of the Hudson Valley Writers’ Center.

She is also an actor, and Buddhist and can often be found stuck to the couch by a cat in her lap.






Connect with David






David Surface lives in the Hudson Highlands in a 160-year-old brick house that he shares with his wife, the author Julia Rust, and two cats, Howl and Greebo (named after Dianne Wynn Jones and Terry Pratchett characters).

David is the author of 'Terrible Things', a collection of short stories published by Black Shuck Books, and is co-author with Julia Rust of 'Angel Falls', a YA supernatural suspense novel from YAP Books, an imprint of Haverhill House Publishing.

His stories have appeared in genre publications including Shadows & Tall Trees, Supernatural Tales, Nightscript, Morpheus Tales, Twisted Book of Shadows, The Tenth Black Book of Horror, and Best Horror of the Year Volume 13, as well as literary journals such as North American Review, Crazyhorse, Fiction, Marlboro Review, and Doubletake.

A story co-authored with Julia Rust, ‘TallDarkAnd’, appears in the Swan River Press anthology, Uncertainties III. His stories have received long-list Honorable Mentions in Ellen Datlow’s Best Horror of the Year, Volumes 7 and 8, SFEditors Picks, and have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize in fiction.


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Reviewed by No comments:

Do Not Weep For Me by Tony Tremblay ~ 2022



When you're looking for a light lull into Hell ... of a read.



Publisher: Twisted Publishing, an imprint of Haverhill House Publishing LLC
Publication: January 31, 2022
Pages: 248
ISBN-13: 978-1-949140-11-8
Cover design: © 2022 David Dodd & Errick Nunnally
Author photograph: Chris White



Read from my TBR list



A cup of 5 Blue Stars



Tony Tremblay
Wanted to sit down and get into a fantastic horror read. Something to get entertained with without having to go through a lot of pages to get there. Scrounged around my tbr pile and found this gem.

Gem?

Have you ever been to Goffstown, New Hampshire? The quaint little town of neighborly folks and smiles. Just south of Castle Rock. Ah yes, Goffstown, the town I picture as one of those Norman Rockwell portraits. A tranquil little spot in the world. It is where Tony Tremblay, one of the nicest guys in horror resides. Yes, you heard me right, horror.

Bram Stoker Finalist Tony Tremblay had put Goffstown, New Hampshire on the horror map with his debut The Moore House (2018) where Father MacLeod and three excommunicated nuns, Nora, Agnes, and Celeste investigate a purported house in Goffstown that might have supernatural forces. An unrelenting horror story that sticks with you. 

This tale of Tony's starts off with a woman having a story to tell. An off-the-wall epic tale that the editor of the local newspaper the Goffstown Times, Manuel Chance, wears nothing but a dubious visage as she spins the yarn? As she went on and on he wore this doubtful demeanor only until she shows proof of what she is saying, by taking off her clothes. Seeing the evidence, he is now at attention.

After Manuel learned of the woman's name, the woman who had been kidnapped the year previous, Irene Delaney told the editor she has reason to believe she knows the person kidnapping recent missing children. She wants Manuel to investigate her husband to determine if he is behind the disappearance of the children.

Paul Lane is one of the parents along with Lynne Carole whose children are missing. Their children, Cindy and Lisa respectively, were found folks so no worries right? Well, they brought someone with them. 

(Damn, this book was good)

The heart of this story is set inside The Goffstown Pawnshop. Across the street from the pawnshop straight from Colby, Kansas is a vehicle with two decomposing bodies wrapped up in a blue plastic tarp. Their transporter, a woman on a mission, possessed by the need to procure an item from the pawnshop makes her way to the doors. (which, personally folks, I would love to visit. Wait till you find out about its treasures and the pawnshop itself)

After Tremblay sets things in motion you're wrapped, folks. Yep, like those decomposing bodies are. The atmosphere is thick with horror and the visual effects he describes are unreal and with unrelenting action happening, well, the reading absorbs you. The afflictions he puts his characters through are ghastly entertaining and downright page-turning. The torment he puts a few through and the torment that still awaits others are depicted as horrifically captivating. And folks, this is a forewarning: you disregard the reality of the present time. You'll turn another page. Just sayin'.

Tremblay herds them all together at the pawnshop where he has his way with them. Irene and Manuel, Paul and Lynne, and when it came to the kids, in the back of mind - "How is Tony gonna dance with the devil with those two?" Well, he did. Sorry folks, that's as far as I'm going with that. Seemed all of his characters had to go through hell save one. During all the hell breaking loose in the pawnshop and where he is tying up all the loose ends of this story, even in this ending, not sure that one will find peace. Maybe he already has. Tremblay does display hope.  

