As a fan of horror movies, I did a quick survey to see what's on the horizon for 2015. Included among the ones that look interesting are the following:
The Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death - I really enjoyed the original movie, based on the novel by British horror writer Susan Hill. Hill has co-written the screenplay for this movie, which occurs forty years after the original haunting when a group of school children are evacuated from the London bombings during World War II. The group takes up residence in Eel Marsh House and soon discovers they are not alone. (Release Date: January 2, 2015)
The Visit - I enjoy the movies of M. Night Shymalan, even if they tend to be uneven in the quality of their scripts and acting. There's always something of interest and some element of newness in his story-telling. The Visit is the story of a brother and sister who are sent to their grandparents’ remote
Pennsylvania farm for a week-long trip. The children discover that
the elderly couple is involved in something deeply disturbing, and see their chances of returning home diminish each day. (Release Date: September 11, 2015)
There are a number of other horror sequels and re-makes planned for 2015, including the update of the Predator franchise. To see more movies airing in 2015, please click here.
And, speaking of 2015, Happy New Year to everyone reading this blog!
Rocky Wood, the president of the Horror Writers Association, died on December 1, 2014, after battling ALS, often referred to as Lou Gehrig's disease, since 2010. If you watch the video of the 2014 Bram Stoker Awards banquet, you will see Rocky Wood in attendance in a wheelchair, remaining, as always, extremely active in support of horror writers in spite of his debilitating illness.
Rocky Wood was considered the foremost authority on Stephen King, and he published extensive research on King, as well as a collection of his previously unpublished works. He won the Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement in Non-Fiction for Stephen King: A Literary Companion. King once commented that Rocky Wood knew his work better than he himself did. In fact, King called upon Rocky Wood's research skills to ensure continuity between The Shining and Doctor Sleep.
Rocky Wood also wrote graphic novels, and he won a Bram Stoker Award for Superior Achievement on a Graphic Novel in 2012 for Witch Hunts: A Graphic History of the Burning Times, which examined the witch hunting phenomenon in Europe and New England.
Lisa Morton, a long-time friend and admirer of Rocky who co-authored his award-winning graphic novel on witch hunts, is the new HWA president. In an open letter to HWA members, she speaks of his kindness, his strong support for women's rights, and his devotion to charities, including his work at local animal shelters. Ms. Morton describes him as a master of organization, who worked tirelessly to encourage young writers and to expand the HWA volunteer base and membership.
To share condolences with his family, please visit the guestbook at his official website.
Bruce Campbell in Evil Dead II: photo courtesy of the IGN website
Fans of The Evil Dead cult horror movies will be pleased to learn that there will be a new television series next year called Ash Vs. Evil Dead. Director Sam Raimi, who made the original movie in 1981, followed by Evil Dead II and Army of Darkness, will be the executive producer of the new show, as well as writing and directing its first episode. And, of course, actor Bruce Campbell of Evil Dead movie fame will play Ash Williams in the new series.
My son is a huge fan of cult horror movies, especially The Evil Dead franchise, and was able to get an autograph from Bruce Campbell at this year's ComicCon in Ottawa. Mr. Campbell signed the autograph despite the fact that his booth had technically closed for the day, and he was very kind to my son, who will be a fan of his for life.
I'm currently watching Bruce Campbell in the series Burn Notice, which I bought on DVD. He plays a thoroughly enjoyable character who is ethically-challenged, but always comes through for his friends.
In addition to starring in many cult horror films and co-starring in the Burn Notice television series, the versatile Campbell has had roles in mainstream movies and numerous other television shows, as well as being a voice talent for Disney. And believe it or not, he is an ordained minister who has performed marriages. (Source: Wikipedia)
The
Plaid Raccoon Press is pleased to announce the publication of
The Home Child by Lynn L. Clark. The novel tells the story of
Jake Hall, a transplanted city dweller who is trying to adjust to the
realities of country life. Jake knows it isn't going to be an easy
transition, and he's prepared for major renovations to the old farm
house he's purchased. But what he hasn't counted on is finding a
former resident still inhabiting the house in spirit form!
Synopsis
Set
in eastern Ontario, Canada, against the backdrop of a rural
town in transition, the novel combines historical detail and the
supernatural in the poignant story of a Scottish home child who wants
simply to be reunited with the family he lost so many years ago.
Historical Context Starting
in 1869 and continuing to the mid-twentieth century, approximately
100,000 children were sent to Canada from the United Kingdom.
