Michael West (1)Reseñas

A fun read, especially if you are a fan of horror movies. The plot is completely derivative and mixes numerous story threads and scenes (I think deliberately) from famous books and movies. I found it fun to "name the movie or book" as each scene transpired. There really isn't anything original here, and West keeps the story light, but I still enjoyed it because I could sense that the writer has a deep affection for the movies that I have enjoyed over the years.

This was a pretty good read with some great action and likeable characters. The story reminds me a great deal of the King of Horror…Stephen king’s classics such as [Children of the Corn] and one of my all time King favorites…[Pet Sematary] If you like Stephen King or H.P. Lovecraft's old gods fiction – mythology…if you read Halloween themed scares… you'll like this book.

not as scary as I'd hoped

This book was an interesting read. It was slow to get to the action but entertaining in the lead up. The author splits the story mainly between the perspectives of two characters and then brings it all together in the action. There is some jaw dropping language in the last few pages to be aware of that took me quite by surprise. If you do not like cursing then definitely avoid this one. The rest of the book is clean but where it gets nasty it is no holds barred.

This anthology of vampire stories is coolly scary and entertaining, ranging from convincingly traditional to jarringly modern, through everything in between. A fantastic old-fashioned and wholly new Curtain Call from Gary Braunbeck leaves readers haunted as the last page closes, while petty thieves and the depressed bereaved share intervening tales with horror, humor, mystery and fun. Two stories that truly stand out for me are Douglas Warrick’s terrifying Rattenkonig, for its haunting sense of fear and evil enchantment, and Tim Wagonner’s What Once Was Flesh for the clever sting in a beautifully constructed tale. Dracula’s Winkee by Gregory Hall offers a thoroughly modern late-night comedy touch, and Lucy Snyder’s unsweet Sunshine is not for the kids or the squeamish. There’s nary a sparkle in sight, but that doesn’t stop these vampires offering plenty of new shocks and awesome horrors to keep readers awake at night and through the day.

Disclosure: I received a free ecopy when I hosted the anthology on my blog, and I’m just sorry it took me so long to get around to reading it.

There’s something seriously scary about the Wide Game, and nearly everyone who’s played will carry the scars. But they won’t talk about it. And now Paul’s back in Harmony, Indiana, for a school reunion where he just might have to face up to what was. Meanwhile the reader follows his memories of that Wide Game played before graduation, and wonders at the cost.

The Wide Game is classic horror, with teenagers separating in the dark when you know they ought to stay together, with something scary in the cornfield, and with romantic leads just desperate to survive. But survival isn’t everything, and there are gaps in the gruesome details where nobody knows just who or what is setting the rules for the game. And then there’s death. And then there’s the school reunion.

The Wide Game is told in separate parts which tie past and present together and lead inexorably, but secretly, to final scary conclusions where a church, once scorned, just might play its own part in healing... because some things just can’t be earned after all. I enjoyed the whole story, but I truly loved the ending; that touch of thought-provoking mystery that raises a tale above its genre and makes it something special.

Disclosure: I was given a free ecopy during the author’s blog tour. I’m just sorry it took me so long to get around to reading it.

I remember when I read my first Hemingway. Sitting in my grandfathers study snuggled under my great grandmother's knitted blanket with a small 60 watt bulb illuminating the treasured book from his shelves. His study smelled like leather and typewriter ribbon, I will never forget that. When I smell these things or snuggle under that blanket, which I still have, I go back to that time in that chair with that Old Man. Memories are heavily tied to scent, taste, feeling... and for me words. I was so emotionally invested in the Fisherman and I stayed up all night till the tale was done.


You know what books I am talking about, the ones you read which stay with you, like my Hemingway moment. That have grabbed you in some way with some `hook', dragging you along for the ride. The ones that a month, a year or even five later you see something, or read something which brings you back to that moment in the book, where you are, what you are doing, what you are eating... Some of you have a handful, some of you, like me, have different handfuls that I cycle through because books are part of a central core of my being. [b:Poseidon’s Children|13062645|Poseidon’s Children|Michael West|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1321366677s/13062645.jpg|18228109] and the rest of the Legacy of Gods series may possibly come to be one of those books. Let's talk about why, this definitely will not be a normal review, perhaps more of a discussion on passion and why I feel passionate and so excited about talking about [a:Michael West|126453|Michael Lee West|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1273184642p2/126453.jpg]'s latest experience in words.

