This obscure short story stays with the reader long after the final word, the rolling images of the sweeping countryside and the haunting unknown leaving lasting impressions from an undoubtedly skilled writer. However much I tried to erase those feelings of nervousness and remove myself from the claustrophobic yet expansive setting, I failed. Moore had
I first discovered the tremendous voice that is Nick Holdstock when I reviewed Unthology 11 (review here) and his story ‘Half‘ – which came kicking and screaming into my world. So, I was delighted to hear that he had a collection coming out from Unthank and was overjoyed when it arrived in the post for
There’s a spider in the bathroom, I tell him. It’s six feet tall, I say. I wake him up and tell him to save me. I pee a few times a night and can’t imagine slipping into the cold bathroom alone, facing this spider head-on. It’s frigid here in Siberia. Outside, nothing can live for
This book quite literally blew me away, knocked the wind out of my lungs and had me crawling amongst my tattered dreams of wanting to be a writer – because, you see, Bryan Washington is the writer I want to be. Washington delivers a beguiling collection of intimate portraits of the lost and silenced voices
A nightmarish vision and exploration into the desolation of grief! Cull is a writer I first discovered when reading a review over at Kendall Reviews (the UK’s number one Horror site) – the book was Bones and the author was Cull. Based on that review it was a book I had to get and review
Table Manners is an insatiably wrought collection of unflinching short stories from a writer who is telling the world how it is, and is unapologetic in her approach. It’s fierce writing, whilst also being poignant, but the overall feeling that I get from Bhattacharya is that she is fearless in her writing, and this is
The kinds of things he says about his wife. The way he describes her smile. “Actually, you know who she reminds me of the most?” ”Nope, who,” I say. “She reminds me of Margaret Thatcher, the Meryl Streep version,” he says. He laughs. I laugh. We laugh and sometimes I cry. He holds me and
It must be difficult to write a short story, especially if you’re used to writing big blockbusters, such as these renowned authors: Jeffery Deaver, Val McDermid and Lee Child to name a few. Keeping the plot tight, but still trying to offer the reader the suspense and thrill of a longer form but tightly woven
The Case of the Giant Carnivorous Worm (CGCW hereafter) is that rare breed of thing in the horror genre: an action comedy that is actually funny. While this is indeed more common in horror movies it is less frequently seen in the written word. Thomas E. Staples in his debut horror novel manages to pull
Ambitious businesswoman Mae Yu runs Golden Oaks – a luxury retreat transforming the fertility industry. There, women get the very best of everything: organic meals, fitness trainers, daily massages and big money. Provided they dedicate themselves to producing the perfect baby. For someone else. Jane is a young immigrant in search of a better future.
