Reviews

"The Writing Retreat" by Julia Bartz

February 20th, 2023

What would you do to make your dreams come true? Would you step over your friends on your path to fame and success? How far would you go? 

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More Than "Less Than Zero": Escaping Into Bret Eason Ellis's "The Shards"

January 17th, 2023

When Bret Easton Ellis wrote Less Than Zero (1985), he depicted a glamourous, repellant group of cold, disattached, L.A. collegiate youth whose parent's wealth had cheated them of their concept of consequence and value, opting to decay into chemical indulgence rather than graduate to adulthood. 38 years later, we learn the coming-of-age debut was, in fact, the second chapter of an even more complex story.

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"This Story Will Change" by Elizabeth Crane & "Book of Extraordinary Tragedies" by Joe Meno.

December 28th, 2022

Do we all want something better for ourselves, which feels like as good a question to ask oneself as any at this time of year? Okay, maybe that isn’t something everyone wants. How about, do I want better? I supposed that depends on how you define better. I’m thinking about this after reading the following line from one-time Chicago author Elizabeth Crane’s new memoir, This Story Will Change: "I want this to be a story about everything just being better." (page 216)

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"The Best Horror of the Year Volume 14" edited by Ellen Datlow

December 27th, 2022

If you’re connected to the world of horror fiction even remotely, you probably already know the name Ellen Datlow. And if you’re already familiar with her career, you know she can assemble anthologies like few other editors can—and rightly so, as she’s been doing it professionally for 40 years now. In the past two years alone Datlow has produced numerous volumes of collected works, most featuring either all new stories or a blend of works commissioned specifically for the anthology and reprints. 

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"The Black Dog Eats The City" by Chris Kelso

December 1st, 2022

Chris Kelso has written a number of acclaimed and prize nominated works spanning a variety of styles and genres, and yet it seems the critical reception of his writing has revolved around a misplaced categorisation of his style, and that this oversight ought to be addressed even if the short handed manner of doing so feels unavoidable within the conscripts of this review.

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"Jackal" by Erin E. Adams

November 3rd, 2022

There’s something rotten in the town of Johnstown, Pennsylvania. Something dark and evil in the woods. It’s taking children and young adults from their homes. Girls — Black girls, specifically. It’s taking their lives. It’s taking their hearts. Is this dark, evil thing a man? Or is it something else? Something older, more feral, and more insubstantial than any animal?

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"Mothwoman" by Nicole Cushing

October 11th, 2022

Nicole Cushing knows how to melt your brain.  She does so through her phantasmagorical and absolutely bonkers scenarios, her astute observations on the state of the world, and the sheer gorgeousness of her prose.  She knows how to make you laugh.

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On Becoming Nightbitch

August 12th, 2022

When I was pregnant, I didn’t really know what to expect postpartum aside from it could be scary and I needed to communicate how I was feeling. I started having panic attacks a few weeks before Evie was born, and my doctors told me the likelihood of me having trouble after giving birth was high, so the discussion around my mental health started early.

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"At Night All Blood Is Black"

August 10th, 2022

There is something both satisfying and saddening about reading a book no one else seems to have heard of. At least, no one else I know. On the one hand, I feel like I’ve discovered this great new thing. On the other, if it’s so great, why is it not on anyone else’s radar?

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"Writing in the Dark: The Workbook" by Tim Waggoner

August 2nd, 2022

Photo via author's website Tim Waggoner follows up his 2020 Bram Stoker Award winning Writing in the Dark with Writing in the Dark: The Workbook. I read Writing in the Dark when it was first released, and I remembered thinking what a valuable guide it was for new writers in the horror genre, as well as those seeking a refresher.

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