Happy February

 Happy Black History and Women in Horror Month!

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Book Review: Darkest Hours

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Mike Thorn's Darkest Hours is a diverse collection of stories, that, at its best reminds me of Graham Masterton, less in style, more in terms of subject matter and gore. Some of the stories (for instance collection opener, "Hair") were a little stomach churning for my taste, but Thorn is a talented writer even when going for the gross-out. Animal lovers like myself might want to skip "Fear and Grace" and "Satanic Panic" (although the latter has a standout ending). I also found the cruelty to the creature, although it really wasn't by strict definition an animal, in "A New Kind of Drug" hard to take. Many of the stories in this collection concern the topics of academia (with academics being alternately portrayed as buffoonish or somewhat sinister) and drinking/drunkenness; the two are most amusingly combined in the clever "Speaking of Ghosts." "Long Man," concerning the titular creature that haunts children's mirro...
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TV Terrors: Tales from the Darkside

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Tales from the Darkside was produced by the late great George Romero from 1984 to 1988. It's not quite as showy as the later Tales from the Crypt , and the episodes were often low budget and kind of creaky. However, Darkside still has its charms. Here are some notable episodes listed below. What are your favorites? A Case of the Stubborns (Season 1, Episode 9) Featuring a young Christian Slater and Brent Spiner (Data from Star Trek ), A Case of the Stubborns is more gross than scary. The episode tells a humorous tale of an aged family patriarch who refuses to believe that he has actually died. Slater is great here, as is comedic actor Eddie Bracken as his rapidly decomposing but remarkably still kicking grandfather. The makeup effects on this one are pretty gnarly, and I mean that in the best way possible. I have a pretty cast iron stomach when it comes to gore, but I had to turn my face away from the grody grandpa more than a few times. Anniversary Dinner (Season 1, Epi...
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Book Review: Peel Back and See

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I read Mike Thorn's Darkest Hours about a year ago and was seriously impressed by it. Peel Back and See might be even better. There are some truly great stories in this collection, and while not every story will work for every person (and you might not want to eat before reading some of these), I found myself enjoying most of them even more than I expected. My favorites include "Mini McDonagh Manor." In this story, after her mother's death, Julie builds a replica of her childhood home, before ultimately deciding to go home and visit the real thing for the first time in years. She believes something sinister lurks there and wants to find out once and for all what it is. This is the most legitimately creepy story in the whole collection and gave me actual chills. If you like this one, make sure you also don't miss out on "Dreams of Lake Drukka," which could easily be a companion piece to "Manor." Another standout is "Deprimer," which a...
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