The whole novel was super entertaining for a religious-themed horror read. His writing flows pleasantly through hell and then before you know it hours have passed. Escaping reality and taking a horror ride with Tremblay is enjoyable as all get out. Yeah, one of those.

There are those heart-warming moments where characters that pull through the chaos, you can feel smiles inside you as you read. Or, where the anticipation and suspense are happening it also awaits on the edge of your fingertips to turn the next page. Never mind the thump in your diaphragm from gasp. Which best describes how an author on his game pulls you in. The unspoken words Tony is telling you. Fears I should say.

Tremblay wraps up the ending smoothly. The chaos that breaks out inside the pawnshop is descriptive and second to none for horror writing.  Barriers trying to separate Good vs. Evil is on full display. (color included) Who's gonna win? Will the children live through this? Or did Tremblay throw in another option? Is there another option? Sure, this is horror. And you know, on the back cover of this novel folks, it does say God isn't the one on their side. Is there a loser? 

A delicious tale of horror, ghosts, sex, evil at its best, and hope within reach? Those of you who have read Tony's debut The Moore House, you know he puts hope within reach. Those of you that have not, no worries, this sequel to his debut stands on its own horrifying you.


* Just a note for you folks that are squirmish on graphic sex scenes - they're there in their devilish colors ~


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On a side note, Tony is well known to throw friends' names in his stories. As well as mentioning great reads from fellow authors. For example, Tom Piccirilli, a 4-time Bram Stoker winner, and Bracken MacLeod, a Bram Stoker and Shirley Jackson Award-nominated author. Matt Bechtel, who anyone would tell you sees the world a bit differently. (Monochromes and Other Stories (2017) is proof his mind is twisted and I love it.) Father Golden at the Vatican. Also, James Moore, the incarnate devil Himself.
Folks, there are others. There will always be others ~
I applaud and proffer a bow to authors who throw their friends into Hell. I really do.

Tony's 'sitting beside the campfire telling you a gut-wrenching horror story where you won't be able to sleep writing' was introduced to me a few years back from award-winning John McIlveen (Hannahwhere 2015). He's to blame.



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Here's where you can get your fingers on Do Not Weep For Me:
  • Amazon ~ Hardback $26.95 ~ Paperback $16.95 ~Kindle $7.99 ~ USD



About the author ~

Tony Tremblay


Connect with Tony

and see what he's up to







Tony Tremblay is the author of The Seeds of Nightmares, a collection of his short stories from Crossroad Press that made the Bram Stoker Awards Recommended Reading List.

The Seeds of Nightmares debuted at number two on the Amazon Hot Horror Chart and made the top twenty in the Amazon Horror sales listing. His horror and noir-themed tales have been featured in anthologies, magazines, and websites on both sides of the Atlantic.

In addition to his print work, Tremblay is the host of The Taco Society Presents, a cable T. V. show on G-TV based out of Goffstown, NH ( it can be viewed on YouTube ) that features discussions on horror as well as guest interviews with horror authors.

In addition, he has worked as a reviewer of horror fiction for Cemetery Dance Magazine, Beware The Dark Magazine, and the Horror World Website. He (along with John McIlveen and Scott Goudsward) founded NoCon, a horror convention held every September in Manchester, New Hampshire.

Also, Tony Tremblay is the writer of numerous short stories that have been published in various horror anthologies, horror magazines, and webzines under his pen name, T T Zuma.

He lives in New Hampshire with his wife Paula.


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Before you go off to another site -





About Tony's, Bram Stoker nominated debut novel
The Moore House

Think of all the scary stories you've read about demonic possession
Remember all the horrible scenes you have seen in horror movies

This will be worse






Deep within Tony's dense imagination:


The Seeds Of Nightmares did not bring the reader into the story,
it brought the story into reality for the reader.


&

This link is what I had to say on one of his many short stories, one
that is part of a three-part series The Terror Project, titled Steel


Go ahead, pick a story, any story
you'll be glad you did

 Triplicity: The Terror Project Vol. 1 by Stacey Longo / Tony Tremblay / Rob Smales ~ 2016

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And for a beautiful cause folks, you'll find his short story Blue Stars appearing in Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep, a charity anthology benefiting the Jimmy Fund / Dana-Farber Cancer Institute



Speaking of Blue Stars




Tony's short-story Fake News appears in The Dystopian States of America, a charity anthology benefitting the ACLU Foundation


Wanna be intrigued?

Folks, do enjoy ~

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