Although the majority of the children were from England,
approximately 7,000 children came from the Quarrier orphan homes in
Scotland. Organized as a mission of mercy, this child migration was
supposed to allow poverty-stricken children to have a better life
abroad. But only two per cent of the home children were in fact
orphans. Separated from their parents and siblings, many of these
children were abused and exploited as a source of cheap labour when
they came to Canada.
Author Biography
Lynn L. Clark was born in Woodstock, New Brunswick. She
received her B.A. and M.A. from Acadia University in Wolfville, Nova
Scotia. Prior to her retirement in 2011, she worked for the federal
government in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. She lives in a small town in
eastern Ontario with her husband, crime fiction writer Michael J.
McCann. Lynn is currently working on her second supernatural novel.
Excerpt and Buy Links
To read an excerpt from The Home Child, please click here.
Now that Lynn has published her first novel of the supernatural, she
has agreed to assume full editorial control of Behind the Walls of Nightmare, which will continue to focus on the horror genre, including topics related to my supernatural thriller, The Ghost Man. Meanwhile, I'll be managing The Overnight Bestsellerblog on crime fiction, writing, and other adventures.
Now that it's December, I did some internet research to see what gifts are available for horror lovers. They range from the traditional horror movies, posters, and books to many novelty items, including gargoyle pens, Frankenstein tins with candy, and cracked doll head candles. However, these novelty items tend to be pricey unless there are still some Halloween markdowns out there in cyberspace that you can find.
For those on a budget, I'm reprinting a list I prepared for last year's blog post:
-
Record some of the free offerings on television and make a themed set
of horror movies (e.g., killer clowns; exorcisms; haunted
houses);
- Give a subscription to a horror magazine or buy a horror-themed calendar;
-
Take advantage of sales on t-shirts from printing companies that have
no minimum purchase requirement and order a custom-made t-shirt for less
(as low as $5-$7.50) with horror graphics downloaded from the internet;
- Visit dollar stores and local flea markets to see if there are horror collectibles that are reasonably priced; or
-
Give your own gift certificate for a night of horror movie viewing at
your house or a Walking Dead festival (complete with costumes if you're
up for it).
If you have some free reading time over the
holidays, you might want to download the works of Poe (for free or
minimal cost). If you like psychological horror, Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House is also a natural.
In this week's post, we are pleased to present Dark is the Sea by British author Heather Blanchard.
Synopsis
Haunted by her mother's disappearance and plagued by nightmares, eighteen year old Rowan Munro abandons London for Dorchay, the remote Scottish village where she spent her childhood. With the help of her eccentric aunt and a familiar face from the past, she unlocks a power in her that is at once terrifying yet curiously addictive.
As she uncovers the deeply buried secrets of her family, she awakens something only imaginable in her worst nightmares. The Hunter: centuries old, malevolent, ferocious...and intent on killing Rowan and those closest to her. To survive, Rowan must learn to harness her newfound inheritance, and use her powers to finally confront the brutal, murderous force which has haunted her family for generations.
Heather Blanchard lives in London with her husband Paul. With a childhood spent in the Scottish Highlands and Yorkshire, she developed a passion not only for books, but also for creative writing. Dark is the Sea, her first novel, emerged from a love of ghost stories, fairy tales, folklore, and old movies.
Our Review of Dark is the Sea
In her debut novel, Heather Blanchard skilfully combines elements of the Gothic novel, romance, native folklore, witchcraft, and fantasy to create a story that will appeal to young adults and older readers alike. The Scottish Highlands provide an evocative backdrop as the heroine confronts her past.and realizes her strengths as a rightful part of her inheritance. The themes of family and loss are central to the novel, and Ms. Blanchard makes us genuinely care for and share in the fate of Rowan Munro.
Ms. Blanchard has carefully researched the language and folklore of the region to add authenticity to her story. Her prose is cadenced, and she does an excellent job of using descriptive prose to engage the reader and add to the intimacy of the story.
Dark is the Sea will appeal to lovers of Gothic novels, romance, intrigue, sorcery, and fantasy.
Just in time for Christmas, we are pleased to showcase Santa's Little Helper by H.D. Gordon.
SYNOPSIS
He
shows up in a white box, with a bright red book under his arm... He
wears a jolly grin and hat, a suit with gold bells and green yarn... He
watches you for Santa, or so his red book claims... But though his grin
is jolly, he's not here for fun and games... The
children have been chosen, such precious little souls they are... And
may the gods be with them, if they wish to make it very far... For
Santa's Little Helper does not say, but knows important things... He
knows when you've been bad or good, and what monsters stalk your
dreams... He knows when you are sleeping, he knows when you're
awake...He's picking out his presents...He's got some souls to take.
