My previous experience with this series was "The Dead Man Vol 3: The Beast Within, Fire & Ice, Carnival of Death." As with that entry in the series, you don't have to read these in sequential order for maximum enjoyment. The literary conceit has three different authors contribute distinct novelettes (app. 100 pages) around the life and times of protagonist Matt Cahill who, three months after he died in a "freak accident," finds himself alive again and with the ability to see evil (EVIL!!! EVIL!!! EVIL!!!) suppurating on the faces and bodies of those about to wreak maximum mahyem on an unsuspecting citizenry. To my knowledge so far, none of the authors have had Mr. Cahill utter Scarface's immortal line, "Say hello to my little friend!" followed by decapitation by Mr. Cahill's best friend, axe. As in a real axe. It's a keepsake from Mr. Cahill's grandfather. Mr. Cahill uses it to rearrange the anatomy of said suppurating evil doers.

Best axe line in this volume: "He'd taken the precaution of putting the ax in the passenger seat and silently thanked the patron saint of axes as he grabbed it and leapt out the driver's door." (from "The Killing Floor," p. 301) A little research independent of this book: St. Boniface of Mainz appears to be the patron saint of axe wielders.

The first novelette, my favorite of the three, is Christa Faust's "The Death Match." Faust's entry reads like something written by an ex-dominatrix, sometime porn producing, noir uber-fan (which according to the delightful included authors' biographies, Ms. Faust fits that bill). Ms. Faust brings an appropriate perverse joy to the dark proceedings and much fun, mixed martial arts, and mayhem was had by all.

The second novelette, William Rabkin's "The Black Death," takes place in the meth ridden backwoods of rural America. You'll never smoke meth again without seeing black maggots crawling in your pipe (an alternative moral to the story: DON'T SMOKE METH!!!).

The final entry, Aric Davis' "The Killing Floor," is the most accomplished entry from a writing point of view. Mr. Davis' experience as a professional writer appears to be the most extensive of the three authors. It is the most polished of the three novelettes, but it loses a little of the naive fun that many of the other authors have brought to the Dead Man series. However, it's probably a must-read simply because we start to learn a little more about the world (EVIL!!! EVIL!!! EVIL!!!) inhabited by Matt Cahill. Mr. Cahill's arch-enemy, Mr. Dark, may not be as invincible as he seems.

Can't wait to read the next entries in the series, though I recommend saving these for a Summer, or similar vacation time, read. I give this four of out five stars for being really good and really fun, withholding one star because I thought Mr. Cahill's axe could have played a more prominent role. Just my opinion.

NOTE: I received a complimentary review copy of this book. ( )