30-Day Horror Movie Challenge: The horror film you most relate to...The Witch

I thought this would be a fun challenge to participate in. According to the rules (see below), you don't have to participate every day. That's good because I'm going to have to skip the first prompt. There really is no "horror film no one would expect you to love but you do" since I pretty much love all of them. lol So, I'm starting today with the second prompt "The horror film you most relate to." I've included all the details below in case you want to join in. Thanks to Leah at Unleash the Flying Monkeys! for hosting this fun challenge (originally created by Dollar Bin Horror in 2011).

Here’s how to join the 30-Day Horror Movie Challenge:
You can start on whatever day you like.

(1) Make your picks and share it on your blog or site;

(2) Or, just leave a comment on the individual blog posts (linked above).

Here are the rules:
Simply pick your favorite horror film for each day based on that day’s theme. But there’s a catch: you can’t pick the same horror film more than once. So, if you pick SCREAM (1996) for your favorite slasher film, you can’t use it again for any other day including favorite horror film.

Collected below are the 30 prompts for the 2019 challenge:
Day 01 – A horror film no one would expect you to love but you do
Day 02 – The horror film you most relate to
Day 03 – Your favorite slasher film
Day 04 – Your favorite werewolf film
Day 05 – Your favorite monster movie
Day 06 – Your favorite vampire movie
Day 07 – Your favorite supernatural horror film
Day 08 – Your favorite anthology
Day 09 – Your favorite exploitation / grindhouse type film
Day 10 – Your favorite psychological horror film
Day 11 – Your favorite science fiction horror film
Day 12 – Your favorite horror film involving the occult
Day 13 – Your favorite horror comedy
Day 14 – Your favorite zombie film
Day 15 – Your favorite horror film involving serial killers
Day 16 – Your favorite childhood themed horror film
Day 17 – Your favorite horror film remake
Day 18 – Your favorite foreign horror film (outside of your country of origin)
Day 19 – Your favorite horror film involving the powers of Hell or Satanism
Day 20 – Your favorite horror film involving a killer animal
Day 21 – Your favorite medical horror film
Day 22 – Your favorite horror-themed TV show
Day 23 – Your favorite made-for-TV horror film
Day 24 – A horror film in which you prefer the edited version over the director’s cut
Day 25 – A horror film you used to hate but now like
Day 26 – Your favorite horror film to watch as a child
Day 27 – Your favorite guilty pleasure
Day 28 – Your favorite horror film no one’s ever heard of
Day 29 – Your least favorite horror film of all time
Day 30 – Your favorite horror film of all time

Tagline: Evil takes many forms

Synopsis: In 1630 New England, panic and despair envelops a farmer, his wife and their children when youngest son Samuel suddenly vanishes. The family blames Thomasin, the oldest daughter who was watching the boy at the time of his disappearance. With suspicion and paranoia mounting, twin siblings Mercy and Jonas suspect Thomasin of witchcraft, testing the clan's faith, loyalty and love to one another. (Google)

The horror film you most relate to...The Witch

The reason I relate to this one? Because religious persecution and hysteria, as occurred in the Salem Witch Trials, and other similar events across Europe during the witch craze, are things I think about quite frequently. What made this film scary was how the family's deep-seated religious beliefs basically tore the family apart, and led to tragedy after tragedy. Was there really witchcraft in The Witch? Well, yes, though we really don't see much of, or about the witches. What was far more frightening was how readily a mother would turn on her own daughter and accuse her of being a witch. Also, how easily a family who falls on hard times was much more likely to blame witchcraft and superstition for their hardship, rather than taking a good hard look at what led them to the hardship in the first place. 

Which horror film do you most relate to?

Die Dog or Eat the Hatchet by #AdamHowe - Review

My thoughts
Die Dog or Eat the Hatchet is a book of three horror novellas that really takes you on a ride...and what a wild ride it is!

Damn Dirty Apes is a little yarn about a washed up boxer turned bouncer, who reluctantly joins the hunt for a skunk ape, a local legend (sort of like Bigfoot, but much more stinky, apparently). This one was pretty funny and suspenseful at the same time. I could totally see it as a movie on the SyFy Channel. Yeah, I have a thing for those movies. What can I say...

In Die Dog or Eat the Hatchet, we get a bit of The Deliberate Stranger mixed in with The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, or maybe Wrong Turn. I haven't decided yet. Just when you think Ted Bundy emulator, Terrence Hingle is the worst ever, here come the Ritter brothers. Who is worse? Well, you'll have to read to find out. Let me just say that if you like the afore mentioned movies, then this is the story for you.

Gator Bait is the final novella and what a finale. Hammond has a thing for the ladies, but after his latest encounter with the husband, he is sworn off dames until...would that he had listened to himself. Finding himself working for a backwoods mafioso with a giant gator for muscle, he soon finds himself ignoring his own advice about messing with dames. His boss has a looker of a wife, and she's a damsel in distress. Men. Try thinking with the right head. Might not be a bad idea.

This trio of novellas is damn good pulp fiction/horror. The stories are quite graphic and twisted, but any lover of horror worth their salt will recognize the brilliance in this book. Damn fine writing too.

About the book
Publication Date: Nov. 2, 2015
Publisher: Comet Press
Publication Length: 250 pages

From Adam Howe, winner of Stephen King’s “On Writing” short story contest, comes three original novellas of hardboiled crime, graphic horror and pitch-black gallows humor.

DAMN DIRTY APES

Washed-up prizefighter Reggie Levine is eking a living as a strip club bouncer when he’s offered an unlikely shot at redemption. The Bigelow Skunk Ape – a mythical creature said to haunt the local woods – has kidnapped the high school football mascot, Boogaloo Baboon. Now it’s up to Reggie to lead a misfit posse including a plucky stripper, the town drunk, and legend-in-his-own-mind skunk ape hunter Jameson T. Salisbury. Their mission: Slay the beast and rescue their friend. But not everything is as it seems, and as our heroes venture deeper into the heart of darkness, they will discover worse things waiting in the woods than just the Bigelow Skunk Ape. The story the Society for the Preservation of the North American Skunk Ape tried to ban; Damn Dirty Apes mixes Roadhouse with Jaws with Sons of Anarchy, to create a rollicking romp of 80s-style action/adventure, creature horror and pitch-black comedy.

DIE DOG OR EAT THE HATCHET

Escaped mental patient Terrence Hingle, the butcher of five sorority sisters at the Kappa Pi Massacre, kidnaps timid diner waitress Tilly Mulvehill and bolts for the border. Forcing his hostage to drive him out of town, it’s just a question of time before Tilly becomes the next victim in Hingle’s latest killing spree. But when they stop for gas at a rural filling station operated by deranged twin brothers, Dwayne and Dwight Ritter, the tables are turned on Hingle, and for Tilly the night becomes a hellish cat-and-mouse ordeal of terror and depravity. The meat in a maniac sandwich, Tilly is forced against her nature to make a stand and fight for survival. Because sometimes the only choice you have is to do or die…to Die Dog Or Eat The Hatchet.

GATOR BAIT

Prohibition-era 1930s… After an affair with the wrong man’s wife, seedy piano player Smitty Three Fingers flees the city and finds himself tinkling the ivories at a Louisiana honky-tonk owned by vicious bootlegger Horace Croker and his trophy wife, Grace. Folks come to The Grinnin’ Gator for the liquor and burlesque girls, but they keep coming back for Big George, the giant alligator Croker keeps in the pond out back. Croker is rumored to have fed ex-wives and enemies to his pet, so when Smitty and Grace embark on a torrid affair…what could possibly go wrong? Inspired by true events, Gator Bait mixes hardboiled crime (James M. Cain’s The Postman Always Rings Twice) with creature horror (Tobe Hooper’s Eaten Alive) to create a riveting tale of suspense.