AUTHOR'S BIO
H.D.
Gordon is the bestselling author of the Alexa Montgomery Saga, the Joe
Knowe series, and the Surah Stormsong novels. She is a lifelong
reader and writer, a true lover of words. When she is not reading or
writing she is raising her two daughters, playing a little guitar, and
spending time with her family. She lives in
the northeastern United States.
OUR REVIEW OF SANTA'S LITTLE HELPER
Heather Gordon is a young writer who already has an impressive number of books to her credit. Like any good horror writer, she knows how to frighten us by undermining our comfort level with the familiar. In Santa's Little Helper, she takes the benign elf that we traditionally associate with the Christmas season and turns it into a grotesque and frightening symbol of evil. "Santa's" little helper becomes "Satan's" little helper.
Ms. Gordon tells the story of four different children--recipients of the elf doll--and their families.The children recognize instinctively that the doll is evil and try their hardest to get rid of it, but they must convince the less imaginative adults in their lives of the danger it represents. Although the narrative could have been shortened and tightened up, the author does a good job in creating and maintaining suspense until the final confrontation between good and evil.
After reading this book, you won't look at Santa's elves in quite the same light! NOTE: This novel will appeal to horror lovers at a young adult or older level. It is not suitable for children. Trailer Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dvFPqZk_wM4
We're pleased to introduce Mutantis, a new film produced by Dire Wit Films, an indie company. It is a parody of and homage to the more sleazy monster films of the
'70s, and is written by Mark Leake and directed by Kelly Fitzgerald.
Synopsis
When an unscrupulous scientist drags his stepchildren out into the forest to use them as bait--in the hopes of luring out Bigfoot--not even the team of hillbillies he hires can contain the horror they find: the horror of Mutantis! Only the adventurer Dr. William Fury may be able to stop the beast, but hope dwindles fast once Dr. Fury realizes that the monster is not only intent on murder, but procreation as well. Could this be the end of the world as we know it?
Our Review of Mutantis
Horror film buffs--especially those who like campy movies--will enjoy this send-up of the "more sleazy" horror movies of the '70s. There are the really bad special effects, such as the toy helicopter, that pay homage to Ed Wood, the badly dubbed dialogue which recreates the worst of the old Italian horror movies, a hokey and badly-costumed Godzilla-like monster who personifies EVIL, and a plot worthy of the best/worst of low-budget horror films, with the theme of toxic sludge mutation thrown in for good measure. To add to the general confusion, Mutantis is not only half-man and half-beast, but also half-female and half-male, and the female roles in the film are played by males.
If you're looking for "buckets of gore, cheese, [and] sleaze," Mutantis is definitely your film! (Quotation from Amazon: Editorial Review of Mutantis)
NOTE: Due to the graphic nature of this film, it is not suitable for viewing by children and young teens.
Halloween may be over, but for fans of the horror genre there's always something to look forward to. Here are two new releases.
The Halloween Mask and Other Strange Tales
This is a collection of 18 short stories by David Stuart Davies, the editor of Sherlock Magazine and the Crime Writers' Association's RedHerrings magazine.
According to the publisher, the stories are designed to shock and surprise you by taking you into the "misty world of the supernatural where all kinds of dark mischief takes
place." (Release Date: November 1, 2014)
The Deep
Written under the pseudonym Nick Cutter, The Deep tells of a plague that is decimating the globe: it causes people to forget little-by-little until their bodies forget how to function involuntarily. A possible cure is being investigated by a research lab eight miles below the surface of the Pacific Ocean ... but the lab has become incommunicado.
The Deep is described as part horror and part psychological nightmare in the tradition of Stephen King and Clive Barker. Nick Cutter is the pseudonym of Craig Davidson, an acclaimed Canadian novelist and short-story writer. (Release Date:January 13, 2015)
Stay tuned to Behind the Walls of Nightmare for news and reviews of other upcoming horror/supernatural releases.
Photograph: Blutgruppe/Corbis courtesy The Guardian
Organizers of a Japanese award for science fiction, the Hoshi prize, say they will open up the award to a broader spectrum of competitors next year. The Guardian reports that the prize, which honors one of Japan's major science fiction writers, Shinichi Hoshi, will accept stories created by artificial intelligence, as well as from "other non-humans, such as space aliens and animals," provided they are written in Japanese.Science fiction novelist Adam Roberts, when he first heard the news, thought it was "bonkers," but then decided that novels created by AI weren't that far-fetched given that many are written according to a very specific pattern. Roberts queries: "Do
we need a human being to write Dan Brown novels? Might a computer even
do a better job than a human there?”