Earlier this week I asked [a:Michael West|126453|Michael Lee West|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1273184642p2/126453.jpg] why Urban Fantasy? I tend to not read reviews or synopsis' because every time I do I get thrown completely off and at times I go off on a tangent because these labels that are forced upon authors in order to sell the book at times screws the pooch. Now Urban Fantasy does not screw the pooch with this, however I cannot put [b:Poseidon's Children|13062645|Poseidon’s Children|Michael West|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1321366677s/13062645.jpg|18228109] specifically in this category nor can I label it as Cthulhuian mythos, or Horror, or thriller, or fantasy, or science fiction, or... this is a book that I had a very hard time nailing down. If I had to I would say Urban Carnivale! but they do not have that subgenre... yet. Michael may just be the first

First off to understand where I am coming from you need to understand the term or phenomena of Carnivale, at least in how I am using it. In its root 'carnevale' is derived from the two words meaning, `carne', `meat' (food) or `flesh' (sex). It has been much discussed in the sociological circles as an actual phenomena dating back in many different cultures thousands of years. During these times the world, society is tumultuous with most social hierarchies being inverted with satire and a farce, even mockery. Reversals of relations between man and beast, men and women, fathers and sons.. and in this book definitely mothers and daughters. If you have read this, you know exactly where I am headed. If you have not read it, think about the fantastical aspects of a Carnivale! The cotton candy, the chaos, the thrills, chills and the Freak Show! Michael presents you one with this amazing read.

I literally did a fist pump and giggled when I read the opening scene The series starts off set on a small New England island off the mainland of New Hampshire. One of those little tourist traps with quaint shops, quirky hotel clerks, clueless tourist and rich mainlanders that summer on the shores. One of these rich mainlanders is a man called Roger Hays and Roger had a son, one that as the book opened up was treading water in the surf coaxing his neurotic girlfriend, who is afraid of open water, out to have a little tryst int he sea. Just like our skinny dipper from Jaws soon finds out, this will be the last risqué thing these two lovers do... ever...

"...Susan Rogers had been right to fear the water. There were monsters lurking just below its churning surface. Now, they pulled her down into the dark depths; things with black and orange stripes, things with claws, with fangs like sharpened steak knives, and, unfortunately for her, they were not inclined to swallow her whole..."( location 163)

Here is where it gets tricky, I want to tell you all about it, I want to stand in front of my webcam and give you jazz hands and giggle as I recount a scene.. but I can't! Yesterday I started blathering on and on about the story to my fiance until he raised his hand up and said, "Stop, wait... sea monsters, Atlantis, a town full of sea monsters, a lost god, a weapon... wait.. a mobster? WTH where is Bruce Campbell!" I laughed so hard because I had been saying all along that all that was missing was a horde of zombies, Bruce Campbell and a chainsaw.

Now before you roll your eyes and dismiss this, you have gotten this far in the review in so give it a bit more. Simply put, it was brilliantly woven. I giggled continually when I saw the correspondences. It is not just the story that is "Urban Carnivale", the writing style, the cleverly woven plot devices everything fits overlayed into this frantic masterpiece. Oh and the love scenes! *fanning myself* all of them, including the ones that were a bit harder to read, (involving one of the bad guys!)

Since this is the start of the series his cast/character list is large. The protagonists consist of numbers which would fill at least a starting line up for a baseball team! Perhaps Colonial Bay Creatures?? umm no.. anyway. One thing people have discussed is because of this some of the characters did not get "fluffed" enough (could not resist). I started reading this knowing it was the first in a series. Many times when this is the case the first half of a book is nothing but setting up the world, "fluffing" out the depths of the characters so by the time you get to the meat of the piece you are almost finished! It didn't even occur to me while I was reading because I was swept along with the tentacles of each story arc. The characters that needed filling, were filled and those that were not will obviously be more developed later so this was not an issue for me.

When you open this up, expect to smile, to cover your mouth in horror, to catch yourself needed to grab a breath, taking a couple of hot showers, checking before you dive into a pool from now on... and appreciating the fact that most beaches are PROBABLY safe.. probably .. Thrills, chills.. train wrecks you cannot stop watching (in a good way)... and remember they may not need to need to worry about being able to take a big deep breath before diving in, but you will! I cannot recommend this book more it will redefine the genre, or become the beginning of a new one. I think I will go tag it with `Urban Carnavale' now!