Listen to this sample reading from the book over at YouTube from the folks at Manor House:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6cKt_Y9CwO4

About the author

Adam Howe writes the twisted fiction your mother warned you about. A British writer of fiction and screenplays, he lives in Greater London with his partner and their hellhound, Gino. Writing as Garrett Addams, his short story Jumper was chosen by Stephen King as the winner of the On Writing contest, and published in the paperback/Kindle editions of SK’s book; he was also granted an audience with The King, where they mostly discussed slow vs. fast zombies. His fiction has appeared in Nightmare Magazine, Thuglit, The Horror Library, Mythic Delirium, Plan B Magazine, and One Buck Horror. He is the author of two collections, Black Cat Mojo and Die Dog or Eat the Hatchet, plus the eBook single, Gator Bait. Future works include Tijuana Donkey Showdown, One Tough Bastard, and a crime/horror collaboration with Adam Tribesmen Cesare.

Find him on Twitter at @Adam_G_Howe.

Praise for Die Dog or Eat the Hatchet
"It's an explicit, hard-hitting, twisted funhouse ride into pulpish horror wrapped loosely in a tattered skein of irreverent, jet black humor. In short, it's a freakin' blast." --Walt Hicks, author of Dirge of the Forgotten

“With Die Dog Or Eat the Hatchet, Adam Howe hasn’t written one of my favorite books of the year, he’s actually written three of my favorites. Stories that are tight, toned, and genre-confounding. Horror fans and crime fans are going to come to blows over who gets to claim Howe as one of their own, but they’re both going to be wrong because Howe’s his own thing.” – Adam Cesare, author of Tribesmen and Mercy House

“The recipe for Adam Howe’s DIE DOG OR EAT THE HATCHET is: Two parts Joe Lansdale, One part Justified, and a heavy dose of WTF. The result is a swampy cocktail darker than any backwoods hayride, stronger than the meanest Sasquatch, and crazier than anything you’ll find chicken-fried at your local state fair.”—Eryk Pruitt, author of Hashtag and Dirtbags

"Adam Howe proves with the three stories in this book that he can basically write anything. And write it very well indeed. To summarise: A three novella collection that you absolutely must have in your collection. I give this one the highest possible recommendation that I can." -Nev, Confessions of a Reviewer

"Adam Howe’s “Die Dog or Eat the Hatchet,” is equal parts terror and fun, his dark comedic voice dances through each of the works in this collection to create engaging stories filled with bars, dames, rabid dogs, and an ape with one hell of a right hook."(Nathan Crazybear/Splatterpunk Zine)

"Once again this author has sucked me into the darkness of his stories and unleashed the twisted, disgusting and stomach churning madness that I come to expect. In fact, I would have been very disappointed if this book was not even more mind-blowing than Black Cat Mojo. And he did not disappoint. Hats off to Mr Howe for creating this magnificent novella of pure horror. I would definitely recommend this to readers of horror and make sure you buckle up as you will be in for the most twisted ride of your life!" -Crime Book Junkie

"I'm pretty certain that whatever genre you like to read, be it pulp, noir, horror, anything really, you will find something to enjoy here. It's fast paced, action packed and brilliantly written. Comet Press has got a diamond on their hands! 5 stars" -Adrian Shotbolt

Buy the book

Amazon

Amazon UK

Barnes and Noble

Want to Feature Adam Howe?
If you would like a copy of the book for review or to conduct an interview with Adam Howe, please contact Erin Al-Mehairi, Publicist, at Hook of a Book Media: hookofabook@hotmail.com. 

Jonathan Janz's Wolf Land - Review and {Giveaway} #WolfLand

My thoughts
Boy oh boy, what a werewolf novel! We're not given long until we're served up a truly scary massacre by one monstrous werewolf. At that point, that's it...you can't put it down (or stop thinking about it when you must put it down). I keep asking myself, "Is this really my first Janz read? What the hell have I been waiting for!?"

Let me tell you though. He doesn't just do gore. Oh no. There is some serious character development here. So much so that you're either rooting for the good guy, or seriously hating on the bad guy. Also, he writes werewolves the way I think they would/should be. More like a man-wolf beast rather than a wolf in the traditional sense, a la Twilight or True Blood. But it's not just the look. The charisma and self assurance that I also feel would accompany a werewolf's physique is also here. We're treated to downtrodden characters with low self esteem suddenly becoming confident and enigmatic. Never mind that they're also becoming monsters. Good stuff!

Janz has written a good many horror novels that I will be scooting closer to the top of my to-be-read stack (or the queue in my Kindle). This novel, Wolf Land, is not only a true masterpiece of werewolf horror. It is also just a damn good novel. I can't help but think of Stephen King. You get the scares, but you also get great writing. This book definitely fills the bill. Read this one...now!

About the book
“A 10-year high school reunion is the catalyst for lots of furry, toothy scares in this gruesome yet entertaining gorefest.” –Publishers Weekly on Wolf Land

An unholy predator on the prowl!
The small town of Lakeview offers little excitement for Duane, Savannah, and their friends. They’re about to endure their ten-year high school reunion when their lives are shattered by the arrival of an ancient, vengeful evil.

The werewolf.

The first attack leaves seven dead and four wounded. And though the beast remains on the loose and eager to spill more blood, the sleepy town is about to face an even greater terror. Because the four victims of the werewolf’s fury are changing. They’re experiencing unholy desires and unimaginable cravings. They’ll prey on the innocent. They’ll act on their basest desires. Soon, they’ll plunge the entire town into a nightmare. Lakeview is about to become Wolf Land.

Praise for Wolf Land and Janz
"One of the best writers in modern horror to come along in the last decade. Janz is one of my new favorites." –Brian Keene, best-selling author

“It’s the best of its kind I’ve read in years, such that I’d call it “The Quintessential Haunted House Novel.” You’ve taken the old school traditions of the form which readers want and then have injected modern style, characters, and macabre, hard-edged mayhem into the guts of the story. THAT’S the way to do it, my friend!”-Author Edward Lee on HOUSE OF SKIN

“Jonathan Janz is one of the rare horror novelists who can touch your heart while chilling your spine. His work offers incisive characters, sharp dialogue, and more scares than a deserted graveyard after midnight. If you haven’t read his fiction, you’re missing out on one the best new voices in the genre.” –Tim Waggoner Reminiscent of Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House and Peter Straub’s Ghost Story, this should please readers who appreciate a good haunting.”
—The Library Journal

“Jonathan Janz is one of the rare horror novelists who can touch your heart while chilling your spine. His work offers incisive characters, sharp dialogue, and more scares than a deserted graveyard after midnight. If you haven’t read his fiction, you’re missing out on one the best new voices in the genre.”
–Tim Waggoner, author

“A 10-year high school reunion is the catalyst for lots of furry, toothy scares in this gruesome yet entertaining gorefest.” –Publishers Weekly

"Probably the best werewolf novel I've read in a decade."- Pete Kahle, author of The Specimen

"If you like werewolves, you will think you have died and gone to heaven. Highly recommended." -Confessions of a Reviewer

"This fast-paced read was a frenzy of carnality in epic proportions. Visceral and surreal, Janz has outdone himself with this newest title."
-Nikki, Horror After Dark

"For years now, the werewolf has been hijacked by the shifter romance genre. Well, Jonathan Janz has claimed a bloody morsel back for the horror genre!"
-2 Book Lovers Reviews

"Janz is the literary love child of Richard Laymon and Jack Ketchum (with a little Joe Lansdale DNA in the mix), with all the terror that implies. Try him out. You won't be disappointed." -Pod of Horror

“Jonathan Janz has created a realistic world and peopled it with characters that could be people you know then introduces a whole new werewolf legend to rip them to shreds. I highly recommend this relentlessly fast paced story. A hair raising 5 star read.” –Horror Maiden Book Reviews

Buy the book

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Samhain

About the author
Jonathan Janz grew up between a dark forest and a graveyard, and in a way, that explains everything. Brian Keene named his debut novel The Sorrows "the best horror novel of 2012." The Library Journal deemed his follow-up, House of Skin, "reminiscent of Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House and Peter Straub's Ghost Story."

