October is just about over, but we won't let that stop us from talking about some horror novels, right?
Good. This won't take long. I can tell that you want to get back to eating candy corn (still can't figure out if they're gross or not) and drinking pumpkin and werewolf flavored coffee (or whatever it is you weird people do).
16 horror books read in October. Let us begin.
1: MY LIFE IN HORROR Vol 1, Kit Power. Non-fiction book about Power's horror addiction. Grade: B
2: PORK PIE HAT, Peter Straub. Wow. Grade: A
3: EXQUISITE CORPSE, Poppy Z Brite. Finally got around to this one. Gross and awesome. Grade: B
4: CLOWN IN A CORNFIELD, Adam Cesare. My fave from Adam so far. Grade: B
5: ALLISON, Jeff Strand. Consistent quality from this guy. Grade: B
6: THE HALF-FREAKS, Nicole Cushing. Not my fave from her (MR. SUICIDE), but still very good. Grade: B
7: COYOTE RAGE, Owl Goingback. Unique story, with a fully fleshed out myth aspect. Grade: B
8: THE BEAST THAT WAS MAX, Gerard Houarner. Was told this is an extreme horror masterpiece. Nope. Grade: D
9: BASKETFULL OF HEADS, Joe Hill (graphic novel). Really fun story about...heads in a basket. Grade: B
10: GHOSTLAND, Duncan Ralston. Vastly different from WOOM, but not as effective. Grade: C
11: WHAT GOOD GIRLS DO, Jonathan Butcher. Disturbing stuff here; you were warned! Grade: B
12: WYLDING HALL, Elizabeth Hand. Session 9 + music documentary. Brilliant stuff. Grade: B
13: SUMIKOWA: THE HAUNTING OF HIGANBANA HEIGHTS (collection), Tara Devlin. mixed quality. Grade: C
14: SHADOWCATS (collection), Anna Taborska. Very good collection of cat horror stories. Grade: B
15: KISS OF THE VAMPIRE, Nancy Baker. Not interested. Grade: D
16: DARK HARVEST, Norman Partridge. I've been saving this for years. Can't get more Halloween than this. Grade: B
WORST OF THE MONTH:
KISS OF THE VAMPIRE, by Nancy Baker
I don't remember how this book got onto my reading list, but if you're the one that recommended it, consider yourself fired. Not one of these characters interested me. No intrigue = slow page turns. Skip it.
BEST OF THE MONTH:
PORK PIE HAT, by Peter Straub
Although there were lots of great reads this month, this was the clear winner. Straub simply outclassed all of the other writers here (as he is prone to do). This was a perfect October read, especially the trick-or-treating sequence. If you've read the book, you'll know what I'm talking about. This story has everything that we like: a tightly paced mystery, creepy feel, charismatic characters, and heart. I'm kind of embarrassed that it took me this long to read it. Thanks for the rescue Mark!
Reviews by Jason Cavallaro
jcavallaro42@gmail.com
Twitter: @pinheadspawn
Good. This won't take long. I can tell that you want to get back to eating candy corn (still can't figure out if they're gross or not) and drinking pumpkin and werewolf flavored coffee (or whatever it is you weird people do). 16 horror books read in October. Let us begin.
1: MY LIFE IN HORROR Vol 1, Kit Power. Non-fiction book about Power's horror addiction. Grade: B
2: PORK PIE HAT, Peter Straub. Wow. Grade: A
3: EXQUISITE CORPSE, Poppy Z Brite. Finally got around to this one. Gross and awesome. Grade: B
4: CLOWN IN A CORNFIELD, Adam Cesare. My fave from Adam so far. Grade: B
5: ALLISON, Jeff Strand. Consistent quality from this guy. Grade: B
6: THE HALF-FREAKS, Nicole Cushing. Not my fave from her (MR. SUICIDE), but still very good. Grade: B
7: COYOTE RAGE, Owl Goingback. Unique story, with a fully fleshed out myth aspect. Grade: B
8: THE BEAST THAT WAS MAX, Gerard Houarner. Was told this is an extreme horror masterpiece. Nope. Grade: D
9: BASKETFULL OF HEADS, Joe Hill (graphic novel). Really fun story about...heads in a basket. Grade: B
10: GHOSTLAND, Duncan Ralston. Vastly different from WOOM, but not as effective. Grade: C
11: WHAT GOOD GIRLS DO, Jonathan Butcher. Disturbing stuff here; you were warned! Grade: B
12: WYLDING HALL, Elizabeth Hand. Session 9 + music documentary. Brilliant stuff. Grade: B
13: SUMIKOWA: THE HAUNTING OF HIGANBANA HEIGHTS (collection), Tara Devlin. mixed quality. Grade: C
14: SHADOWCATS (collection), Anna Taborska. Very good collection of cat horror stories. Grade: B
15: KISS OF THE VAMPIRE, Nancy Baker. Not interested. Grade: D
16: DARK HARVEST, Norman Partridge. I've been saving this for years. Can't get more Halloween than this. Grade: B
WORST OF THE MONTH: KISS OF THE VAMPIRE, by Nancy Baker
I don't remember how this book got onto my reading list, but if you're the one that recommended it, consider yourself fired. Not one of these characters interested me. No intrigue = slow page turns. Skip it.
BEST OF THE MONTH:
PORK PIE HAT, by Peter Straub
Although there were lots of great reads this month, this was the clear winner. Straub simply outclassed all of the other writers here (as he is prone to do). This was a perfect October read, especially the trick-or-treating sequence. If you've read the book, you'll know what I'm talking about. This story has everything that we like: a tightly paced mystery, creepy feel, charismatic characters, and heart. I'm kind of embarrassed that it took me this long to read it. Thanks for the rescue Mark!
Reviews by Jason Cavallaro
jcavallaro42@gmail.com
Twitter: @pinheadspawn
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