Category Archives: Horror

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A Manhattan Ghost Story

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A Manhattan Ghost Story by T.M. Wright

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I remember the first time I read this many years ago and it had a totally different impact on me then. It actually kind of scared me and had more of a feeling of menace and darkness. This time around I was actually kind of bored by it. I was in my late teens or early twenties when I read it originally and maybe I was more easily taken with books, though I liked a lot of horrors then and still do now. The story is kind of dry with hints of emotion here and there to keep you reading. The narrator, Dick Hill, does an alright job but I never really felt like the story took off.

Abner W. Kray has gone to Manhattan to do a big coffee table book of the city. He is staying at the home of Art DeGraf, a friend of his from Maine who moved to the city years before. Art married into his family but was divorced from her and still wants to be friends with Abner. When Abner arrives he meets Phyllis Pellaprat who claims to be Art’s girlfriend but then starts to come on to him. As things progress he finds himself in a world parallel to ours where the things that go bump in the night reside.

Decent but not for everyone.



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Flight 906 to Chicago

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A really good look at the first day of the outbreak from a civilian viewpoint. The characters are all three dimensional and have the feeling of reality to them. The story starts a little slowly but quickly picks up and brings you into the action of what is about to be a very bad day for the world.

Henry and Charlie, father and son, go on what should be a routine favor to pick up Henry’s younger brother Lewis from the airport. While on the way they find themselves in the traffic jam from hell and end up running late. They believe there must be some type of accident up ahead until they see SWAT making its way up the shoulder and realize something much more serious is going on.

As they follow behind the SWAT vehicles all Henry can think about is getting to his brother and getting away before any of them are hurt in the chaos. Henry, Charlie, and Lewis witness something that none of them can understand but know that it is deadly.

I found this to be a really nice look into the early days of the infection. I am not so sure about the rapidity of the infection but this was definitely entertaining. I have never read anything by this author and it makes me want to read something by him. I would recommend this to anyone who likes the Extinction Cycle books or just this author in general.

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

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Extinction Trippin’

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This was a really nice side trip in the Extinction Cycle. I love the books by Mark Tufo and have read most of them because I am enamored of Michael Talbot. By the same token I am totally into Nicholas Sansbury Smith and his great books, also with a character who makes me wish he were real. Sometimes you can have someone do a mash up and it falls flat but that is so not the case here. You get a good taste of both worlds as they collide in just the right way.

Mike and his family and friends are staying in Maine with brother Ron and the rest of his siblings. They have finally found a little peace from the dead at last though they stay vigilant at all times. Mike’s mother-in-law is very sick and even though she is taking medicine he thinks they need a nebulizer to help her recover. B.T. (Big Tiny) says that he will go but it turns into a field trip for those who want to stretch their legs.

John the Tripper decides to make the trip and this stoner has some type weird stuff happen when he is around. While driving to the hospital Mike, B.T., and Mrs. Deneaux find themselves in Atlanta being told by Trip that they must help a world on the verge of extinction even though they have fought for their own.

While you never actually interact with the characters from the this world if you have read the books then you know exactly what was happening during that time. You get to see the reaction of someone new to the variants which is almost comical. If you have read either of these authors then you should read this for sure. The best of both worlds!

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

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Billy: A Tale of Terror

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The first thing I need to say is that I was drawn to the story by the blurb which promised something that it did not fully deliver on. I was expecting some real horror here but got luke warm horror and a bit character study, not to say that I did not enjoy any of it. The characters are never fully realized and they play out as shadows that you have to fill in the blanks for in order to understand them. None have a fully formed personality which makes it hard to really care about them one way or the other. The backstories for the majority of the characters are vague and do not give enough information to know their motivations. To top everything off things seem to jump around in a way that makes it all very unsettling.

A curse is brought to the home of the St. Pierre family for the transgressions of the patriarch. His daughter has a baby that is less human and more animal than anyone could have expected. The baby is unwanted and unwelcome especially when it takes a beloved member of the family. As Billy grows he is tormented by his siblings and father as they attempt to get rid of him. While they do their worse to him, they are sure that he will one day come for them if they do nothing. Billy becomes a legend in the deep Bayou country.

I basically enjoyed the story even though it was not as linear as I would have liked it to be. It did jump around a great deal leaving you somewhat confused about time. Still, it was worth a read and kept me going if for no other reason than that I wanted to know how things were going to end. Sorry to say the ending was not really very satisfying at all. I would still recommend it with the caveat not to expect any terror.

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

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They Thirst

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I remember reading this for the first time and finding myself totally involved in the story. It was a vampire story that I could understand with people who did predictable and sometimes stupid things but the human thing to do. The vampires that are created are in a lot of instances the worst kind of people who can be found to begin. I like that time is taken to develop each of the main characters and it even gives a nice accounting for the side characters. This was even better for me because I lived/live in Los Angeles, though the earlier reading had me not knowing some of the areas mentioned because I had a limited knowledge of the city.