2013 saw the publication of his novel of vampirism and demonic possession The Darkest Lullaby, as well as his serialized horror novel Savage Species. Of Savage Species, Publishers Weekly said, "Fans of old-school splatterpunk horror--Janz cites Richard Laymon as an influence, and it shows--will find much to relish." Jonathan's Kindle Worlds novel Bloodshot: Kingdom of Shadows marked his first foray into the superhero/action genre.

Jack Ketchum called his vampire western Dust Devils a "Rousing-good weird western," and his sequel to The Sorrows (Castle of Sorrows) was selected one of 2014's top three novels by Pod of Horror. 2015 saw the release of The Nightmare Girl, which prompted Pod of Horror to call Jonathan "Horror's Next Big Thing." His newest release is Wolf Land, which Publishers Weekly called “gruesome yet entertaining gorefest” with “an impressive and bloody climax.” He has also written four novellas (Exorcist Road, The Clearing of Travis Coble, Old Order, and Witching Hour Theatre) and several short stories.

His primary interests are his wonderful wife and his three amazing children, and though he realizes that every author's wife and children are wonderful and amazing, in this case the cliché happens to be true. You can learn more about Jonathan at www.jonathanjanz.com. You can also find him on Facebook, via @jonathanjanz on Twitter, or on his Goodreads and Amazon author pages.

Giveaway

Enter to win ONE (1) print copy signed by Jonathan Janz of WOLF LAND! Click the link to enter. There are several things you can do to get multiple entries each day. Forward any questions to Erin Al-Mehairi, publicist, at hookofabook@hotmail.com.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Brian Kirk We Are Monsters - Author Interview and {Giveaway}

CM: First of all, I would like to thank Brian for joining me today and taking the time for this interview.

Well that sure is nice. I’m happy to chat with you and appreciate the time you’re taking for this as well. Look at us! We’re on our way to becoming proper chums. 

CM: Your new novel, We Are Monsters, came out in July to wide praise. Congrats! Can you tell us a little about it?

Yes, and thank you. We Are Monsters is my debut novel, literally making it a dream come true. Although all books are basically dreams that have come true when you really think about it. I mean, isn’t a book basically the end result of someone extracting the contents of some subconscious dream-state into the material realm. But that’s off topic, and perhaps too esoteric for this early on in the interview. My apologies.

We Are Monsters is a story about a brilliant, yet troubled psychiatrist named Alex Drexler who is working to create a cure for schizophrenia. At first, the drug he creates shows great promise in alleviating his patient’s symptoms. It appears to return schizophrenics to their former selves. But (as you may imagine) something goes wrong. Unforeseen side effects begin to emerge, forcing prior traumas to the surface, setting inner demons free. His medicine may help heal the schizophrenic mind, but it also expands it, and the monsters it releases could be more dangerous than the disease.

I am overwhelmed by the reception it has received so far from readers, professional critics, and some of my favorite authors who have been kind enough to endorse it, including Mercedes M. Yardley, John F.D. Taff, Jonathan Moore, and Brian Keene. 

CM: Was there an inspiration behind the writing of We Are Monsters? 

I’ve always been fascinated by mental illness. The idea that our own brains can turn against us is terrifying. It’s the ultimate enemy; it knows our deepest secrets and it’s something we can’t escape. 

I also have a great deal of sympathy for people who suffer mental heath disorders. I’ve dealt with OCD all of my life, which produces chronic anxiety, negative thought loops, and periods of depression. No fun, I’ll tell you. And I feel that mental disease is misunderstood by our society at large. In fact, many people who are mentally ill are often labeled as evil or deranged, which I feel is unfair, and precludes us from exploring proper treatment options. 

I suppose I found the subject both fascinating and deeply personal, and I wanted to explore it further, so I wrote about it. 

CM: This is your debut novel, but I also read in your bio that you are a freelance writer. Was breaking into writing fiction difficult for you? 

I grew up a voracious reader with a love for telling stories. But then I went to college and figured it was time to put aside this frivolous pastime and get serious about pursuing a “career.” I studied marketing and took a job at an ad agency, which was the most creative line of work I could find that paid real money. But it wasn’t fulfilling. I was miserable. I still had this intense desire to tell stories that wouldn’t go away. 

So I started writing short stories in the evenings and on the weekends, and then I began submitting them for publication. After accruing a massive stack of rejections for a couple of years, I finally sold one. Then another. After a while I decided to quit my full time job at the ad agency to work freelance and write a book. That’s how We Are Monsters came about.

CM: Do you have aspirations to write in other genres besides horror?

I aspire to tell stories that are entertaining, meaningful, and emotionally engaging. For some reason these stories typically have dark underpinnings, and most likely always will to varying degrees. I don’t really think in terms of genre, however, until it comes time to find a market for the story. 

I’m currently working on a trilogy of dark sci-fi thrillers, so I’ve already strayed outside of horror a bit. Although there are sections within each book that are certainly horrific. 

CM: Have you been inspired by any particular books or movies? What is your favorite horror novel and/or movie? 

I’m always finding inspiration through others’ work. I love to read books that are so good they intimidate me and make me feel helplessly inferior. That’s where inspiration comes from. David Mitchell is an author who does this for me on a regular basis. Cloud Atlas made me want to quit writing, then made me want to do it better. Quentin Tarantino provides the same kind of inspiration on the film side. 

Regarding my favorite horror novel, I’d say The Stand by Stephen King, with Peter Straub’s Ghost Story being a close second. 

My favorite horror movie is The Shining, with Event Horizon being a close second.

CM: What books would we find on your nightstand? Any recommendations (besides your own book, of course)? 

Right now you’d find Edge of Dark Water by Joe R. Lansdale, who is quickly becoming my favorite contemporary writer. There’s nothing he can’t do. I keep a recommended reading page on my website where I write about books that have inspired me. His novel Mucho Mojo made the list, and here’s what I had to say about Lansdale, whom I highly recommend to readers of all kinds.

There are many reasons why you should be reading Joe R. Lansdale. Here are a few:

• He writes like Ernest Hemingway, but is more fun to read. Thus, by extension, and in my humble opinion, he is a better writer than Hemingway.
• He embodies the best qualities of a writer. He’s incredibly talented, but does not rest on talent alone. Read his writing advice and you’ll soon learn he maintains his prolific pace the same way a construction worker builds tract homes. By waking up at the crack of dawn with a lunch pale and a hard hat and going to work. He doesn’t wait for inspiration to come.
• He can, and does, write anything he wants, crossing genres and making up some of his own. You like horror, westerns, sci-fi, or literary books? You’ll like Lansdale.
• He can make you laugh, make you cry, and scare the living shit out of you.
• He is constantly churning out books, and they’re all really good.