I have been taunting everyone for weeks since the teaser about tentacles and Cthulhuian dreams and words of horror that will thrill you! With this incredible book, I have found another treasured memory placeholder. I will always have "a moment" when I read anything that tugs... pulls and twists at my memory. I will probably smile fondly each time I make my crab cakes! But I had not read the book yet. I have now, and [b:Poseidon's Children|13062645|Poseidon’s Children|Michael West|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1321366677s/13062645.jpg|18228109] will always have this `hook' in the flesh of my subconscious.

CHECK Cabin Goddess for ALL four of my posts on POSEIDON'S CHILDREN

Poseidon's Children (The Legacy of the Gods)

Are you surprised I am reviewing this? Really? Well than you are new to Kriss’ world because in my world, vampires… THEY DON’T SPARKLE!!! I will hold back because there are tons of new readers this week and promise to keep most of my normal diatribe free of my colorful vocabulary.. promise. On that note, vampires were the first monster my father handed me in a book and my grandmother had me watch with her in a movie and have always terrified me. I mourn for the terror they used to bring into our lives!

What caught my eye when I saw the announcement of this new anthology at the beginning of the year was the title and it’s promise to back the night. Also who the editor would be and later the list of authors I got even more excited. It is now almost June and I have read it through and through more than a few times and fallen a little more in love with it each read.

Some of my favorite comments and quotes from some of these deadly creatures and their hunters:

“If your victim didn’t die, you might as well be drinking water.”

“Al liked to wait a bit before disposing of his empties, just in case they turned.”

“My official title is ‘occult detective’ and yes, I wear a trenchcoat and fedora. Some clichés are just too good to mess with.”

“Van Dyck? Van Buren? Van… who knows? Don’t worry… I’ll come up with something.”

“…if Jesus loves him as much as those bumper stickers say he does, then he can shovel that stuff down himself.”

“As the sun rises, the fiend dies before our eyes, its body bound by the twinkling lights of a Christmas Angel. “Huh,” Sarah says, “I guess sometimes vampires do sparkle”

Oh dear, there are so many more, wonderful sound “bites” and these are just from the a small amount of stories Top stories? I do not want to taint it. I was drawn first because it is an SSP title, second because Michael West as editor, Tim Waggoner whom I adore from his Nikropolis – Michael Richter series and I was really curious what RJ was going to pull with a robot vampire! The rest, all of them have a little for everyone’s “tastes” (I slay me.. oh.. oh hehehe)

If you thought the circus was creepy because of the clowns? Think again! That tent in the back? You may not want to go back there, really I don’t think you should. Oh dear and dancing robots whose AI gets an upgrade? Be careful what you wish for … “When the machines take over” means something completely different in this story! Marrying an ancient terror with an unknown techno wonder(?) who knows what will happen! Sprinkle some humor with a tad bit of a Harry Dresdon and John Taylor flavored hard-boiled fun filled with snark (and I love my snark)! Add some beautiful esoteric and allegorical content plus a story from my neck of the woods and you have a complete meal delivered to you in a 16-course feast which will have you going on a secret run to the hardware store and buying a nightlight, a wooden garden stake and possibly sneaking in the local Catholic church with your Nigene bottle, just in case!

I want to say one thing, just a tiny one. I believe those who have created these sparkly vampires have possibly fallen for what Stoker was trying to get through with in a symbolic nature those gothi writers of old liked to throw at us. Evil doesn’t have to be in your face, ripping you to shreds, hanging you on meat hooks and grabbing your ankles from a storm drain. Evil can be a gentile creature, ask to be invited in and make you blush. Evil can tempt you to bare one of the most intimate parts of your body which protects your lifeline and as a vessel of light (since let’s face it the vampire myth is steeped in Christian mythology), your vessel which is full of blood… blood… *cackling maniacally*

All of this aside, the basic thing we keep forgetting about the vampire myth is this creature has been cursed, denied true death and rest because of some irreconcilable sin or religious taboo. So I will let these glitterfied authors slide, for now, because they have been glamored, after all. In this anthology, the only thing sparkling is the brilliant new shine on an ancient iconic monster.

To wrap this up, vampires were never meant to be moody century old creatures of the night who hang out in high schools and fall in love with jail bait! They are not threatening to become a martyr because they decide to try being Emo when they are about 150 years too old for Emo, by throwing themselves in to the sun where… get this.. OK … THEY SPARKLE!! You like them sparkly? That is fine! But you probably won’t like the true vampire mythology of blood sucking fiends! Awww *patting your glitter covered hair* I bet you cannot even remember what a real vampire is about! You should take a chance and check it out, you can read a sample on Amazon.

