Blood Meridian...

This book is something special. Blood Meridian or The Evening Redness in the West is easily the best book I've read all year and quite possibly one of the best ever.

Cormac McCarthy is something of an enigma, having only ever given one interview and choosing to write in a style that includes no speech marks. This doesn't mean he doesn't have a handle on the language though; the prose in this book is literally dripping with quality. The descriptions and scene setting are some of the best I've come across. He fills his book with the kind of observations littering the first few pages of Steinbeck's East of Eden.

Despite the eloquent language the subject matter is brutal, harsh and uncompromising. It tells the tale of 'the kid' of indeterminate origin and the crew of scalp-hunters he enlists with. The group is thirty strong at the beginning of the novel and from the first encounter with the Apaches you know the numbers will be whittled down. They are lead by Captain Glanton, but the true voice in the group is the Judge. Perhaps as enigmatic as the author himself, the judge is a great man, seven foot tall, bald and entirely hairless. He winds through the novel crossing 'the kids' path many a time.

This is definitely not the wild west Hollywood would like you to believe in, this is gritty, dirty and incredibly well researched. The Mexican towns and the poverty the men encounter, along with some of the outrageous acts they commit, make for a book about as far away from Dances With Wolves as you can get. This is true western fiction. Highly Recommended.

Available from www.waterstones.com £7.99

Another Two Rejections...

Damn. I never thought this writing crap would be easy, but two rejections in one day has always gotta hurt. The first was None Fatter Than Desire which I sent to Three Lobed Burning Eye and to be fair, I know the story sucks. The other was a weird 'frozen cowboy' western titled Thawin' Out which I was pleased with, but Dred turned it down. Still the editor did say it was well written, so that's something.

I've decided I need to stop focusing on getting published and actually write something I enjoy, hence why my next story involves Transvestites, Midgets, Nazi's and The Spear of Destiny. I'm aiming to submit it to the SFReader comp that closes on 31st Decmber 2006, if you're interested you can check it out here: http://www.sfreader.com/story-contest.asp

Despite all the bad news, I did win the One Word Flash Challenge (under 200 words) on Critters this week and as a special treat here is my entry. Buzz word DECEPTION

A TOWN CALLED DECEPTION

Gordy Moon limped into town on a shoeless mule with an arrow protruding from its rump. He’d managed to escape the ambush and figured himself the only survivor. Tall timber buildings rose on either side of a track swathed in dark mud. Street vendors hawked their wares in broken English and only the barking of stray dogs could be heard above them.

“Ain’t them the prettiest whores that ever lived?”

Four whores lined a balcony, leaning seductively and making crude comments to the passing men. Gordy just saw a line of eight titties.

He slid from his saddle and wiped a greasy sleeve across his mouth before entering the building. A tall thin fellow took his coins and thrust a bottle of whiskey into his hand. Gordy made his way up the steps and pushed open the door of room number three.

The whore lay on the bed, legs apart, her sex glistening with invitation. Gordy was naked quicker than a man whose clothes were alight. He stroked himself to arousal and took a leap for the whore.

Gordy hit the hard earth of the desert and the mirage broke. He looked down.

He’d snapped his favourite pistol.

See ya in two.

Pushing The Boundaries...

Well, as an aspiring horror writer, I like to think I have the balls to churn out the darkest shit my imagination can cook up. It's far easier for me, as I am by no means a proper writer. Once you become successful, and by that I'm talking novel deals and making a living at writing, there's always an element of 'Can I go that far?'

A lot of authors wouldn't contemplate it; King, Koontz and even Laymon (just about) write within a zone they and their agents are comfortable with. Jack Ketchum is a different beast all together and he proved this with A Girl Next Door - a great example of where pushing the boundaries draws out a novel that, in my opinion, craps over anything written by the aforementioned authors.

Now he's taken that boundary smashing up to 11 with a chapbook called Weed Species and in Jack Ketchum's own words: 'It's the most vicious thing I think I've ever done.' I urge you to have a read of the free excerpt here, but be warned it ain't pretty:

http://www.cemeterydance.com/page/CDP/FREEREADJackKetchum2

The price is pretty steep, but having read a fair bit of his other work I'm willing to bet it's worth every penny.

Available from www.cemeterydance.com $35.oo

A View from the Lake...

For no other reason than the fact I have absolutely nothing interesting to talk about, I thought I'd write a review of an excellent small press novel I read recently.

A View from the Lake is a dark literary novel that brings a different and much needed quality to the horror genre. It weaves the tale of Katherine who along with her husband James runs the small lakeside resort of Blissful Point. Their peaceful existence is shattered when James struggles to come to terms with the death of a young boy who is found floating in the lake. James’s dark descent into madness is followed helplessly by his wife Katherine until, one day, he simply disappears.
The following winter and Katherine is preparing to leave the resort, but when she glimpses strange figures out on the lake, or in the snow covered woods, she knows the lake holds a dark and terrible secret.
This book is a beautifully written and haunting tale, rife with emotion and eloquent prose. Gifune has a gift for atmosphere and the use of a lonely lakeside resort in the dead of winter, really draws the reader in. This book shies away from the gore and three-word-sentences of most modern horror and leaves a long lasting impression of dread. It is a book to be savoured from a criminally under rated author who is sure to start appearing on horror fan’s radars very shortly. Highly Recommended.

Available from http://blindside.net $12.95

Penis Bunnies...

I recently wrote a story about a bunch of rabbits with penises on their backs. It's as bad as it sounds and has been picked up for publication (amazingly) by the good people at Walking Bones Magazine. Stop whacking off and go here for a preview: http://www.walkingbones.com/authorspot.html