Another writer to keep an eye on is Jonathan Moore. His debut novel Redheads was a Bram Stoker Award® finalist and received the praise of Jack Ketchum. His follow-up Close Reach was one of my favorite novels of the year. And his next release The Poison Artist, which comes out in January 2016, has received advance praise from Lee Child, Justin Cronin, and the almighty Stephen King. I have it pre-ordered and can’t wait for it to arrive. 

CM: And last, but not least, what do you have in store for your readers next?

Thanks for asking. First, I have a new short story titled Picking Splinters From a Sex Slave coming out in the anthology, Gutted: Beautiful Horror Stories, alongside two of my idols: Clive Barker and Neil Gaiman. When one of the editors, Doug Murano, announced the story he said, “This is the kind of story that starts book burning parties,” which leads me to believe the story works. I’m honored to be part of this project, and can’t wait for the anthology to come out.

In addition, I am currently working on the second book in a trilogy of dark sci-fi thrillers. The first book is complete and currently in the hands of a literary agent whom I’ve recently signed with. We are putting the final touches on the book and plan to submit it to publishers early next year. 

CM: Thanks again for joining me today, Brian. I look forward to hosting you and your books in the future here at Castle Macabre.

Thank you for having me! And I look forward to being back.

In the meantime, I invite anyone interested to connect with me through one of the following channels. Don’t worry. I only kill my characters.

Brian Kirk

Twitter

Facebook

Goodreads

About We Are Monsters
Samhain Horror (July 7, 2015)

The Apocalypse has come to the Sugar Hill mental asylum.

He’s the hospital’s newest, and most notorious, patient—a paranoid schizophrenic who sees humanity’s dark side.

Luckily he’s in good hands. Dr. Eli Alpert has a talent for healing tortured souls. And his protégé is working on a cure for schizophrenia, a drug that returns patients to their former selves. But unforeseen side effects are starting to emerge. Forcing prior traumas to the surface. Setting inner demons free.

Monsters have been unleashed inside the Sugar Hill mental asylum. They don’t have fangs or claws. They look just like you or me.

About the author

Brian Kirk lives in Atlanta with his beautiful wife and rambunctious identical twin boys. He works as a freelance writer in addition to writing fiction, and is currently working on the second book in a planned trilogy. We Are Monsters is his debut release. Feel free to connect with him online. Don't worry, he only kills his characters.

See more about Brian at: http://briankirkblog.com/

Follow Brian on Facebook and Twitter. He's found on Twitter at @Brian_Kirk and looks forward to connecting with you.

Praise for We Are Monsters
“Keep an eye on Brian Kirk. His ambitious debut, We Are Monsters, is a high-voltage thrill, like watching Sam Fuller’s Shock Corridor and Joel Schumacher’s Flatliners on split screens. ” — Jonathan Moore, Bram Stoker Award nominated author of Redheads

"We Are Monsters is fantastic -- a frightening and intense thriller and one hell of a debut novel. I was blown away. Brian Kirk is exactly what readers need -- a talented new voice with original, awe-inspiring ideas that can push the genre forward."
-Brian Keene, best-selling author of Ghoul and The Rising

"Brian Kirk's debut We Are Monsters is a smart, elaborate novel that weaves together the best and worst of us. Complex, terrifying, and still humane, this book moved me to both horror and compassion, and that's a difficult thing indeed. Easily the best book I've read this year." (Mercedes M. Yardley, author of Pretty Little Dead Girls: A Novel of Murder and Whimsy.)

"A tightly woven tale from an author who has a heart, and that makes me excited to see what else Kirk has in store for us. The whole story will have you examining the human race as never before." (Ginger Nuts of Horror)

"Brian Kirk's debut novel We Are Monsters is a sure bet. A hippy-trippy jaunt that goes deep into the baser things we keep bottled up... and what happens when they're freed. Highly recommended!" (John F.D. Taff, Bram Stoker nominated author of The End In All Beginnings.)

"A disturbing, gets-under-your-skin debut novel. I expect to read much more from Kirk in the future." (Robert Ford, author of The Compound and Samson and Denial.)


"Cleverly told. Psychologically complex." (Scarlet's Web)

"A gorgeous display of conceivable terror that resonates long after reading." (Ranked as one of the Top Ten Horror Novels of 2015 by Best-Horror-Movies.net)

Buy the Book
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Samhain

Giveaway
Enter via the Rafflecopter from below to win a $25 Amazon gift card from Brian Kirk! You can perform several tasks for entering each day here or at each stop that posts the giveaway link. Best of luck! Hurry...giveaway ends in three days!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Robert E. Dunn's The Red Highway - Guest Post and {Giveaway}

Getting Better at Things

THE RED HIGHWAY is not my first novel. My first long piece was a novelization of a comic book series by the great Jack Kirby, Kamandi-The Last Boy on Earth. I think I was eleven. It was hand written and ran through a couple of full spiral bound notebooks. I remember it fondly but without the illusion that it was any good. As a matter of fact I’m glad it no longer exists. My early efforts still have the power to embarrass me completely. The thing is though, I’m just as proud of the childish notebook scribblings as I am mortified. They were a beginning. My beginning.

Writers write and that has to start someplace. I imagine that there are people who decide, out of the blue, to set down at the word processor and pump out a hundred thousand words. I imagine also, most of them are celebrities given sacks of cash to do so. Most of us start writing early and fail through a couple of million words before we do anything we are truly proud of. But we can take pride in the effort. We can take a great deal of pride in the progress.

Let’s face it, writing is hard work. Beyond time and commitment, it requires a creativity that stands up to the daily grind. Then when it’s done, everyone and their cousin, you know the one, the know-it-all that can’t understand why cutting his own hair is a bad idea, gets to judge your work. That can kick your ass.

The amazing thing, and that one little thing that separates most of us writers from almost-writers, is the getting better thing. We do it and suck. Then we do it and suck a little less. We suck for a long time but keep up the work and finally we don’t suck completely. In fact, there are some things even we can admit shine. Then someone tells us it shines but in the wrong way or that shine has gone out of style, or that there are too many shining in too similar a manner on the market. Then we start all over. Each starting, each ending, is a little bit better.

My first published novel was my second completed and after many short stories, screenplays, corporate writing, journalism, advertising copy, travelogues, training scripts, college plays and bad poetry. That’s the way it goes. Bad poetry is the price we pay for getting to a full novel. That first novel was written as a ZomCom, a zombie horror/comedy that I had originally titled Redneck Zombie Rodeo. The publisher felt that was too American and not scary enough. It became The Dead Ground. I still get notes from readers that say it was not what they expected. But that’s okay because what they (mostly) don’t say is, it sucks. After it, I rewrote an alien abduction novel that I had originally blogged as a serial. Then I let it sit and wrote another novel, a mystery that became a romance. That was published under my other, secret name. I dare you to find it. Then, again I returned to the Alien novel and worked it over again. It was published as, Behind the Darkness Alien Abduction.

All of this has been the long way to tell you about THE RED HIGHWAY. I took the long way because I wanted you to understand the work that goes into a book isn’t just writing a long story. The real work is years of writing the books, stories, and bad poetry that become the foundation a writer builds his or her house of titles upon. THE RED HIGHWAY is the best book I can give you right now but I don’t think it’s my best book. That one hasn’t been written yet. I hope you will keep your eye out for it.