The Guardian didn't comment on how animals and aliens would make their submissions. For the full text of the article, please click here.
A team of researchers led by a forensic anthropologist from the University of South Florida has been trying to determine the fate of boys who died in custody at the Arthur G. Dozier School for Boys in Marianna, Florida. The researchers have found more than 50 sets of remains in the makeshift cemetery of unmarked graves on school property. The school operated for more than a century before finally being closed in 2011. Throughout the years, former students came forward with stories of physical abuse and murder at the facility.
The investigation took a particularly unusual turn when the team of researchers decided to exhume the remains of Thomas Curry, who died in 1925. He was one of at least seven boys who died under suspicious circumstances after escaping from the school. The Florida death certificate indicated Curry's skull had been crushed by an unknown source.
Historical records indicated that Curry was not buried on school property, but that his remains were sealed in a coffin and sent to his grandmother in Philadelphia for burial in a local cemetery. The lead researcher, Erin Kimmerle, obtained permission to exhume Curry's remains, which she hoped would be better preserved than those excavated to date in the school cemetery. However, when the grave was opened, there was no trace of Curry's body.
According to the CBS news report, "[w]hat
made it unusual was that there were none of the usual tell-tale signs
that a body had ever been inside. There was no hair, bits of clothing or
teeth, not even tooth enamel which was present among the much poorer
preserved remains . . . excavated in Marianna."
And if you are interested in following-- from the beginning-- this four-part CBS Web series on the search for the dead from the Dozier school, please click here.
Once again, the Horror Writers Association (HWA) is featuring a month of Halloween-themed blog posts under "Halloween Haunts" on the HWA Dark Whispers blog. The posts allow authors to share Halloween
memories and stories and thoughts on writing horror.
My blog post entitled "The Enduring Popularity of Vampires" will appear on October 15. Please check it out at the HWA blog site. I am giving away three digital copies of The Ghost Man.
We're pleasedto participate in a Tribute Books mini blog tour for The Infinity Program by Richard H. Hardy.
We asked Mr. Hardy what challenges he faced in writing a novel that blends elements of the supernatural, romance, and the high-tech world. Guest Post
The
Infinity Program blends the Techno-Thriller and the Science Fiction
genres. It also features a romance as well as a mainstream approach to
both character and setting. My goal was to create an interesting mix
that readers would find fresh and unique.
The unfolding romance
of Jon Graeme and Lettie Olsen wasn’t planned from the beginning— it
just happened as I wrote the book. It provides a subplot, a backdrop to
the main action and opens windows into the inner lives of the
characters. Their evolving relationship also serves as an interesting
contrast to Harry Sale, the brilliant but isolated programming genius.
The
blend of High-Tech with a fantastic alien technology presented its own
unique challenges. In order to be true to the high-tech setting, I had
to use some computer terminology. I used it sparingly and focused on
building a narrative where the technicalities disappeared behind the
story. With the alien technology, I used a different approach,
emphasizing the fantastic and minimizing the explanations. More than
anything, I wanted the reader to have fun.
My 26 years in the IT
field gave me lots of raw material for office life in a high
tech-company. I saw firsthand how stressful and demanding it can be.
The Infinity Program gives the reader an inside view of this intense,
quirky, and sometimes Dilbertesque environment. The IT setting
provides the base for the reader to leap into the high-tech world of the
future.
Our lives are such a mix of different elements. One
day we do difficult things with ease, the next we trip up over the
simple things; a day of joy is followed by a day of sadness; an act of
kindness is followed by an act of selfishness; thoughtfulness is
followed by a lack of attention. We never know quite what to expect.
Mixing genres in fiction is a natural way to capture something of this
heady blend. When it’s done well, it transcends genre and the book
stands on its own.
Book Summary and Buy Links
Jon Graeme and Harry Sale are unlikely
friends. Harry is a world-class programmer, but his abrasive
personality alienates co-workers. In contrast, Jon is a
handsome and easy-going technical writer, the low man on the
IT totem pole.
Sharing a love of nature, the men set out together, planning
to go their separate ways--Jon on a hike and Harry, fly
fishing. Three days later, Jon arrives at the rendezvous
point, but his friend is nowhere in sight. When Jon finds
Harry unconscious on the floor of a cave, Harry claims to have
been lying there the entire time. But he is neither cold nor
hungry. What Jon doesn't know is that Harry fell into an
underground cavern, where he came into contact with an alien
quantum computer.