Andy Palatazin was a boy in Krajeck Hungary when the nightmare began for him and his mother. They fled into the night and snow to save their lives and found themselves in California where he grew to manhood. Andy has become a Captain with the Los Angeles police and is hunting a serial killer when things start to become familiar. Andy sees the same signs that befell his old village before it fell to the dark forces.

Prince Conrad Vulkan has come to Los Angeles to create an army of vampires in his quest to destroy the human race and become the ultimate ruler. His death in 1342 was only the beginning for this child of privilege who has visions of grandeur running through his head.

How do you save people who will not believe in the boogie man?

While I still enjoyed the story because it still packs a bit of a punch, I found myself wanting it to move a little faster. I never noticed until now that it seems to drag as we get toward the end, like he did not want to stop writing. But no matter I still recommend this because it is one of the good vampire novels that does not have any sparkling, sexy, love starved vampires. This is dark and evil from the old school way. This is also the audio version which is well done.

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

“We?” Vulkan shook free of the Headmaster’s grip. “We? Didn’t you hear them shouting? Whose name did they call? Mine! Prince Conrad Vulkan, King of the Vampires! They call me Master. They recognize me as the highest power!” “I have given you and your kind life. I have taught you the secrets of power, the sorcery of Aba-aner, Nectanebus, and Solomon. I have taught you what it means to be a king. But you’re not invincible, Conrad.…”

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No One Must Know

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I rarely give a 1 (one) star rating because there is usually some redeeming feature I can find in the work I have read. This was not one of those times. The pacing was slow and plodding, the character development was pretty much non existent, no idea about the setting because it was never really addressed, and I am guessing at the genre. While reading the flow was interrupted on may occasions by the fact that words misused, wrong word, bad spelling, or just missing words. I cannot even adequately describe the plot so a read of the blurb is in order for anyone who wishes to read this.

While I did not find it to my liking it does not mean that someone else will not find it good for them. So, if you want to take a go it could work. I would disregard a review which calls it pornographic since there are only a few mentions of sex but no actual instances.

My rating: 1 of 5 stars

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The Scattered and the Dead Book 1

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The Scattered and the Dead Book 1
(The Scattered and the Dead #1)
by Tim McBain ,
L.T. Vargus

While I liked the idea behind this I never could get into the characters or their stories. I had to set it aside because it just was not doing anything for me. Biggest problem is that it was running with a lot of chapters for a little information and after reading 22% I only had seen one zombie for less than 10 minutes.

I will try to give it a go again near the end of the year.

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

All of the people gone and forgotten and scattered about, in a way he found them. He collected them and cared for them. That was his life. Collecting the scattered and the dead.

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The Scattered and the Dead Book 0.5

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The Scattered and the Dead Book 0.5
(The Scattered and the Dead #0.5)
by Tim McBain ,
L.T. Vargus

I liked this but was not blown away by it at all. The way it was set up was kind of interesting but made me think more of a stream of conscious type of thing. It was supposedly a letter being written that kind of gets out of hand. The character, and we really only meet one is never really well defined at all. You get information about him and all but you never really get to know him if you know what I mean. I guess what I am saying is that I never really cared about him much one way or the other except as a way to move the story forward. The biggest thing that lowered my rating was the fact that it incorporates one of my pet peeves, and that is having a large number of chapters (72) in a relatively short form (162 pg).

Decker is about to lose his mother and only real link with the outside world. His life has become shopping to prepare for the plague, being online and television. Never much for socializing he has become more of a homebody since the start of the crisis. There is a bright spot, the girl down the hall who he wants to speak to but can’t find the courage. What he decides to do is write to her and introduce himself in a way, but like most shy men he gets side tracked.

This gives you a glimpse into the world as it falls and one of the survivors. No real action. This is more of a character study. I will be reading more so I guess that says a lot right there. I see it getting more interesting. Try it!

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

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My November Halloween

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My November Halloween

by John Joseph

This was a story that I could not find my way into. Maybe it was because I could not sympathize with the character or maybe its because he simply did not interest me. This was not so much a book for me as it was an essay on the characters feelings. There was no true interaction between the reader and the narrator for me. It took me five days to read a story that should have taken me no more than two hours at most to read.

While I did not find this story particularly interesting or moving it does not mean that someone else will not. It really was not what I was expecting.

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

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Paradise 10k

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Paradise 10K

by Shane Gregory

This was a really good story that gave a good look into the world that they were living in. The characters while sketched lightly still had enough depth to make you smile or feel bad when something happened. I really just liked the idea of a run being used to thin the herd as it were inside the safe zone they have created. I haven’t ever read anything by this author but I would like to read something longer next time so I can get a better feel for him.

Theo has signed up to run in the Paradise 10k in the hopes that he can be one of those to make it to the island and a life of safety and leisure. The only thing that makes him different from the other 399 participants is that he has only one leg and does not want to deal with anyone. There is also something that he is hiding.

This is worth a Halloween read.

My rating: 4 of 5 stars