Now I'd like to tell you a little bit about THE RED HIGHWAY and give a fair warning, there runs through it, a small theme of bad poetry.

In January of 1992, the fading life of Paul Souther, a homeless veteran, is changed by two events. He witnesses a murder committed by a big black man who, for a moment, seemed to have wings. And, as Paul hides from the man in a XXX theater, Mary Prince, the adult actress on screen, begins to speak directly to him.

On the other side of the country, the real Mary encounters the same big man when she visits the site of the Rodney King beating. He infests her life and her mind then traps her in a mental health ward, impossibly, pregnant.

In LA, two other black men, a tabloid reporter, and a celebrity TV preacher, are on the trail of the same mysterious man. They follow the tracks of rage and race leading throughout the city. At every hot spot the man is seen pulling strings and spreading the message of race war.

Paul and a mix of outcasts is called to Mary’s side just as the baby is born. None of them have any idea that the city of LA is sitting on a ticking bomb of anger. As riots explode, the big man, who now claims to be a god, reveals himself to be an ancient, dark power using the rage of the people to stoke his own, literal, fires. He demands the child as sacrifice to keep the city, and perhaps the nation from burning. It falls to Paul, a faithless man, and a drunk with blood on his own hands, to make the impossible choice between a child or a city and to save the people he has come to care about.

Twenty years later, as the grown child is spreading her own message of practical faith, as protesters picket and shout a new hate, a mysterious man shows up in the new crowds. This time his message is, God Hates Fags.

About the book
Necro Publications/Bedlam Press
PAGES: 282
ISBN: 978-1-939065-82-7 Trade Paperback (List: $12.95)
Distribution: Trade Paperback: Amazon, LSI and CreateSpace eBook: Kindle, Smashwords, Baker & Taylor, Nook, LSI, Apple, Kobo, Sony and others

In 1992, as Los Angeles begins to simmer in the heat of racial injustices, one dark man appears everywhere, spreading his message of race war. At the same time, Paul Souther, a homeless drunk, joins a strange group of outsiders. Some black and some white, they all carry the weight of broken lives and lost faith. They are all drawn to LA, for the arrival of a child, impossibly carried by Mary Prince, a sterile porn star.

Through back roads and freeways everyone is pulled into LA and Mary's side just as the baby is born. None of them have any idea that the city is a ticking bomb of anger. As riots explode, the mysterious man reveals himself to be an ancient, dark spirit using the rage of the people to stoke his own, literal, fires. He demands Mary’s child as sacrifice to keep the city, and perhaps the nation from burning. It falls to Paul, a faithless man, and a drunk with blood on his own hands, to make the impossible choice between the child and the city, and to save the people he has come to care about.

About the author
Robert E. Dunn was born an army brat and grew up in the Missouri Ozarks. He wrote his first book at age eleven, stealing, or novelizing, as he called it at the time, the storyline of a Jack Kirby comic book.

His college course of study, philosophy, religion, theatre, and film/TV communications, left him qualified only to be a televangelist. When that didn’t work out, he turned to them mostly, honest work of video production. Over several years he produced everything from documentaries, to training films and his favorite, travelogues. Still always writing for the joy of it he returned to writing horror and fantasy fiction for publication after the turn of the century. It seemed like a good time for change even if the changes were not always his choice.

He lives in Kansas City with three daughters, a young grandson, and an old dog. He tweets sometimes as @WritingDead but makes no promises how interesting those little posts will be.

Praise for The Red Highway
“The Red Highway is not one of the best books that I’ve read so far this year, or that I’ve read in a long time…it’s one of the best books that I’ve ever read! It was an incredible read, one that has so many layers that I was completely enthralled with the story.” –2 Book Lovers Reviews

"A thoroughly gripping read. Dunn is a writer with guts and the chops to grab his readers by the eyeballs and dare them to look away." –Hunter Shea, Author of Tortures of the Damned

Buy the book
Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Necro Publications

Giveaway!!!
Enter for your chance to win either a copy of The Red Highway, Behind the Darkness, or a print of the beautiful cover artwork from The Red Highway done by Erik Wilson! You can do multiple things each day to gain more entries! Just click the rafflecopter link. Forward any questions to Erin Al-Mehairi, publicist, at hookofabook@hotmail.com.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Matt Manochio's #Sentinels - Guest Post

Researching History for My Horror Novel

History can be tricky. You don’t want to get it wrong. Throwaway lines—even one word—can expose a flaw in your research or lack thereof.

I set my new novel, Sentinels, in post-Civil War South Carolina. It’s a rough place. The KKK is killing freedmen and their supporters. Northern soldiers are dispatched to keep the peace in the South. Oh, and there are supernatural forces going around killing both sides, and nobody can figure out why.

People die. Which leads to the question: How were funerals held in the 1870s? What were the customs? What tools were used? Well, the mortician traveled to your place (assuming you died and your viewing is being held at your home, where your spouse lives). That’s right. They fixed you up right there in your sitting room. Oh, and superstitions at the time involved shrouding mirrors, windows, even doorknobs, in black cloth. (Seeing your reflection in a room with a dead body can be bad, apparently.)

Some people might find research annoying. I dig it. I majored in history in college, and even though my fascination lies with WWII (I’m more a fan of modern history), life in the decade following the Civil War was horrendous in the United States. That’s a period of time that many people know little about. I was one of them until writing Sentinels.

First, I had no idea there were five military districts, manned by Northern soldiers, scattered throughout the South to ensure stability. (When you think about it, it makes sense. I mean, we left troops in Germany, Japan and South Korea following war.) But just that one realization helped shape the course of Sentinels. And it’s great when that happens.

And what kind of horse carriages did people operate back in the 1870s? How were outhouses physically built and how far back were they situated from the living quarters? What were the most commonly used firearms? How much did an acre of land cost?

As I said, even throwaway lines can get you in trouble. I mentioned that a character put on a T-shirt and was informed by a reviewer that T-shirts, as we know them, weren’t invented until the 1900s. Words matter in that regard. Undershirt probably would’ve been a better choice.

Such are the perils of writing historical fiction. But those little details matter, even if a large part of your story involves creepy things that physically cannot happen.

About the book
These are no ordinary killers.

They don't distinguish between good and evil. They just kill. South Carolina's a ruthless place after the Civil War. And when Sheriff's Deputy Noah Chandler finds seven Ku Klux Klansmen and two Northern soldiers massacred along a road, he cannot imagine who would murder these two diametrically opposed forces.

When a surviving Klansman babbles about wraiths, and is later murdered inside a heavily guarded jail cell, Noah realizes something sinister stalks his town. He believes a freed slave who's trying to protect his farm from a merciless land baron can help unmask the killers. Soon Noah will have to personally confront the things good men must do to protect their loved ones from evil.

About the author
Matt Manochio was born in 1975 in New Jersey and graduated from The University of Delaware in 1997 with a history/journalism degree.

He spent the majority of his 13-year newspaper career at the Daily Record in Morris County, New Jersey, where he won multiple New Jersey Press Association Awards for his reporting. He wrote about one of his passions, rock 'n' roll giants AC/DC, for USA Today and considers that the highlight of his journalism career.

He left newspapers in 2011 for safer employment, and currently lives in New Jersey with his son.