Back at work, Harry jettisons his regular tasks and
concentrates exclusively on inventing new operating language
to access the alien system. In the process he crashes his
office's Super Computer and is fired. Jon convinces the
company to give Harry a second chance, arguing that the system
he has invented will make them millions.
Jon has no idea what havoc Harry is about to unleash.
Richard H. Hardy was born in Glasgow,
Scotland, during a week of relentless bombing raids just before
the close of World War II. The day he was born an incendiary bomb
fell on the church across the street from where he lived, so he is
fond of saying that he entered the world with a big adrenaline
rush.
His family later moved to England and then on to America.
After college Richard bounced through a series of temporary jobs
as he traveled around the country, wanting nothing more than to
write fiction. A job driving a library van allowed him free time
to write several short stories and work on a novel.
He and his wife moved to New Hampshire, where he took an entry
level job at a software company. He was soon promoted to the
technical writing department and ended up producing over 500,000
words of online documentation. After a few years he was promoted
to the programming department and ended up as the Senior EDI
Programmer, creating EDI maps and writing UNIX scripts and
troubleshooting on AIX systems throughout the U.S. and Canada.
After he retired, he started writing fiction again. The
Infinity Program is his first published novel.
In light of recent events in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, those who have stereotypical views of this country might be forgiven. Although it's not quite the wilderness that some tourists envision, there is the odd episode that reminds Canadians they are indeed sharing the country with various wildlife.
Recently, a bear was roaming a Vancouver neighborhood, causing a delay in mail delivery. The postman left a notice in a communal mailbox explaining that he had not delivered a parcel because there was a "bear at door".
The postman also took a picture of the bear.
The Bear at the Door
Canada Post is said to be investigating the incident.
The Telegraph is already getting into the spirit of October with its list of fifteen scary books to terrify you this Halloween.
The masters of horror are cited, including Bram Stoker and Edgar Allan Poe.
Also included are two of the best psychological horror stories, Henry James's The Turn of the Screw and Shirley Jackson's The Haunting of Hill House.
There is a nod to various contemporary horror writers with the inclusion of Stephen King's Pet Sematary and Joe Hill's Heart-Shaped Box. Peter Straub's Ghost Story also makes the list, as does British writer Susan Hill's The Woman in Black. (You may have seen the film version with Daniel Radcliffe.)
To view the full list and see how it compares with your own list of all-time favorites, please click here.
If you're a fan of Anne Rice's The Vampire Chronicles, you'll be pleased to know that her eleventh novel in theseries, Prince Lestat, will be released on October 28, 2014. It's been eleven years since the last Chronicles novel, so the new book is creating lots of buzz. It is a sequel to the first five books of the series, and it reprises many of her most memorable characters, as well as introducing new vampires to the mix. She is already working on a follow-up novel tentatively entitled Blood Paradise.
On the movie front, it was announced in August that Universal Studios has acquired the motion picture rights to The Vampire Chronicles. Hard to believe, but it's been twenty years since the film version of Interview with the Vampire with Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt was released. According to an article in The Guardian, the purchase of the motion picture rights by Universal Studios is part of their plans "to reanimate old-school movie monsters". For the full text of the article, including a film vampire quiz, please see http://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/aug/08/universal-anne-rice-vampire-chronicles-book-series.
Fans of The Walking Dead should mark October 12 on their calendar so they won't miss the first episode of the show's fifth season on AMC. You'll
recall that Season 4 ended with the revelation that Terminus wasn't much
of a refuge after all. It will be interesting to see who survives this
season. The show seems to have a particularly high character mortality
rate. If you'd like to see a trailer for the new season, please visit http://www.hypable.com/2014/07/25/walking-dead-season-5-air-date-trailer/.
And the Horror Writers Association will once again host a month-long Halloween Haunts event in October on its Dark Whispers blog site. Stay tuned for more information on this annual event.
In the meantime, please feel free to share news of your favorite horror novels, films, television series, and websites as we start the countdown to Halloween 2014.
Thanks, everyone, for sticking with me while I took the summer off to
write. I'm pleased to say that I have finished the first of my new
crime fiction series set in Canada. It was quite a learning curve for me
because there are so many differences between U.S. and Canadian
criminal investigation procedures. At the same time, I enjoyed
developing two new characters, Kevin Walker and Ellie March of the
Ontario Provincial Police. The draft of the novel is with an OPP subject
matter expert who so kindly agreed to allow me to pick his brain for
this new series. Stay tuned for more information on the new novel, and
rest assured that you also haven't seen the last of Donaghue and
Stainer.
