Book 6 of 2009: Hot Blood edited by Jeff Gelb and Lonn Friend

Book Description:

YOU'VE NEVER HAD HORROR LIKE THIS!

Robert R. McCammon... Graham Masterton... Harlan Ellison... Ramsey Campbell... F. Paul Wilson... Robert Bloch... Richard Christian Matheson... Dennis Etchison... these and other masters of the macabre take you into their private world of fear, fantasy, and fatal attraction. In twenty-four tales of dread and debacuery, a preternatural lust lures the beast out of a beguiling beauty... a voodoo sorceress sells a potion that promises men really big things... in a carnal boardinghouse, the living seduce the unquiet dea... and a passionate one-night stand leads a lonely salesman into an ancient rite of sexual madness.

Guaranteed to raise your hackles - and your heartbeat - these stories are not for the timid. Dare to read just one and experience that fiendishly delicious chill and thrill meant only for the initiated...

My Opinion:

I've had the HOT BLOOD books (or most of them anyway) setting on my shelf for many years now and I kept saying I was going to get to them and just kept putting them off. Now that I've read this one... I can't believe I kept putting them off! I can't say that I absolutely loved EVERY story in this book, but there are some great pieces within this one book as there are twenty-five stories and authors to choose from. I was introduced to many authors I have never read and some I had never even heard of. My list of novels to read sooner-rather-than-later has now grown as I'll be bumping up some of the authors I read within this collection. If you are looking to find some good erotic horror stories, look no further, as this book definitely gives a wide variety!

Book 5 of 2009: The Reach by Nate Kenyon

Book Description:

Young Sarah is no ordinary girl. She's been diagnosed as schizophrenic and locked away in a children's psychiatric ward. But that's not what makes her special. She also has a very strange - and powerful - gift. Scientists have been studying Sarah's remarkable psychic power for years, enhancing it, manipulating it... twisting it into something evil. But their plans have gone horribly wrong. How much longer can they control Sarah? And what will happen if her powers are unleashed?

My Opinion:

Well... considering I normally take at least 5 days to finish most books, I'd assume me saying I read this in 48 hours would tell people how much I enjoyed this book. It was a very fast-paced and intense read. I kept reading on as I wanted to find out how things were going to end up for Sarah. This wasn't a "scary" horror book, but had lots of action scenes as well as paranormal elements within so the book couldn't be labeled as just a "thriller" so it's definitely a horror book, just a lighter one than what I've been reading lately, which was a refreshing change of pace.

Nate Kenyon doesn't tend to lean overly heavy on the details of surroundings and such, which I like, as I get bored at times with all the details. I enjoy dialogue and there was quite a lot within the book (whether spoken verbally or to oneself mentally). I have yet to read BLOODSTONE and am really looking forward to doing so now that I've had a taste of Kenyon's writing!

Book 4 of 2009: Bloodstained Oz by James A. Moore and Christopher Golden

Book Description:

Something's gone wrong over the rainbow...

1933. The winds of theDust Bowl have reduced what had been the nation's breadbasket to adesert full of broken dreams and desperate prayers. The water is gone,the crops are ruined and, for the people of Hawley, Kansas, there'slittle left to struggle for except the chance for another day in hell.

There'sa storm coming, one that will rip the roofs from farms and scatter thewretched crops far and wide. One little girl will find a treasure trovein a ruined field and converse with a nightmare. One man will findsalvation in the dirt and damnation close on its heels. One woman willsuffer the sins of her husband and seek hope in the actions of her onlychild.

Dying faith will be tested, because that isn't rainwetting the crops; it's blood. Those aren't trinkets and toys that arelying hidden in the fields; they're nightmares wrapped in falsepromises. And while the darkest storms bring the brightest rainbows,that isn't a pot of gold waiting at the far end; it's an emerald thatgleams and flickers with its own infernal light.

Join bestselling authors Christopher Golden and James A. Moore as they show you there's no hell like home...

My Opinion:

First off, I want to thank James A. Moore for helping me get my hands on a copy of this book as it's not easy to find (or afford at least!!!). Secondly, it took me a while to finally get around to reading this as I didn't have an e-reader and am not a fan of reading on the screen, but now that I have an e-reader, I finally have read this novella and enjoyed it. It honestly wasn't quite what I was expecting. I guess I was assuming it would follow along the original storyline of THE WIZARD OF OZ a bit more and just add in a bit of blood and gore, but instead it took a few of the characters from Oz and such and added a bit of twist to them. I think my favorite was the fact that they turned the "evil flying monkeys" into vampires! Granted, I'm a sucker (no pun intended) for anything vampire related. So... for fans of Oz and/or horror or even those who aren't fans of the story as this warps the story quite drastically... be sure to track down this story and give it a shot.