Praise for Matt Manochio
"Matt Manochio is a natural born storyteller." -Joe McKinney, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of The Savage Dead

"A real page turner. Matt Manochio has gained a fan in me!" -David L. Golemon, New York Times bestselling author of the Event Group Thriller series, on The Dark Servant

"Beautifully crafted and expertly plotted. A clockwork mechanism of terror! Highly recommended!" -Jay Bonansinga, New York Times bestselling author of Shattered, on The Dark Servant

Purchase Links 
Amazon
Barnes and Noble 

Samhain

Glenn Rolfe's Blood and Rain - Review and {Giveaway}

My thoughts
Anyone who thinks the werewolf thing has been done...and done again...well, you need to read Blood and Rain. I haven't been this captivated by a werewolf story since seeing "American Werewolf in London" when I was a girl...or maybe "The Howling". It seems these days, werewolves have become less scary, as we get to know their human side before we really know their beast side. I'm talking about "True Blood" or Anne Rice's new werewolf series. Not to discount those awesome storytellers (everyone knows Rice is my favorite author), but it's just refreshing to read about a werewolf and to be really scared and horrified. Rolfe did not pull any punches in this book. We get the fear and we get the gore...and it's luscious (for lack of a better word). I've been reading a lot of great horror lately (via the terrific publicist, Erin of Oh, for the Hook of a Book fame) and this one ranks near the top.

Blood and Rain is a riveting monster novel that keeps you guessing until the end. Thanks for bringing me back to the scary werewolves. It was a wild ride!

About the book

The light of a full moon reveals many secrets.

Gilson Creek, Maine. A safe, rural community. Summer is here. School is out and the warm waters of Emerson Lake await. But one man's terrible secret will unleash a nightmare straight off the silver screen. Under the full moon, a night of terror and death re-awakens horrors long sleeping. Sheriff Joe Fischer, a man fighting for the safety of his daughter, his sanity and his community, must confront the sins of his past. Can Sheriff Fischer set Gilson Creek free from the beast hiding in its shadows, or will a small town die under a curse it can't even comprehend? One night can-and will-change everything.

Find Glenn Rolfe at: http://glennrolfe.com/ as well as Facebook and Twitter.

Excerpt
Stan Springs stared at the curse in the night sky. His curse. He clenched his jaw, and bit back the grunts that demanded release from within his sweat-covered body. His muscles tightened and took turns throwing fits. He could feel his heartbeat’s thunderous barrage at work inside his heaving chest. It was only a matter of minutes before the changes would come.

He ripped his gaze from the clouds, moved away from the window and knelt down next to the bed against the concrete wall. He slipped one shaky hand beneath the mattress and found the small incision he’d made when he first arrived at the institution. He had traded a guard, a heavyset fella by the name of Harold Barnes, his prized Ted Williams rookie card in exchange for a copy of the key. Parting with this gold mine had been necessary. Stan Springs had nothing else of value with which to barter. Harold trusted him enough to make the swap; he told Stan there were crazies here by the dozen, but he could tell that Stan was not one of them.

No, Harold, I’m something far worse.

Key in hand, Stan stepped to the unlocked door and cracked it open. The hallway was clear. He moved down the corridor, as stealthily as during his heydays working on the force in New York. Hearing footfalls ahead and to his left, he fell back and pressed his large frame against the custodial door. Hidden by the entryway’s shadow, he watched Nurse Collins—a tall, thin woman with a dark complexion—pass fifty feet from where he stood, before she disappeared into the nurses’ break room.

Barefoot and dressed in only a Red Sox T-shirt and his sleeping shorts, Stan made a break for the staircase across the hall. His breaths were coming faster now. If he didn’t hurry, he wouldn’t make it outside. He crept down the steps leading to the main hallway.

Through the small window on the stairwell door, he could see Harold Barnes’s haunted jowls illuminated by the laptop screen in front of him. The old man’s eyes were closed, his mouth open. Harold hadn’t even made it an hour into his shift before he was out. Stan knew Harold also ran his own antique shop in the neighboring town of Hallowell. He’d told Stan that working both jobs on the same day, which was sometimes unavoidable, made it difficult for him on the night shift. It was another shared nugget Stan had stored away for nights like this one—the nights the beast in him needed to get out.

Easing the door open, Stan skulked his way along the shadows on the wall, and tiptoed to the main entrance door. Despite the cramps now rampaging through his calves and thighs, he slipped the procured key into the lock, slow and steady. The door clicked open, and he stepped out into the night.

As the cool breeze brushed against the sweat of his brow, the tendons and bones in his face began to shift. The rest of his body followed suit. He dropped to one knee and cried out. His skin, his scalp, his eyes, his muscles were all too tight. He reached behind him and managed to push the door shut.

If you could see me now, Harold.

The private roads out front were deserted. He launched from the building’s stairs and landed on the lawn below, making a beeline for the woods to the left of the large property.

He was twenty feet from the forest when the change hit him like a massive wave, crashing him to the ground. His muscles clenched and squeezed and tore, while the bones of his face continued to crack and grow. His teeth began to fall out in place of the monster’s. Down on all fours, he crawled to the tree cover and vomited. A mix of last night’s cafeteria meat loaf, black coffee, loose teeth, and blood splashed the ferns before him. Stan’s fingers extended as his claws dug into the soft soil of spring’s floor. He moaned and grunted his way through the rest of the fluid process.

In full beast mode, Stan Springs stood and howled at the cloud-covered sky. The creatures of the night became ghosts among the trees. He felt the strength flowing through him and the hunger begging to be sated.

He burst forward, headed north. Despite Stan’s best effort to control the beast’s killing zone, he found himself heading home.

About the author

Glenn Rolfe is an author, singer, songwriter and all around fun loving guy from the haunted woods of New England. He has studied Creative Writing at Southern New Hampshire University, and continues his education in the world of horror by devouring the novels of Stephen King and Richard Laymon. He and his wife, Meghan, have three children, Ruby, Ramona, and Axl. He is grateful to be loved despite his weirdness.

He is the author the novellas, Abram's Bridge, Boom Town, and the forthcoming, Things We Fear (March, 2016), the short fiction collection, Slush, and the novels The Haunted Halls and Blood and Rain (October 2015). His first novella collection, Where Nightmares Begin, will be released in March, 2016.

He is hard at work on many more. Stay tuned!

Praise for Blood and Rain
“A major new talent rises from the Maine woods…Rolfe is the real deal, and Blood and Rain is a classic monster novel, full of blood and teeth and the kind of razor sharp writing that makes the pages sing. Small town horror is back, with a vengeance!” –Nate Kenyon, award-winning author of Sparrow Rock, Diablo: Storm of Light and Day One

"With slashing claws and blood-soaked fur, Blood and Rain will have you howling in terror and delight. A welcome addition to the werewolf mythos, and proof that we're in the presence of a rising star in the genre. Highly recommended!" -Ronald Malfi, author of The Floating Staircase

“Rolfe tells a tale that captures your attention like King without all of the wordiness. He also spills the red stuff like Laymon…” – Into the Macabre

“Blood and Rain is a monumental piece of horror fiction. It represents everything I love about werewolves, creature features, siege films, and everything else in between. It is still early in the year, but this is a clear cut candidate for my favorite book of 2015.” — Horror Underground

“Wow! Easily one of the best werewolf books I’ve ever read.” – Hunter Shea, author of Tortures of the Damned and The Dover Demon

“Some good ‘ol fashion violence and gore…” – Jason Parent, author of Seeing Evil

“Glenn Rolfe takes a swing at the werewolf genre and hits a home run.” – Russell James, author of Q Island and Dreamwalker

“…not just another werewolf story, Rolfe has managed to take the werewolf to a-whole-nother level…” – Horror Novel Reviews

“The best werewolf novel I’ve read since Jeff Strand’s Wolf Hunt.”–Horror After Dark

Buy the book
Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Samhain

Giveaway!!!
For a chance to win a print copy of Glenn Rolfe’s short story collection, Slush, or a chance to win your choice of any of his titles in e-book format, go to the link below for the Rafflecopter sign-up. Good luck! The print copy is only good for those in the United States. Questions can be referred to Erin Al-Mehairi, publicist, at hookofabook(at)hotmail(dot)com.