Now that Behind the Walls of Nightmare is up
and running again, I will be talking about the latest supernatural and horror news. If you have a particular topic that you'd
like to see covered in the blog, please be sure to let me know.
I will be taking a break from my three weekly blogs, The Overnight Bestseller, Open Investigations, and Behind the Walls of Nightmare so I can focus on completing the first novel in my new Canadian crime series.
Thanks to all of you who continue to follow my blogs. I expect to be back at the end of August with an update on the new series.
I will continue to post reviews as part of the Tribute Books blog tour. Next week's review on The OvernightBestseller will feature Dianne Ascroft's Dancing Shadows, Tramping Hooves.
In the meantime, I will remain active on Facebook and Twitter.
With The Walking Dead consigned to zombie land until next season, you may be looking for a good horror or science fiction movie to watch. Here are some current offerings which may interest you. (I haven't seen any of these so their inclusion in this blog post is not intended as a recommendation.)
One movie that looks pretty scary from the trailer is Oculus, from the creators of Paranormal Activity. The movie is based on the premise that a malevolent supernatural force inhabiting an antique mirror leads to the death of its owners. Mirrors are always an intriguing feature of horror movies in terms of what lies behind the surface of the glass, so you might want to give this movie a look.
The science fiction movie Transcendence starring Johnny Depp plays on the theme of man's quest for immortality and endless knowledge as a plan to create a super intelligence goes badly astray.
And, finally, if you're a fan of the Godzilla movies, a new restoration of the original 1956 Japanese classic is now airing at movie theatres. It is directed by Ishirô Honda, with
special effects by the legendary Eiji Tsuburaya, and it has a much darker and more menacing tone than its sequels, imitations, and takeoffs.
The Guardian has an interesting article on the genesis of Stephen King's first novel, Carrie, on the 40th anniversary of its publication. King talks about the confluence of ideas that made him start writing the novel back in the day when he was still working in a laundry. Of particular interest is the fact that King discarded the opening pages of the novel in frustration and decided not to go any further with it. It was King's wife Tabitha who rescued the pages from the wastebasket, read them, and urged her husband to continue telling the story.
The article also has a section detailing how other horror writers think the novel has influenced the horror genre.
Novelist and Guardian writer James Smythe comments:
One of the primary joys of Carrie for me – once I get past the
astonishing jealousy that it was King's debut published novel, and that
he was only 26 when it was published – is the structure. It
was the first thing I can remember reading that showed me that a novel
didn't simply have to be a linear single narrative. It uses so many
different voices and ways of delivering the story that it's almost
giddying; and it's astonishing assured and neat to boot.
Behind the Walls of Nightmare is pleased to participate in another Tribute Books blog tour as we welcome Michael F. Stewart, author of The Terminals (Episode 1: Spark).
The Terminals: Book Summary
Sometimes the dead don’t want to
talk.
You need Terminals to make them.
Terminals solve crimes in this realm by investigating them
in the next.
Lt. Col. Christine Kurzow, fresh from a failed suicide attempt
after she cost 11 of her soldiers their lives, is recruited into
the covert unit of Terminals as a handler. It's an easy sell. If
she's really determined to die, it’s a chance to give her death
meaning.
But her first case—convincing a monk to chase Hillar the Killer
into the afterlife to find the location of a missing bus and the
children it carried—has her wondering how to make a dead
psychopath talk.
Christine must follow the clues sent back by the shotgun-toting
monk, who tracks Hillar through the seven deeps of hell, so she
can find eleven kids before it’s too late.
Maybe this time killing a man will give Christine a reason to
live.
Michael F. Stewart is the author of the
Assured Destruction series, which sprawls across three books, two
websites, one blog, seven Twitter accounts, Tumblr, Facebook, and six
graphic origin stories. He likes to combine storytelling with
technology and pioneered interactive storytelling with Scholastic
Canada, Australia and New Zealand’s anti-cyberbullying program
Bully For You. He has authored four graphic novels with Oxford
University Press Canada’s award-winning Boldprint series.
Publications of nonfiction titles on corruption and children’s
rights by Rubicon Publishing, as well as early readers
with Pearson, are all forthcoming in 2014 and 2015.
For adults, Michael has written The Sand Dragon, a horror about a
revenant, prehistoric vampire set in the tar sands; Hurakan, a Mayan-themed thriller which pits the Maya against the MS-13 with a New
York family stuck in the middle; 24 Bones, an urban fantasy which
draws from Egyptian myth; and The Terminals—a covert government
unit which solves crimes in this realm by investigating them in
the next. This series has already been optioned for film and
television with production rights having been sold to
Jim Donovan (Best Director 2013, Canadian Screen Awards) and on
to his partners of Sudden Storm Entertainment.