Book 3 of 2009: Deep Inside by Polly Frost

Book Description:

“I haven’t taken my pills for two days. I put them under my tongue and only pretend to swallow.” “Two days? But aren’t you---” “Dangerously oversexed?” she says. “You bet!” Adominatrix with a discipline problem. A nervous virgin tempted by anunearthly sacrifice. Lust-crazed Viagra addicts. A seductive serialkiller. A sexual psychic who can foresee other people’s eroticadventures. And a street cop hooked on alien ecstasy… The sensual menand women in this sizzling collection are all in search of the ultimatesexual high. No plain vanilla sex here; driven by insatiable desires,they push their bodies and souls to the limits, exploring the outerreaches of eroticism. From arcane sexual rituals to the heights ofHollywood decadence, Deep Inside breaks every taboo as it takesyou inside the throbbing flesh and twisted urges of the kinky, thedepraved, and the supernatural. Turn down the lights and enter a newrealm of exotic and forbidden pleasures.

My Opinion:

Polly Frost has put together a very unique collection with DEEP INSIDE. This collection is made up of a wide variety of kinks and she pushes them to their extreme limits by adding in supernatural elements. I found all of the stories quite entertaining, especially:

The Dominatrix Has a Career Crisis
Imagine It
Visions of Ecstasy
Deep Inside

This is the only collection that Frost has out thus far, but I am hoping she releases other books in the future, whether short stories or full-length novels as I'm definitely interested in reading more by her. For fans of erotic horror or sci-fi erotica... I definitely recommend checking out DEEP INSIDE!

Book 2 of 2009: Mister B. Gone by Clive Barker

Book Description:

Mister B. Gone marks the long-awaited return of Clive Barker, thegreat master of the macabre, to the classic horror story. Thisbone-chilling novel, in which a medieval devil speaks directly to hisreader--his tone murderous one moment, seductive the next--is anever-before-published memoir allegedly penned in the year 1438. Thedemon has embedded himself in the very words of this tale of terror,turning the book itself into a dangerous object, laced with menace onlytoo ready to break free and exert its power.

A brilliant and truly unsettling tour de force of the supernatural, Mister B. Gone escorts the reader on an intimate and revelatory journey to uncover the shocking truth of the battle between Good and Evil.

My Opinion:

This was my first peek into the works of Clive Barker. I have a feeling I'm going to enjoy some of his other books better than this one however. This was a fun read and quite funny at times, but wasn't what I was expecting from Clive from what I had heard about him. I believe that this book is quite a bit different from some of his other stuff though. I'll be checking out THE HELLBOUND HEART and the BOOKS OF BLOOD soon so that I can give him a better shot. I think the best parts of the book were when the demon was talking directly to the reader. Those I found quite comical! I have a feeling his other books will be a bit darker though and I'm looking forward to checking out that side of Clive. I definitely recommend this book though to fans of horror and also to fans of fiction that don't mind a mild bit of gore mixed in. (it's rather tame, but there are a few things that those extremely weak in stomach won't like to read).

Book 1 of 2009: Cage of Bones and Other Deadly Obsessions by John Everson

Book Description:

Released through Delirium Books on October 13, 2000, Cage of Bones & Other Deadly Obsessions includes 20 erotic horror stories, eight of which are exclusive to the collection.

Consisting of:

Yellow
Long Distance Call
Cage of Bones
Dead Girl on the Side of the Road
Pumpkin Head
Direkit Seed
Every Last Drop
When Barrettes Brought Justice to a Burning Heart
The Mouth
Creaks
Remember Me, My Husband
Anniversary
Wooden
Swallowing the Pill
Broken Window
Tomorrow
Mirror image
Murdering the Language
The Last Plague
Bloodroses

My Opinion:

I was first introduced in the fall of 2008 to John Everson's works and have since read almost all of his works, minus a few random short stories. This is one of three short story collections he has out and this is by far my favorite of the three. Pretty much all of the stories in this one have some kind of erotic theme to them in addition to being a horror story, so I'm sure that helped put it over the top of NEEDLES & SINS (which is also a FABULOUS collection!!!) with me. 17 out of the 20 stories in this collection were new to me, but the 3 that were repeats are 3 of his best stories... BLOODROSES, PUMPKIN HEAD, and SWALLOWING THE PILL... the other 17, well... I am having a hard time picking favorites! I was trying to determine before starting this review my top 5 and I honestly can't limit to just 5 as I have 7 I REALLY liked and honestly there are aren't any in the book I didn't like. But... here are the 7 I picked that I liked most and I will attempt to put them in my order of preference, but it's not going to be easy as I enjoyed them all so much:

7. Murdering the Languages - I enjoyed this one because I liked how John actually entertwined an experience from his past to write the story. The story did make me very sad though as I hate that someone could actually deface books in the way the character did, but... in the end she got what she deserved so it was nice seeing the books get their revenge!

