Book #193 of 2019: The Luminous Dead by Caitlin Starling Debut author Caitlin Starling has delivered a stunning, claustrophobic sci-fi horror novel, the entirety of which is spent in an underground alien cave system with the protagonist locked in a mechanized suit. Her only contact is an evasive handler back on the surface, who withholds …
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Book #103 of 2019: Dracul by Dacre Stoker and J.D. Barker Oddly enough, I think the main selling points of this novel are some of its weakest elements: namely that it’s a prequel to Dracula and that it features a fictionalized Bram Stoker facing off against the famous vampire. Co-written by Stoker’s great-great-nephew and based …
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Book #239 of 2018: Ararat by Christopher Golden (Ben Walker #1) This story of demonic possession and murder unleashed by the discovery of Noah’s Ark on an isolated mountainside is a solid paranormal thriller, sort of like Michael Crichton or Dan Brown crossed with early Stephen King. I would have liked a little more depth …
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Book #231 of 2018: The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White After a little bit of a bumpy start, this Frankenstein retelling quickly settles into itself and by the end proves nearly as remarkable as the Mary Shelley classic. Author Kiersten White’s primary inspiration is to present the familiar horror narrative from the …
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Book #198 of 2018: The Outsider by Stephen King Stephen King’s latest novel is also his best work in years (since 11/22/63 in 2011, in my opinion). It’s a compulsively readable mystery-thriller with an irresistible premise: a man is arrested for the horrific rape and murder of a young boy, with irrefutable eyewitness, fingerprint, and …
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Book #164 of 2018: 20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill Joe Hill’s novels have been hit-or-miss for me, and it turns out that his short stories are much the same. There are some great pieces in this collection: the opening “Best New Horror” manages to be heartfelt, creepy, and darkly comic all at once, and …
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Book #97 of 2018: Meddling Kids by Edgar Cantero This book skates by on a terrific premise, which is basically Scooby-Doo crossed with Stephen King’s IT. The teens in this off-brand Mystery Gang have disbanded after stumbling across a real Lovecraftian horror, and the surviving members now reunite as adults to face their fears and …
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Book #96 of 2018: Sleeping Beauties by Stephen King and Owen King I’m normally a big Stephen King fan, but I’m feeling pretty underwhelmed by this recent collaboration between the bestselling author and his son Owen. The premise is fine — all the world’s women start falling into deep comas when they go to sleep, …
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Book #89 of 2018: Authority by Jeff VanderMeer (Southern Reach #2) I liked but didn’t love Jeff VanderMeer’s novel Annihilation, and I was hopeful that this sequel, set outside the mysterious Area X that clouds everyone’s thinking, would offer a more straightforward story. Unfortunately, it does not. Instead there’s the same creeping horror and hypnosis-fueled …
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Book #261 of 2017: Lovecraft Country by Matt Ruff Jim Crow was a time of horror for black Americans, which makes it a natural fit for this novel about an extended black family coming up against the sorts of cosmic nightmares written about by H.P. Lovecraft. (Lovecraft himself was also an infamous racist, so there’s …
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