Herder of four daughters, Michael lives to write in Ottawa where
he runs free writing workshops for teens and adults.
Our Review of The Terminals
Michael F.Stewart has chosen an intriguing theme for his new series of adult novels entitled The Terminals. The premise is that those who are dying can be enlisted to solve crimes in this world by connecting with previously departed individuals in the next. (Imagine, for example, being able to communicate with a suicide bomber to learn the targets of future attacks.) The link between the two worlds is the psychic Atilla, who is able to receive information sent back by the terminal. Terminals are carefully chosen based on their religious and spiritual beliefs in order to enter into the realm that the criminal or terrorist inhabits in the next world. In the first episode of The Terminals, the criminal is a vicious killer named Hillar who has been killed in a police shootout after kidnapping a busload of children. The job of the Terminals Unit is to track down the location of the missing children, who are facing death without food and water to sustain them. Chosen as the terminal is Charlie, a monk who is well-versed in Gnosticism, to which the killer adheres, and who must undergo an epic battle with the forces of evil to find out the children's location.
Michael F. Stewart has written a dark thriller that explores the themes of guilt, suicide, illness and suffering, spirituality, and the underlying need for human beings to believe that their lives (and deaths) serve a greater purpose. At the same time he has woven the quest motif and the universal struggle between good and evil into the novel.
The Terminals will appeal to adult readers of speculative fiction.
Best of luck with this imaginative series, Michael!
New research suggests that the Black Death, which decimated London's population in the 14th century, was passed from human to human as a pneumonic plague. It was previously believed that the disease was a bubonic plague spread by rats.
A burial site has been uncovered in central London as part of the Crossrail excavation project, and samples from the victims have been analyzed to determine the cause of death. The new theory is that the disease spread to the
lungs of sufferers, who then passed it on to others, by coughing. Many victims would have died within 24 hours with the survival rate being much lower than for the bubonic plague. Worldwide, the Black Death is estimated to have claimed 75 million lives.
The new research is discussed in the documentary "Secret History:
Return of the Black Death," which will air on Channel 4 in the UK on April 6, 2014, at 8 p.m.
Here are some interesting horror sites and events you might want to check out.
If you like being too scared to sleep, you'll enjoy the NoSleep Podcast. The latest episode has a short story entitled "The Cecil Hotel" by Mateo Hellion. You can also visit the Hellion blog at http://www.mateohellion.com/.
Massacre Magazine is now accepting submissions for its summer
issue. The theme is "road kill". The magazine also sponsors flash
fiction. For further details, please click here.
Unleash the Fanboy has an interesting feature on the Comic Con in Lexington, Kentucky, which doubled its attendance this year. To check out this site, please click here.
And it will soon be time for the Ottawa Comiccon. The Ottawa event will be held May
9-11, 2014. (I've already bought tickets for myself and my son. We're
both looking forward to seeing Sean Astin!) To check out the Ottawa
event, please click here.
Finally, if you're following the 2013 Bram Stoker Awards, the nominees for the various categories have now been announced. Here is the list.
Alan Rodgers died on March 8, 2014, after a two-year battle with illness. He was an author and editor who wrote fantasy, science fiction, and horror, as well as poetry. He was an associate editor of The Twilight ZoneMagazine and the editor of its spinoff, Night Cry, during the 1980s.
Rodgers won a Bram Stoker Award for his novelette "The Boy who Came Back from the Dead" (1987), and his first horror novel Blood of the Children (1989) was a finalist for this award. His novel Bone Music (1995) was also nominated for a Bram Stoker Award. Among his other well-known books are the post-apocalyptic Fire and Pandora, based on the controversial sightings at Roswell, New Mexico. Some of his short works have been collected in the anthologies New Life for the Dead (which includes ""The Boy who Came Back from the Dead"), Ghosts Who Cannot Sleep, and Her Misbegotten Son.