6. Dead Girl on the Side of the Road - I thought this was an odd little story and a really neat idea. I actually would've been curious to see what would've happened after the "signing" at the end of the story!

5. Direkit Seed - A bit of fantasy was interwoven into this story as well as horror and erotica so it was a well-blended mix. That appealed to me as well as the sense of domination that was carried out throughout the story. Poor helpless guy is in bar alone... pretty girl comes along and invites him home... pretty girl chains him to her bed and implants dragon eggs into helpless guys testicles... no big deal, right? LOL!!! The story shouldn't have been amusing, but yet at times it was!

4. Every Last Drop - I enjoyed how it seemed sex pretty much overpowered the main character of this story. So much to the point he didn't seem to be even realizing he was at work or what other people were saying to him. It seemed like the only thing he could here were the summons of his "mistress" (if you want to call "her" that!)

3. Long Distance Call - This was just a good, creepy horror tale! I think it actually would've been good even extended into a full-length novel as it definitely had potential to have more going on! (Of course, there are so many phone movies out right now from Japan we'd have to avoid titles like The Ring and One Missed Call... LOL!!! Long Distance Call would work though!)

2. The Mouth - I don't understand why so many people find kinky sex to be bad. I mean, yeah, I know some of it is said to be taboo, but I'm sure vanilla sex is just as taboo in some areas of the world if it's done for pleasure rather than procreation. This story was all about a freak that had her vagina and mouth reversed. The story itself was very "enlightening" (for lack of a better word), but it just made me sad to think that those that can't help being different whether due to a physical deformity or for having different desires in life are considered "freaks" and treated differently. I mean, I consider myself to be kinky in a lot of respects and I'd hate to think I'd be looked down upon as a freak just because of that. (granted, being called "freaky" in a good sense isn't bad. *grin*)

1. Cage of Bones - This story made me wonder about Mr. Everson a bit. LOL!!! I've met him and chatted with him on several occassions, but sometimes I wonder where authors come up with their ideas! I just gotta say... WOW! I had a mouse in my apartment last year that I couldn't manage to get rid of, but even I wouldn't have done what he did to the poor li'l mouse in this story! I'll just leave it at that! This was one f'ed up story, but I thoroughly enjoyed it... despite the mouse part... and love that their are minds out there that think up this stuff to give us readers that enjoy the sick & twisted good books to read. Thank you John!!!

Definitely a good first book for 2009!!! I hope my future reads for the year can at least be marginally as good as I'm sure it'll be hard to top my favorite author.

2008 - A Year In Books

Top 5 Books Read:

1. Sacrifice by John Everson

2. The Sinister Mr. Corpse by Jeff Strand

3. Needles & Sins by John Everson

4. Bound by Sasha White

5. Pandora Drive by Tim Waggoner

Close Runner-Up: Johnny Gruesome by Greg Lamberson

Also Close Runner-Up: Jigsaw Man by Gord Rollo


Top 5 New-To-Me Authors of 2008:

1. John Everson (below is a picture from where I got to meet him back in September!!!)
















2. Sasha White
3. Tim Waggoner
4/5. J.A. Konrath, Gord Rollo, Jack Ketchum, and Gina Ranalli

Book Totals

This year I've been working a bit on de-cluttering my apartment. I haven't gotten nearly as far as I'd have liked, but I'm still working and hope to increase the pace now that the new year has started as that is becoming one of my main focuses. One of the biggest projects of that is thinning out Mt. To-Be-Read as I probably had around 20,000 books here in this small 2 bedroom townhouse apartment. That leaves very little space for anything else and therefore with everything else I have... that leaves little room to walk or for me. So... lots of books must go!!! I'm managed to get rid of close to 20 largish boxes of books already which is a good start, but still not nearly enough! I had a hard time at first in thinning them out because I kept thinking about how I haven't read them yet and I MIGHT want to read them SOMEDAY, but... then I started realizing that I really am only focussing on reading very few genres from all the genres I have here and so the "weeding out" process has become much easier!

My books read total in 2008 was 65, which is sad considering how many books I have yet to read here, but good for me compared to some of my past years and how busy my life stays. But within that 65 here's the breakdown of what genres I actually read:

Horror - 28
Erotica - 15
Paranormal Romance - 7
Contemporary Romance - 3
Bizarro - 2
Memoir (both of which were erotica basically) - 2
Mystery - 2
Paranormal Mystery - 2
Urban Fantasy - 2
Teen (Paranormal Romance) - 1
Straight Fiction - 1

So basically, I'm not touching my horror, erotica, or paranormal bookcases as I'd have a REALLY hard time thinning those out, but everything else is getting dumped majorly! I'm sure my apartment will breathe a sigh of relief once I get everything thinned out as that's a LOT of weight getting out of here!!!