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/231aa30b22/?

Hunter Shea's The Dover Demon - Blog Tour and Author Interview {Giveaway}

A trip Hunter Shea made to the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine two years ago sparked the idea for THE DOVER DEMON. While he was there, he met famed cryptozoologist, Loren Coleman and talked about creatures he’s personally investigated. It turns out, he was the man on the scene in Dover, MA in the late 70s when the uber strange biped was spotted by several people over the course of two nights in April, Hunter reported. He also gave it its name, Dover Demon.

Now, Hunter’s fictional world of The Dover Demon has been published as a novel and he was able to go back to the museum of cryptids in August and have a launch party for the book with Loren Coleman! To read more about that and see photos, head over to his site via this link: http://huntershea.com/2015/08/30/the-dover-demon-raises-his-round-little-head-cryptid-novel-release-day/

Follow along the tour using the hashtags #TheDoverDemon #HunterSheaLovesCryptids #Monsters #Cryptozoology #cryptids

Interview with Hunter Shea

CM: First of all, I would like to thank Hunter for joining me today and taking the time for this interview.

Hunter: Thank you so much for having me here! We writers love getting out of the lair every now and then and talking to the living. ;)

CM: Your new novel, The Dover Demon, was recently released. Congrats! Can you tell us a little about it?

Hunter: The Dover Demon is based on an actual sighting of a strange creature over a two night period in 1977 in the bucolic town of Dover, MA. Six teenagers saw an upright, skinny, peach-colored being with a bulbous head and large, orange eyes in the woods in three different locations. What today we might call an alien or Gray, back then was an unknown animal or perhaps paranormal entity. It truly frightened the witnesses, and no one has ever recanted their story.

With my book, I ask the question – what if it was seen by other teens those nights, and what they saw was so perplexing, so terrifying, they were not only too afraid to tell anyone, but it also changed the course of their lives? It’s present day, those teens are in their 50’s and the Dover Demon is back!

CM: Was there an inspiration behind the writing of Dover Demon? 

Hunter: I was visiting the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, ME and got to talking with the owner, famed cryptozoologist Loren Coleman. I was writing my cryptid book, The Montauk Monster, at the time. I asked him if there was a cryptid that didn’t get enough love and attention. He pointed me to the Dover Demon. He was on the scene in 1977 when the news broke and gave it its name. How could I resist? Plus, the story itself is so strange, almost otherworldly. I was hooked from the get-go.

CM: Horror is a great genre, but have you ever thought about writing in a different genre? Perhaps historical fiction or mainstream fiction? If yes, what would you write about?

Hunter: Absolutely. I’ve been mulling over a few non-horror ideas for a couple of years now. I’ve led an unconventional life, always shunning the easy road. I think because of that, I’ve had several lifetimes of experiences, both wondrous and strange. I’d like to write a mainstream novel about a family going through hard times and how they cope, or don’t cope, with the obstacles they face or even put in their own way. My wife and one daughter are handicapped, and I keep leaning toward writing something about coping with those challenges that goes beyond not sweating the small stuff. We’ve been through hell together, and I don’t think we’d be as strong a family without those diversities. Any kind of debilitating ailment takes its toll on the person with it and the people who love them. I think we’ve done a pretty good job facing everything. Maybe there’s something we can teach others going through the same thing.

CM: Over the past few months, I’ve read Island of the Forbidden and Tortures of the Damned, two novels I enjoyed immensely. How do these books differ from The Dover Demon? 

Hunter: If I was to categorize them and drop them in buckets, they would be Ghosts, Apocalypse, Cryptids. Island is the third in a series of novels I’ve written about a ghost hunting family. When I walk into that world, it feels familiar, like coming back home to a haunted house. Tortures is a non-stop thriller with real-life horrors. With The Dover Demon, you get a cool monster story, with that little niggling knowledge that it’s based on something real, which makes it all the more terrifying.

CM: I read in your Goodreads bio that you’re an amateur cryptozoologist. I think that’s incredibly cool! I’ve always had a fascination with Bigfoot (I wrote a report on it when I was in the 7th grade) and I’ve passed that fascination on to my 14 year old son. Have you learned anything interesting in the field that I can report to my son? 

Hunter: Yes, with all the technology we have at our disposal, we still, incredibly, don’t have many answers. No matter. I like to think that our world is vaster and stranger than we think. I’m beginning to fall into the rising school of thought that things like UFOs, ghosts and cryptids/monsters all come from the same nebulous place. People who study these phenomena need to pool their resources and see all of the commonalities. I don’t know what it all means, but I think it may be hiding in plain sight.

CM: Tell us a little bit about your Monster Men podcast with Jack Campisi. What can we expect when we tune in? And how do we tune in, by the way? 

Hunter: The Monster Men is two guys who love horror. We talk about movies, books, monsters, going on ghost hunts, interviewing people who create fresh horrors and just have a lot of fun with it. The list of people who want to be on the show is enormous now! We’ve had to step up our game so we can meet the demand. Expect a ton more interviews with authors and directors very soon. You can find us on our YouTube channel, Monster Men 13, or our website, www.themonstermen.net. We’re the most watched video horror podcast in the world and coming up on our 100th episode!

CM: Have you been inspired by any particular books or movies? What is your favorite horror novel and/or movie? 

Hunter: I’m inspired by tons of horror books and movies. It’s impossible to pick one or even a few out of the bunch. They all banded together to make me who I am. I do love Robert McCammon’s Boy’s Life. Pure perfection in storytelling. Some of my favorite movies are Alien, The Haunting, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, and The Funhouse.

CM: What books would we find on your nightstand? Any recommendations (besides your own books, of course)? 

Hunter: Got a few on the nightstand now that it’s Horrortober. For horror I have Darkness Rising by Brian Moreland, The Deep by Nick Cutter, We Are Monsters by Brian Kirk. I also have a Joe Picket novel by C.J. Box, going to reread The Garden of Eden by Hemingway and a few others at the bottom of the pile. There is never a shortage of reading material in my house.

CM: And last, but not least, what do you have in store for your readers next?

Hunter: Well, in 2016 I’ll have another cryptid novel out through Pinnacle. I can’t reveal the monster yet, but I know it will have people excited. My next Samhain novella, I Kill in Peace, will be released in April. This is a total departure for me and I took some big chances. It won’t be for the faint of heart and definitely not for the politically correct. I’m also hoping that my first novel for Severed Press, They Rise, will be out next year, too. It’s a sea monster book that is just flat out crazy.

CM: Thanks again for joining me today, Hunter. I look forward to many more years of great horror to share here at Castle Macabre.

Hunter: Thank you! Keep on flying the horror flag!