Some of his short work was collected in New Life for the Dead (1991),
Ghosts Who Cannot Sleep (2000), and Her Misbegotten Son (2000). - See
more at:
http://www.locusmag.com/News/2014/03/alan-rodgers-1959-2014/#sthash.HCi54IJk.dpuf
Some of his short work was collected in New Life for the Dead (1991),
Ghosts Who Cannot Sleep (2000), and Her Misbegotten Son (2000). - See
more at:
http://www.locusmag.com/News/2014/03/alan-rodgers-1959-2014/#sthash.HCi54IJk.dpuf
Some of his short work was collected in New Life for the Dead (1991),
Ghosts Who Cannot Sleep (2000), and Her Misbegotten Son (2000). - See
more at:
http://www.locusmag.com/News/2014/03/alan-rodgers-1959-2014/#sthash.HCi54IJk.dpuf
Rodgers is noted for his strong narrative voice, his original use of common themes, and his compelling characters. He adeptly links apocalyptic and Biblical themes in cautionary tales of overreaching power, pandemics, and world destruction.
Publishers Weekly said of his novel Bone Music: "...Through colloquial prose that's strong and perfectly
pitched, Rodgers combines elements of horror (sometimes graphic),
fantasy, and magical realism into a unique novel that's not only an
occult standout but a captivating memoir of an important slice of
American culture."
(Sources: Wikipedia, Locus Online News, Goodreads)
The Horror Writers Association has announced that Stephen Jones, the distinguished British editor, and R.L. Stine, renowned for his best-selling Goosebumps series, are this year's winners of the Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award. The awards will be presented on May 10, 2014, as part of the Bram Stoker
Awards® Banquet at the World Horror Convention 2014 in Portland, Oregon. For more information on this year's awards and convention, please visit http://www.horror.org/stokers2014/laa.html.
Walter Williams of Lexington, Mississippi is now recovering in a hospital after being declared dead, placed in a body bag, and sent to a local funeral parlor to be embalmed. The fact that he was still alive became readily apparent to the funeral director when Williams began kicking his feet in the body bag.
What happened? Apparently, his pacemaker stopped functioning so that he appeared to be dead, but it later started up again.
The fear of being buried alive is not uncommon--in its extreme it is known as taphophobia. If you're a fan of Edgar Allan Poe, you'll recognize premature burial as one of his central themes.
Apparently, this fear peaked during the cholera epidemics of the 18th and 19th centuries. "Safety" coffins were invented with various features: glass lids for observation, breathing and feeding tubes, locks for which the interred had the key, and bells connected to ropes for signalling. (Source: Wikipedia)
As for Mr. Williams, his daughter summed up the situation succinctly: "... He wasn’t ready to go."
When I
first began researching Peter Straub for this series of posts on past Bram Stoker Award winners, I associated him primarily with his
1979 novel Ghost Story. I
was surprised to learn just how prolific a writer he is. In fact he has
been nominated for and won the Bram Stoker Award many times. His
novels TheThroat,
Mr. X, Lost
Boy Lost Girl, In the
Night Room, and A Dark
Matter received Bram Stoker
Awards in the years 1993-2010. His short story collection entitled 5
Stories also received an award
in 2007.
He has collaborated with Stephen King in the writing of two
novels: The Talisman,
which won a World Fantasy Award, and Black House,
which was nominated for a Bram Stoker Award. He has also written
poetry, novellas, and essays, and has edited numerous anthologies,
including Poe's Children.
Straub is particularly adept in writing horror involving past memories and events that shape an individual's future identity, and in the use of the story-within-a-story technique to draw out the fears and confessions of the characters who inhabit his novels.
If
you're interested in learning more about Peter Straub and his work,
please visit his website at http://www.peterstraub.net/.
You'll enjoy his tongue-in-cheek humor as he “answers” FAQs
about himself.
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The
Plaid Raccoon Press is pleased to announce the publication of
The Home Child by Lynn L. Clark. The novel tells the story of
Jake Hall, a transplanted city dweller who is trying to adjust to the
realities of country life. Jake knows it isn't going to be an easy
transition, and he's prepared for major renovations to the old farm
house he's purchased. But what he hasn't counted on is finding a
former resident still inhabiting the house in spirit form!
Synopsis
Author's Bio
SYNOPSIS
AUTHOR'S BIO
Richard H. Hardy was born in Glasgow,
Scotland, during a week of relentless bombing raids just before
the close of World War II. The day he was born an incendiary bomb
fell on the church across the street from where he lived, so he is
fond of saying that he entered the world with a big adrenaline
rush.
If you're a fan of Anne Rice's The Vampire Chronicles, you'll be pleased to know that her eleventh novel in the series, Prince Lestat, will be released on October 28, 2014. It's been eleven years since the last Chronicles novel, so the new book is creating lots of buzz. It is a sequel to the first five books of the series, and it reprises many of her most memorable characters, as well as introducing new vampires to the mix. She is already working on a follow-up novel tentatively entitled Blood Paradise. 