Michael West’s introduction to these sixteen stories shares two important things, one of a literary concern and one of a personal one which affects so many in our lives. Michael dedicated the book to Sara and his wife Stephanie. Proceeds from this collection and those to come will be going to support the fight with a donation to the American Cancer Society

“For two of the bravest women I have ever known, Sara and Stephanie. Promises to Keep.”
One lost her battle with breast cancer and his wife, Stephanie has won just in this last year. Having watched his passion being part of the Seventh Star Press group on Facebook (Seventh Star Sound-off, new minions err members welcome plus when you join you get an entry in the giveaway) and on his fan page it is evident how much this master of horror is passionate about all aspects of his life. He wants to bring the kinds of horror we love back into our lives and eradicate the real horror of cancer from it! Way to go Michael, and thank you!

Crap, I promised I was not going to go there.. I know………. I know but Michael said it first, so from the book, and I support this statement:

“Stephenie Meyer stole this monster from Bram Stoker. We’re stealin’ it back!”

Michael West edited an incredible collection of amazing tales with something for every real vampire lover. It is time to take back the night, people because these vampires don’t sparkle.


FIVE stars overall (THOSE STARS SPARKLE!)

This is a very tough review for me to write. Do I treat this book with the same thorough criticism I reserve for established masters of the craft, or do I view it as the work of a very talented emerging author still perfecting the art of the novel? I'm going to try to straddle that line.

First off, I'm giving an extra star right off the bat for that cover - hands downs the best cover art I've seen in years. I didn't read a word about the book or the author, but went straight to the net and ordered the limited edition, signed hardcover with beautiful extra art prints included. It's a thing of beauty, and looks amazing on my shelf.

But how about the book itself? It started off strong, really strong. The writing is clear and lucid throughout, and I found myself pulled right into the story. Very cinematic and engaging, as the cover promised. So far so good. I like this author quite a bit.

My summary review is this: I enjoyed this book quite a bit, and am not sorry at all that I read it.


*Everything that follows is nitpicking. If you like what you've read so far, then read no more!*


More full disclosure information: at the risk of alienating myself from half the horror community fanbase, I'm just going to come out and say that I am not a fan of the Lovecraftian school of horror. Ancient gods and transdimensional evil with tentacles just doesn't scare or interest me. Maybe I've eaten enough calamari in my life that encounters with the Kraken do little more than make me think of having an appetizer at The Capital Grille. That's just me. So keep that in mind when you read on. Maybe my lack of love for Lovecraft has influenced my review.

This book draws its baddies from the Lovecraftian tradition, so that deflated my interest a bit. But more than that, throughout the book I felt almost a complete lack of tension or suspense. Creatures simply leap at the main characters or engage in evil acts with little buildup or suspense. The tone of the book is so light and jovial that it never really achieves a true feeling of evil or darkness, it really does have the feel of a "spook house" throughout. With only a couple of exceptions (the scenes of a farmer hearing noises in the night is excellent, as is a scene with a father and daughter), there is never a feeling of dread or fear. It never turns the laughter into screams. Maybe that is the intention?

There is a fair amount of "Scooby Doo" logic going on. The world as we know it doesn't seem to exist outside of Harmony, Indiana, just like Scooby Doo is often confined to the city of Crystal Cove. Gruesome murders of livestock and teens doesn't interest the feds for some reason, everything is just left up to the local sheriff, paramedic and dogcatcher here, apparently. Even after monsters viciously kill several people, our feckless monster hunters run off in pursuit on a whim and a prayer with extremely implausable weaponry, no plan B if their assumptions aren't correct. All this serves to bring the perceived reality in the book down to the level of a Saturday morning cartoon, and if that's the intent - then well done. Readers should probably know that going in, though.

I have a feeling that part of the reason for this lack of investment in characters' well being is that Spook House can't seem to decide who the main character actually is, who the reader should empathize with and root for. Much like STAR WARS EPISODE 1, this book follows way too many different story lines through way too many different points of view, and this dilutes the reader's investment in any given character. I understand that the author was trying to tie this book into previous novels he had written and is creating an overarching narrative thread, but it's my opinion that this book should have been Sheri's story, and if the reader could have spent more time with that character and seen the adventure primarily unfold through her eyes, the impact of the end would have been much greater.