About The Dover Demon

File Size: 1032 KB
Print Length: 242 pages
Publisher: Samhain Publishing, Ltd. (September 1, 2015)
Publication Date: September 1, 2015

The Dover Demon is real…and it has returned.

In 1977, Sam Brogna and his friends came upon a terrifying, alien creature on a deserted country road. What they witnessed was so bizarre, so chilling, they swore their silence. But their lives were changed forever.

Decades later, the town of Dover has been hit by a massive blizzard. Sam’s son, Nicky, is drawn to search for the infamous cryptid, only to disappear into the bowels of a secret underground lair. The Dover Demon is far deadlier than anyone could have believed. And there are many of them. Can Sam and his reunited friends rescue Nicky and battle a race of creatures so powerful, so sinister, that history itself has been shaped by their secretive presence?

Purchase~

Amazon

Barnes and Noble
Samhain

Praise for Hunter Shea~

“This wholly enthralling hulk of a summer beach read is redolent of sunscreen and nostalgia, recalling mass market horror tales of yore by John Saul, Dean Koontz, and Peter Benchley.” — Publishers Weekly — Voted one of the best reads of summer, on The Montauk Monster

“Bloody good read! This guy knows his monsters!”- Eric S Brown, author of Bigfoot War and Boggy Creek: The Legend is True, on Swamp Monster Massacre

Hunter Shea Biography~
Hunter Shea is the author of the novels The Montauk Monster, Tortures of the Damned, Sinister Entity, Forest of Shadows, Swamp Monster Massacre, Evil Eternal, and The Dover Demon. His stories have appeared in numerous magazines, including Dark Moon Digest, Morpheus Tales, and the Cemetery Dance anthology, Shocklines : Fresh Voices in Terror. He’s currently working on or completed a few more manuscripts set to come.

His obsession with all things horrific has led him to real life exploration of the paranormal, interviews with exorcists and other things that would keep most people awake with the lights on.

Hunter is proud to be be one half of the Monster Men video podcast, along with his partner in crime, Jack Campisi. It is one of the most watched horror video podcasts in the world. Monster Men is a light hearted approach to dark subjects. Hunter and Jack explore real life hauntings, monsters, movies, books and everything under the horror sun. They often interview authors, cryptid and ghost hunters, directors, and anyone else living in the horror lane.

He lives in New York with his family and vindictive cat. He waits with Biblical patience for the Mets to win a World Series. You can read about his latest travails and communicate with him at www.huntershea.com or find him on Facebook and Twitter.

Giveaway~
On this tour, win one signed print copy of The Dover Demon if you are in the U.S.! Just sign-up at the Rafflecopter link below:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/share-code/MjMxYWEzMGI1ZDE2MGYyYTgzYjk4NzVhYzhmMTdmOjIx/?

Q Island by Russell James - Review {Giveaway} #SurvivingLongIsland

My thoughts
As I was reading Q Island, I immediately thought of The Walking Dead, or The Strain or 28 Days Later. Don't get me wrong. It's not a cookie cutter story or copied off of these excellent shows/movies. No. I thought of these shows/movies because Q Island is that good. Honestly.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a huge horror fan. I mean, I believe a new horror movie should be released at the theater every week. That would make me very happy. So, when a book like this comes along - one that gives me the experience I so crave...scared, adrenaline pumping, edge of seat (you get the idea), I'm truly a happy reader.

This isn't the first book I've read, and loved, by Russell James this year (Dreamwalker in February) James has a real knack for writing horror that not only scares, but lets the reader enjoy a really well-written story. I can't wait to read what he put out next.

About the book
Q Island is the sixth novel (a novella collection with three other authors makes seven) that Russell James has published with Samhain Horror under legendary horror editor Don D’Auria! He’s also published various other books and short story collections that may be found on Amazon.
It’s an epidemic. An ancient virus is loose on Long Island, NY. Its black-veined victims become sociopathic killers, infecting others through body fluids or a post mortem release of spores. Chaos rules. The island is quarantined.

Melanie Bailey and her autistic son Aiden are trapped. Aiden is bitten, but survives. He might be the key to a cure, if she can escape what the world now calls Q Island. Further east, gang leader Jimmy Wade has also survived infection, and become telepathic with a taste for human flesh.

Wade sets his followers on a search for the immune boy who can make him a god, if only Wade can consume him. A scrappy, one-eyed nurse and a retired pipeline technician agree to help Melanie escape, but it’s a long shot that they can avoid the infected, Wade’s tightening grip and a military ordered to keep everyone on Q Island.

Q Island Nabs Publisher’s Weekly Starred Review

Q Island, a novel by Russell James and published by Samhain Horror, received a starred review from Publishers Weekly! In short, “The horrors are not created by the virus itself, but by what it allows people to do to one another. This is a seriously creepy page-turner that will keep readers up at night.” You can see the full review here.

Praise for Russell R. James—
“James has a talent for combining action-packed vignettes into a powerful, fast-paced whole.”
—Library Journal on Black Magic

(Five Stars, A Night Owl Top Pick) “I loved the story so much that I’m eagerly waiting to read more from him. He carefully and very intricately wove his storyline to have elements of mystery and suspense throughout. I now have a new favorite book I’ll read over and over again.”

—Night Owl Reviews on Dark Inspiration

“The book had me at the edge of my seat. The writing is so vivid I even jumped a few times. If you're a fan of the genre, love ghosts and are drawn to the supernatural, then do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of this book!”

—Long and Short Reviews on Dark Inspiration

“James fills the novel with compete characters that are easy to care about and cheer for (or against) when appropriate. There is a very strong human element to the novel that allows the reader to sink into the story and become involved in its events.”
--The Examiner

“Dreamwalker is the first Russell James novel that I have had the pleasure to read and it was an absolute blast! I am definitely looking forward to exploring his previous and upcoming works. There is something for everyone in this novel - action, horror, fantasy and a hint of romance. Highly recommended!”

--The Horror Bookshelf

“This could very well be the best horror novel of the year.”

--Examiner on Q Island

Purchase or Wish List Q Island

Amazon

Goodreads

Barnes and Noble

Samhain Horror

About the author

Russell James grew up on Long Island, New York and spent too much time watching Chiller, Kolchak: The Night Stalker, and The Twilight Zone, despite his parents' warnings. Bookshelves full of Stephen King and Edgar Allan Poe didn't make things better. He graduated from Cornell University and the University of Central Florida.

After a tour flying helicopters with the U.S. Army, he now spins twisted tales best read in daylight. He has written the paranormal thrillers Dark Inspiration, Sacrifice, Black Magic, Dark Vengeance, and Dreamwalker. He has several horror short story collections, including Tales from Beyond and Deeper into Darkness, as well as some science fiction collections. Now, Q Island, released July 7, 2015 and he’s already under contract for his next book for 2016.

His wife reads what he writes, rolls her eyes, and says "There is something seriously wrong with you." He and his wife share their home in sunny Florida with two cats.

To find out more about Russell R. James, please visit his Website or follow him on Facebook! Join him on Twitter, @RRJames14. Also, feel free to drop him at a line at rrj@russellrjames.com.

Giveaway

Rafflecoper giveaway for two audiobook copies of Dreamwalker. Two winners will each win one code for a free audio book, open everywhere. Must use a valid email that you can be reached by. By entering the giveaway, you consent to allow Russell to have your email for very infrequent newsletter updates. Contest ends August 31, 2015. Other contest questions can be referred to Erin Al-Mehairi, publicist, Hook of a Book Media at hookofabook@hotmail.com.

a Rafflecopter giveaway