As it is, the story is told through a densly populated character list whose personalities blend together so much that I lost track of who was who. Michael West made an attempt at fan service with naming characters using the surnames of famous genre personalities, but I found character names such as "Mancuso" and "Dr. King" to be more distracting than amusing. This sort of thing was cute when Silent Hill did it over a decade ago, not very fresh today.

My other gripe was the main baddie, an Irishman who seems to have leapt straight out of a box of Lucky Charms. His incessant dropping of Irish words into conversations was charming at first, but after the twentieth "lass" it grew to be tiresome. The scene with him picking up a girl in a bar was very well writen and effective, though.

All that being said, and really this is just more an analytical deconstruction than a review at this point - I did find a lot to enjoy about this book. The writing was crisp and clear, very visual, not nearly as evil, scary or twisted as I'm used to. Despite a little tame violence and awkward cursing here or there, this story could easily be adapted into a kick-ass Scooby Doo cartoon.

If you are looking for a brisk, lighthearted read with limited scares and originality, this might be the book for you.

The author is certainly a very talented writer, and the cover is worth the purchase price alone.

Any time I receive a free book, I always begin reading with rather low expectations. I mean, if it's free, it can't be that good, right? In this case, I was more than pleasantly surprised.

I love good horror and fantasy titles, and this book certainly did not disappoint.

Set in Colonial Bay, a quaint town in New England, the townspeople there are quite different from those found in surrounding areas. These townspeople represent the descendants of Poseidon with the ability to alternate between human form and their "sea" form at will.

Having lived in Colonial Bay for the past 200 years, they hid their identity from humans and operated shops and businesses catering to the human trade. When the discovery of Atlantis ignites anger in some of the group and a desire to return to their own way of life, war is declared on humans. Dissension mounts even within their own community on whether to continue as they were are to strike back at humans who killed many of their numbers out of fear.

This is a great read, and I recommend it for its originality, the writing, and character development.

It seems like lately I have had a lot of books to review that have fallen under the mythology themes. And this book proudly enters it into the list. I'm actually a little bit on the surprised side that I enjoyed the book as much as I did, and that's not because the book isn't good, it's because the book borders on that like between horror and urban fantasy. I love urban fantasy, but horror is just not my thing (I'm a big wimp, I won't even go see scary movies). So when I started to realize this book had a bit of the horror genre in it, I was a little nervous but I stuck it out and I was happy that I did.

I do have to say my only real complaint with the book was that the beginning was a bit on the slow side. I know writing a beginning to any book, or series involves a lot of set up by the author to put the infrastructure in place, so it's actually pretty common for me to find that a book starts a bit on the slow side. I will say that even though it starts off slow, it does pick up as the book goes on.

One of things I appreciated about the book though was I think that there is a character out there for everyone. This book has a lot of characters in it, so you are pretty much guaranteed to find someone you like within, someone you can identify with and want to know more about. And the characters all compliment each other pretty well, which I think is a pretty nice achievement by the author, especially with a cast as large as it was in this book.

I do really like that the book has a good pace. Once the book gets going it really doesn't stop, it keeps the reader interested in the plot throughout the entire thing. It does a really good job of making you want to know what is going to happen next. And the suspense factor in the book is also pretty good too, but I think that is a common element with the horror genre.

The book is a really quality read. The writing is good, the plot line is solid, the characters are well formed and easy to identify with. I like any book that makes me think, and makes me think I know what is going to go on next and then have the author completely surprise me. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys urban fantasy or horror. But if you are like me and you avoid horror at all costs, I think you might want to give this one a try, because it really is a great molding of the two genres.

A great collection of stories. It has a little bit of everything for everyone to enjoy this.

Cinema of Shadows is an excellent little horror novel rooted deeply in the style of Stephen King and the notion of "the bad place." The Woodfield Movie Palace is one of those places, a cursed structure where echoes of the horrors that went before still ring through to those who are listening. But more than the past lives there. An evil stalks the men and women who enter the Woodfield, ever seeking to add their souls to its growing tally of death.

Cinema of Shadows has everything you are looking for in a horror novel. Strong characters, an interesting location with a detailed history, chills and frights, unexpected twists and even a little true love. I love the paranormal investigation aspects, and having dabbled in that before, can testify to the accuracy of its portrayal. My only complaint is that the book felt a little short. Of course, that could be because I read it in all of two sittings. Buy the book. You won't regret it.

Brett J. Talley
Author of the award winning That Which Should Not Be½